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 Common European Framework of Reference for Language (CEFR) and Test of Proficiency in Korean (TOPIK)

2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-58 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yunhee Won
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Evaluation Criteria ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Assessment Method ◽  
Test Methods ◽  
Foreign Language Education ◽  
Speaking Test ◽  
Common Reference ◽  
The Common

Abstract This paper is an overview of Test of Proficiency in Korean (TOPIK). Test of Proficiency in Korean (TOPIK) is a test to measure and evaluate the Korean language proficiency targeting for overseas Koreans and foreigners who do not speak Korean as their first language. The TOPIK is utilized for studying in Korean universities or taking advantages of employment. Systems of the TOPIK are largely divided into TOPIK I and TOPIK II: TOPIK I is divided into the Beginner 1 and 2; TOPIK II is divided into Intermediate 1, 2, Advanced 1, and 2, all of which are equal to the measure proposed in the European common reference standard. Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) is equipped with a six-step framework for language proficiency and communicative activities. This system describes knowledge, skills, cultural competence, and regulations of each step-by-step learning skill level for the purpose of communication in the private, public, and occupational areas. This paper first presents the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) that is familiar to Europeans, and compares it with the TOPIK system. First, it compares the TOPIK with the Common European Framework of Reference on the overall system, the assessment method, question types and etc. Also, it briefly examines foreign language education in Korea. Foreign language education in Korea was in abstract level as compared to the Common European Framework of Reference or topic. As in Europe, Korea also divides the language acquisition into 6 levels. It prepares the evaluation criteria for each level. Criteria and test methods can be understood by comparing the German language test and TOPIK to be carried out in accordance with the Common European Framework of Reference. Test methods and criteria of the German test and TOPIK are similar, but information and instruction for testing showed at the Goethe-Institute is far more detailed than TOPIK in Korea. The problem lies in the absence of speaking test in TOPIK. In order to understand the language proficiency, speaking, listening, reading and writing in all parts should be evaluated; however, there is no speaking test in TOPIK, and it is unfortunate that there is no writing test in the beginner-level test. This is what should be improved in the future.

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 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.

Foreign Language Education in Japan

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryuko Kubota
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Learning Opportunities ◽  
Foreign Language Education ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Early 21St Century ◽  
Learning English

Historically, foreign language education in Japan has been influenced by local and global conditions. Of the two major purposes of learning a language—to gain new knowledge from overseas and to develop practical communication skills—the latter pragmatic orientation became dominant toward the end the 19th century, when access to foreign language learning increased and English became a dominant language to learn. The trend of learning English as an international language for pragmatic purposes has been further strengthened since the 1980s under the discourses of internationalization and neoliberal globalization. An overview of the current status of foreign language education reveals that there are both formal and non-formal learning opportunities for people of all ages; English predominates as a target language although fewer opportunities to learn other languages exist; English is taught at primary and secondary schools and universities with an emphasis on acquiring communicative skills, although the exam-oriented instructional practices contradict the official goal; and adults learn foreign languages, mainly English, for various reasons, including career advancement and hobbyist enjoyment. Such observations include contestations and contradictions. For instance, there have been debates on whether the major aim of learning English should be pragmatic or intellectual. These debates have taken place against the backdrop of the fact that the learning of a foreign language—de facto English—is much more prevalent in society in the early 21st century compared with previous periods in history, when access to learning opportunities was limited to elites. Another contradiction is between the multilingual reality in local and global communities and the exclusive emphasis on teaching English. This gap can be critically analyzed through a critical realist lens, through which multilayers of ideology in discourses and realities in the material world are examined. The predominance of English is driven by a neoliberal ideology that conceptualizes English as a global language with economic benefit, while testing and shadow education enterprises perpetuate the emphasis on English language teaching. The political economy of foreign language education also explains the longstanding socioeconomic disparity in English ability.

Intensifying constructions in French-speaking L2 learners of English and Dutch

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isa Hendrikx ◽  
Kristel Van Goethem ◽  
Stefanie Wulff
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Foreign Language Education ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Longitudinal Impact ◽  
Integrated Learning ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
French Speaking ◽  
The Cross

Abstract We investigate the cross-linguistic influence and the (longitudinal) impact of Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) on the acquisition of intensifying constructions, using corpora of written French, Dutch, and English productions by L1 speakers, and L2 English and L2 Dutch produced by French-speaking learners in CLIL and traditional foreign language education. We hypothesize that learners will benefit from similarities between the L1 and target language (TL) intensifying constructions, and secondly, that more input and use (through CLIL) will lead to a more target-like use of intensifying constructions. The analyses include quantitative measures of frequency and productivity, and covarying analyses (Gries, 2007). Our findings suggest that, as expected, CLIL students produce intensifying constructions in a more target-like manner. The effect of the duration of TL learning, however, is more apparent in English than in Dutch.

USE OF THE MOTHER TONGUE IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE INTERACTION

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 177-181
Author(s):  
Ekaterina Sofronieva ◽  
◽  
Christina Beleva ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
English Language ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Foreign Language Education ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Nursery Schools ◽  
Comprehension Skills ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
English Speaking

The article offers a brief historical overview of some of the main methods in foreign language teaching and focuses on the use of the native language in their application. A modern study conducted among children from nursery schools in Bulgaria shows that when language education is carried out only in the target language, children also use only this language in their language interactions and vice versa. Some of the research findings are that 42.2 percent of the children whose teachers communicate with them in both languages, also make use of Bulgarian when trying to convey meanings and messages in English language. In general, children’s comprehension skills are better developed than their English speaking skills. In conclusion, the research results show that at the present stage, the offered foreign language education of children in nursery schools as entertaining as it may be, is not effective enough. Working methods and well-established approaches should be applied in early foreign language education of children in order to develop their skills to communicate in a new language.

scholarly journals Understanding Foreign Language Education at BFSU

MANUSYA ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 60-67
Author(s):  
Zhou Yan
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Foreign Language Education ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Rote Learning ◽  
New Materials ◽  
Error Corrections ◽  
Linguistic Rules ◽  
Psychological Strength

The paper shows that the students at Beijing Foreign studies University (BFSU) are from various parts of the country with uneven exposure to and different training in English. They have to go through a period of adjustment: learning new materials, new ways of language learning as well as of unlearning certain learning habits gotten from their high schools. It is pointed out that language learning does not only mean mastering linguistic rules or structures but also understanding culture of the target language. In order to do this many things are required: motivation, willingness to do rote learning and monotonous drills of basic structures, perseverance in practising newly acquired language skills, and psychological strength without feeling intimidated by error corrections by teachers or laughter by peers.

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.

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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