The Multi-lingual Mirage — reality or reality check

The Multi-lingual Mirage - reality or reality check? Nick Byrne, Director LSE Language Centre London School of Economics and Political Science

LETPP • Multilingualism has been described as an "asset for Europe and a shared commitment". This may, however, be more a vision of what might be than a description of reality. Reality is mediated not only by the vision (what people think), but by policy decisions (laws and regulations) and by performance (what we actually do). • Survey www. letpp. eu • Manifesto http: //www. letpp. eu/images/stories/docs/argument/letpp_manifesto. pdf http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=kys. Pj 10 RQb. Y •

Bad news just got worse? • The UK is the paradigm of the monolingual eurostate, its reluctance to embrace foreign languages sits at heart of its cultural detachment from the ‘babelian’ mainland. • http: //www. cafebabel. co. u k/article/35174/englishbaccalaureate-languagesdrop-schools-gove. html

“That” letter of 2006 • Language crisis facing UK schools • Nick Byrne, director of the LSE Language Centre and lead signatory of today's letter, said reversing the decision would show that learning a language was a core skill like English and maths: • 'Compulsion may not generate hundreds of linguists but it is symbolic. It is about what we want a rounded person to be. ' • http: //www. guardian. co. uk/uk/2006/dec/03/schools. education? INTCMP=SR CH • http: //www. independent. co. uk/opinion/leading-articles/leading-article-theinsularity-of-our-national-curriculum-2061013. html

Why a language policy now? • British Academy: • Language Matters • http: //www. britac. uk/reports/ language-matters/index. cfm • Language matters more • http: //www. britac. uk/policy/L anguage-matters-more-andmore. cfm • Feeling that we should have a policy is shared by senior management and language centre

The quote of the year (2009) • David Lammy MP, Minister of State for Higher Education and Intellectual Property: • “A university without languages is a university without universality. ” Taken from David Lammy’s introductory speech at British Academy, 3 rd. June 2009 • http: //www. davidlammy. c o. uk/da/101469

Why a Language Policy at HE level? • To create a policy you have to engage with a variety of stakeholders • Senior Management • Middle Management • Academics • Academic-related • Administrative • Students • Business • The local community • Schools

Why a Language Policy at HE level? • The importance of the process • By creating a policy you have to get it approved • To get it approved you have to go through official channels • To get it approved the visibility and status of language centres are enhanced • Once approved it has to be formally embedded or listed • Once listed it can only be removed by formal procedures thereby (hopefully) stopping or delaying changes to provision brought about by changes of senior management

Why a Language Policy at HE level? • It is a tool which can both protect and promote • • • To protect… Language provision Languages Jobs People • • • To promote… Mobility Employability Intellectual growth Intercultural communication

The Wulkow Memorandum • Memorandum 1: • http: //www. aulc. org/documents /Wulkow_Memorandum 1. pdf • Memorandum 2: • http: //www. aulc. org/documents /Wulkow_Quality_memorandu m_2010. pdf • Memorandum 3: • http: //www. sz. europauni. de/de/startsite_news/linke_ spalte/news 1/Newsdoc/Wulko w_Memorandum_III. pdf

What is the UK picture? (1) AULC www. aulc. org survey on students taking language courses • • 2007/08: 49% take a language as an extra-curricular activity 2007/08: 51% take a language as an assessed module • • 2007/08 (56 institutions) Degree module: 33257 Extra-Cur: 31965 Total: 65222 • • 07/08: Female 66% Male 34% 07/08: PG 25% UG 75% • • EU-UK: 75% Non-EU: 11% • • 07/08: 49% take a language as an extra-curricular activity EU-other: 14%

What is the UK picture? (2) Most popular languages taken as an extra-curricular activity in across UG & PG in English HEI’s in 2007/08 • • • French Spanish German Chinese Italian Japanese Russian Arabic Others 23% 24% 13% 11% 7% 7% 6% 5% 4%

What is the UK picture? (3) Usefulness of a knowledge of languages in career goals (2007/08) • • A great deal 28% Quite a lot 21% Some help 39% No difference 12%

What is the UK picture? (4) Planning to work abroad? (2007/08) • • UK-EU students Don’t know: No: Yes: • • Other-EU students Don’t know: 14% No: 0% Yes: 86% • • Non-EU students Don’t know: 20% No: 0% Yes: 80% 31% 8% 61%

