CLILNetLE at Midterm: Achievements and Future Directions

Reflecting on Our Progress

As CLILNetLE reaches its midterm milestone, COST Action leader Julia Hüttner shares insights into the network’s achievements so far.

“We’ve successfully completed the first phase of gathering baseline information on disciplinary literacies in relation to CLIL,” Hüttner explains. “This has resulted in four comprehensive reports, freely available on our website and the Phaidra repository. These reports provide a detailed overview of how CLIL is implemented across member countries and examine bi- and multilingual disciplinary literacies in key subjects such as Science, History, and Mathematics.”

Key Findings from Our Working Groups

The network’s working groups have made significant contributions:

• Working Group 3 for example, examined the curricular status of disciplinary literacies, exploring what is expected of learners in their development.
• Working Group 4 focused on the digital dimension of bi- and multilingual disciplinary literacies, surveying over 500 teachers and nearly 5,000 students. These insights provide a valuable snapshot of classroom realities across Europe.

Hüttner notes that these reports serve as a strong foundation for further research. They open up opportunities for deeper exploration of specific aspects and pave the way for future publications.

A Collaborative Effort, Not Just a Project

CLILNetLE is more than just a research initiative—it’s a network of scholars, educators, and experts collaborating across borders. Hüttner emphasizes that it isn’t just a project where researchers are funded to produce results, but rather it’s a space where individuals bring their expertise, research, and passion to work collectively with others, mainly from across Europe.

Bringing Research into the Classroom

The next phase of CLILNetLE focuses on transforming research findings into practical resources for teachers and teacher educators. Hüttner explains that the Action wants to ensure that educators recognize the importance of disciplinary literacies and have access to effective strategies and best practices from different countries.

A major highlight of this phase is research training for new scholars in the field. This week, we’re launching our first on-site teacher training workshop in Leiden,” she shares. “It’s an exciting moment to see how our research can be applied directly to real-world classrooms—in this case, in Dutch classrooms.”

Looking Ahead with Pride and Excitement

With over 240 members actively engaged, CLILNetLE continues to grow. Hüttner notes that it’s incredibly rewarding to see how this initiative has evolved through collaboration. The dedication of our Working Groups, especially in conducting large-scale surveys, provides a solid foundation for future research and cross-context comparisons.

Reflecting on the journey so far, Hüttner expresses a deep sense of happiness and pride in how far CLILNetLE has come in just two years and how engaged people are in the Action.

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