scholarly journals Characteristics of Foreign Language Education in Italy and Implications: From the Perspective of National Foreign Language Capacity

Politeja ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (4(73)) ◽  
pp. 171-188
Author(s):  
Dong Dan ◽  
Tan Yuwei
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Language Planning ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Policy Formulation ◽  
Foreign Language Education ◽  
National Language ◽  
Planning Theory ◽  
Language Competence ◽  
Language Capacity

This article reviews foreign language education in Italy using a national language competence-oriented evaluation approach. Foreign language education is at the heart of the acquisition component of language planning, and assessing foreign language education from the perspective of the purpose of language policy, i.e. the promotion of national language competence, which refers to the sum total of the government’s ability to deal with all language-related issues of strategic interests and allows for a more direct application of language planning theory. Based on the theoretical framework of National Foreign Language Capacity and acquisition planning, this study presents a detailed analysis of the characteristics and problems of Italian foreign language education policy, taking into account its ‘rationality,’ ‘coverage,’ and ‘influence,’ which are three interrelated indicators that allow for a comprehensive and specific assessment of national foreign language competence. By revealing the inadequacies of Italy’s national language proficiency system, the author intends to provide an insight into the gap between the effectiveness of policy formulation and implementation in foreign language education in Italy and to suggest some widespread problems in foreign language education that are similar to those in China.

Facets of translation in foreign language education: a tentative classification of forms and uses

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 58-78
Author(s):  
Xenia Liashuk
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Learning Strategy ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Foreign Language Education ◽  
Language Competence ◽  
Grammatical Accuracy ◽  
Learning Constraints ◽  
Cross Language ◽  
And Control

Abstract The paper provides an overview of the forms in which translation is used in foreign language education. A tentative classification is suggested which differentiates between facilitative translation as a supporting process that helps to overcome learning constraints, deliberate translation as an independent task with a predetermined objective that targets learners’ foreign language competence and skills, and simulated translation as an activity from which additional pedagogical benefits regarding learners’ foreign language proficiency can be derived. From the side of the learner, facilitative translation constitutes a complex learning strategy that can be applied for a variety of strategic purposes (memory-related, cognitive, compensatory, metacognitive, affective, and social), while from the side of the teacher it represents a scaffolding tool that can be consolidated into a fully-fledged teaching technique. Deliberate translation can further be differentiated according to the specifics of pedagogical focus. Language-focused translation, targeting learners’ grammatical accuracy or vocabulary range and control, and skill-focused translation, targeting one of the four basic communicative language skills, can be used for both instruction-related and diagnostic purposes. The focus on the holistic use of the available linguistic repertoire results in the two complex uses of translation as an incentive for communication and as a communicative activity aimed at developing the skill of cross-language mediation. A particular type of simulated translation which appears to be particularly suited for the purposes of foreign language education is audiovisual translation.

Foreign Language Education and Dynamics of Foreign Language Competence

2016 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 2141-2153
Author(s):  
Eva Stranovská ◽  
Silvia Hvozdíková ◽  
Dáša Munková ◽  
Gadušová Zdenka
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Foreign Language Education ◽  
Language Competence

scholarly journals Year of Intensive Language Learning, A Special Program to Rocket Hungarian Students’ Foreign Language Proficiency: A Success Story?

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 150-174
Author(s):  
Enikő Öveges
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Language Competence ◽  
Secondary School Education ◽  
School Year ◽  
Foreign Language Proficiency ◽  
Contact Hours

Summary Hungary has witnessed several major attempts to improve the foreign language proficiency of students in primary and secondary school education since the political changes of the 1990s, as both international and national surveys reflect a dramatically low ratio of Hungarian population that self-reports to communicate in any foreign language at any level. Among other initiatives, a major one to boost students’ foreign language competence has been the Year of Intensive Language Learning (YILL), introduced in 2004, which allows secondary schools to integrate an extra school year when the majority of the contact hours are devoted to foreign languages. The major objectives of YILL are as follows: 1) to offer a state-financed and school-based alternative to the widely spread profit-oriented private language tuition; thus 2) granting access to intensive language learning and 3) enhancing equal opportunities; and as a result of the supporting measures, 4) to improve school language education in general. YILL is exemplary in its being monitored from the launch of the first classes to the end of their five-year studies, involving three large-scale, mixed-method surveys and numerous smaller studies. Despite all the measures to assist the planning and the implementation, however, the program does not appear to be an obvious success. The paper introduces the background, reviews and synthesizes the related studies and surveys in order to evaluate the program, and argues that with more considerate planning, the YILL ‘hungaricum’ would yield significantly more benefits.

