David Little

Trinity College Dublin | TCD · Centre for Language and Communications Studies

This book brings together the first book collection of African research in mathematics education in multilingual societies andchronicles current research in different linguistic contexts across the African continent, (including Algeria, Namibia, Malawi, Morocco, Rwanda, South Africa) on issues of multilingualism in mathematics education, but more i...

The Council of Europe advocates a plurilingual approach to language education, the goal being to develop “a communicative competence to which all knowledge and experience of language contributes and in which languages interrelate and interact” (Council of Europe, Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, teaching, assessment (...

This article is my answer to the question: What is your vision of university language centres in the 21st century? I argue that language centres can best establish themselves as beacons of good practice by embracing, exploring and further developing the concept of plurilingualism, promoting the autonomy of their students, and constructively alignin...

For me, ‘language learner autonomy’ denotes a teaching/learning dynamic in which learners plan, implement, monitor and evaluate their own learning. From the beginning they do this as far as possible in the target language, which thus becomes a channel of their individual and collaborative agency. By exercising agency in the target language they gra...

Engaging with Linguistic Diversity describes an innovative and highly successful approach to inclusive plurilingual education at primary level. The approach was developed by Scoil Bhríde (Cailíní), Blanchardstown, as a way of converting extreme linguistic diversity – more than 50 home languages in a school of 320 pupils – into educational capital....

This chapter reports on the development and implementation of an integrated approach to language education in an Irish primary school for girls whose pupil cohort displays an unusually high level of linguistic diversity. The chapter summarizes the impact of immigration on Ireland’s schoolgoing population, describes the official policy response and...

This chapter outlines and discusses three versions of the concept of learner autonomy. The first, central to the Council of Europe’s project on adult education in the 1970s, embeds “self-learning” in the interactive, dialogic processes of group work. The second version, elaborated by Henri Holec for the Council of Europe’s parallel project on adult...

This is the first book on language learner autonomy to combine comprehensive accounts of classroom practice with empirical and case-study research and a wide-ranging engagement with applied linguistic and pedagogical theory. It provides a detailed description of an autonomy classroom in action, focusing on Danish mixed-ability learners of English a...

I begin this article by briefly explaining why I think CercleS should encourage university language centres to align their courses and assessment with the proficiency levels of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) and why they should use a version of the European Language Portfolio (ELP) to support the development of stud...

This article starts from the assumption that education is a process of “people shaping” designed to help learners extend and perhaps in some ways modify their identity while exploiting and developing their agency. This view is harmonious with the approach to language education that the Council of Europe has developed since the 1970s, and especially...

Questa Guida, destinata ai responsabili della politica migratoria degli Stati membri, interroga la nozione d’integrazione linguistica, registra i mezzi e descrive i passi indispensabili per affrontare questa problematica, in modo che i piani e i progetti elaborati dalle autorità pubbliche rispondano alle necessità ed alle attese sia della società d...

Self-access learning and the concept of learner autonomy have played a central role in the history of university language centres. Since the late 1970s, language centres' understanding of learner autonomy has tended to be constrained by the link with self-access learning and the limitations imposed by available technology. For me, language learner...

Questa Guida, destinata ai responsabili della politica migratoria degli Stati membri, interroga la nozione d’integrazione linguistica, registra i mezzi e descrive i passi indispensabili per affrontare questa problematica, in modo che i piani e i progetti elaborati dalle autorità pubbliche rispondano alle necessità ed alle attese sia della società d...

Since its publication in 2001 the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR; Council of Europe, 2001) has established itself as a key reference in international discussion of proficiency in second and foreign languages. The CEFR represents the culmination of three decades of collaborative research, and it unites two apparently oppo...

As this issue was in preparation, the journal learned with great regret of the passing of John Trim. John was a long-serving member of the Language Teaching Board and his insight and advice proved invaluable for this and previous editors. An expert in the field of phonetics, linguistics, language didactics and policy, John worked tirelessly to impr...

This article is based on a plenary talk given at the CercleS seminar hosted by the University of Groningen in November 2011 to mark the tenth anniversary of the publication of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages and the launch of the European Language Portfolio. The first part of the article summarizes the history of Council of...

