Modern Languages Blog

The BBC reports that the BBC Trust has given its go-ahead for BBC Scotland and Gaelic Media Service (GMS) to launch their planned Gaelic Digital Service (GDS). The trust said its approval was subject to certain conditions - including that it launch on cable, satellite and broadband initially.

A review of the service will be carried out before it is considered for broadcast on Freeview. The trust said it expected the GDS to launch early in the summer.

Read the full article on the BBC website.

Language Festivals was a two-year Lingua 1 project that was designed to raise interest in the learning of foreign languages by members of the general public. The project was a direct result of a Contact Seminar hosted by the British Council in London in June 2004. The project was funded from October 2005 until September 2007.

The partners in the project represented six key European languages - Czech, English, French, German, Italian and Spanish - and also a wide range of teaching institutions. The Czech partner was a private adult education school, the English partners public sector colleges, the French partner an NGO (non-governmental organisation), the Austrian partner an adult folk high school, the Italian partner a public sector vocational school and the Spanish partner a public sector specialist language school.

Find out more and read the results on the Language Festivals website.

Throughout January, February and March of 2008, CILT is running a series of free nationwide seminars for non-native speakers of English interested in learning about how to qualify to teach languages in English schools. If you are or have been a Foreign Language Assistant, or are a native speaker of a language other than English and are thinking about training to be a teacher in England, then these seminars are for you.

Sessions will include:

• the role of the languages teacher in English secondary schools
• routes into teaching: university-based and school-based training options
• preparing for teacher training
• how to apply
• financial assistance available

You will also have the opportunity to hear from others who have gone into teacher training and teaching in previous years.

Find out more on the CILT website.

Gaelic development has taken another step forward with the publication of the Fort William Gaelic Map by Comunn na Gàidhlig.

With a bilingual text in Gaelic and English, the map aims to help both residents and visitors to the area.

Archie Maclean, chief executive of Comunn na Gàidhlig (CnaG), said: ‘CnaG is delighted to be able to publish this innovative map. This map is just one of the Gaelic developments currently taking place in Fort William and is an example of the progress made in recent years.

‘Our main focus is providing parents with information about education through the medium of Gaelic.’

CnaG is promoting the map along with other Gaelic developments at a public meeting in Fort William tonight (Thursday) in the council chamber, Lochaber House, Fort William, from 7pm. 

Read the full story on the Lochaber News website.

The Scottish Government has announced that a study of current Scots language provision is to be undertaken to see how the profile and use of the language may be increased.

Minister for Culture Linda Fabiani said, ‘Scots is part of our identity and our heritage as a nation. We must encourage confidence in the use of Scots in all its forms and create opportunities for it to thrive. The Scottish Government is committed to increasing awareness of the Scots language, literature and song…’

‘Schools have a particularly important contribution to make to ensure as many young people as possible have the opportunity to enjoy works of literature by Scots authors…’

The Scottish Government says, ‘Within the current curriculum review, A Curriculum for Excellence, the document ‘Building the Curriculum 1: the contribution of curriculum areas’ recognises that ‘Scotland has a rich diversity of language, including Scots’ and clearly states that teachers should strongly encourage and promote the use of the language the child or young person is using to communicate. It also says that “the guidance will encourage schools to support children in maintaining their own first language.” The draft outcomes for English, which include references to Scots, are due to be released for engagement next month.’

Film Street is a free, interactive website designed to bring filmmaking to children under 12, their parents and teachers. Film Street aims to introduce children to a wider range of film and inspire them to make their own films, in a fun and creative way.

Commissioned by Culture Online, part of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Film Street was developed by First Light Movies, the UK’s young people’s filmmaking initiative, in partnership with Children’s BBC, the British Film Institute, the UK Film Council and Creative Partnerships.

Film Street is packed with interactive activities, movie-making ideas and expert advice. Through visits to locations like the Film Studio and the Costume Shop, children can explore the site to learn how to make a film.

There is also a section for Teachers with advice about how they can bring film education and filmmaking into their classrooms.

Learning and Teaching Scotland is currently seeking seminar suggestions for the conference programme for the Scottish Learning Festival which takes place at the SECC on 24 and 25 September. The deadline for all seminar suggestions is Friday 1 February.

If you would like to submit a proposal, please contact Erin Field, Events Manager (E.Field@LTScotland.org.uk), for a copy of the ‘Call for Seminars’ form.

Please note that there is no guarantee that proposals will be accepted into the final programme.

Poets from Israel and the UK have been brought together to take part in a project aimed at breaking down cultural barriers, the British Council reports.

The Poet to Poet Translation project brought together poets from Scotland, England, and the divided city of Jerusalem to explore the issues of nationality, history and identity in their work. Working on the principle that a faithful rendering of a poet’s work does not necessarily convey its true intent or significance the project examined the idea that a successful translation can be a unique collaboration between two imaginations.

Writing in their own preferred languages of Hebrew, Arabic, English and Gaelic, each poet translated the work of others drawing upon their own cultural experiences to discuss and develop the process of translation.

Find out more on the British Council website.

A delegation from Afghanistan’s Ministry of Education visited Tollcross Primary School in Edinburgh last week to observe how Scottish schools combine English and Gaelic teaching in a bid to revive the teaching of their own native languages. Afghanistan has two official languages, Dari and Pashto, but the government wants to support the 30 other languages used in tribal areas – 20 of which do not have a written alphabet.

Read the full story on the British Council website.

Today in Strasbourg, European Consumer Protection Commissioner Meglena Kuneva will present the ‘Europa School Diary 2008′ to the European Parliament. This key tool for students will be printed in more than 2.7 million copies, in all EU languages, and can be ordered by schools free of charge on a first-come, first-served basis.

It has been prepared by the Commission in partnership with the Generation Europe Foundation, national authorities and other stakeholders. It addresses the European Union, but also consumer and social issues such as debt, food, fraud, electronic commerce, credit, sustainable consumption, climate change, the environment, and the dangers when surfing the web.

Since 2004, the European Commission has been publishing a School Diary aimed at students aged 15-18. The diary is developed in collaboration with national partners so that the content is fine-tuned to their national audiences. A teacher’s kit is distributed with the Diary. The 2008 diary will be printed in more than 2.7 million copies. Schools can order copies until 15 February 2008 on a first-come, first-served basis.

How do I order a diary?

Firstly, you should obtain an order code by emailing Generation Europe’s national partner in the UK - david@generation-europe.org.uk

Then you can order the diary from the website of the Generation Europe Foundation (which publishes and distributes the diary on behalf of the European Commission).