scholarly journals Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL): present and future (as a Finnish innovation)

2021 ◽  
Vol IX(256) (100) ◽  
pp. 34-38
Author(s):  
K. Ye. Stupak
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Foreign Language Education ◽  
Foreign Languages ◽  
Integrated Learning ◽  
Council Of Europe ◽  
Specialized Schools

The paper considers Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) as one of the approaches to achieve the purpose of learning foreign languages, represented in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages adopted by the Council of Europe in 2001. To acquire a language means not merely to obtain communication skills in one, two or even three languages, studied separately, but “to develop a linguistic repertoire in which all language skills are present,” as mentioned in the European Recommendations on Language Education. People who possess even little knowledge can achieve a certain level of communication proficiency using all their linguistic “tools”, experimenting with alternative forms of expression in different languages and dialects, using paralinguistic means (mimics, gestures, facial expressions, etc.) and radically simplifying their use of language [1; P. 19]. Researchers in Finland, whose success in the education system is recognized worldwide, are searching for methods and approaches to achieve this purpose of foreign language education. One of their attempts is Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL). The paper reveals: the history and the origins of CLIL. According to C. Nieminen it includes the method of immersion, created and widely used in Canada. This research also outlines the advantages and factors limiting the usage of CLIL, as well as the prospects for further implementation of this approach to the study of foreign languages in different countries. In Ukraine this training method has not yet become widely applied, only some cases of CLIL implementation take place in specialized schools and in higher education institutions at foreign language departments. Therefore, according to national scholars Ukraine focuses on improving the level of foreign language proficiency, profound research and implementation of the CLIL methodology in schools and higher education institutions all over the country.

scholarly journals THE TRANSITION TO ENGLISH TEACHING: INFLUENCES AND CONSIDERATIONS FOR FOREIGN LANGUAGE EDUCATION AND LANGUAGE PLANNING

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tran Thi Hao
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Policy ◽  
Language Planning ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Transition Process ◽  
Foreign Language Education ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
English Teaching ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Survey Interviews

Language policy enactment processes are complex, confounded by varied forces and interests, and shaped through negotiations, interpretations and compromise. Working from this perspective, this article examines the transition process of foreign language teachers from teaching other languages to teaching English, and the influences of this process on general foreign language education and language planning. In Vietnam, even though the shift to English teaching from other languages has been noted as a phenomenon, its process with grass-roots changes and potential influences on foreign language policy enactments in the country have not been specifically examined. By employing a case study approach, this article explores the transition process at An Nam University (pseudonym), one of the universities undergoing the transition process. Drawn from a document, a preliminary survey, interviews with both teachers and leaders and observations, my study concludes that the transition process has an important role with various influences on different aspects in foreign language education in the university and in Vietnam. The study aims to provide fundamental pointers to current language policy implementation in the country as well as to other contexts undergoing similar changes.

scholarly journals Study on the Continuation Task of China’s New College Entrance Examination Based on the Interactive Alignment Theory

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (10) ◽  
pp. 89-91
Author(s):  
Ying Ouyang
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Foreign Language Education ◽  
Entrance Examination ◽  
College Entrance Examination ◽  
College Entrance ◽  
Proficiency Level ◽  
Foreign Language Proficiency ◽  
Examination Policy

With the extensive implementation of China’s new college entrance examination policy, the Continuation Task in the new college entrance examination has attracted wide attention from the academic circle, which also gives rise to plentiful relevant research. In the past, most of the research only focused on university foreign language education, which was rarely involved in English teaching in primary and secondary schools. Based on the Interactive Alignment Theory, this paper is going to analyze and study the Continuation Task, and try to put forward some teaching strategies for the teaching of the new task, so as to improve student's English proficiency level. According to the research, this paper finds out that "The Continuation Task" can give full play to the alignment effect between reading and writing, promote writing through reading, and thus promote the improvement of students' foreign language proficiency. Therefore, this essay can provide some insights into the teaching of English in high schools.

scholarly journals Culture and the Common European Framework for Languages: A Comparative Corpus Analysis of 2001, 2018 and 2020 Texts

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 15-27
Author(s):  
Mustafa Dolmaci ◽  
Hatice Sezgin
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Foreign Language Education ◽  
Corpus Analysis ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Common Basis ◽  
Curriculum Guidelines ◽  
The Common ◽  
N Gram