This is an important book: the first attempt to gauge the impact of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) by means of case studies rather than a questionnaire survey. The editors have recruited contributions from 11 countries, four in Europe (France, Germany, Bulgaria, Poland), three in America (Argentina, Columbia, the Un...

This article reports on ‘European Language Portfolio in whole-school use’ (ELP-WSU), one of the projects of the third medium-term programme (2007–2011) of the European Centre for Modern Languages. It begins by briefly introducing the ELP and goes on to consider the three challenges that the ELP poses to L2 pedagogy: the development of learner auton...

This article explains the relevance of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) and the European Language Portfolio (ELP) to language learning in higher educa tion, especially as regards the definition of aims and learning outcomes and the promotion of students' capacity to manage their own learning. After providing some hist...

This chapter argues for the establishment of an assessment culture that recognises the development of learner autonomy as a primary goal in second language learning and teaching, and in which the learner plays a role in evaluating learning outcomes. Describing an institution-wide language programme at Trinity College, Dublin, the chapter explores t...

Editorial note This new strand in the journal provides a space for contributors to present a personal stance either on future research needs or on the perceived current applications of research in the classroom. Like much of our current content, it echoes the historical uniqueness of this journal in terms of its rich and expert overview of recent r...

This chapter is about learner autonomy and the contribution that the European Language Portfolio (ELP) can make to learner and teacher development in language learning contexts where learner autonomy is a central goal. The first part of the chapter explores the concept of autonomy as a basic human need, a general educational goal, and a determinant...

This article argues that the Council of Europe's European Language Portfolio is capable of supporting the implementation of language learner autonomy on a large scale. It begins by explaining what the author understands by 'language learner autonomy', then introduces the European Language Portfolio and explains how it can stimulate reflective learn...

According to Wikipedia “Europeanization” refers to a number of related phenomena and patterns of change: – Outside of the social sciences, it commonly refers to the growth of a European continental identity or polity over and above national identities and polities on the continent. – Europeanization may also refer to the process through which E...

I 1986 var lørner-autonomi, både som teoretisk begreb og som pædagogisk mål, stadigvæk noget som kun en lille gruppe af pionerer var optaget af. Men hen imod slutningen af årtiet begyndte det at optræde i den generelle diskussion om sprog- undervisning, delvis under indflydelse af lørner-orienterede teorier om uddannelse. I løbet af 1990’erne begyn...

The concept of learner autonomy is often applied to the process and content of language learning but not specifically to its intended outcome, the development of proficiency in a second or foreign language. Against this tendency, the present paper argues for an understanding of language learner autonomy in which the development of learner autonomy...

Since its circulation in two draft versions in 1996, and especially since its commercial publication in English and French in 2001, the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) has come to dominate discussion of L2 curricula, the assessment of L2 proficiency, and L2 teaching and learning in Europe. Although it is widely referred...

Learner-centred approaches to language teaching, especially those that seek to develop learner autonomy, require the learner to take decisions concerning the goals, content and methods of learning; they also assign a central role to self-assessment. Although the logic of learner-centredness demands that learner self-assessment should somehow be int...

This article describes the structure, functions and origins of the Council of Europe's European Language Portfolio (ELP); summarizes the scope and findings of the pilot projects (1998–2000) and the measures that have been taken to encourage large-scale implementation in 2001 and beyond; outlines the pedagogical challenge posed by the ELP; and...

Writing figures prominently in accounts of foreign language learning that is specially concerned with promoting the development of learner autonomy. Writing things down plays a prominent role in the autonomous foreign language classroom. The learner texts presented and discussed in this paper invite reflection on three issues of general importance...

The report details the Irish portion of an experiment in tandem language learning by electronic mail (e-mail). The partners were Trinity College, Dublin (Ireland) and Ruhr University, Bochum (Germany), funded by the European Union within the International E-Mail Tandem Network as part of a two-year project. Tandem language learning is a form of ope...

The first part of this article explores the concept of learner autonomy from the perspective of a social-interactive view of learning. The second part elaborates three fundamental pedagogical principles derived from this view and calculated to develop learner autonomy: the principle of learner empowerment; the principle of appropriate target langua...

