11th EDILIC Conference

The 11th EDILIC Conference invites researchers, educators, and practitioners to submit original research papers, ideally combining a solid review of the literature with a sound analysis of case studies, intervention studies, or innovative teaching practices aligned with the conference themes and its sub-themes. Submissions should contribute to our understanding of how pluralistic approaches can enhance plurilingual literacy development and empower learners, teachers, and communities across various contexts.

Call for Papers as PDF.

Presentation formats

• Organised symposia (90-minutes slot including one symposium presentation, three individual presentations and discussion);
• Individual papers (20-minutes presentation plus 10 minutes for discussion);
• Workshops (90-minutes slot, including theoretical background and hands-on work);
• Pitch presentations (five-minute individual presentations, which will be integrated into two timeslots in the programme, followed by a discussion moderated by a member of the EDILIC committee)

Please note: All presentation formats should be bilingual (including English, French, and/or German).

Submission guidelines

• Abstracts should be no more than 300 words (excluding references).
• All submissions must adhere to the APA 7 citation style.
• Please submit your abstract by 25th November 2024 via the tool Indico:
  • https://www.conferences.uni-hamburg.de/event/536/ (you can toggle between languages in your profile in the upper right corner of the website)
• Abstracts should be bilingual, including English, French, and/or German.
• To submit an organized symposium, please submit four separate abstracts:
  
  • one that presents the symposium (this must include the titles of the individual presentations WITHOUT the names of the authors);
  • one abstract for each of the three individual presentations.

Keynote-Speaker

Mirjam Egli Cuenat (Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz, Schweiz) und Jean-François de Pietro (Université de Neuchâtel, Schweiz): "Textum texere : des espaces de bi-/plurilittératie à découvrir et développer" (Presentation in French with PPT in English and German)

Après une première ébauche de cadrage, de questionnement et de définition, nous présenterons quelques recherches actuelles sur la bi-/plurilittératie. Nous illustrerons notre propos par quelques exemples de pratiques didactiques permettant de construire des ressources et compétences de littératie plurilingues, de l’école primaire à la formation des enseignants. L'accent sera mis sur les enjeux d’une didactisation de ces notions, en visant ce faisant à ouvrir quelques pistes concrètes pour une mise en pratique et le développement de nouveaux espaces de découverte et d’apprentissage.

Jean-François de Pietro, formerly a research associate at the Institut de recherche et de documentation pédagogique (IRDP, Neuchâtel, Switzerland) and now retired, is a linguist and language didactician. His main research interests are the teaching and learning of French, plurilingualism and approaches to language awareness (EOLE, EVLANG, CARAP). He is one of the founding members of EDILIC.

Mirjam Egli Cuenat, a researcher and teacher trainer, holds the Chair of Foreign Language Didactics at the FHNW University of Teacher Education, Institute for Primary Education, Brugg, Switzerland. Her research interests include bi-/pluriliteracy, L3 teaching and learning, plurilingual and intercultural education and curricula. She also works as an expert at the Council of Europe in Strasbourg and Graz.

Cesar Cumbe (Pedagogical University of Maputo, Mozambique): "Littératies plurilingues, polygraphes et multimodales en Afrique australe : les écritures urbaines du Mozambique (Maputo)" (Presentation in French with PPT in English)

Maputo, ville hospitalière, capitale cosmopolite, «laboratoire social» (Robert Ezra Park, 1915) théâtre d´expositions et de circulations multiples, attire la diaspora des quatre coins du monde (africaine, asiatique, européenne, américaine). Ses littératies en question (Fraenkel 2021, Moliné et Moore 2012) et différentes formes d´expressions urbaines en relation (pratiques linguistiques, sémiotiques, graphiques, iconographiques, discursives, scripturales, artistiques…) donnent à voir et à lire la dynamique des transformations contemporaines en Afrique australe, qui sont à la fois linguistiques, sociales, culturelles, cultuelles, économiques et politiques. Dans la présente conférence, nous nous proposons d’explorer les littératies plurilingues, polygraphes et multimodales en Afrique australe à partir du terrain sociolinguistique mozambicain en devenir. Notre corpus est puisé dans l´espace urbain, éducatif, artistique, commercial et numérique que nous examinerons sur le prisme de la sociolinguistique urbaine et anthropologie de l´écriture.

César Cumbe from Mozambique is lecturer and researcher at the Pedagogical University, Maputo-Mozambique (Faculty of Language Sciences, Communication and Arts), holding a doctorate in Language Sciences (Université Paris Descartes Sorbonne). He is the author of numerous publications on urban linguistic practices in their many facets, and is interested in plurilingual and plurimodal literacies inside and outside school.

Claudine Kirsch (University of Luxemburg): "Towards Multiliteracies in early childhood education in Luxembourg" (Presentation in English with PPT in German)

Nobody doubts that experiences with multiliteracies positively influence the development of children’s language and literacy skills. However, research shows that such practices vary significantly in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC), both within and across countries. This variation is also evident in multilingual Luxembourg. Based on research studies, this presentation maps multiliteracy practices in formal and non-formal ECEC settings in Luxembourg. The findings reveal that educators engaged children in activities in one or more languages almost daily, and that these practices depended on the professionals’ understanding of multilingualism, literacy, and language learning. The practitioners offered activities along a continuum from oral to written, monomodal to multimodal, and monolingual to multilingual which influenced children’s participation and meaning-making in different ways. I argue that professionals need to be responsive to children’s interests, needs, and languages to help them engage both in literacy activities and with literacy itself, which, in turn, fosters their learning.

