In this paper, we will examine the problematic concept of the native speaker, which is central to much linguistic theory, to studies of language acquisition, and to language teaching and assessment. It is a notion which can have ramifications when it comes to the recruitment of language teachers in schools and in university language centres.…

International engagement has become a priority and is regarded as a means to improve the quality of students' education and their future social and professional success. It may, however, pose a major challenge for some higher education students. One of the vulnerable groups is that of learners with special needs, and particularly Deaf, deaf and…

The recent developments concerning the use of foreign languages in the academic world have strongly favoured English, which has become the preferred medium for international communication in many contexts. This spread of English as a lingua franca has had relevant implications for teaching and research purposes, due to the need for a common…

This article assesses the current trends in language centre (LC) management in the Netherlands and Dutch-speaking Belgium. Twenty-five LCs are united under the umbrella of NUT, which offers its members the possibility to meet and discuss concrete professional subjects. Solutions, strategies and decisions emphasise the importance of national…

In foreign language classrooms we often find that, in addition to their mother tongue (L1), learners already speak--or are learning--at least one other language. As a result, they already have an array of linguistic and cognitive skills that may prove very useful if they are adequately exploited during the language learning process. However, in…

I begin this article by briefly explaining why I think CercleS should encourage university language centres to align their courses and assessment with the proficiency levels of the "Common European Framework of Reference for Languages" (CEFR) and why they should use a version of the European Language Portfolio (ELP) to support the…

In the present article, we demonstrate the utility of Open Badge certifications in documenting ESP, EAP and EMI courses. Open Badges are online records of achievement which document field-specific, soft and technical skills. They consist of a visual image and a set of embedded metadata, they are endorsed by the institution which issues them and…

This article presents the CercleS European Language Portfolio for university students in its translated Italian form. The illustration of the translation process takes inspiration from Rudyard Kipling's poem "I keep six honest serving men" and answers the questions What? Why? When? How? Where? and Who? in explaining how the task was…

Language testing means taking decisions: about the test taker's results, but also about the test construct and the measures taken in order to ensure quality. This article takes the German test "telc Deutsch C1 Hochschule" as an example to illustrate this decision-making process in an academic context. The test is used for university…

This article is based on a plenary talk given at the CercleS seminar hosted by the University of Groningen in November 2011 to mark the tenth anniversary of the publication of the "Common European Framework of Reference for Languages" and the launch of the European Language Portfolio. The first part of the article summarizes the history…

The translation into Italian of the "CercleS" European Language Portfolio (ELP) was undertaken by AICLU (Associazione Italiana Centri Linguistici Universitari) and based on the "Common European Framework of Reference for Languages" (CEFR; Council of Europe 2001), translated into Italian for La Nuova Italia Edizioni, and the…

The European Language Portfolio (ELP) is based on principles which tend to challenge traditional learning and teaching practices and thus impact on education policy and systems. The primary owner of the ELP is the learner, and as a personal language learning companion, the ELP has three core functions: pedagogic, reporting and catalytic. For it to…

The focus of this paper is twofold: first, on the development of an electronic version of a European Language Portfolio (ELP), known as the LOLIPOP (Language On-line Portfolio Project) ELP, and second on its integration into an undergraduate module on Intercultural Communication in an institute of higher education in Ireland. The paper begins by…

The Council of Europe's "Common European Framework of Reference for Languages" is rapidly becoming a powerful instrument for shaping language education policies in Europe and beyond. The task of relating language policies, language curricula, teacher education and training, textbook and course design and content, examinations and…

Projects related to the European Language Portfolio (ELP) carried out at the Language Centre of the University of Trieste are concerned to examine whether and to what extent "can do" descriptors can be extended to courses in Languages for Specific Purposes. The project reported in this article had two aims. The first was to explore what…