Current Policy Issues in Early Foreign Language Learning

The development of policy in relation to language learning at the early primary level of schooling has received only limited attention in the literature on policy studies in general, and within the framework of an emerging education policy space across Europe specifically. This paper offers an introductory discussion of the growth of education policy in Europe, identifying the extent to which the histories of national language policies are being re-shaped by the rise of numerical data and comparison within a newly-formed European education space. A summary review of key measures of particular relevance to early language learning illustrates thescale of “soft” policy mechanisms now available as tools in an on-going process of shaping, adapting and refining policy in response to the continuously shifting language priorities that arise particularly during periods of economic instability. This paper draws on key themes from a transnational, longitudinal study of early language learning in Europe to discuss the extent to which implementation in schools has so far been moulded by a plethora of recommendations, reports and indicators formulated in response to the step change in policy development that has occurred since the publication of the Lisbon Strategy (2000)

Dinamika vrednot tujih jezikov na Švedskem: socialna zgodovina

This paper gives an account of the history of foreign language values in Sweden from the seventeenth century to the present. The paper is informed by sociocultural standpoints on language and language learning according to which language is a dynamic tool that is appropriated by individuals to achieve particular purposes, and that dialogically creates and renews our social world(s). Since the sixteenth century, three languages (German, French and English) have been taught in Sweden as foreign languages during particular eras. In this paper, we explore how language value can be understood as a system that evolves over time as a result of triggers such as power, trade and personal benefits. The impact of these variables on Swedish society’s efforts to invest in learning a particular language during specific eras is critically examined from the perspectives of nested systems. (DIPF/Orig.

Financialisation, the valuation of investment property and the urban built environment in the UK

The financialisation literature has been criticised for its limited empirical base and its failure adequately to link the everyday world with that of high finance. The paper addresses these shortcomings by examining the calculative practice of property valuation. The way that valuations are performed affects their results and, therefore, the operation of the property market. The paper traces the evolving influence of finance capital on the valuation of commercial property in the UK by constructing a historiography of investment valuation since 1960. Traditional approaches to valuation have been increasingly challenged by those derived from financial economics. However, the former remains the dominant method for undertaking market valuation. Its grounding in comparison – a centring and standardising process – offers an explanation for some of the changes in the urban built environment that are ascribed to financialisation. This suggests that a more detailed and historically sensitive interpretation of financialisation is required

Herramientas de triple efecto: portfolios profesionales en la enseñanza de lenguas extranjeras

Empirical evidence reveals that portfolios show promise as a tool for stimulating teacher’s reflection and professional development. However, very few Slovene teachers have any experience in using this valuable instrument for teaching purposes. In response to this weakness in the system, the teacher’s portfolio was included in a national research study investigating the best possible way(s) of introducing foreign languages in the first cycle of the primary school. The main goals of using the teacher’s portfolio were: (1) to actively monitor the implementation of the foreign languages, (2) to develop an appropriate foreign language teaching approach through critical professional reflection, and (3) to evaluate the teaching process. The research results confirm the triple tool effect of the portfolio whereby the teachers were able to recognise its value. However, they also perceived some difficulties in the portfolio management process, such as the lack of use of their own learning strategies and superficial understanding of self-regulation. This finding underlines the importance of extensive teacher preparation prior to the use of teacher portfolios in future.La evidencia empírica revela que el portfolio es una herramienta prometedora para estimular la reflexión del profesor y el desarrollo profesional. Sin embargo, muy pocos profesores eslovenos tienen experiencia en el uso de este valioso instrumento para la enseñanza. En respuesta a esta debilidad del sistema, el portfolio del profesor fue incluido en un estudio nacional para investigar la(s) mejor(es) manera(s) posible(s) de introducir lenguas extranjeras en el primer ciclo de la escuela primaria. Los objetivos principales de uso del portfolio del profesor han sido: (1) monitorizar activamente la implementación de lenguas extranjeras, (2) desarrollar un enfoque adecuado de la enseñanza de una lengua extranjera mediante la reflexión crítica profesional, y (3) evaluar el proceso de enseñanza. Los resultados de la investigación han confirmado el efecto de triple herramienta del portfolio, mediante la cual los profesores han sido capaces de reconocer su valor. Sin embargo, también han percibido algunas dificultades en su proceso de gestión, tales como la falta de uso de sus propias estrategias de aprendizaje y la comprensión superficial de la autorregulación. Esta constatación subraya la importancia de la preparación extensiva de los maestros antes de empezar a usar el portfolio del profesor en el futuro.This research was supported by Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of the Republic of Slovenia. The Slovenian National Educational Institute and The European Social Funds

