#OnlineLanguageSupport: how it works, who can benefit, available languages

Online Language Support

The Online Language Support (OLS) is designed to help Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps participants improve their knowledge of the language in which they will work, study or volunteer abroad so that they can make the most out of this experience.

As the lack of language skills remains one of the main barriers to the participation in European education, training and youth mobility opportunities, OLS makes language support accessible in a flexible and easy way. It also contributes to a specific objective of the Erasmus+ programme, which is to promote language learning and linguistic diversity.

Access

If you have already been selected to go abroad with the Erasmus+ or European Solidarity Corps programmes, your institution or organisation will send you a login and a password to access OLS.

Access the Online Language Support website

For further details, please contact your sending institution or coordinating organisation, or National Agency.

Who can benefit

The OLS is currently available for participants from the following Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps fields

  • higher education
  • European Solidarity Corps
  • Vocational Education and Training (VET)
  • adult learning (including staff from all fields of Education and Training and Youth)
  • schools
  • youth
Available languages

OLS will be available for all European Union languages: Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, German, Greek, English, Estonian, Spanish, Finnish, French, Irish Gaelic, Croatian, Hungarian, Italian, Lithuanian, Latvian, Maltese, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovenian and Swedish.

On top of this, OLS will also be available in the official languages of Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps programme countries: Icelandic, Macedonian, Norwegian, Serbian and Turkish.

How it works

By taking the OLS language assessment when going abroad, Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps participants are able to determine their proficiency in the language they will use to study, work or volunteer and get access to a personalised language learning pathway.

Taking this assessment in the language of the mobility before departure is a prerequisite for higher education students going on mobility for 14 days or more, to make sure that they meet the recommended level at their receiving organisation (except for native speakers or in duly justified cases). The results of the language assessment do not prevent participants from taking part in Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps programmes.

Participants who wish to improve their language proficiency have the opportunity to follow online language courses before and during their time abroad. Access to the language course includes a great variety of interactive and tailor-made activities. Participants can follow language courses in any of the available languages on OLS without limitation to the number of languages and study units.

In certain cases where the main language is not covered by OLS, linguistic support is provided through other means by the sending or the receiving organisation. Upon their return, participants can take a final assessment, which allows them to measure the progress made during their stay abroad.

Didattica Laboratoriale nelle discipline di base – nuovo volume #RicercheIndire

Didattica laboratoriale nelle discipline di base, nuovo volume della collana Carocci “Ricerche INDIRE”

È possibile promuovere una didattica attiva e laboratoriale per le discipline di base della scuola secondaria di secondo grado? E come la si può diffondere per far sì che diventi la pratica prevalente all’interno di un’istituzione scolastica?

Il volume “Didattica laboratoriale e discipline di base”, a cura delle ricercatrici INDIRE Loredana Camizzi e Serena Goracci, appena uscito per Carocci editore, presenta i risultati di una ricerca-azione partecipata svolta da INDIRE con l’IISS “Enriques Agnoletti” di Sesto Fiorentino (FI) e con la dirigente scolastica dell’Istituto Silvia Baldaccini.

Partendo dall’osservazione e dall’analisi di alcune pratiche didattiche in matematica, fisica, scienze e italiano, sono stati individuati alcuni fattori comuni che sembrano caratterizzare una specifica accezione di “laboratorialità” attinente tanto agli aspetti curricolari (ad esempio l’approccio induttivo e la selezione oculata dei contenuti) quanto a quelli di mediazione didattica (come l’uso frequente della discussione, del lavoro di gruppo o della verbalizzazione scritta degli studenti). Facendo leva su questi elementi trasversali, le pratiche laboratoriali sono state diffuse all’interno della scuola, trovando un buon riscontro e consolidamento.

I percorsi didattici realizzati nelle quattro discipline sono illustrati nel dettaglio nella seconda parte del volume e costituiscono un utile stimolo per tutti i docenti interessati.

La ricerca indica come l’innovazione delle pratiche didattiche debba coinvolgere parallelamente le due dimensioni (curricolare e metodologica), in un lavoro collegiale all’interno dei dipartimenti e dei consigli di classe.

Registrati al sito e scarica la versione elettronica gratuita del volume >>

Tutte le pubblicazioni della collana Ricerche Indire >>

Shaping European identity through history education

https://school-education.ec.europa.eu/en/insights/news/shaping-european-identity-through-history-education

https://school-education.ec.europa.eu/en/insights

A European dimension in history education helps foster European values and citizenship.

EU flag flying in front of a building

lastfurianec / Adobe Stock

Exploring the concept of the European Dimension

The European Dimension (ED) concept initially focused on fostering closer relations between the educational systems of different European countries. It has since evolved to encompass broader objectives, including the promotion of pupil exchanges, language teaching, international schools, teacher training and teacher mobility.

The ED covers three distinct ideas: education in Europe, education about Europe and education for Europe. This multifaceted approach underscores the importance of integrating European perspectives into educational practices across disciplines.

History teaching and the European Dimension
Based on the core principles of the ED, the European Dimension in History Teaching (EDiHT)aims to create and develop a sense of European identity among students. It does so by emphasising Europe’s political, social, economic and cultural knowledge, alongside the values of humanism, democracy and tolerance.

The European Association of History Educators (EuroClio) sees the EDiHT as vital for nurturing a European historical consciousness and promoting peace and democracy.

The EDiHT aims to:

  • eliminate bias and prejudice from history teaching;
  • reconcile the conflicts and disagreements between European countries by emphasising their historical unity and diversity;
  • reflect political, social, economic, cultural and intellectual dimensions of history from various perspectives to represent Europe’s multiculturalism;
  • develop students’ skills in analysing historical documents and in questioning and recognising diverse perspectives.
Safeguarding history education
The Observatory on History Teaching in Europe (OHTE) was established in 2020 under the Council of Europe to support both the development of history teaching in European countries and the EDiHT.

By fostering a deeper understanding of European history and values, teaching the EDiHT equips learners with the knowledge and skills needed to contribute to a more cohesive and inclusive European community.

Further reading

OHTE General report on the state of history teaching in Europe, 2024

Additional information
  • Education type: School Education
  • Target audience:Teacher Student Teacher Head Teacher / Principal Teacher Educator Government staff / policy maker Researcher
  • Target audience ISCED:Primary education (ISCED 1) Lower secondary education (ISCED 2) Upper secondary education (ISCED 3)