3rd Service-Learning Conference on Bilingualism and Bilingual Education (English-Spanish)

Date: 09-May-2025 - 09-May-2025
Location: Online
Contact: Natalia Mora-López
Meeting URL: https://www.ucm.es/aps_escuela_bilinguismo/iii-jornadas-aps-bilinguismo

Linguistic Field(s): Applied Linguistics; Language Acquisition
Subject Language(s): English (eng)
Spanish (spa)

Recent studies highlight the value of bilingual education in facilitating the employability of graduates, among other positive aspects. However, they also reveal controversy and differing opinions among families whose children are enrolled in bilingual education programs (Martínez-Garrido, Hidalgo, & Moreno-Medina, 2022). Other studies have explored the perceptions of different stakeholders involved in education (Díaz Pastor & Jiménez-Jiménez, 2020; Durán-Martínez et al., 2016; Esparza Montero & Belmonte, 2019; Jaén Campos & Martín González, 2022; Lasagabaster & Doiz, 2016), as well as the implementation of bilingual education in regions such as Madrid (Llinares & Dafouz, 2010).
Society increasingly demands expert knowledge from the educational community to better understand what kind of education to provide for their children and the future benefits of acquiring a global language like English. Many parents struggle to see the advantages of bilingual education, believing that learning subjects like geography in English is counterproductive and hinders content comprehension. This issue is even more pressing in vulnerable environments, where opportunities linked to bilingualism are scarce, and monolingual education is often perceived as the only viable option. Providing these families with the necessary resources to navigate a demanding job market—where English proficiency is increasingly expected—is essential for addressing social injustice and the persistent gender gap, which is particularly pronounced in economically disadvantaged contexts.
The project "School for Parents on Bilingualism and English Learning," funded by the Office of Service-Learning at the Complutense University of Madrid, is organizing the 3rd Service-Learning Conference on Bilingualism and Bilingual Education (English-Spanish), which will be held online on May 9, 2025. This project brings together teachers and students from various educational institutions and universities to raise awareness among families about the importance of bilingual education (English-Spanish) for their children, emphasizing its role as a social transformation tool that supports Agenda 2030 goals, such as gender equality and reducing inequalities. The project follows the service-learning philosophy, an educational approach that combines learning with community assistance. One of its main goals is to raise awareness within the academic community about the importance of this teaching methodology and explore ways to improve the teaching and learning of English in the education system.

Young researchers and members of the educational community are invited to submit a 250-word abstract (excluding references) in English or Spanish on one of the following topics (but not limited to these):
1. Proposals for improving the implementation of bilingual education (English-Spanish).
2. Strategies for parents to help their children improve their English proficiency.
3. The creation of educational materials to help parents understand bilingual education and bilingualism.
4. Studies on opinions and misconceptions about bilingual education (English-Spanish) and factors influencing its perception.
5. Comparisons between monolingual and bilingual education.
6. Bilingual education as a tool for social equality.
7. The relationship between English proficiency and job market access.
8. The role of language academies in English learning in Spain.
9. The application of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Agenda 2030 to English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teaching.
10. Innovation projects, Service-Learning (SL), or research on bilingual education (English-Spanish) and English learning.
11. Any other topic related to bilingual education (English-Spanish).

Submission Guidelines:
• Proposals must be anonymous and submitted in Word (.doc) or PDF format in English or Spanish.
• Accepted proposals will be presented as 15-minute oral presentations, followed by a 5-minute Q&A session.
• Submissions should be sent to [email protected] by April 13, 2025 (inclusive).
• In a separate document, authors must provide a short biography (max. 100 words).
• Acceptance notifications will be sent by April 15, 2025.
• Registration is free for presenters and attendees, and a certificate of participation will be provided.
For more information, contact Dr. Natalia Mora López ([email protected]) or visit the project website: https://www.ucm.es/aps_escuela_bilinguismo/.

References
- Díaz Pastor, M. & Jiménez-Jiménez, M. A. (2020). Percepción de los agentes educativos sobre la enseñanza en contextos bilingües. European Scientific Journal, 16(41), 79-89.
- Durán-Martínez, R., Beltrán-Llavador, F. & Martínez-Abad, F. (2016). A contrastive analysis between novice and expert teachers’ perceptions of school bilingual programmes. Cultura y Educación, 28(4), 738-770.
- Esparza Montero, C. Mª. & Belmonte, Mª. L. (2019). Percepción docente sobre el bilingüismo en centros de educación infantil y educación primaria de la Región de Murcia. Revista Complutense de Educación, 31(2), 251-260.
- Jaén Campos, M. & Martín González, D. (2022). How do language experts conceptualize bilingualism and bilingual education in a monolingual context? A Service-Learning approach. In M. Velero Redondo, M. Tabuenca Bengoa and C. Molina Hernández (coords.), Transferencia del conocimiento en humanidades y ciencias jurídicas. Innovación docente y educativa en el ámbito de las filologías, la lengua y el derecho (pp. 95-116). Dykinson.
- Lasagabaster, D. & Doiz, A. (2016). CLIL students’ perceptions of their language learning process: delving into selfperceived improvement and instructional preferences. Language Awareness, 25(2), 110-126.
Llinares, A. & Dafouz, E. (2010). Content and language integrated programmes in the Madrid region: overview and research findings. In Y. Ruiz de -- Zarobe and D. Lasagabaster (eds.), CLIL in Spain: implementation, results, and teacher training (pp. 95114). Cambridge Scholars.
Martínez-Garrido, C., Hidalgo, N. & Moreno-Medina, I. (2022). El debate del bilingüismo. Percepciones de las familias sobre el programa educativo bilingüe en la Comunidad de Madrid. Bordón, 74(3), 35- 50.