What is the UK picture? (5) EU goal of mother-tongue + 2 (2007/08) • • Necessary UK-EU: Other-EU: Non-EU: Achievable UK-EU: Other-EU: Non-EU: • Desirable: 30% 49% 43% 44% 63% 83% 96%

UCL and Worton report • UCL has grave concerns about the situation in modern language learning in the UK, but it is taking a somewhat different position from simply calling for the government to reverse its policy. On 12 December 2006, UCL’s Academic Committee voted on a proposal that will ultimately require all applicants to have a qualification in a foreign language at GCSE or equivalent. This requirement will be phased in gradually over the various disciplines, thereby allowing schools time to make appropriate changes to their teaching provision. • http: //www. ucl. ac. uk/vice-provost/worton/myimages 1/worton_report. pdf

Language policy at SOAS • Language Entitlement Programme • The Language Entitlement programme offers all current SOAS undergraduate students the chance to take one term of a non-accredited SOAS Language Centre course free of charge. • http: //www. soas. ac. uk/lan guagecentre/file 54075. pdf

Language Policy at LSE • ‘The new Language Policy is a good example of the way you can tailor a policy to fit not just an institution but also a company, a town or even a country. The main thing is to make sure that the ideas fit the target group and not simply force things through'. • http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v= 1 ji. Ta 4 qh. La. U • http: //www 2. lse. ac. uk/language/LS ELanguage. Policy. aspx

LSE – the international dimension • • • 9000 students 30% UG 70% PG 50/50 UK and non-UK International Multinational Students Workforce Multi-lingual London

The present situation for languages at LSE • 300 students study a language as part of their degree: French, German, Mandarin (from 2010/11), Russian, Spanish • 1700 learn a language as a certificate course (as above + Arabic, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Turkish) • www. lse. ac. uk/languages

£££ measures… • • Language awards Study trip bursaries Language Week Free language courses for any UK student who doesn’t have a GCSE…highly recommended but not compulsory

Zero-cost measures… • • Endorsement from the top Buy-in from academic departments Buy-in from employers Greater profile in all publicity Advantages more clearly shown Multi-national branding extended to multi-lingual LSE language champions

Towards national policies? • Yes and No… • Universities are developing policies which fit their own profile • Momentum to get this done now • Competitive edge • Positive picture could emerge • AULC will place all policies on their website

Language Policy at UCLAN • Languages 2017 • http: //www. uclan. ac. uk/schools /languages_and_international/l anguages_2017. php • School of Languages and International Studies • http: //www. uclan. ac. uk/schools /languages_and_international/i ndex. php

Grand Vision • The European Indicator of Language Competence • http: //eurlex. europa. eu/Lex. Uri. S erv/Lex. Uri. Serv. do? uri=COM: 2 005: 0356: FIN: EN: PDF • Languages 2010 and beyond • http: //ec. europa. eu/education/l anguages/languages-ofeurope/doc 4021_en. htm

Grand Policy • EU Languages and Language policy • http: //ec. europa. eu/education/l anguages/languages-ofeurope/index_en. htm • The European Commission outlined a detailed strategic approach for the creation of a European Survey on Language Competences in 2005. • http: //ec. europa. eu/education/l anguages/languages-ofeurope/doc 4003_en. htm

UK…is the mother of invention 1 • HE • http: //www. speaktothe future. org/ • http: //www. ucml. ac. uk /shapingthefuture • http: //www. llas. ac. uk/ 700 Reasons • http: //pledge. languag eswork. org. uk/

UK…is the mother of invention 2 • Schools • http: //www. routesintol anguages. ac. uk/ • http: //www. whystudyl anguages. ac. uk/ks 4/v ideo • Teachers • http: //www. linksintola nguages. ac. uk/

Videos – policy made pictorial! • Videos • http: //ec. europa. eu/education/l anguages/library/doc 4296_en. htm • http: //www. languageswork. org. uk/learner_zone/the_laftas/201 0_winners. aspx • http: //www. thinkgerman. org. uk/ lafta_film_hairdresser • http: //www. youtube. com/watch ? v=Bz. ALn 6 OCw. YU&feature=r elated

contact • • • Nick Byrne LSE Language Centre Houghton Street London WC 2 A 2 AE +44 20 7955 6899 n. byrne@lse. ac. uk • www. lse. ac. uk/languages