The conference Language, Identity and Education in Multilingual Contexts took place at The Hague University of Applied Sciences on 20-21 February 2020. This conference was the third edition of the LIEMC (the first was held in Dublin in 2018 and the second in York in 2019), organized jointly by the Hague University of Applied Sciences, The Dutch Language Union – Taalunie and MultiLingNet.
It was a relatively small event with three parallel sessions over two days and four keynote lectures given by:
Later in the day, the fascinating plenary talk performed by the always energetic Tommaso M. Milani kept the danger of post-lunch drowsiness at bay. Tommaso talked about the debates concerning introducing Swedish language exams for people applying for citizenship. Many voices in these debates are driven by fears that Swedish - or at least what is perceived as "correct" Swedish - may be under threat, which is very interesting for scholars working on language revitalization. As we know from research on language ideologies, also global languages such as English or Spanish are sometimes believed to be under threat and in need of protection. In France, concerns about the future of French may be impeding revitalization efforts on behalf of France's minority languages.
Our project was presented by Joanna in the afternoon session. As we couldn't present any empirical data yet, it was unavoidably theoretical, focusing on the concept of new speakers, the role they may play in language revitalization efforts, and the role the minority language may play in their lives. Also the relative separation of new speaker communities from the language "heartlands" in rural areas, their urban character, and changing motivations for learning/functions of minority languages were among the raised issues. The presentation was very warmly received, although there was some discussion concerning our definition of the concept of a new speaker. This feedback is definitely going to enrich our understanding of the issues surrounding the concept as we continue working on it in the following months.
It was a relatively small event with three parallel sessions over two days and four keynote lectures given by:
- Xiao Lan Curdt-Christiansen on Family Language Policy: Does it Matter?,
- Tommaso M. Milani on Second Language Acquisition, Education and Social (In)Justice in a Multilingual Context,
- Roy Lyster on Research Perspectives on Integrating Language and Content, and
- Jos Beelen on From Mobility of the Few to Curriculum for All: Dutch Internationalization Anno 2020.
Later in the day, the fascinating plenary talk performed by the always energetic Tommaso M. Milani kept the danger of post-lunch drowsiness at bay. Tommaso talked about the debates concerning introducing Swedish language exams for people applying for citizenship. Many voices in these debates are driven by fears that Swedish - or at least what is perceived as "correct" Swedish - may be under threat, which is very interesting for scholars working on language revitalization. As we know from research on language ideologies, also global languages such as English or Spanish are sometimes believed to be under threat and in need of protection. In France, concerns about the future of French may be impeding revitalization efforts on behalf of France's minority languages.
Our project was presented by Joanna in the afternoon session. As we couldn't present any empirical data yet, it was unavoidably theoretical, focusing on the concept of new speakers, the role they may play in language revitalization efforts, and the role the minority language may play in their lives. Also the relative separation of new speaker communities from the language "heartlands" in rural areas, their urban character, and changing motivations for learning/functions of minority languages were among the raised issues. The presentation was very warmly received, although there was some discussion concerning our definition of the concept of a new speaker. This feedback is definitely going to enrich our understanding of the issues surrounding the concept as we continue working on it in the following months.
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