Multi-STEM is a research project that aims to promote the participation of multilingual children in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education.
Subprojects
Children with a migration background can encounter obstacles in Dutch education.
Developing multilingual strategies for STEM education
Multi-STEM wants to ensure that multilingual children feel seen and heard, and that they can fully participate in education.
Multilingual children possess knowledge and skills in their home language that are lost in a monolingual Dutch environment.
That’s why Multi-STEM is developing an approach where both Dutch and home languages can be used.
Allowing a child to use all of their languages not only improves school performance, but also ensures that the child feels seen and involved.
Recent Blog Posts
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The “Golden Weeks”—a great time to make space for multilingualism
The so called “Golden Weeks” are upon us—the first few weeks of the school year, where educators have the chance to set expectations and lay a stellar foundation for the coming year. This is an important time for teachers and school support staff, but also for students and caregivers: it’s a clean slate of sorts,…
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A partnership between researchers and a science museum: A joint reflection
In this post, a researcher and a museum professional reflect on the co-design of bilingual instructions for a museum workshop for families. The goal was to make the workshop more inclusive and inviting to migrant families where parents and children may have different levels of Dutch proficiency. Check out the post to learn what our…
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The power of language portraits: Get to better know your students
A language portrait is a visual representation of the languages a person knows. Both educators and caregivers can use this simple, yet powerful tool. The power of language portraits rests in their potential to foster conversations where people can feel seen, heard, and valued.
