The Common European Framework For Languages English Language Essay

The Common European Frame piddle For phraseologys English Language EssayThe directional activity and schooling of lyric poems in Germany in trail contexts falsifyd a lot in the last years. The tr culmination in statuss of fostering constitution of standardization and compe hug drugcy orientation dominates more and more the German run-in didactics. The policy supports in an active way this reform. sensation of the near influential documents of this development is the Common European mannequin for verbiages. Its influence is in Germany especi all in ally strong since the authors of the German training standards for the number 1 conflicting linguistic communication adopted nearly completely its supposition.In this work I lead show what the reform of linguistic communication command method in Germany mean. I go forth find answers for the question what competency oriented foreign voice communication teaching is and I will check how the Common European modell ing for phrases and the German rearing standards for the firstborn foreign lyric poem ar related to this trend. finally I will weight the positive manifestations up against the problematic points of this development.2. clear up of German foreign language teaching development of a competency orientated larn and teachingFor kind of a while the teaching and learning of languages in Germany in school contexts is influenced from a trend in terms of educational policy, called competence orientated teaching. (Hu 2008 S. 1)But what exactly is this trend, which dominates the word of the scientific association of those concerned with foreign language teaching and search? What is the potential of the alters which argon accompanied by the competence orientated teaching and which aspects of this trend are debatable?A huge time language teaching in German schools aimed to the instruction for four language skills viva voce comprehension, bring into being verbally comprehension , speaking and writing. The teaching and learning of foreign languages was therefore distinctly geared toward the language ashes of the respective language. (Hu, Leupold 2008 52)Changes of the conditions of the external world, such as the progression of the planetaryisation, an increase of mobility of the people, relating to the evolution of globalisation and the phenomenon of migration lead to a diametrical home run of language teaching. The objective of language teaching in German schools was now the training of a so-called competence of communication.Before that time, the language arrangement of the respective language was the focus of language teaching. After the change of the role of foreign languages in the life, the focus of learning and teaching languages was that the learners perplex able to express whatever it is they want to express. (Hu, Leupold 2008 53)The Pragmatics, a subfield of linguistic, explained the complexity of the competence of communication by dividin g it in several parts linguistic competence, socio-linguistic competence, competence of discourse, strategically competence, socio- pagan competence, social competence. (Hu, Leupold 2008 53)All in all, the development of language teaching in Germany is often described by scientific community as a change from orientation towards the input to an orientation towards the output. No long-acting the contents that the pupil has to learn are considered as the most burning(prenominal) question of educational policy. The competences, abilities that the pupils burn down achieve by learning quite different contents are now the focus of the discussion in terms of educational policy. (Weil 2010 16)In Germany that restructuring was especially driven forward afterwards the so-called shock of Pisa in 2000.The Kultusministerkonferenz1(KMK) developed a strategy, a pigment element of which are the German education standards for the first foreign language (English/French) and the included idea of c ompetence orientated teaching. The plan is to develop strength or long term aims for each subject of the German education administration. The targets should be competence orientated and clearly fixed, so that it is possible to peer-review them. This invent both challenged and changed the teaching and learning of languages in Germany.The idea of competence orientated language teaching is reflected in different parts of the German school system in the education standards for the first foreign language, which is based on the Common European framework for languages, in exams comparing the accomplishment of all German pupils at a certain age, in types of exercises, which brook to be filmd in all language classes of German schools, etc.One of the most of the essence(predicate) or maybe the most important offspring of the described reform of learning and teaching languages is the Common European framework of languages in Germany. That is why this document will be the focus of the next part of my work.In the first part of this chapter I will sort into what kind of document the CEFR is. In the second part I will show the performance of the document in the German education system of language teaching. In the third part I will consider the reception of the CEFR and the idea of competence orientated teaching.3. The Common European framework for languages3.1 What is the CEFR?The CEFR was published in 2000 as result of many years of work on the European level. One year later a edition in German language was published. The primary goal of the document was to become a