The 2-day meeting (6-7 February 2018) at the ECML in Graz, Austria, was an excellent opportunity for the ECML project experts to discuss ongoing project developments with their fellow project coordinators.

They explored synergies between the different projects and exchanged good practice in project methodology. They discussed ongoing work on the development of their products and how to best disseminate the wide range of final results which will be achieved by the end of 2018 and 2019. They reflected on critical success factors to promote the achievements across and at the end of their respective project life cycles, to implement, to mediate, to possibly further develop them and to maximise impact in the various national and individual contexts. Finally they shared initial ideas for both the contents and the structure of the next ECML programme (2020-2023). They also highlighted the added value, both professional and personal, of coordinating ECML projects, seeing this as an opportunity to bridge policy, research and practice and contribute to making a real difference to quality language education in Europe.

Impressions of the meeting (photo gallery on Facebook)

Current ECML programme of activities 2016-2019: "Languages at the heart of learning"

The coordinating team of the project, Language for work – Tools for professional development (LfW) held its expert meeting in Graz on 7^th and 8^th December 2017. With it the team closed a very busy and eventful year and prepared the floor for the activities of the project’s final year.

A printed exemplar of the Language for Work – a quick guide. How to help adult migrants develop work-related development of language skills welcomed the team at ECML. Members and interested persons will find the English version on the project’s website. Versions in French and German will be soon online. Versions in further languages have been arranged. Members are invited to translate the Quick Guide into ‘their’ languages and disseminate it. If you can support the dissemination of this practical tool for professionals to support the linguistic integration of migrants, please contact the team at lfwnetwork@ecml.at for a template and any support needed. In addition to the Quick Guide, two other sets of guidelines for, respectively, decision-makers and staff in public services (including labour market administration) are ready in German. They aim at supporting social services to lower barriers when communicating with migrants. An English version as basis for further translations will be ready at the beginning of 2018. Interested members are welcome to translate and disseminate these guidelines as well.

In 2017 the team has been involved in a series of events to progress and disseminate the project and Network. The central event was the network meeting held in Graz on 1^st and 2^nd June. This attracted 26 experts from 16 countries including Canada and the Russian Federation (Moscow State Linguistic University). The participants provided examples of practice for the compendium of ways to support the development of work-related L2 skills, advised the team in central issues such as how to structure the tools for professional development. The team was also invited to various national and internationals events to present the LfW project and network: e. g.  symposia such the UN Language, the Sustainable Development Goals, and Vulnerable Populations, New York, and the meeting on integration for the Intergovernmental Consultations on Migration, Asylum and Refugees, of the agency the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in Geneva, both in May; and The Changing Context of Migration and LESLLA , in Portland Oregon, in August. Such prominent invitations as well as the numerous publications give evidence that work-related second language development is an increasingly recognised field and the network with it.

The project’s main event next year will be the final workshop in Graz on 23^rd and 24^th October 2018, where the team will present the following tools to advance practitioners’ professional development

• A quick guide, How to help adult migrants develop work-related language skills
• Guidelines for decision-makers and staff in public services to facilitate communication with migrant clients

• Ways to support work-related language development, including a compendium of practice examples
• Overview of practitioner competences indicated for different types of support
• Language for Work Network resource centre

This workshop will offer networking opportunities with experts (including teacher trainers working in the fields of adult second language learning and vocational education and training; researchers with an interest in work-related language development; national skills policy makers; workforce development professionals; employer and trade union representatives). Participants to this event are selected by the national agencies, so colleagues interested in attending should contact their national agency. If you want information about how to do this, please contact the project team at lfwnetwork@ecml.at

Between now and October 2018 a busy time awaits the LfW team, to finalise the project’s products.

In the meantime we wish you a peaceful Christmas and a Good New year with this picture of Graz in advent.

