“Paving the way towards Elos” Initiating and facilitating the implementation of Elos on management-level in a Dutch bilingual school

Abstract

Schools wanting to improve the quality and coherence of their internationalisation practice, can choose to implement various formal internationalisation programmes. One of those programmes is Elos, coordinated by the European Platform. Elos strives to provide a learning programme which gives pupils knowledge of Europe and the wider world, the ability to cooperate successfully in international encounters and a high proficiency in the chosen international language of communication. Although the Elos Quality Standard, compiled by the Elos-network and issued by the European Platform, offers general guidelines for implementation, the translation of these guidelines into practice has proven difficult for some schools. Our study looks into the first management steps that can be taken to implement Elos in the school. Our research also provides some useful suggestions for schools wishing to implement Elos or improve their internationalisation programme.