closer unity between the member states. Therefore the target of the CEFR is first of all politically motivated. (Hu 2008 4)Other important intentions of the CEFR can be summarized as followsIntensification of learning and teaching languages, so that the people of the European sum of m unrivalledy have more mobility and so that a international communication can be more effectivesupport of the concept of a European plurilingualismlifelong language learningto make the recognition of language qualifications easierto work the contingency of comparison of programmes for language learning, for language certificatesto create more enhancer and to describe realistic goals of language learning (chapter 1 of the CEFR)In the CEFR language is always considered, as we can count in the first chapter of the long document, as kind of a human action. In the concept of the CEFR learning a language serves for communication.The division of the complex world power to have get the hang a foreign language in several parts, that can be assessed, has an especially huge influence of language teaching.Here you can bet which different competences, considered as important for learning a language, are listed in the CEFRdeclarative knowledge (savoir)knowledge about the worldsocio-cultural knowledgeintercultural wittingnessskills and procedural knowledge (savoir-faire)practical skillsintercultural skil lscompetences of personality (savoir-tre)ability to learn (savoir-apprendre)So the traditional targets of language learning are extended in the CEFR by up to other intentions, that where unconsidered until then Techniques and strategies about how to learn are presented as important aspects of language learning. The cultural dimension of learning foreign languages is represented and the CEFR also pays some attention to the demands of the personality of the learner which are related to the treat of language learning.Besides this, the process of learning languages was, in the CEFR, for the first time analysed in an instrumental-functional way by dividing the process of learning in six levels. (Caspari, Grnewald etc. 2008 1) The reference levels of the CEFR serve to describe the progresses in the process of learning.It is therefore evident that the down the stairslying concept of language of the CEFR is an instrumental-functional one. set aside to his competences a language learner be longs after the concept of the CEFR to one of the trio broad divisions, which can be divided into six levels.Here the structuring of learning languages which is developed by the authors of the CEFRA Basic speaker systemA1 Breakthrough or beginnerA2 Waystage or elementaryB Independent SpeakerB1 brink or pre-intermediateB2 Vantage or intermediateC Proficient SpeakerC1 Effective Operational Proficiency or upper intermediateC2 instruction or advanced3.2 The implementation of the CEFR in Germanythe CEFR as cardinal concept of the education standards for the first foreign languageAfter I have outlined what kind of document the CEFR is, I will describe his implementation in the German education standards for the first foreign language and with that his capacious influence on language teaching in German schools.In 2000, for the first time the international school study PISA (Programme for International student Assessment) was performed. This is an international evaluation of the scho lastic performance of 15-year-old pupils, which is coordinated by the plaque for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The relatively bad results of the German pupils (Born 2003) revealed the discrepancy between the targets and the requirements of the educational system and the real results.Because of the PISA results of 2000, the German educational policy was under big political pressure for action. (Caspari, Grnewald etc. 2008 1) In this conditions, the Kultusministerkonferenz passed education standards for the first foreign language (English/French) in 2003. These standards give information about the needful standard of a pupil after having been at school for ten years, after the lower secondary school. These actions in term of educational policy should, at least at medium-term, improve the scholastic performance of German pupils and give Germany the chance to get a better ranking in the hereafter. (Klieme, Leutner 2006 876)The standardization of learning languages was a special case because a system of levels already existed from the CEFR. So the existing work form the Council of Europe was taken up. The B1 level was used as the basis for the level, which was expected at the end of lower secondary school. The educational standards describe consequently as sound as the CEFR the expected normal level and not a marginal level. (Kunze 2007 236)Since the educational standards practically adopted the skills of the CEFR, two more or slight simultaneous developments in educational policy with original different intentions, coincided the possibility to compare language competences in Europe and the goal in term of educational policy to describe accurately which competences are expected from the pupils at a certain grade, so that the scholastic performance can be assessed in a well founded way. (Hu 2008 5)In spite of the different intentions the education standards for the first foreign language are clearly based on the CEFR.Also the division of the p recise complex competence to have master a language follows the shell of the CEFR. Merely the terms and the show are different. The concept is nearly the sameskills of communicationoral comprehensionwritten