On june 15, 2021 a webinar was held as part of the Erasmus+ project Slovak for children of foreigners - a tool for teachers and parents in the inclusion of children of foreigners in the educational process in the Slovak Republic. The event was realized as an intellectual output of the State Pedagogical Institute in the form of a workshop on the Manual for the inclusion of foreign children in the educational process in the Slovak Republic.
The purpose of the webinar was to clarify:
- the country's migration situation in the context of European and global mobility;
- basic terminology of migration issues;
- the legislative background of the issues related to the processes of admission and inclusion of children of foreigners in the educational process;
- the organisation, content and planning of state language courses for children of foreigners.
The webinar was attended by 59 people who was intrested in the issue, mainly teaching and management staff from schools with a high percentage of pupils for whom Slovak is not their native language. Among the participants there were also representatives from educational centers abroad that specialise in teaching Slovak in slovak communities abroad and other professionals.
Within the programme, the lectures were given by doc. Mgr. Silvia Letavajová, PhD from the Department of Culture and Tourism Management UFK in Nitra, who proffesionally focuses on the area of modern migration, new minority communities in Slovakia, culture of ethnic minorities, majority-minority relations.
In her lecture Migration and modern migrants in Slovakia, the associate professor discussed the following topics:
- explanation of basic concepts,
- terminology of migration policy,
- migration situation of the country in the context of global mobility.
She answered the questions who are the foreigners in Slovakia, what is the purpose of their arrival, how foreigners are perceived by Slovaks. The lecture captivated the attendees and was followed by a block of questions with a discussion on the topic.
In the second part of the webinar PhDr. Janka Píšová, PhD. head of department for Language and Literature Education from ŠPÚ.
In her presentation School, classroom = safe and friendly environment" she explained the legislative background of the issues related to the processes of admission and inclusion of children of foreigners in the educational process; the organization, content and planning of courses in the state language for children of foreigners. She answered the questions:
- how to proceed in the work in the state language course
- what material to use
- what are the differences between a regular Slovak as a native language lesson and a language course, or whether a regular teacher of Slovak can also conduct a course of Slovak as a second language. At the same time, she presented the outputs of the project, which will greatly facilitate the management and pedagogical staff to orientate themselves in the issue of admission, inclusion of foreigners' children in a particular grade of primary school - Manual for the inclusion of foreigners' children in the educational process in the Slovak Republic. The translation glossary of basic terms for primary schools will be an important aid for children and teachers in the classroom.
After a brake Mgr. Eva Španová, PhD. working on SAS FF UK. She works as a lecturer and methodologist, participates in the preparation of didactic, methodological and diagnostic materials and conducts professional training for teachers and lecturers in the field of Slovak as a second/foreign language. She has prepared a lecture on Methodological and didactic inspirations for working with children in Slovak language courses.
All three presentations met with an active response from the professional public and sparked a stimulating discussion. This is also significant because the number of foreigners in Slovakia is increasing and with it the number of children of foreigners in our schools is also growing. Each of these children has its own specific needs, comes from a different cultural background and it is necessary to approach each of them sensitively and individually. We are therefore planning to continue this theme at the next event to be organised by iCan at the end of 2021, which we will inform you about on our website and social media in due course.
The purpose of the webinar was to clarify:
- the country's migration situation in the context of European and global mobility;
- basic terminology of migration issues;
- the legislative background of the issues related to the processes of admission and inclusion of children of foreigners in the educational process;
- the organisation, content and planning of state language courses for children of foreigners.
The webinar was attended by 59 people who was intrested in the issue, mainly teaching and management staff from schools with a high percentage of pupils for whom Slovak is not their native language. Among the participants there were also representatives from educational centers abroad that specialise in teaching Slovak in slovak communities abroad and other professionals.
Within the programme, the lectures were given by doc. Mgr. Silvia Letavajová, PhD from the Department of Culture and Tourism Management UFK in Nitra, who proffesionally focuses on the area of modern migration, new minority communities in Slovakia, culture of ethnic minorities, majority-minority relations.
In her lecture Migration and modern migrants in Slovakia, the associate professor discussed the following topics:
- explanation of basic concepts,
- terminology of migration policy,
- migration situation of the country in the context of global mobility.
She answered the questions who are the foreigners in Slovakia, what is the purpose of their arrival, how foreigners are perceived by Slovaks. The lecture captivated the attendees and was followed by a block of questions with a discussion on the topic.
In the second part of the webinar PhDr. Janka Píšová, PhD. head of department for Language and Literature Education from ŠPÚ.
In her presentation School, classroom = safe and friendly environment" she explained the legislative background of the issues related to the processes of admission and inclusion of children of foreigners in the educational process; the organization, content and planning of courses in the state language for children of foreigners. She answered the questions:
- how to proceed in the work in the state language course
- what material to use
- what are the differences between a regular Slovak as a native language lesson and a language course, or whether a regular teacher of Slovak can also conduct a course of Slovak as a second language. At the same time, she presented the outputs of the project, which will greatly facilitate the management and pedagogical staff to orientate themselves in the issue of admission, inclusion of foreigners' children in a particular grade of primary school - Manual for the inclusion of foreigners' children in the educational process in the Slovak Republic. The translation glossary of basic terms for primary schools will be an important aid for children and teachers in the classroom.
After a brake Mgr. Eva Španová, PhD. working on SAS FF UK. She works as a lecturer and methodologist, participates in the preparation of didactic, methodological and diagnostic materials and conducts professional training for teachers and lecturers in the field of Slovak as a second/foreign language. She has prepared a lecture on Methodological and didactic inspirations for working with children in Slovak language courses.
All three presentations met with an active response from the professional public and sparked a stimulating discussion. This is also significant because the number of foreigners in Slovakia is increasing and with it the number of children of foreigners in our schools is also growing. Each of these children has its own specific needs, comes from a different cultural background and it is necessary to approach each of them sensitively and individually. We are therefore planning to continue this theme at the next event to be organised by iCan at the end of 2021, which we will inform you about on our website and social media in due course.