Current Policy Issues in Early Foreign Language Learning

The development of policy in relation to language learning at the early primary level of schooling has received only limited attention in the literature on policy studies in general, and within the framework of an emerging education policy space across Europe specifically. This paper offers an introductory discussion of the growth of education policy in Europe, identifying the extent to which the histories of national language policies are being re-shaped by the rise of numerical data and comparison within a newly-formed European education space. A summary review of key measures of particular relevance to early language learning illustrates the scale of “soft” policy mechanisms now available as tools in an on-going  process of shaping, adapting and refining policy in response to the continuously shifting language priorities that arise particularly during periods of economic instability. This paper draws on key themes from a transnational, longitudinal study of early language learning in Europe to discuss the extent to which implementation in schools has so far been moulded  by a plethora of recommendations, reports and indicators formulated in response to the step change in policy development that has occurred since the publication of the Lisbon Strategy (2000)

A bird's eye view of discard reforms: bird-borne cameras reveal seabird/fishery interactions.

notes: PMCID: PMC3590202types: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tCopyright: © 2013 Votier et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.Commercial capture fisheries produce huge quantities of offal, as well as undersized and unwanted catch in the form of discards. Declines in global catches and legislation to ban discarding will significantly reduce discards, but this subsidy supports a large scavenger community. Understanding the potential impact of declining discards for scavengers should feature in an eco-system based approach to fisheries management, but requires greater knowledge of scavenger/fishery interactions. Here we use bird-borne cameras, in tandem with GPS loggers, to provide a unique view of seabird/fishery interactions. 20,643 digital images (one min(-1)) from ten bird-borne cameras deployed on central place northern gannets Morus bassanus revealed that all birds photographed fishing vessels. These were large (>15 m) boats, with no small-scale vessels. Virtually all vessels were trawlers, and gannets were almost always accompanied by other scavenging birds. All individuals exhibited an Area-Restricted Search (ARS) during foraging, but only 42% of ARS were associated with fishing vessels, indicating much 'natural' foraging. The proportion of ARS behaviours associated with fishing boats were higher for males (81%) than females (30%), although the reasons for this are currently unclear. Our study illustrates that fisheries form a very important component of the prey-landscape for foraging gannets and that a discard ban, such as that proposed under reforms of the EU Common Fisheries Policy, may have a significant impact on gannet behaviour, particularly males. However, a continued reliance on 'natural' foraging suggests the ability to switch away from scavenging, but only if there is sufficient food to meet their needs in the absence of a discard subsidy.EU INTERREG project CHARM-IIINatural Environment Research CouncilAssociation for the Study of Animal Behaviour research gran

Early language learning: the impact of teaching and teacher factors

This study examined the progress in lexical and grammatical knowledge among 252 learners of French in England across the last two years of primary education and into the first year of secondary school in relation to teaching and teacher factors. It compared linguistic outcomes from two different teaching approaches, one placing emphasis on oracy, the other combining literacy with attention to oracy development. It also explored the relationship between linguistic outcomes and other teaching/teacher factors: teaching time, teacher level of French proficiency, and teacher level of training in language instruction. Learners completed a sentence repetition and a photo description task, making relatively small but statistically significant progress in both grammatical and lexical knowledge between test points. While teaching approach had little impact on such progress, other teaching and teacher factors did, particularly the French proficiency level of the primary school teacher and the amount of teaching time devoted to French

Investigating an innovative sea-based strategy to mitigate coastal city flood disasters and its feasibility study for brisbane, australia

© 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This study examines an innovative Coastal Reservoir (CR) technique as a feasible solution for flood adaptation and mitigation in the Brisbane River Estuary (BRE), Australia, which is vulnerable to coastal flooding. The study analysed the operation of a CR by using the MIKE 21 hydrodynamic modelling package. The 2D hydrodynamic model was calibrated and validated for the 2013 and 2011 flood events respectively, with a Nash-Sutcliffe coefficient (Ens) between 0.87 to 0.97 at all gauges. River right branch widening and dredging produced a 0.16 m reduction in water level at the Brisbane city gauge. The results show that by suitable gate operation of CR, the 2011 flood normal observed level of 4.46 m, with reference to the Australian Height Datum (AHD) at Brisbane city, could have been reduced to 3.88 m AHD, while under the improved management operation of the Wivenhoe Dam, the flood level could be lowered to 4 m AHD at Brisbane city, which could have been reduced with CR to 2.87 m AHD with an overall water level reduction below the maximum flood level. The results demonstrated that the innovative use of a CR could considerably decrease the overall flood peak and lessen flood severity in the coastal city of Brisbane