CEFR Levels and the European Day of Languages

 

Picture source: culturebridges.eu

September 26th, The European Day of Languages, is a day I like to celebrate. As an aspiring polyglot, I've always felt identified with the idea of this day, even if I do not live in Europe.

Browsing the website that marks the celebration, I've found this excellent video to explain the Common European Framework for Reference -CEFR- to explain what knowledge level of a foreign language implies and entails. 

What is a language knowledge level? 

How long does it take to be an A1 or a B2 in a foreign language?

Picture source: Cambridgeenglish.org

Questions like these are posed to us, teachers of English as a foreign language, every year. The difference between the concept of a level and the reality of a level are slippery things to explain.

Languages are expressions of culture. Knowledge implies so much. They are so much more of a bridge across cultures than a box with a label or a piece of paper with a certificate. 

I kept nodding as I listened to Peter Brown on this video. Hope you enjoy it too.

European Day of Languages (EDL)

What Languages Mean to People

This two-minute video was shot in the streets of London on the 26 of September 2006. It is a survey, but the street is rather noisy so I transcribe the questions on the video.



Do you know today is the European Day of Languages?

Do you think it is important to speak other languages?

Is English the most important language to know?

Would you like to speak other languages?

What percentage of the population in the world speaks native English?

What will you use English for?

Hey! What would your answers be?

On a side note-
Sometimes, we dream the whole world could speak the same language. How simple things would be, right?
OK. Suppose your wish is granted. But that unique universal language is neither English nor your mother tongue.
Now tell me:
How much do you think the world would lose for not understanding you?

Now you know what you are missing.


Related Post
Check our previous post celebrating the EDL:
701 Reasons to Study a Foreign Language


Linktribution
My side note reflection is one I heard on a fantastic presentation called Cultures at the far edge of the world, by the explorer Wave Davis. I got there via an EFL teacher, David Deubelbeiss.
Accessibility
Find the interview video at YouTube.