Chapter 5. About the use of the DMS in CLIL classes

This chapter is a contribution to the discussion regarding the implementation of the CLIL methodology in school classes, particularly as far as the traditional tension between language and content learning is concerned. It starts with an overview of the development and diffusion of this methodology in European schools, lingers over what is going on in the countries of the MIH project (Spain, Italy, Germany, Poland, France, and Austria), and finally, it focuses on its results, the Digital Modules. It shows how it is possible to overcome the above-mentioned dichotomy, language versus contents, by using a cultural approach that enables students to move their own thinking forward. In fact, even if the basic principle of the CLIL is that the content comes before the language, in school practices this is not always the case, as documented in several surveys.