SCILT

Languages are essential all year round but especially at Christmas! 🎁🎄 ❄️Learning languages helps us develop interpersonal skills; to understand conversational and cultural nuances and respond appropriately. And when would we need this more than at Christmas? We may well be sharing our Christmas dinner with a fanatic host, someone who has already had a few too many, kids, grannies, Christmas obsessives, great debaters, non-stop talkers and the Grinch! Phew! Good thing we have been learning languages! #MondayMotivation #LanguageLearning #Christmas

According to a YouGov poll, most of the UK public would support making language learning compulsory in primary and secondary school. The poll was commissioned by the British Academy in 2023 and examined British adults’ attitudes towards learning languages. According to the poll, only 21 per cent of UK adults can hold a conversation in a language that isn’t their mother tongue. The poll also found that: • 71% of UK adults support the idea of making the study of languages compulsory in secondary school, and 64% in primary. • Nearly one in two respondents who cannot have a conversation in another language regret not engaging more with languages at school. • Just over half of respondents are interested in learning another language now. • Spanish was the language most respondents would like to learn, followed by French, Italian and German. Does any of this ring true for you? It's never too late to learn a language. Visit the Beyond School section of our website to discover language learning opportunities that may suit you. #LanguageLearning #Education #PrimaryEducation #SecondaryEducation #AdultEducation

Do you want to move your language learning to the next level? Think about how you can make language learning part of your everyday life. We have loads of ideas for how to do this. 🍿 Why not watch a film or a TV series in another language? Netflix and other streaming platforms give you access to films from all over the world! 🗞️Read or listen to the news in other languages. Websites like News in Slow French and News in Slow Spanish can help you to practise your listening, and news websites from around the world mean that you are not only practising reading in another language, but you can get a different angle on world affairs! 🎵Listen to music in different languages! Lyrics Training offers a range of songs from around the world and some fun activities based on them, or you could create your own playlist on YouTube or Spotify! #LanguageLearning #LanguageHacks

We are delighted to announce the programme for our Moving Forward with Languages online conference on Wednesday 11 December! Aimed at Higher and Advanced Higher learners, this conference is run in collaboration with university languages departments across Scotland. Participants will have the chance to gain advice and tips for the courses they are currently studying at school, and get a flavour of what it is like to study languages beyond school. Registration should be made by class teachers, but learners and teachers can view the full programme and further sign-up details through this link: https://loom.ly/YV6bTjQ We look forward to seeing you on 11 December! #Languages #LanguageLearning #Qualifications #HigherEducation

SCILT's Karen Faulds shares insight into a recently published case study for education practitioners in Scotland to support deaf children, young people and their families. The case study highlighted the importance of having BSL/English interpreters and Qualified Teachers of Deaf Children & Young People in schools to support deaf children and young people in classes. Key messages arose about involving parents in the wider life of the school, in particular providing equality of access for Deaf parents to attend school events and reducing barriers that prevent Deaf parents from getting involved. Case study participants stated that if their peers are more knowledgeable in using BSL, this removes barriers towards engaging with Deaf signing people and helps improve communication. #DeafEducation #SignLanguage #DeafCommunity #DeafCulture #BSL #DeafAwareness

Researchers at the University of Portsmouth collected data from job vacancies advertised on various online platforms over the summer of 2022. This data shows that languages are very much in demand across every industry sector. Over the period of 13 June to 14 July 2022, data on jobs requiring a second language was gathered from the top language job recruitment websites and general job websites in the UK. A total of 619 jobs were found. These jobs ranged widely in experience level needed, from graduate to highly experienced. Across every sector, German was the most requested language, followed by French, Spanish and Italian. The most common job sectors were: customer service, sales, education, reception & administration, marketing, translation & interpreting, finance, HR and IT. #MondayMotivation #ScotCareersWeek24 #ShapeTheFuture

📣A couple of great opportunities to look forward to this month! If you missed the Our World drop-in session, we have just updated our webpage with some extra support materials for anyone interested in taking part. Firstly, you can find the recording of an information session for teachers which will tell you all about the project and what’s involved. Secondly, you’ll find our fabulous learner support video which includes information, tips, activities and video tutorials for learners to find out how to go about preparing their entry. Both of these resources can be found in the Tutorials dropdown on the Our World page: https://loom.ly/2sl7kVc We also have the next in our series of ECT signpost sessions: Pedagogies for multilingual primary classrooms. There are still spaces, so sign up! https://loom.ly/sSsFzmg We hope to see you at one of our events soon 😊 #languages #languagelearning #multilingualism #dyw #careers

Learning a new language offers so many benefits. Culturally, it broadens our perspective and exposes us to different worldviews. Socially, it enables us to connect, compete, and collaborate with peers from around the globe. Economically, language skills can lead us to better earnings and improved career opportunities. #LanguageLearning #LanguagesForLife

As an international organisation, the EU has the biggest number of official languages. The EU has 24 official working languages, and in the European Parliament, each Member can speak in any one of the official languages. Three languages are used as working languages in European institutions: French, German and English. Dr Fabian Zuleeg, Executive Director of the European Policy Center, states: “Mastering European languages is certainly an advantage when applying for European civil service jobs and promotions. There are also a number of positions that require languages, for example interpreting or the lawyers who translate legal texts into all EU languages. You also need people with EU political knowledge and expertise, for example in EU law.” #Europe #LanguagesForWork

We spoke to Kat Brogan, Managing Director of Meerkat Tours, about languages in the tourism industry. She described tourism as one of the the broadest, most exciting and diverse industries! Kat told us that there are millions of people working in tourism, from taxi drivers through to hotel staff, tour operators and those working at visitor attractions or for airlines. In tourism you work with people from all over the world, languages are incredibly important. WELCOME In tourism, you’re looking after people on holiday or travelling for business. To be able to give that warm welcome in their own language is really important and builds connection from the start. JOBS Working in tourism means you work with people from all over the world. Being able to talk to them in their own language is a real asset. And if you have a language it means that you can transfer that skill - that language - to work anywhere in the world. TRAVEL You can learn about local culture and connect with local people in their own language. If you can travel in another language, it builds memories. #LanguagesForWork #Tourism #LanguageSkills #MondayMotivation