CLIL in Brief | CLIL Key Terms | CLIL Milestones | CLIL Potential

The CLIL Compendium Rationale

The CLIL Compendium results from a research-driven project which has focussed on identifying the dimensions of CLIL . It aims to be comprehensive but not exhaustive. Just as it identifies the foundations, so it is itself, a foundation by which to build greater understanding of the potential of CLIL.

Insight into the dimensions of CLIL practice allow us to identify the core principles of this educational approach as it is done in very different European contexts.

In the CLIL Compendium there are 5 dimensions based on issues relating to culture, environment, language, content and learning. Each of these includes a number of focus points realized differently according to 3 major factors: age-range of learners, socio-linguistic environment, and degree of exposure to CLIL.

The dimensions are idealized and usually heavily inter-related in CLIL practice. This means that in real-life implementation of CLIL, it is likely that a school will wish to achieve successful outcomes in relation to more than one dimension at the same time.

The CLIL Compendium has been launched alongside the publication of Profiling European CLIL Classrooms (see Books). This contains an introduction to the CLIL dimensions and focuses produced as reader-friendly text.

CLIL Dimensions and Focuses

1. The Culture Dimension - CULTIX

2. The Environment Dimension - ENTIX

3. The Language Dimension - LANTIX

4. The Content Dimension -CONTIX

5. The Learning Dimension - LEARNTIX