Call for papers
Call for papers
Thinking, practicing and living plurilingualism – 3rd edition
Il faut agir davantage, penser moins, et ne pas se regarder vivre.
(Sébastien-Roch Nicolas de Chamfort, Maximes et pensées, posth., 1795)
Following on from the international conferences “Teaching and learning languages in the shadow of lingua franca” (2019) and “Appreciating Plurilingual Competencies: Current and Future Perspectives” (2022), Masaryk University, Université libre de Bruxelles and Université de Fribourg/Freiburg are continuing their fruitful collaboration by launching a third edition devoted to advances in research in the field of plurilingualism. The next conference, entitled Thinking, practicing and living plurilingualism, will be held 6–7 June 2024 at Masaryk University in Brno.
Reflecting the broad themes of this third conference, the three interconnected and complementary verbs of the title reflect an expanded sphere of investigation into language didactics and the construction of plurilingual identities, mostly linked to institutionalized places of learning such as schools or universities but also to other fields and approaches, to other professions and profiles involved in the exercise of interculturality and in the planning or management of plurilingual spaces.
This international conference will bring together contributions from specialists in language didactics, didactics of plurilingualism, and language policies, grouped into three main sections for the purposes of fruitful exchange:
Plurilingualism and reflexivity. The construction of plurilingual identities through metalinguistic (Woll, 2018) and metacognitive (Jessner, 2020; Cenoz, 2021) awareness as well as reflexive practices associated, though not exclusively, with (auto)biographical methods and intercultural approaches make it possible to decompartmentalize the various fields of observation related to plurilingualism. As teaching tools and research methods, these learning narratives have a reflexive function insofar as they catalyse awareness of acquisition processes through the verbalization of experiences, whether positive or negative (Pavlenko, 2007; Baroni, 2021; Keller-Gerber, 2022; Jeanneret, 2010).
Managing and enhancing multilingual environments. As language didactics and education in a multilingual context are framed and even conditioned by the presence, implicit or explicit, of a language policy that underpins them, we need further exploration and analysis of their interdependent links (Cenoz, 2019; Cognigni, 2020; Krumm, 2021, Iannàccaro, 2021). Similarly, the management of linguistic diversity and the valorisation of plurilingual and intercultural skills within companies and institutions could constitute a relevant research angle (Carrère, 2016; Berthele, 2014).
Projects promoting multilingualism. As multilingualism is often practised informally, this section aims to provide a space for the presentation of inter-university and inter-institutional collaborations and projects in which multilingualism is a constituent and driving force.
Section 1: Didactics of plurilingualism and reflexivity
Plurilingual identity: metalinguistic awareness and other strategies for building a plurilingual and pluricultural identity (linguistic repertoire, translanguaging practices, language contact, motivation, etc.)
Reflexive practices as research methods and teaching tools in the field of plurilingualism: the role of narratives and discourses in promoting awareness of the processes of acquiring and learning plurilingual skills, language (auto-)biographies, and other modes of expressing plurilingual and inter/pluricultural identity.
Plurilingual and pluricultural skills: inter-comprehension, partial skills, contrastive and complementary approaches, mediation, etc.
Section 2: Managing and enhancing multilingual environments
Language policy in schools and universities: language planning, linguistic geography, language hierarchies or parallelism, substitution or complementarity, multilingual curricula, etc.
The cohabitation of languages in the world of work: spaces dedicated to languages (language of work, publication, communication, etc.), valuing multi/plurilingualism in companies and associations, harmonious or conflicting use of languages, the language market, etc.
(Continuous) training in interculturality and plurilingualism: training for teaching and administrative staff, training for managers and employees within companies, etc.
Section 3. Projects promoting multilingualism
Intra/inter-university projects, inter-institutional collaborations, inspiring and transferable schemes in which multilingualism is a constituent and driving force.
Research projects on reflexive practices relating to plurilingual and pluricultural experience.
References
Baroni, R. (2021). Se raconter pour changer. Cahiers de narratologie. Analyse et théorie narratives, n. 39. https://journals.openedition.org/narratologie/12243
Berthele, R., Kaiser, I. (2014). Mehrsprachigkeit und Lebensalter : Einführende Bemerkungen zum Themenheft. VALS/ASLA, n. 99, p. 1-16. https://libra.unine.ch/server/api/core/bitstreams/a0d048b6-46ce-4d71-a812-7355a5929bc1/content
Blecua, B., Borell, S., Crous, B., Sierra, F. (eds) (2013), Plurilingüismo y enseñanza de ELE en contextos multiculturales, ASELE, 910 p.
