Content and language integrated learning: some key prnciples

The adoption of CLIL programmes – which is being taken into consideration more and more by national schools systems – represents a considerable challenge. This is because by adopting a CLIL approach, a promise is being made, namely, that foreign language development occur through subject-matter learning and that content be learnt through the foreign language. The challenge resides in the necessity to recognize the obstacles to this development and in the ability to choose suitable teaching strategies. The article has chosen to focus particularly on the meaning of the CLIL acronym to highlight the principal implications of its language dimension and how this impacts at various levels.