EU languages: A ticket for mobility

Learning languages is just the ticket for greater mobility for Europe’s citizens, argues Manolis Mavommatis MEP.

The EU was founded on the coexistence of people with different histories but a common future.

The ultimate objective is the creation of a single community where 460 million citizens will live together in harmony while maintaining their individuality and diversity.

In the enlarged EU, it is more important than ever for European citizens to have the necessary knowledge and skills in order to communicate efficiently.

Thus, having one common language for communication, a lingua franca, is not enough.

Besides, it neither reflects the cultural and linguistic diversity of the EU nor does it help the effort to achieve a European identity.

It is essential to realise that a citizen with a deep knowledge of foreign languages has more opportunities to benefit from the freedom to work and study in another member state, a right provided in the European treaties.

Hence, the creation of a multilingual European community in which each citizen speaks at least two languages, in addition to his own, is of major importance in increasing mobility.

The importance of multilingualism is often the issue of several discussions in Brussels. That is the reason why in the portfolio of European commissioner Ján Figel’ multilingualism plays a major role.

The education and training systems of the 25 member states differ widely concerning methods for testing language knowledge and ability - and the certificates that they provide.

Therefore, it is difficult to make comparisons among the different training systems and to have an objective measurement for the practical qualifications of students and workers.

The European commission proposes the creation of a European indicator of language competence, common to all member states, that will provide an accurate, reliable and comprehensive index for the level of foreign language proficiency.

The indicator will assess linguistic proficiency in four areas: reading, comprehension, speaking and writing.

It should, also, record the proficiency at each of the six levels on the scale of the Council of Europe’s common European framework of reference for languages, as this measure has gained wide acceptance and is already used in many member states.

The commission proposes that for practical reasons, at an initial stage, linguistic proficiency should be tested in the five most widely taught languages in the EU (English, French, German, Spanish and Italian), possibly adding in further languages at a following phase.

According to Eurobarometer, the above EU languages are the ones which most European citizens choose to learn as a foreign language.

Thirty eight per cent of citizens choose English as a foreign language while the percentages for the other languages are 14 per cent for both French and German, six per cent for Spanish and three per cent for Italian.

However, it is worth noting that, according to recent statistics, while the percentage of pupils of primary school being taught a foreign language is increasing, the diversity of languages that is offered for teaching is decreasing. As a result, in many countries foreign language learning tends to mean learning English.

In the European parliament’s report on the indicator of language competence, it is underlined that this instrument will not only help obtaining reliable information concerning the linguistic proficiency of European citizens, in particular young people, but it will also facilitate comparisons between member state policies and will allow consultation regarding best practices, thus giving fresh impetus to language teaching.

Learning at least two foreign languages needs to become an indispensable part of European education and training systems.

It needs to become a standard qualification of the Europeans that live, study and work
within EU.

For, I am convinced that an independent and objective certificate of foreign language skills will be their passport to free movement and will enhance mobility.

• Previous article
• Next article