In order to provide “a common basis for the elaboration of language syllabuses, curriculum guidelines, examinations, textbooks, etc. across Europe”, The Common European Framework for Languages (CEFR) was published in 2001 by the Council of Europe. It has affected the way languages are taught, learnt and assessed and also how foreign language proficiency levels are defined all around the world. The CEFR adopts an intercultural approach to foreign language, and the main purpose is to protect cultural diversity and to give importance to cultural activities rather than being a part of foreign language education. For this reason, culture is at the very core of the CEFR. In 2018 and 2020, two Companion Volumes were published to complement the CEFR. The present paper offers a comparative corpus analysis of these three texts focusing on the occurrences of culture-related items using n-gram tool of Sketch Engine (Lexical Computing, n. d.), which creates frequency lists of sequences of tokens. Based on the findings, it is suggested according to the CEFR that rather than focusing on the national culture of the native speakers of the target language, foreign language education should focus more on the “new culture” formed by the encounters of people coming from different cultures.

scholarly journals Promoting Learner Autonomy Through Cooperative Learning

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 30
Author(s):  
Weixuan Shi ◽  
Ligang Han
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
Foreign Language Education ◽  
Language Learner ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Language Competence ◽  
Learning Attitude ◽  
Interest And Motivation

Learner autonomy has become a hot topic and goal in the research of foreign language education. However, it is the most difficult question to define language learner autonomy and any answer to it is likely to be subjective. On the basis of expounding upon the different definitions concerning the research on learner autonomy in language teaching and learning, this study was to explore how cooperative group learning helps to improve learner autonomy. The survey’s findings indicate that the group work helps to improve students’ learning attitude, interest and motivation. It also reveals that students’ language competence and awareness of using learning resources are improved. This article discusses plausible explanations for the survey findings and makes recommendations on the roles and knowledge that language teachers should play and have to facilitate the development of learner autonomy.

scholarly journals The development of future teachers’ foreign language education in the context of the European Council strategic documents

2021 ◽  
pp. 88-95
Author(s):  
Iryna Onishchuk ◽  
Anastasiia Petrova ◽  
Nataliia Tonkonoh ◽  
Neonila Partyko ◽  
Diana Kochmar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Development Program ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Foreign Language Education ◽  
Foreign Languages ◽  
Council Of Europe ◽  
Professional Activities ◽  
Education Science

Among the main tasks of higher education defined by the National Doctrine for the Development of Education of Ukraine in the 21st century are the following: to form the necessary intellectual and moral basis necessary for future professional activities in the fields of education, science, culture and to form the qualities necessary for further professional development. Such qualities include global thinking; professional values and morals; cultural competence; functional literacy and professional universality; culture of communication; ability to apply knowledge in professional situations; responsibility, the culture of group interaction, social and professional mobility, ability to study for a lifetime, foreign language and sociocultural competence in a foreign language among students of humanities. Now foreign-language education in Ukraine is being reformed taking into account the achievements of European countries by such documents of the Council of Europe as: “Bilingual education: the main strategic tasks”, “All-European competencies in foreign language proficiency: study, teaching, evaluation”, “European language portfolio”, “Aligning language exams with All-European recommendations on language education”, “Strategic development program for Multilingual Europe 2020”, “Recommendations on pluralistic approaches to languages and cultures”, requirements for Euro-exams, etc. The ideas of the language policy of the Council of Europe are increasingly being implemented in our country: the number of languages is increasing; there is an increasing number of people who speak at least one foreign language; several foreign languages were started in secondary schools; the number of academic hours for learning a foreign language is increasing in universities; in some institutions of higher education, foreign languages are considered the second working language.

Early foreign language education and metalinguistic development

2003 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. 51-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Krassimira Dimitrova Charkova
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Foreign Language Education ◽  
Third Language ◽  
Bilingualism And Multilingualism ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Metalinguistic Skills ◽  
Word Definition

Studies with bilingual and multilingual subjects suggest that bilingualism and multilingualism foster the development of certain aspects of children’s metalinguistic skills. The purpose of the present study was to find out if learning foreign languages facilitates children’s metalinguistic ability to define words. It compared Bulgarian monolingual, bilingual and trilingual subjects on their word-definition performance in the L1. The relationship between L1 definition performance, L2/L3 proficiency, and L2/L3 definition performance within the bilingual and trilingual groups was also investigated. The study found that early foreign language education has a positive effect on the quality of children’s definitions in their L1. The bilingual and trilingual children performed significantly better than the monolingual children. The results specific to the bilingual and trilingual groups showed that second/third language proficiency was a significant and powerful predictor of the performance of the bilingual and trilingual subjects on the word-definition tasks in their second/third language. L1 word-definition ability was a weaker predictor of the subjects’ performance on the word-definition task in their second or third language. However, in the case of genetically closely related languages (Bulgarian and Russian) the transfer was easier as compared to genetically more distanced languages (Bulgarian and English).

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