Quick Guide

Language for Work Network website

by Matilde Grünhage Monetti, coordinator of Language for Work (LfW) (http://languageforwork.ecml.at)

At initiative of Petra Elser, LfW-Network member, I was invited to participate in a multiplier event for the COMBI project in Donostia, in the Basque region of Spain, on 6^th and 7^th June.

The project Communication competences for migrants and disadvantaged background learners in bilingual work environments is co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union. COMBI partners are acting in various officially bilingual regions in Europe. The once dominant languages of these regions have been minoritised through the hegemonic language policy of the nation-states – I prefer to speak of “minoritised” languages and not “minority” languages.  In this sense the COMBI languages (Basque, Welsh, Frisian, Swedish in parts of Finland and the Sicilian dialects) are representative of many more in Europe.

The issue of these minoritised languages is particularly relevant in today’s context of migration, demographic change and the shortage of local staff in health and social care. Health and social care sectors across Europe have become heavily dependent on migrant staff. In bilingual regions these migrant workers face the double challenge of having to learn to at least a certain degree of proficiency both languages of the host country. It is to be expected that the older people they care for, in particular people with dementia, may react better to the language of their childhood: Basque, Welsh, dialect, etc., while other interlocutors and the environment in general may speak predominantly the “national” language.

The COMBI project therefore wants to provide vocational teachers in the health care sector and minority language teachers with innovative tools aiming at developing the language skills in the minority language migrants need for working in the health care sector (www.combiproject.eu).

For the event in Donostia I chose to present the Quick guide, since it encourages reflection on the essentials of L2 learning and offers advice and practical tips, how to support migrants develop work-related language skills. Each statement was illustrated with mini case-studies provided by Network members from all over Europe (http://languageforwork.ecml.at/Portals).

The meeting was held in Basque and in the project language, English. From the partners’ contributions emerged the different status of the minoritised language in the various countries due to historical developments. In the fields of policies next to the very functional approach of Finland with its focus on individuals as workforce, the Basque provider KABIA brought humanistic dimensions into the discussion talking about principles of care, linguistic equality, responsibility and social justice.

In the discussions the same issue emerged which was discussed at the Network Meeting in Graz (1st and 2^nd June): language and communication as shared responsibility of all actors involved. To echo the title of a manual produced by the Swedish colleagues of ArbetSam: Better language means better care and therefore higher quality, which is an asset for the whole society (http://www.aldrecentrum.se/......pdf).

Another common theme was the shift of focus from teaching to learning and a growing interest for non-formal and informal arrangements, equally discussed in Graz.  Another commonality is the growing interest for reflective and affective dimensions of learning. Particularly effective were the practical examples by other guest speakers: Cathrin Thomas, Arbeiterwohlfahrt, Bielfeld, Germany, presented some of her phonetic exercises and two French-Basque colleagues, Etcharry Formation Dévelopment, Ustaritz, illustrated their holistic training approach. Finally the concept of translanguaging was vividly illustrated by the practical examples of the methodology used by Banaiz Bagara Elkartea in their Basque language courses, which is particularly effective in bilingual situations. The aim is not to train two monolinguals in one person, but language users who can draw on their entire linguistic repertoire: The languages in question are not treated as separate entities; the transition from one to the other is fluid.

A remarkable sociological insight on the employment rate of migrants in the Basque countries was presented at the conference:  The number of women in work is higher than the number of men. Most of these women come from South America and work as domestic help in private households without social insurance.

The event itself was a good example of translanguaging with fluid transition between Basque, English, Castillian, and many more European languages!

I would like to close with an homage to the great Sicilian poet, Ignazio Buttitta (1899-1997), who has often written on the loss of his native “minoritized” language:

*****

Download this news in PDF version: English - French

A few weeks after the start of the new ECML programme Languages at the heart of learning (2016-2019) the Language for Work Network’s new project – Tools for professional development started its activities with a workshop in Donostia/San Sebastian on 22^nd January. The event, organised by the Association Banaiz Bagara and the Oarsoaldea Development Agency, brought together around 30 employment counsellors, language providers of Basque companies and interested individuals.

