European Trade Union Committee for Education

Eurydice has published the 4th edition of the report presenting key data on Teaching Languages at School in Europe.

The report shows that language skills are considered an asset: the number of pupils studying foreign languages has increased considerably in recent years with English, French, German and Spanish being the most popular foreign languages. The report shows that students in vocational education and training do not have the same opportunities to learn foreign languages as their peers in general education. In addition, there is a difference of training for foreign language teachers in different school levels, pointing out that in primary education, languages are often taught by generalist teachers whereas language education in secondary education is delivered by specialised teachers.

More than half of foreign language teachers have been abroad during their initial teacher training and a majority of lower secondary teachers have travelled abroad for professional reasons: mostly to learn the language, but also to accompany visiting students, establish contact with schools abroad or teach abroad. The main source of funding for these stays abroad were EU programmes.

Furthermore, while almost all countries provide additional classes in the language of schooling for migrant students, only a quarter of European countries have central recommendations or requirements for teachers working with students from migrant backgrounds who do not speak the language of schooling. It its policy paper on Teacher Education in Europe, ETUCE has set out the need for highly qualified teachers and continuous professional development and mobility, also with a view to promoting language skills among teachers as well as equipping teachers with specialised knowledge for supporting pupils who recently arrived in a new country.