Claudine Kirsch is full professor. at the University of Luxembourg which she joined in January 2012, having previously worked at Goldsmiths, University of London, and as a primary teacher in multilingual Luxembourg. She is head of the Research Institute of Multilingualism and leads the branch BilingualismMatters@Luxembourg. Her research interests include multilingualism, language learning and teaching, literacies, early childhood education, family language policies, well-being, and professional development. Her most recent research explores collaboration with parents and multilingual literacies in ECEC in Luxembourg (COMPARE), the development of multilingual pedagogies (MuLiPEC) and the influence of COVID-19 on children’s subjective well-being and stay-at home-experiences (COVID-Kids).

Sunny Lau (Bishop's University, Canada): "Dual Language Tandem Teaching: la collaboration interlinguistique des enseignants pour promouvoir la responsabilité interculturelle" (Presentation in French with PPT in English)

La conception de la langue comme un phénomène dynamique chez les individus plurilingues (Moore et al., 2020) bouleverse l'objectif de l'apprentissage linguistique, passant d'une compétence native à une compétence plurilingue. Cette dernière inclut diverses attitudes et stratégies pour naviguer dans des espaces culturels différents (Hofer, 2023). Cependant, de nombreux programmes bilingues continuent d'enseigner les langues en silos, négligeant les connexions interlinguistiques et gaspillant les ressources plurilingues des élèves. Cette communication présente mes recherches sur le « Dual Language Tandem Teaching » (DLTT) (Howard & Simpson, 2024), impliquant des enseignant.es de français et d’anglais pour promouvoir la responsabilité interculturelle (Guilherme, 2021). En collaborant, les enseignant.es définissent des objectifs linguistiques et curriculaires respectifs et communs, créant ainsi une cohérence conceptuelle et approfondissant la compréhension des enjeux éco-sociaux. La DLTT, fondée sur un cadre de bi-littératie, humanise la pédagogie et promeut l'équité ainsi que le changement social dans l'enseignement des langues.

Sunny Lau, a full professor at Bishop's University in Quebec, holds the Canada Research Chair (Tier 2) in Multilingual Teaching and Learning. She has initiated research into the use of plurilingual approaches to teaching critical literacies. Supported by a range of external funding, her participatory action research bridges the gap between theory and practice by working with teachers to promote intercultural responsibility. She was recently awarded a SSHRC grant (2023-2027) to examine collaboration between English and French teachers in Quebec and British Columbia. She is co-editor of Critical Inquiry for Language Studies.

Nicole Marx (Universität zu Köln, Germany) und Irina Usanova (Universität Hamburg, Germany): "Writing across languages. Languages across writing. Exploring plurilingual writing development" (Presentation in English with PPT in German)

Writing is a complex skill that relies on various cognitive, metacognitive, and linguistic resources. Successful writers are able to coordinate and effectively use these resources during the writing process. In plurilingual contexts, students may develop writing skills in multiple languages, thereby expanding the resources at their disposal. In our presentation, we will address the questions of transversality and transfer of linguistic resources in plurilingual writing and discuss pedagogical approaches to enhancing plurilingual writing skills.

Nicole Marx has been Full Professor of German as a Second/Foreign Language since 2009. She currently leads the Department of Language and Learning at the Mercator Institute for Literacy and Language Education at the University of Cologne. Her research interests include writing for plurilingual learners, multilingual acquisition and multilingual didactics as well as language learning and language support for newly immigrated pupils.

Irina Usanova is a post-doctoral researcher in the Faculty of Education at the University of Hamburg. She leads the junior research group "Multiliteracy as a labor market resource (MARE)," funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research. Her research focuses on migration and the development of multilingual literacy skills.

Important Dates:

• Abstract submission deadline: 15th November 2024 / extended until 25th November 2024
• Notification of acceptance: 10th January 2025
• Registration (early-bird fee): from 1st January to 28th February 2025
• Registration (regular fee): from 1st March to 30th June 2025
• Submission of full papers/chapters for publication: 31st January 2026

Conference Fees:

• Registration (early-bird fee): 140 € (EDILIC members); 80 € (student); 200 € (non-EDILIC members)
• Registration (normal fee): 190 € (EDILIC members); 130 € (student); 250 € (non-EDILIC members)
• Conference get-together, with music, drinks and finger food (23rd July): 50 € (EDILIC and non-EDILIC members) and 25 € (student)

To become a member of EDILIC and benefit from discounted registration, proceed as indicated on the association’s website: https://en.edilic.org/copie-de-devenir-membre-1

Conference Venue:

Faculty of Education,

Von-Melle-Park 8,

20146 Hamburg

The conference will be held at the Faculty of Education of the Universität Hamburg (Germany). Participants are invited to bring pastries, biscuits, and other snacks from their regions for the enjoyment of their colleagues.

Find out more about travel and tips about Hamburg.