In a time when the increasing cultural diversity and population mobility of the continent calls for good communication skills, this fascinating book features a wealth of data and critical opinion on the topic of mother tongue education.In the first part of the book, the two editors address central cultural, political and educational concerns relating to the mother tongue, using some of the findings of their European Commission funded research on the changing European classroom. The second part presents case study articles by practitioners from nine countries which have significant regional or immigrant mother tongue populations. These include Welsh in Wales, Catalan and Galician in Spain, Turkish and Greek in Germany, Arabic and Corsican in France, and Belorussian in Poland, as well as critical accounts of the main first language situation in England, Denmark, France, Germany, Poland, post-Soviet Russia, and Spain. The concluding part of the book looks at language awareness as a possible approach to linguistic diversity. It examines the preparation of teachers at all levels, as experinced by the editors through their involvement in an in international language study group based in Calgary, Cambridge, Mainz and Bialystock.Teaching the Mother Tongue in a Multilingual Europe is packed with original information which will be of use to all teachers and educationalists concerned with language.

This edited volume offers an overarching, yet detailed view of fast-changing language policy and practice in Europe and beyond. It provides a thorough investigation of different linguacultural scenarios, exploring how language policy has repercussions on research and initiatives in the field of language education. With contributions from a range of European settings as well as Turkey and the USA, the book discusses topical issues related to language learning and explores how these can shape our identities. Chapters present cutting-edge research on translanguaging, English Medium Instruction, multilingualism and minority languages in Europe. The volume forecasts what future educational policies might look like, and questions how evaluating and rethinking educational practices can produce positive effects on language practices as well as language policies. The book has a wide-reaching international focus and will be an important resource for researchers, academics, language experts and postgraduate students in the fields of applied linguistics, language education and sociolinguistics.

This publication explores the roles and tasks carried out by language educators - teachers, teacher trainers, materials writers and others - and the way in which these might develop in the years to come.Emphasis is placed on the educative role of language teachers and the importance of adapting the language education to meet the needs of an increasingly multilingual and multicultural Europe.The authors suggest that this may lead to the development of a new paradigm for language teaching and that this will require a new didactic approach. Language education will be influenced by technological d.

The ECML's Languages for social cohesion programme (2004-2007) involved approximately 4500 language professionals from Europe and beyond. This publication focuses on key developments in language education promoted through the work of the European Centre for Modern Languages of the Council of Europe (ECML). It serves three main functions. Firstly, it summarises the ECML's contributions to fostering linguistic and cultural diversity in European societies. Secondly, it contains the proceedings of the ECML Conference, held in September 2007 at the University of Graz, to communicate the results of this programme to the wider public. Thirdly, it provides a preview of the projects which comprise the next programme of the ECML (2008-2011): 'Empowering language professionals: competences - networks - impact - quality'. In this way the publication both provides an overview of current issues and trends in European language teaching and indicates perspectives for the future.

There is a growing interest in teaching languages to young children. This publication brings together papers from 18 countries. It gives a cross section of major achievements and problem areas as well as an insight into research issues.

Pioneering in the comparison of standard language teaching in Europe, the International Mother tongue Education Network (IMEN) in the last twenty-five years stimulated experts from more than fifteen European countries to participate in a range of research projects in this field of qualitative educational analyses. The volume "Research on mother tongue education in a comparative international perspective - Theoretical and methodological issues" documents theoretical principals and methodological developments that during the last decades shaped IMEN research and may enlarge the fundaments of comparative qualitative research in language education in a seminal way. The topics of this volume include: - IMEN's aims, points of departure, history and methodology; - research on the professional practical knowledge of MTE-teachers; - innovation, key incident analysis and international triangulation; - positioning in theory and practice. Also included: the IMEN bibliography 1984-2004 which supplies a complete picture of IMEN research activities from the beginning.