Language Education in Europe: The Common European Framework of Reference
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LANGUAGE EDUCATION IN EUROPE: THE COMMON EUROPEAN FRAMEWORK OF REFERENCE
INTRODUCTION
A large number of different languages are learned in Europe. Europeans often speak languages other than their mother tongue at home or in the street. Language learning not only occurs at school. Therefore, it is important to have insight into the way in which people learn languages within a European context. Moreover, it is important to know what levels of language skills are achieved when people learn languages in formal as well as in informal contexts. This contribution provides an overview of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) that has been proposed by the Council of Europe. In addition, the focus is on the European Language Portfolio and the Manual for relating language examinations to the CEFR. E A R LY D E V E L O P M E N T S
The Council of Europe (based in Strasbourg, France) was founded in 1949. Today it serves 800 million people in 46 European member states subscribing to the principles of human rights, democracy and the rule of law. The main aim of the Council of Europe (CoE) is to achieve a greater unity between its members on a variety of social, political and legal domains. A specific aim is to promote and develop a European cultural identity, with special emphasis on education. The programs initiated in the area of modern languages are co-coordinated by two units of the CoE: The Language Policy Division (www.coe.int/lang and www.coe.int/ portfolio) in Strasbourg (France) focuses on instruments and initiatives for the development and analysis of language education policies for the member states. The European Centre for Modern Languages (www.ecml.at) in Graz (Austria) was established in 1995 and deals with the implementation of language policies and the promotion of innovative approaches. Its strategic objectives include the practice of modern language learning and teaching and the training of multipliers. The Council of Europe has been active in the area of language education for almost 50 years now (see CoE, 2005a for a historic overview). N. Van Deusen-Scholl and N. H. Hornberger (eds), Encyclopedia of Language and Education, 2nd Edition, Volume 4: Second and Foreign Language Education, 209–226. #2008 Springer Science+Business Media LLC.
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P. B R O E D E R A N D W . M A R T Y N I U K
Early Initiatives: Threshold Level/Niveau-Seuil The first major CoE Project in Modern Languages (1963–1972) promoted international co-operation on audio–visual methods and the development of applied linguistics. In the 1970s, the feasibility of a unit-credit scheme for language learning in adult education was explored. A notionalfunctional model for specifying objectives was elaborated and exemplified in a Threshold Level for English (Van Ek, 1975) and a Niveau-Seuil for French (Coste, Courtillon and Ferenczi, 1981). The model specified in operational terms the knowledge and skills a language learner should have, and what a learner should be able to do when using the language independently. The basi
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