Helena Aikin

I hold a BA in History from the Universidad Autónoma, Madrid, a MA in Hispanic Culture from the University of California at Davis (USA) and a PhD in English Studies from the University of Castilla la Mancha. I currently teach English and Applied Linguistics at the University of Castilla la Mancha, department of Modern Languages.

My area of expertise lies within the field of intercultural education in bilingual and plurilingual schools. I am currently working on project-based educational models where I explore the interdisciplinary and transcultural dimensions of CLIL with special attention to establishing relational links between the different school subjects and learners’ lives and communities at local, national and international levels.

I have conducted teacher training seminars and workshops on CLIL methodology, intercultural education and creative learning at the University of Northern Arizona, U.S.A,  ITESO university  at Guadalajara, Mexico, University of Latvia, Universitat Karlova, Prague, and at several Indian Universities (Manipal, Chitkara, Pondicherry and Symbiosis-Pune).

I have participated in several national and international research projects, (Language Courses for Mobile Technologies”. Ref Sócrates 1, European Commission; LADIC, UCLM (2011-13) “Bilingualism, linguistic ideologies and Identity in a public school´s bilingual programme”; APINGLO-CLM R+D FFI2014-54179-C2-2-P- 2015-2019, funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation). I was the main researcher for UCLM of a project entitled CLIL@India (Erasmus+ Capacity Building for HE Grant Agreement 2016-3537) whose aim was to adapt the CLIL approach to the Indian context and pilot CLIL modules in primary schools, with a view to providing better quality learning opportunities to children from economically and socially deprived families. The project has financed the creation of a CLIL Resource Centre at each of our Indian partner universities (Manipal, Chitkara, Pondicherry and Symbiosis) where CLIL Teacher Training sessions for local school teachers are regularly organized under the supervision of experts from UCLM, the University of Milan and the University of Latvia.