Joana Pierce McMahon’s research while affiliated with Universidad Politécnica de Madrid and other places

After ten years of immersion in the European Higher Education convergence process, this article deals with the application of European directives to the teaching, learning and assessment of English for Academic and Professional Purposes (eapp) to different groups of engineering students at Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (upm) enrolled in eapp subjects. It focuses on the Common European Framework of Reference for languages (cefr) and the European Language Portfolio (elp). Although these language-learning directives had been previously implemented in other contexts, with various results, their total adaptation to engineering education was pending. The paper starts by highlighting the coincidence in the principles underlying the European Credit Transfer System (ects), and the cefr and elp directives centred on the students’ work to attain certain competencies, and on their autonomous and reflective learning. Next, it discusses the research and innovation projects aimed at improving teaching practices and learning skills after the application of European directives to eapp subjects. The main projects dealt with the development and application of language competence descriptors tailored to the specific context. The paper concludes by showing the advantages of their implementation to the improvement of teaching objectives, programme design, teaching methodology and students’ evaluation, with respect to other procedures before the cefr, based on the results of a survey obtained from the teachers and students participating in the study. Although the complete use of the elp is not feasible, it may be considered as a useful instrument. Both the lists of adapted reference level competence descriptors and the Dossier have proven to be very valuable for the university students’ autonomous and reflective learning with the acquisition of competences in mind, and for their self-assessment abilities, according to the results obtained.

A host of studies over the years have been published on introductions to research articles across a variety of fields. However, much less attention has been paid to professional or workplace introductions as well as student written introductions. This study aims to redress this imbalance by studying the writing samples of four primary English teacher trainees’ introductions to curricular design i.e. the document candidates must present to an examination board in Spain. This genre can be considered occluded in that exemplars are private and confidential and not readily available to the aspiring candidate. Three recurrent moves were identified, namely, explaining the importance of curricular design, providing background and defining concepts. Instances of self-glorification (Bhatia 1996) were revealed. The implications of the findings can have a positive effect on students’ future writing. © 2013, Pasoc Espanola Liguistica Aplicada. All rights reserved.

El Marco Común Europeo de Referencia para las Lenguas (MCER) "describe de forma integradora lo que tienen que aprender a hacer los estudiantes de lenguas con el fin de utilizar una lengua para comunicarse, así como los conocimientos y destrezas que tienen que desarrollar para poder actuar de manera eficaz" (Consejo de Europa 2002: 1). Este trabajo presenta los resultados de dos estudios realizados para analizar los descriptores de la competencia de producción escrita encaminados a formar parte del Portafolio Europeo de Lenguas (PEL) Académico y Profesional para alumnos universitarios de ingenierías y arquitectura. El objetivo principal de estos estudios era establecer si dichos descriptores constituían una herramienta válida y satisfactoria para los programas de las asignaturas de lenguas, desde criterios de claridad, relevancia y fiabilidad, percibidos por los estudiantes y profesores de Inglés con fines académicos y profesionales (IPA) / Inglés para la ciencia y la tecnología (ICT). Los estudios arrojan luz sobre cómo mejorar los descriptores no satisfactorios. Los resultados muestran que las listas con la versión final de los descriptores estaban bien calibradas y bien escritas en su conjunto: los profesores y alumnos implicados consideraron válidos la gran mayoría de los descriptores.

El Consejo de Europa ha elaborado unas directrices en materia lingüística para todos los países de la UE, que se encuentran en el Common European Framework of Reference for Languages CEFRL (2001) y permiten la equiparación de los niveles de competencia comunicativa de los distintos programas y asignaturas de L2. Inmersos en el proceso de convergencia europea de la educación superior, esta comunicación comenzará explicando los criterios y fases para el desarrollo de un PEL (Portafolio Europeo de Lenguas), en el contexto científico y técnico, por parte del grupo de investigación DISCYT de la UPM. Presentará un resumen de las destrezas comunicativas, las situaciones de aprendizaje y uso de la lengua, y los tipos de texto que nuestros alumnos necesitan para desenvolverse en su entorno académico y profesional y facilitar la movilidad. La elaboración del PEL académico y profesional (ACPEL Portfolio) ha obteniendo como resultados la profundización en el análisis del discurso científico y técnico desde la lingüística cognitiva y la socio-pragmática, la actualización de las necesidades de aprendizaje de lenguas de los estudiantes de la UPM dentro del al Espacio Europeo de Educación Superior (EEES), y la capacitación de los alumnos para autoevaluar su progreso de aprendizaje de lenguas. PALABRAS CLAVE: PEL, EEES, destrezas comunicativas, aprendizaje autónomo y reflexivo, autoevaluación.

As the Bologna Process moves forward, changes in European systems of higher education are expected. The introduction of the ECTS focussing on the students' achievements described in terms of the learning outcomes and competences acquired is one of the innovations. This process, encouraged by Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, signifies a change in teaching focus, from an input model to an output one, which promotes self-assessment in a flexible curriculum, in this case adapted to student's language profile. To illustrate this new approach in language learning, a pilot experience with Technical English mining engineering students is discussed, with special attention to learner reflection and self-assessment practices. Students' progress in self-assessment, based on the introduction of learning outcomes in specific language courses, is analysed to conclude that personal engagement and clear purpose -specified in terms of learning outcomes-seem to have become relevant components to student's self-assessment practice.

Engineering Institutions across Europe are currently involved in a major process of reform and restructuring as part of the Bologna Process, which stresses the role of competencies and outcomes in curriculum design. In the field of languages, the Council of Europe has developed the Common European Framework of References for Languages (CEFR), which aims to provide a reference framework for describing different qualifications, identifying different language learning objectives and setting out the basis of different achievement standards. Using this framework of language competence levels, our research group, over a three year period, has developed and piloted the Academic and Professional English Language Portfolio (ACPEL) especially designed for Engineering students and professionals. This portfolio was accredited by Language division of the Council of Europe in 2008. This paper will report on an ongoing project dealing with self and peer assessment based on the ACPEL portfolio. The project's aim is threefold: first, to train university language professionals in the use of self and peer assessment through the implementation of the ACPEL portfolio; secondly, to gradually introduce these assessment processes into the engineering language curriculum and finally to monitor and evaluate these two processes at the seven engineering schools.

The ability to learn languages and adapt communication competencies to the changing needs and situations of a global knowledge society and the European Higher Education area is becoming a necessity for future engineers. This article first discusses the demand for communication skills in Engineering Education in general. Secondly, it describes the present state of the Bologna process in Spanish higher education, which calls for a change in focus from an input model to an output one, in which learning outcomes are central. Finally, it summarizes the proposal of developing a ªbankº of language learning outcomes for Engineering Education studies framed within the European Language Portfolio. This bank of learning outcomes, expressed as ªcan doº statements, will serve three purposes: curricula guidance for teachers, guidelines for student life-long learning and autonomous learning.