Carrère, C. (dir.) (2016). L’impact économique des langues, Paris, Ferdi-Economica, 116 p.
Cenoz, J., Gorter, D. (2021). Pedagogical Translanguaging, Cambridge Elements in Language Teaching, 62 p. https://www.cambridge.org/core/elements/pedagogical-translanguaging/67802C1E5AE4A418AE3B8E2DEFBAD30A#
Cenoz, J., Van der Worp, K. (2019). Hacia un enfoque multilingüe en la política lingüistica: la educación y el mundo laboral. Cahiers internationaux de sociolinguistique, nº16(2):165, december.
Cognigni, E. (2020). Il plurilinguismo come risorsa. Prospettive teoriche, politiche educative e pratiche didattiche, Edizioni ETS collana Ianua. Lingue, culture, educazione, 216 p.
Gallina, F. (2021). Italiano lingua di contatto e didattica plurilingue, Franco Cesati editore, 144 p.
Iannàccaro, G., Pisano, S. (cur.) (2021). Intrecci di parole. Esperienze di pianificazione del plurilinguismo, in Europa e fuori dell'Europa, Edizioni dell’Orso, 392 p.
Jeanneret, T. (2010). Trajectoires d‘appropriation langagière et travail identitaire : données et analyses. Bulletin VALS/ASLA, n. 1, p. 27-45.
Jessner, U., Allgäuer-Hackl, E. (2020). Eine dynamisch systemtheoretische Sichtweise auf mehrsprachige Entwicklung und Mehrsprachigkeit. In : Gogolin, I., Hansen, A., McMonagle, S., Rausch, D. (Hrsg.). Handbuch Mehrsprachigkeit und Bildung, Wiesbaden : Springer VS, p. 81-85.
Keller-Gerber, A. (2022). Lire les étonnements en classe de didactique pour faire dire ses étonnements en classe de langue... Robin, J., Zimmermann, M. (éds.). La didactique des langues dans la formation initiale des enseignant.e.s en Suisse : quelles postures scientifiques face aux pratiques de terrain ?, Berne: Peter Lang, 248 p. https://www.peterlang.com/document/1162456
Krumm, H.-J. (2021). Sprachenpolitik Deutsch als Fremd- und Zweitsprache. Eine Einführung (Grundlagen Deutsch als Fremd- und Zweitsprache), Berlin: Erich Schmidt Verlag, 383 S.
Pavlenko, A. (2007). Autobiographic Narratives as Data in Applied Linguistics. Applied Linguistics, vol. 28/2, p. 163-188. DOI https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/amm008
Piccardo, E., Lawrence, G., Germain-Rutherford, A., Galante, A. (Eds) (2023). Activating Linguistic and Cultural Diversity in the Language Classroom, Springer Cham. DOI https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-87124-6
Woll, N. (2018). Investigating dimensions of metalinguistic awareness: what think-aloud protocols revealed about the cognitive processes involved in positive transfer from L2 to L3. Language Awareness, 27 (1-2), p. 167-185.
Conference Languages
Papers may be delivered in German, English, Spanish, French, Italian, or Czech.
Oral presentations
30 minutes, i.e. 20-minute presentation + 10-minute discussion.
Talks can be delivered in one of the conference languages. Supporting material (slides, handouts and other visuals) must be in English or in another language of the conference if the talk is in English.
Workshops
40 minutes
Workshops are practice-oriented sessions that are supposed to engage participants in a series of participative activities so that they can gain hands-on experience with tools, strategies or best practices.
Proposals must contain the following:
- title of the presentation/workshop,
- thematic area,
- a 250-word summary in the language of the presentation/workshop,
- 5 keywords,
- an 100-word abstract in English or in another conference language if the presentation is in English,
- a 60-word biographical note,
- up to 6 bibliographical references specific to the proposal.
Proposals will be blind reviewed by members of the Scientific Committee. The presenters will receive an answer of acceptance (or rejection) by 6 March 2024.
Proposals should be submitted in .docx (Word) format through an online registration form HERE.