Tandem language learning is based on a partnership between two people, each of whom is learning the other's language. Successful tandem partnerships observe the principle of reciprocity (“tandem learners support one another equally’) and the principle of learner autonomy (“tandem partners are responsible for their own learning”) (Little and Brammer...

This paper offers a language‐awareness perspective on the concept of autonomy in second language learning. The introductory section distinguishes between two kinds of language awareness and elaborates a working definition of learner autonomy. The second section looks at child development and the role played by both kinds of language awareness in fi...

Strategic competence and the learner's strategic control of the language learning process* - Volume 29 Issue 2 - David Little

The concept of autonomy in second language learning is explored by tracing some steps in the evolution of theory and practice. The first section relates one definition of learner autonomy ("the ability to take charge of one's learning") to self-instruction in language learning and to research in language learning at the adult level. The second sect...

The LINGUA Project International Electronic Mail Tandem Network, sponsored by the European Union, is described in a series of chapter-articles. Universities in a number of European countries and several non-European countries have collaborated in expansion of the network, related research projects, and development of instructional materials to faci...

This article is concerned with learner autonomy in formal language learning contexts (schools, colleges and universities). It begins with some general reflections on the nature of learner autonomy and goes on to consider how autonomy is to be fostered, focusing first on learning strategies and learner training and then on the pedagogical dialogue a...

This paper comprises three sections and a brief conclusion. The first section provides a context for what follows by distinguishing between two quite different approaches to interactive video for language learning and summarizing the basic principles that have guided the work reported in the paper: the second section describes two versions of the A...

This volume includes articles on theory and research in pedagogical grammar written by authorities from around the world. In the paperback edition, Professor Odlin brings together eleven authorities from various parts of the world to update current theory and research in pedagogical grammar. The first section addresses grammatical analysis, coverin...

This report presents the development and results of a 1-year foreign language module program of 15-weeks duration for university students in the arts, commerce, science, and engineering. The project's central concern was to develop and test a general model for the delivery of foreign language teaching to students of other disciplines. The program i...

A widely held view among psycholinguists is that the L2 mental lexicon is qualitatively different from the L, mental lexicon - more 'phonological' and more 'loosely organized'. In this paper we present some C-test-elicited data from the pilot phase of the Trinity College Dublin Modern Languages Project which call the above view into question. Our d...

An applied linguistic framework is presented within which specific applications of media technologies may be applied to language learning. The first two parts of the paper focus on the impact of media on linguistic communication and the possibilities offered by media technologies such as newspapers, radio, television, telephone/telex, computer netw...

This article describes in general terms what interactive video is and compares the relative advantages and disadvantages of disc- and tape-based systems; summarizes the considerations that underlay the development of the AUTOTUTOR, an interactive video system designed for language learners by the Centre for Language and Communication Studies, Trini...

A self-instructional program in German for undergraduate students of engineering at Trinity College, Dublin, was developed based on a questionnaire of student needs, language experience, and preferred instructional methods. The course design and instructional materials for the program emphasized oral/aural skills; moreover, counseling and academic...

Results of a survey of students of the University of Dublin concerning their language learning experiences and attitudes are reported. The study was undertaken within a larger study of self-directed language learning. The questionnaire had seven sections. The first and largest covered these topics related to students' language background: (1) the l...

A number of issues of central importance to understanding the nature of language, its acquisition and use were considered at a seminar on language learning. Papers delivered at the seminar are as follows: "Why Don't Learners Learn What Teachers Teach? The Interaction Hypothesis" (Dick Allwright); "The Role of Instruction in Second Language Acquisit...

Learner autonomy is currently one of the most widely discussed concepts in second language pedagogy and a common goal of second language curricula. It also underlies the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (Council of Europe 2001), whose scales of communicative proficiency define the autonomous second language learner–user. And its...

Recopilación de artículos dirigidos a profesores de lenguas, asesores lingüísticos y a aquellos que deseen organizar y apoyar el aprendizaje autónomo de lenguas en tándem. Se recogen las principales claves teóricas de dicho modelo de aprendizaje, incluyendo consideraciones sobre los principios que lo rigen, las estrategias que le son de aplicación...