It is widely assumed that the European language sector's views on multilingualism and language diversity align closely with Europe's multilingualism policy*.
It can also be argued, however, that the sector's discourse fails to correspond with its practice.
Research by De Taalsector
Sofia Battistoni, currently an intern with De Taalsector, Belgium, and pursuing a master's degree in Dati, metodi e modelli per le scienze linguistiche (linguistic sciences) at Bologna University, Italy, is evaluating the apparent discrepancy in what Europe's language sector says about multilingualism and language diversity and what it really does.
Sofia has already analysed the discourse and practices of most of Europe's language sector-related associations and bodies, and she is now attempting to capture the voice of Europe's language professionals themselves.
Survey on multilingualism in practice
By devising a survey, she hopes to learn more about how language professionals see multilingualism and language diversity in Europe and in the language sector and how these views translate in communication practices both inside the language sector and in external relations.
Presentation of results and online debate
Sofia’s desk research, the survey as well as several in-depth interviews, will culminate in an online debate on April 7 entitled “Multilingualism and language diversity: is Europe's language sector walking its talk?”.
This debate will tackle issues such as multilingualism and language diversity within the European language sector, the use of English as the lingua franca within the sector and the apparent discrepancy between what the European language sector says about multilingualism and language diversity and what it actually does in practice, within the sector itself as well as outside it (e.g. with people such as policymakers, clients and the general public).
So, if you're an active language professional, based anywhere in Europe, and you wish to speak out about how the language sector in Europe lives up to its rhetoric on multilingualism and linguistic diversity, then please take a few minutes to complete the survey. The survey is completely anonymous, and no personal, identifying data will either be collected or stored.
After completing the survey, you may wish to register for the presentation of the online survey results on March 27 and / or for the full online debate on April 7.
Thank you for your interest and commitment!
*The EU’s multilingualism policy raises awareness of Europe's linguistic diversity and encourages fluency in two additional languages in addition to one’s mother tongue ("mother tongue plus 2"). The EU supports a multilingual economy and makes its legislation and information accessible in all 23 official EU languages. The EU collaborates with the Council of Europe on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) and the European Centre for Modern Languages (ECML) among others, as well as with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development on the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA).