Relating language curricula, tests and examinations to the Common European Framework of Reference (RELANG) 

What is the initiative about?

In recent years the Council of Europe‘s Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) has become a powerful instrument for shaping language education policies. The growing acceptance and use of the CEFR levels of language proficiency has created a situation in which, all over Europe, public bodies, examination institutes, language schools and university departments seek to relate their foreign language curricula and examinations to the CEFR.

The RELANG initiative offers training to stakeholders in the Member States of the European Union and the European Centre for Modern Languages (ECML) in relating language tests and examinations to the CEFR in a valid way and exploring relationships between foreign language curricula and the CEFR.

Objectives

The long-term objective of the initiative is that language tests and examinations used in participating states ensure the valid assessment of learners, and that learners’ test performances are expressed in terms of CEFR levels which are valid, understood and widely accepted. As part of the initiative, a series of national workshops in participating states are offered to address such issues as:

• principles of testing mediation and pluricultural/plurilingual skills in the classroom
• principles of applying the CEFR and the new Companion Volume to the development of tests of second language competence
• principles of constructing valid language tests and examinations based on the CEFR and its Companion Volume
• principles of relating existing language tests and examinations to the CEFR and its Companion Volume
• principles of relating foreign/second language curricula to the CEFR and its Companion Volume

Support materials will also be developed and adapted to the specific needs of the participating states.

Outputs

• Modules for training in relating foreign language curricula to the CEFR
• Modules for training in developing valid language examinations linked to the CEFR
• Training workshops for local and regional multipliers in participating EU and ECML Member States
• Support for local and regional multipliers through an online platform in developing language tests and examinations linked to the CEFR
• Screening reports of existing tests and examinations in relation to the CEFR