Posts

Shared Language

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English : a Global Bridge. Last night, on 6 February 2026, the Winter Olympics opened in Milan .  For a few special moments, the world felt closer .  During the Opening Ceremony, athletes from many countries stood together. They carried different flags, spoke different languages , and came from different cultures , but they shared the same place and the same moment. One important moment was the speech by Giovanni Malagò , President of the Italian Olympic Committee. He spoke in English .  This choice was very meaningful. It was not only about rules or tradition.  It was a way to speak to everyone and to include people from all over the world. https://x.com/iocmedia/status/2018389744929898851?s=20 https://www.olympics.com/ioc/news/ioc-president-s-speech-milano-cortina-2026-olympic-winter-games-opening-ceremony In that moment, English was more than a language .  It became a bridge between countries, cultures, and millions of people watching at home. The ceremony...

Learning by doing

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  Dall’apprendimento all’azione  Nella scuola di oggi uno dei concetti più rilevanti, ma anche più spesso fraintesi, è quello di agency . Tradotta in italiano come agentività , la nozione deriva dal verbo inglese to act e indica la capacità delle persone di agire in modo intenzionale sulla propria vita e sul contesto in cui operano. Come sottolinea lo psicologo canadese Albert Bandura, gli individui non sono semplici spettatori del proprio comportamento, ma soggetti attivi: si organizzano, prendono iniziative, si autoregolano e riflettono sulle proprie azioni, contribuendo a costruire le proprie circostanze di vita. Nel contesto scolastico, la agency rappresenta un elemento centrale per valutare le scelte metodologiche dei docenti, le politiche educative, l’efficacia degli interventi didattici e la qualità degli apprendimenti. Le ricerche più recenti nelle scienze dell’apprendimento mostrano infatti che, quando gli studenti hanno la possibilità di esercitare la propria agenc...

A call for change

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  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PivWY9wn5ps È tempo di cambiare È tempo di fare un cambiamento. Il progresso e le nuove scoperte offrono costantemente nuovi modi di comprendere come impariamo, comunichiamo e ci relazioniamo gli uni con gli altri. Nel corso della storia, gli esseri umani si sono sempre adattati al cambiamento — dall’invenzione della ruota alle tecnologie digitali, dall’intelligenza artificiale agli ambienti immersivi.   L’istruzione, come la società, non può restare ferma . Questa necessità di cambiamento è particolarmente evidente nell’insegnamento delle lingue. Le ricerche in neurolinguistica e comunicazione dimostrano che una lingua non si apprende solo attraverso le regole, ma attraverso l’esperienza, l’interazione, l’emozione e il significato.  La lingua vive nella comunicazione reale, nelle relazioni, nei momenti condivisi. Ed è qui che musica e canzoni entrano naturalmente in gioco. Le canzoni non sono solo materiali didattici; sono atti vivi di ...

Languages in Olympism

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Olympic Voices Across Generations Giovedì 29 gennaio 2026 -  presso l’Università IULM - Milano si è svolto un incontro dedicato al rapporto tra grandi eventi sportivi e didattica delle lingue , in vista dei Giochi Olimpici e Paralimpici Invernali-  Milano - Cortina 2026    In vista dei Giochi Olimpici e Paralimpici Invernali, l’evento ha offerto uno spazio di confronto su idee e attività didattiche innovative , ispirate ai valori olimpici. In questo contesto si inserisce il volume GIOCHI , con otto scenari in quattro lingue   pensati per coinvolgere attivamente gli studenti e valorizzare le loro competenze linguistiche e culturali. Gli scenari di  GIOCHI   https://draft.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/8480049043982740266/3808643765733525989 trovano pieno senso grazie al quadro  teorico offerto da  La classe plurilingue - Insegnare con un approccio orientato all'azione-  https://draft.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/8480049043982740266/76049589762...

Sport : universal language

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  Olympic Games : Sport as Universal Language The Olympic Games  are one of the events that most clearly highlight the importance of languages in today ’ s world. Athletes from all over the globe come together in one place, bringing with them not only their sporting skills but also their languages and cultures. By listening to interviews, press conferences, or simply observing how athletes interact, it becomes evident how many different languages coexist during the Games. In this context, language plays a fundamental role in communication. The Olympic Games have  official languages , such as  French and English,  alongside the language of the host country. However, this is often not enough. A vast system of translation and interpreting is needed to ensure that everyone can understand one another, showing that language is an essential structure of the event, just as important as the sports venues themselves. Languages are not used only to convey information. Wh...

Milano-Cortina 2026

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  The Winter Olympics :  6 - 22 February 2026       As the opening ceremony approaches, the Milan–Cortina Games are emerging as a global event with significance that goes beyond sport, extending into culture and territory. These Olympics introduce an innovative model, based on the distribution of venues between major cities and alpine locations, and on the reuse of existing infrastructure. In this sense, Milan–Cortina becomes a contemporary laboratory where sport, sustainability, and national identity intersect, raising crucial questions about local impact, mobility, and environmental protection. It is not just a celebration of sport It is a vision of the future of global events -------------------------- From Milan’s fashion scene to Cortina’s scenic monuments What to expect at Italy’s winter games https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChKOpFonEP4 The video presents the Milan–Cortina Winter Games as a departure from the traditional idea of a single, compact Oly...

SERVAS

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  Music has always been at the center of education and human learning . As a powerful educational tool, it supports cognitive development, enhances memory, and fosters emotional intelligence. Through song, complex concepts become accessible, language is strengthened, and learning becomes more engaging and meaningful. Music encourages active participation, creativity, and critical thinking, transforming education into an inclusive and dynamic process. In this way, it does not simply support learning—it shapes it, guiding learners toward deeper understanding and lifelong curiosity.  At PIME in Milan, in our English for Travel course, we started the new year with a virtual and musical journey. The journey began with a song: the anthem of the international association SERVAS https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uXH4uvF-cA S E R V A S https://servas.org/ Servas is an international group that works for peace by helping people meet each other in a simple, personal way. The idea is tha...