In conducting scientific research, one sometimes encounters unexpected results that were not anticipated. These unexpected discoveries can yield valuable new insights. The Impact Explorer call provides researchers the chance to explore the potential impact of these findings. Two projects are now receiving a small top-up of 30,000 euros each to further investigate unexpected discoveries.
This is also beneficial for Josje Verhagen in her research: There are families in the Netherlands where parents cannot communicate with their children because they do not share a common language. The parents speak little or no Dutch, and the children speak little or no language of their parents. I came across this problem during conversations with teachers as part of my Vidi research. For example, I heard about a family where the mother has to communicate with her children via Google Translate. Thanks to the funding from the Impact Explorer, I can work with several impact partners, including the Academic Workplace Youth and Health (a collaboration between Amsterdam UMC and the JGZ) and the Foundation for Multilingual Speech Therapy Netherlands, to find an approach to prevent such distressing situations as much as possible. One plan we will explore is providing information to parents through consultation offices and speech therapists with appropriate informational materials in various languages and with the help of cultural brokers. Hopefully, more and more parents will realize how important it is to pass on their mother tongue to their children.
About this call
The grant is intended for activities to validate the potential societal impact of discoveries from more curiosity-driven research, such as from the Talent Line and the Open Competitions of both NWO and ZonMw. And to explore a route to societal impact. For each application, a minimum of 20,000 and a maximum of 30,000 euros is available. Submissions can still be made.
Allocated projects:
Families without words: How to help prevent families from losing their shared language?
dr. J. Verhagen (UvA)
This project focuses on families where parents and children do not share a language: in these families, parents speak little or no Dutch, and children speak little or no mother tongue of their parents. This leads to distressing situations where parents and children cannot communicate with each other. In collaboration with two impact partners - the Foundation for Multilingual Speech Therapy Netherlands and the Academic Workplace Youth and Health - it will be examined what is happening in these families, and initial solutions will be explored. An important goal of the project is to develop informational materials for at-risk families and for care and education professionals.
The didactic uses of the past: Developing a new applied-historical teaching method about early-modern migrants to make present-day migration discussable in the classroom
prof. dr. G.H. Janssen (UvA)
Migration is one of the most polarizing issues of our time. Especially in secondary schools, discussions about migration can escalate. Teachers are therefore looking for ways to make this topic discussable with students. New historical research offers unexpected solutions. Vici research shows that migration movements since the 17th century led to intense—and surprisingly recognizable—societal discussions. In this collaborative project, historians and education professionals explore how understanding those early modern migration debates can help students position themselves in the current migration debate. We are developing an innovative teaching method that helps teachers gain insight into the present from the past.