Modern Languages Blog

HM Inspectorate of Education (HMIE) has published its draft Gaelic Language Plan for consultation. The Plan proposes measures to encourage the increased use of Gaelic in four key areas: 

• Identity
• Communications
• Publications
• Staffing

Responses to the consultation on the HMIE’s Draft Gaelic Language Plan can be made to HMIE, Longman House, Longman Road, Inverness, IV1 1SF.  The consultation runs until 27 November 2009.

Copies of the full report are available from: http://www.hmie.gov.uk/Publications.aspx

The Herald: The Scottish Qualifications Authority said only 13 secondary schools out of a total of 376 had registered for the languages qualification by the deadline at the beginning of October – less than 4% of the total.

Read more of this article: http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/education/flagship-education-policy-to-revive-science-and-languages-in-tatters-1.925253

Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) has launched a series of Gaelic educational materials celebrating some of Scotland’s most interesting species. The Mu Dheadhinn packs feature worksheets, games and full colour posters for free distribution to schools throughout Scotland. The packs provide teachers and students with a ready made set of educational projects and activities exploring natural history through the Gaelic language.

The complete Mu Dheidhinn series is also available for free download from Scottish Natural Heritage’s website www.snh.org.uk

The Independent: From now on Scottish Gaelic speakers can write directly to EU bodies in their mother tongue if they wish and receive a reply in that language. Scottish ministers can also speak Scottish Gaelic in meetings with other EU ministers and regional representatives.

The deal was sealed in a Memorandum of Understanding signed in Brussels yesterday by the UK’s EU ambassador, Sir Kim Darroch, and by Donald Henderson, Scotland’s EU director.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/scots-gaelic-becomes-an-eu-language-1799290.html

Date: 30 October, 2009
Venue: Goethe-Institut, Glasgow
Contact: Lilo Börgmann

Goethe-Institut are inviting teachers of German in the Primary Sector to their training day on Saturday, 30th October.

Part of the programme is an introduction to GLOW resources and the launch of a new Goethe-Institut group. This CPD opportunity is also suitable for teachers in training and FLAs who are working in Primary schools. Teachers in training and FLAs are free of charge.

For further details: http://www.goethe.de/ins/gb/gla/lhr/en4822527v.htm

This competition is supported by the HSBC Global Education Programme and organised by the British Council to support and promote the teaching of Chinese as a modern foreign language in UK schools.

Regional heats will be held in London and Newcastle in mid December 2009 and successful competitors will be invited to the competition final at the British Museum in March 2010. The winning prize is a trip to Beijing in April 2010.

Interested schools should complete the online registration form at https://survey.britishcouncil.org/wix/p9070429.aspx by Friday 23 October 2009. 

More information on the competition and the judging criteria can be found on the British Council website: http://www.britishcouncil.org/schoolpartnerships-chinese-speaking-competition.htm

The exhibition produced by the Goethe-Institut includes a representative selection of photographs from Koppelkamm’s Ortszeit / Local Time project

Travelling around East Germany in 1990 – after the fall of the Wall but before unification – Stefan Koppelkamm found himself wanting to take photographs that would capture a state of affairs he assumed would never recur. 

 Ten or twelve years later, Stefan Koppelkamm sought all these places out again and photographed them for a second time,. The pairs of images he produced document the changes these locations have undergone.

More info and opening times from http://www.goethe.de/ins/gb/gla/ges/mau/en5050239v.htm

This month is the 60th Anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. Throughout Oct and Nov the transformation of China will be celebrated by a varied programme of events organised or sponsored by the Confucius Institute for Scotland.

http://www.confuciusinstitute.ac.uk/