Call for papers

Call for papers

Appreciating Plurilingual Competencies: Current and Future Perspectives

…una Europa di poliglotti non è un’Europa di persone che parlano correntemente molte lingue, ma nel migliore dei casi di persone che possono incontrarsi parlando ciascuno la propria lingua e intendendo quella dell’altro, che pure non saprebbero parlare in modo fluente, e intendendola, sia pure a fatica, intendessero il « genio », l’universo culturale che ciascuno esprime parlando la lingua dei propri avi e della propria tradizione. 

                  Umberto Eco, La ricerca della lingua perfetta, 1993

Plurilingualism, as a concept differentiated from multilingualism, first entered European debates on language policy in the 2000s. It was integrated subsequently into the 2018 CEFR Companion Volume with new descriptors and since has established itself in the language teaching and learning landscape under the operational concept of plurilingual/pluricultural competence.

Plurilingualism has grown beyond the idea of a mental compartmentalization of languages as well as the ideal of the native speaker, both of which are widely considered to be utopian but nevertheless serve as the model for current language learning strategies.  In contrast, the concept of plurilingual competence entails the relative mastery of receptive and productive modalities in several languages (and dialects) for communicative situations in which the concurrent and flexible use of multiple languages is required. Plurilingual competence is based on a complementarity of languages in learning, which can be seen as an almost organic continuum requiring innovative, dynamic, and transversal approaches, as well as a (re)adaptation of pedagogical and didactic devices. In this context, the notion of an individual linguistic repertoire could constitute one of the focal points for developing methodologies and practices promoting plurilingual learning.

The concept of plurilingualism is broad and complex, and it poses the question of whether the operating concept described above is sufficiently operational for language learning/development(?). Pragmatically, it may be difficult to transition from existing divisions and transcend multiple monolingual practices to foster acceptance for flexible and diversified plurilingualism with generally recognized cognitive, social, and cultural advantages. In this context, this symposium will adopt a highly practical and interdisciplinary approach. Language instructors working in higher education and researchers from diverse cultural and geographical backgrounds are invited to present and share their experiences and best practices, to explore and develop new perspectives, and to stimulate in-depth reflections on the issues at the heart of plurilingualism. During the two-day symposium, the aim will be to establish fruitful and intense discussions and exchanges of opinions about plurilingual and pluricultural attitudes in academic contexts along with opportunities for the future.

Conference Session Formats​

Conference Languages

Papers may be delivered in English, Spanish, French, Italian, German, and Czech.