I International Conference of Foreign Languages

          In an undoubtedly globalised world learning new languages is seen as absolutely necessary and urgent. The growth of international mobility and the creation of a more European and World citizenship status are bottom line issues towards the inevitability of linguistic diversity as a core developer of communicative and intercultural competences, intensely addressed by European educational governance.

          Within this framework the Council of Europe has created the Language Portfolio which promotes the learning of languages in both formal and informal contexts as a way to facilitate global mobility thus implying an obvious adaptation to the host country. As such the teaching/learning process of foreign languages must also comprise cultural elements as a way to support background and context to language skills.

          The transparency, uniformity and coherence of levels imposed within the Common European Framework of References for Languages as well as its approach to real-life linguistic communication contexts has led to the display of several new methodologies aiming at improving the relation between learners and languages.

        This poses new challenges to the teaching of foreign languages not only in Portugal, but also at a European level, thus promoting the sociolinguistic and cultural relation underlying the learning of languages.

          Envisaging a broad perspective of the multiple angles foreign languages can assume, the I International Conference of Foreign Languages has the following objectives: to gather researchers in order to debate and discuss emerging issues in the field of languages and its several disciplines, namely literature, culture and arts in general; to report on recent language teaching tendencies occurring in Portugal and abroad; to debate the use of FL as a survival tool in integrating new cultures, thus questioning identity.

          We welcome the proposal of 300 word abstracts, for 20 minute long papers/ or 30 minute long workshops, on topics and themes of interest including the following (proposals should refer the panel participants wish to be included in; accepted languages: Portuguese, English, French, Spanish):

 

• Foreign languages as a survival tool in a new global world

• Languages, memory and identity

• Teaching English to Primary Schools: difficulties and challenges

• Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL)

• The teaching of foreign languages in Basic and Secondary Schools

• Language teaching in Higher Education

• Language centres and Institutes as a link with the outer school community

• ICT in the teaching/learning process of foreign languages

• The European Language Portfolio

• Languages and the new perspectives in Translation Studies

 

Fees: 80 euros (with presentation) (early birds: 60 euros if registration is completed until 31 October); IPB students (5 euros); other participants (without presentation): 40 euros.

 

Deadline: abstracts and other queries should be sent to: coloquiointernacionalle@gmail.com by July 31st 2015. Please include name, institutional affiliation, the thematic section, a short bio note and contact information (download the template here: I International Conference of Foreign Languages: from one language to another).