Current challenges in language education
Language education in Europe currently faces a number of important challenges, influenced by both societal shifts and advancements in technology such as:
- declining interest in learning more than one foreign language, partly due to the dominance of English;
- educational inequality: with access to quality language education often varying widely depending on socioeconomic factors;
- significant shortages of qualified language teachers, especially for languages other than English – thereby affecting both the quality and availability of language education, particularly in rural or underserved areas;
- integration and effective use of technology and in particular, AI
Addressing these issues requires innovative strategies, equitable access to resources, and pedagogical approaches that make use of technology to enhance communication.
The cooperation agreement
The “Innovative methodologies and assessment in language learning” Action, which was initially launched in 2013, reflects ongoing, yet evolving, priority areas in language education as identified and described within the Cooperation Framework established between the European Commission and the ECML, in response to needs in their respective member states.
It seeks to support member states of the ECML and the European Union in tackling key challenges faced in language education systems. It does so through a series of complementary initiatives.
The overarching objective of the action is to create synergies, increase impact and use the expertise of the respective organisations, with the view to support Member States to reform and improve language education. Through intensified exchange, cooperation and joint actions the Commission and the ECML will be able to supplement and enhance separate actions in the field of language teaching and learning.