comprehensionspeakingwritingtranslatinghandling of the language system (grammar and diction)vocabularygrammarpronunciation and intonationorthographyintercultural competencessocio-cultural knowledgecomprehensive way to handgrip cultural differencescoping with intercultural situations in practicecompetences of methodsreception of texts (oral and written comprehension)ability to interact with textsproduction of texts (speaking and writing)strategies of learningpresentation to handle with mediumsbeing conscious about the process of learningBy the implementation of the CEFR in the German education standards, the European Councils document of learning and teaching of languages has a outsize influence on the language teaching in German schools. That is the effort why the CEFR is c onspicuously often discussed by the German scientific community of those concerned with foreign language teaching and research.3.3 Reception of the Common European framework for languages in GermanyIn this last part of my work I will consider the controversial discussion about the CEFR, its positive aspects and its woebegone spots. First I will speak about the positive points of the CEFR. by and by I will present aspects which are criticised and at last I will give a short personal view on the CEFR and the underlying concept of language learning.3.3.1 Positive aspects of the CEFRThe CEFR led to a implicit in(p) discussion of the teaching and learning of languages and it brought up the question about what the global targets of learning foreign languages are. The function of the CEFR as a stimulus to hazard about the being of language teaching is clearly profitable for future teaching and learning of languages. The process of rethinking traditions which was activated this way has shown for example one more time that the grammar focussed language teaching can not be justified by the actual point of view. (Neuner 2003)Many see the standardization of language learning positively, especially in Germany. Since the sixteen national states of the Federal Republic of Germany have developed their own targets up to that time, the demands in the various parts of Germany were often quite different. Therefore a standardization of the global intention and the expected competences from the pupil, was necessary to support the pupils in achieving mobility and to create more justice for the pupils in Germany. (Caspari, Grnewald etc. 2008 9)A great footmark forward for language teaching, which is related to the CEFR, is the change of perspective on the process of learning. Before that, the judgements of the pupils performance was usually made deficit orientated. Faults and aspects of the language at which the pupils arent good were the focus of traditional language teaching. The CEFR lead however to a perspective in which the already acquired competences are focused. (Caspari, Grnewald etc. 2008 9-10)Like this change of perspective, the division of the global language-competence in several parts, as well as the organization in six levels influence the motivation of learner and teacher in a positive way. The process of learning a language is getting more structured and can be better organized. (Caspari, Grnewald etc. 2008 10)3.3.2 Criticised aspects of the CEFR and his implementation in the German education systemAfter the presentation of all this positive aspects I will show some examples of important points that are criticised.Problematic in the reform of the German education system by the implementation of the described standards is, that the teachers arent sufficiently involved. There are besides very little workshops for introducing the teacher to the new way. (Caspari, Grnewald etc. 2008 11)Besides the underlying concept of language is often cons idered as one-sided only the instrumental-functional aspect of language is taken into consideration. Aesthetic, creative and cultural dimensions of language are for example neglected. (Caspari, Grnewald etc. 2008 12)Another paradox problem related to the concept of competence orientated teaching is, that competences like intercultural competences, that are hard to assess, will be probably neglected in this reform, even if it is listed in the CEFR and the German education standards. Under the pressure of proving, that certain targets are reached, it is not surprising, that at first those goals which are hard to assess will be neglected. (Hu 2008 6)All in all the emotional aspect of learning a language is not sufficiently taken into consideration. The importance to consider the needs and interests of learners are not really appreciated. (Knigs 2003 115)4. ConclusionThe precedent considerations about the development in educational policy show that a reform of language teaching in Germa ny was necessary. The results of the Pisa-studies 2000 made this necessity obvious. Nevertheless the changes are discussed in a controversial way and there are many aspects which have to be criticised. particularly the concept of language which underlie the idea of competence orientated language teaching is in several aspects problematic. It is one-sided instrumental-functional and overlook the creative, aesthetic and cultural dimension of languages. In my personal experience this aspects of foreign languages were always very important in the process of learning a language a way which is sometimes hard to go. That is why the needs and interest of language learners are extremely important aspects in the language-learning-process and why they it is important to involve them more in the actual development.