We’re delighted to introduce Sandie Mourão as a distinguished plenary speaker at our upcoming conference!
Meet Sandie Mourão
A seasoned research fellow at Nova University Lisbon, Professor Mourão brings over 35 years of expertise in English language teaching. Her passions encompass a range of vital topics, from early language learning to integrating picture books in education and the nuanced challenges of intercultural and classroom-based research.
Plenary Talk
Challenging the Impossible: Picturebooks as Changemakers in the Language Classroom
Picturebooks are a magical, multimodal form of children’s literature and, in the field of foreign language education, have been considered a rich and authentic source of meaningful input for over four decades. Although associated with younger learners, it is now widely accepted that contemporary picturebooks are not age limited, for a good picturebook will invite readers of all ages to use their critical interpretative skills to reflect deeply on the often-complex issues they find there. Carefully selected picturebooks are valuable as resources for integrating other areas of the curriculum, such as contemporary citizenship. They can become the vehicles to support and foster the development of necessary competences for a democratic citizenship.
In my talk/performance, I will be sharing picturebooks with you that present opportunities for integrating contemporary citizenship issues into the language classroom – issues which, until now, you might not have considered were part of a language teachers’ responsibility. My aim is to (re)introduce you to the picturebook, to demonstrate the compelling and challenging themes it can embody and encourage you to support intercultural exploration and civic engagement through English. I will challenge you to contemplate the role of language learning in education today and to (re)consider what you might think is impossible – that picturebooks can be changemakers.
Workshop
Picturebooks for Intercultural Citizenship Education in Early Language Learning
Intercultural Citizenship Education combines intercultural communicative competence of language education and civic action of citizenship education. Intercultural Citizenship Education through Picturebooks in Early English Language Learning (ICEPELL) is an award-winning Erasmus+ project which aims to support practitioners to confidently integrate Intercultural Citizenship Education into their primary EFL lessons and library sessions. In this workshop, I will show how picturebooks can be used as catalysts for taking action and virtual exchange activities and present an example teaching pack to demonstrate how it supports the development of intercultural citizens in English.