The date seemed a good omen for the workshop and the project, being the eve of the official inauguration of Donostia as culture capital of Europe, with strong reference to the idea of diversity. Diversity is an aspect – implicit and explicit – of the LfW project: diversity of languages connected to migration, diversity of contexts of work-related development, diversity of approaches disseminated by the network, etc. and the belief of benefiting from this variety of diversities.

The workshop focused on questions of particular relevance for a bilingual country facing the linguistic challenge of migrations: How to help employers identify language needs of their company? How to take into account the language needs of our bilingual society? Do migrants’ languages provide value to the local labour market? How to give workers adequate training to use the languages requested by the labor market?

In their key contributions at the beginning of the event, the LfW coordinator, Matilde Grünhage-Monetti, and the LfW member, Petra Elser, director of Banaiz Bagara, presented the project, network and website addressing the issues relevant to the audience.

This stimulated an engaged discussion among participants at the event who explored the issue of more practice-oriented and tailored-made provision, of evaluating language skills on the base of performance and not formal qualifications, and of raising awareness of the role of languages in companies (also of migrants’ languages) in the context of diversity management.

If you want to practise your Basque, read about the event on the website of Euskara plus. To check if you have understood correctly, have a look at the translation into English and if you have time, watch the video with an interview with Matilde Grünhage-Monetti (in English with Basque subtitles)

http://euskaraplus.eus/hizkuntzen-faktorea-enplegu-orientazioan-mintegi-tailerraren-ondorioak/

If you are interested in the event’s other inputs and outcomes, look for the documentation in Basque and Castillian under

http://euskaraplus.eus/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/LFW-mintegiaren-dosierra-Dosier-del-seminario-LFW-1.pdf

There is a lot of talk about plurilingualism, we practise it!

The LfW team thanks the organisers of the workshop who hosted the LfW at their own expense!

The first regional event of the new project, Language for Work – Tools for professional development, took place in France and involved all four members of the project team. The event was supported by the ECML and hosted by the Centre International d’Études Pédagogiques (CIEP). Thanks to cooperation with Délégation Générale à la langue française et aux langues de France, Université Sorbonne Paris Cité (Sociétés Plurielles) and the provider Accentonic, the event attracted some 80 participants involved in research, policy and practice around the learning of work-related French as second language.

The event brought together three audiences who rarely meet: practitioners (training organizations), researchers (especially in language teaching and learning) and policy makers. The first day focused on international and national networks devoted to work-related second language development. The second day was dedicated to the discussion of recent institutional developments in the country with regards to legislation on vocational education and training, basic and vocational skills and work on  integration, including accounts of practice.

The LfW team opened the event: Matilde Grünhage-Monetti introduced the ECML highlighting its present focus on quality language education as key to quality education and its continuous contribution to improving language education across Europe. She illustrated the LfW rationale: the integrative potential of work for (young) adult migrants and the central role of communication and second language in present-day’s work practices.  She reviewed the complexity of the field of work-related L2, sitting as it does at the crossroads of different disciplines and fields of action. Making the case for cooperation across Europe, Ms Grünhage-Monetti  presented the LfW projects and network, the achievements of LfW1 and the envisaged result of LfW2. Alex Braddell then gave a brief overview of the LfW web site, explaining its functionality and role as a vehicle for communication and dissemination. Kerstin Sjösvärd presented the ArbetSam approach developed in Sweden to support workplace L2 development in the context of adult social care. This approach makes use of non-formal and informal mechanisms – areas Alex Braddell then explored in a presentation that investigated the potential of work activity itself as a vehicle for language development. This opening session closed with a presentation from the team’s other member, Christophe Portefin, on legislative developments in France and their impact on work-related language learning.

A lively discussion followed not only in plenary, but also in the breaks and at lunch. In particular issues of non-formal and informal L2 learning must be further explored in particular in view  of the influx of  migrants and the urgent needs to integrate them.

