This is one of the questions I get asked frequently: When should I worry when my children do code-switching? First of all, the term code-switching is widely used as an umbrella term for using different languages in the same sentence, alternating them to some extent. It is not to be confused with borrowing, where a […]
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Multilingual Assessment in the Netherlands
Some international families send their children to international schools, especially if they move frequently this seems to be the best option as the curriculum of international schools is expected to be similar all over the world. Unfortunately this is not the case. There are sometimes major differences even within the same kind of “international” school […]
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How much otherness can we take?
Many of us get a clearer sense of self when we live abroad, or when we travel regularly and dive into different cultures. But how much otherness can we take? The concept of ‘otherness’ is central to sociological analyses of how majority and minority identities are constructed. In one society, the representation of different groups […]
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How to keep our languages alive while living abroad
At my kitchen table conversation– session I held at the 20th FIGT conference this year in The Hague I focused on the languages we collect during our life, and how we can keep them alive while living abroad, in different countries. Why kitchen table conversation? Because that’s where all began 20 years ago at Ruth van […]
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Do your children have moving skills?
This question might seem odd, but if you move more frequently – not necessarily internationally – do your children have moving skills? We’re not among the most mobile internationals since we have children, we only moved 4 times since my son was born (now 15yo), but during our latest move with 3 children who were […]
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