Common European Framework of Reference in the U.S.

Foreign Languages in the US


Professional, political, and grass-roots discussions about foreign language studies and cultural interaction are on the rise in the United States.  This new emphasis on the importance of knowing other languages and understanding other cultures provides an impetus to language educators worldwide to share and collaborate using their most successful instructional and assessment methodologies.

The CEFR - a unique tool


A unique tool that encourages divergent groups to engage in a dialogue about language learning is the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment (CEFR), which is the culmination of over 30 years of work done by the Council of Europe. CEFR shares many similarities with the US developed ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines, thereby providing a substantive and comparative dialogue about language learning and assessment internationally.  The CEFR principles encourage learner-centered, task-based approaches to the teaching and learning of foreign languages and inform goal setting, assessment, curriculum, and instruction.

A group of practitioners, administrators, and members of professional language organizations who work in the US-American context met at the Goethe-Institut in New York City, on September 15-16, 2006, to share their experiences and to discuss critically their work to adapt insights and considerations put forth in the CEFR to the instruction and learning of foreign languages in US educational contexts at all levels.

US-language education in the 21st century


The members of the Council of Europe and its Language Policy Division in particular cooperatively address issues arising in the context of a multilingual, multicultural and transnational Europe.  Promoting the  development of democratic citizenship  across borders and languages, both the COE and the CEFR strongly encourage language studies.  As such, we find that the CEFR has strong implications for the development of a future agenda for the American foreign language instructional community that strives to educate Americans for life in the 21st century:

• to value cultural and linguistic diversity,
• to encourage the retention and development of heritage languages,
• and to become successful participants in the transnational language community.

Americans should have the opportunity to acquire the ability to function on professionally and personally useful levels in English and one or more other languages.  Engagement with the CEFR along with reference to other frameworks and guidelines, such as for instance the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines, will facilitate discussions about:

• transparency and coherence in language learning;
• common criteria for a description of language competencies;
• a single framework for all aspects of language teaching and learning: planning, instruction, and assessment;
• intercultural competencies;
• diversity of language learners;
• self-assessment and reflective, autonomous learning;
• high levels of language competence;
• use of language portfolios for instruction and (self-)assessment;
• potential integration of the CEFR and ACTFL scales.

Further mark and discussion 


Our own engagement with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages and various related documents (e.g., manuals and guides) has had a tremendously positive and rejuvenating impact on our work as language teachers, assessors, and learners.  We would like to extend an invitation to all those involved in language learning, teaching, and assessment to join our discussion.

We are working on the following aspects of the framework: 

Curriculum/Assessment
Gunhild Lischke Cornell University gl15@cornell.edu	Ute Maschke ute.maschke@gmail.com
Curriculum/ Portfolio/Assessment
Jacque Bott van Houten Kentucky Department of Education Jacqueline.VanHouten@education.ky.gov	Randall Lund Brigham Young University randall.lund@byu.edu
Aleidine J. Moeller University of Nebraska-Lincoln amoeller2@unl.edu
Assessment
Arthur Mosher Dayton University Arthur.Mosher@notes.udayton.edu