The LfW team profited from the contributions of and exchange with colleagues from France (including Florence Mourlhon-Dallies, team member of LfW 1) and abroad, who presented other networks (including SKiBB in Germany and Langage, Travail et Formation in France) and their reflections on research and practice in the field. The issue of liaising effectively with the various networks e.g. through a platform to achieve synergy, emerged.

The LfW team profited  also from the institutional contributions regarding practice relative to the development of French as L2 in France in the context of vocational integration. Some presentations were concerned with policy changes and new legislation on vocational training and education and their implications for the language provision set up by various public bodies (Conseil Régional d’Île-de-France, Ville de Paris, Ministère de l’Intérieur). Further the results of working groups on the evaluation of competences generic to vocational contexts were presented within the European Agenda for Adult Education. Various training programmes and pilots were presented to illustrate practice, including language training programmes for female cleaners, labour market integration programmes for migrants, a programme for construction workers employed by the Bâtiment et Travaux Publics BTP (Public Buildings and Works)  taking into consideration the current political changes. The cleaning sector presented its language training programme, the mastery of key cleaning competences and its adaptation to the new knowledge and skills standards (CléA) implemented in France since January 2016. Finally various supporting activities initiated by companies gave the LfW team a glimpse of encouraging social initiatives around the language in the workplace, both as part of the fight against illiteracy in the workplace (through the association Ba’ba’s work to link staff from client companies with migrant staff from supply-chain companies) and part of diversity management through a survey undertaken in the department of Hérault, in the south of France. 

In conclusion, the day gave evidence of the complexity of the contexts, in which the language of the receiving country is being learnt for vocational purposes, in particular the necessity to understand learning both from a formal and an informal point of view.

Informal feedback from participants affirmed the value of the Language-for-Work network for practitioners in this field, particularly in the context of today’s urgent challenge around refugee integration.

With the beginning of the year comes a new ECML programme Languages at the heart of learning (2016-2019) and with it a new Language for Work Project: Tools for professional development.  Bridging two of the ECML’s  thematic web portals, Migration and Language Education and Employment and Languages, this new project builds on the previous project Developing migrants' language competences at work.

The focus of the new project is on the professional development of practitioners involved in work‐related language learning for adult migrants including refugees and ethnic minorities, who are often facing language difficulties by the integration into the labour market. The project creates tools and resources to support teachers, teacher educators, providers and other actors in the field.

The language for work website, developed in the first project, consists of a

• a resource bank with practical materials and links to other relevant sites

• a community section for sharing news and expertise as well as for promoting  communication among the network members

 The website will be further developed to make tools for professional development widely available to practitioners and those involved in developing policy relevant to this area, e.g. civil servants, local authority officers, people attached to government and other development agencies, trade unions, etc. across Europe. 

The coordinating team starts the year with a number of international engagements to present the project, its work and insights, including

• Workshop with panel discussion on the role of language(s) for employment Hizkuntzen Faktorea, Enpleguaren Orientazioan/ El Factor de los Idiomas en la Orientacion al Empleo, organised by  the Association Banaiz Bagaram and the Regional Agency for Development  Oarsoalde Garatzen, Donostia, 22.01.2016

• Séminaire: « Apprentissage de la langue du pays d’accueil à des fins professionnelles: un enjeu  pour l’intégration », organised by La  Délégation générale à la langue française et aux langues de France, Université Sorbonne Paris Cité (Sociétés Plurielles) et Accentonic, in cooperation with the Centre international d’études pédagogiques and the ECML, Sèvres 01.-02.02. 2016.

• LIAM symposium The linguistic integration of adult migrants: lessons from research, Strasburg, 30.03-01.04.2016
  

  
  Updates on these events and the learning they generate both for participants and the language for work project will be available in the course of the project.
  

  
  Why don’t you become part of the international network of professionals involved in second language development for work-related purposes? All you need to do is
  visit the LfW website  and join . It’s free and just takes a moment.