National Adult Literacy Database

Mobile-assisted language learning (MALL) and individualized, customizable approaches to speaking a new language are just two of the new directions in language education, according to a new study on global trends in language learning. The study found that authoritative teacher attitudes and language labs, among other things, went out in the 20th century.

In the 21st century, new trends include:

• Using technology both inside and outside the classroom
• Adopting an individualized and learner-centred approach to learning
• Linking language learning to leadership skills and community impact, and
• Taking asset-based approaches to assessment including frameworks and benchmarks.

The study, entitled Global Trends in Language Learning in the Twenty-First Century, conducted by Dr. Sarah Elaine Eaton, a research associate at the Language Research Centre of the University of Calgary and a private consultant, also found that public speaking and presentation skills, even for second-language students, are enjoying new levels of prestige in the Barack Obama era.

“For the first time in decades, there is a U.S. president who is wooing young people with his power to communicate verbally,” Dr. Eaton says in the report. “This is having an impact not only in the United States, but across the globe. There is an increasing focus on the clear verbal articulation of ideas. This is being reflected in the field of languages, as there is an ever-increasing focus on articulate communication. Second language speech contests, debates, poetry readings, and story-telling are particularly trendy.”

The study is a meta-analysis of recent research which provided the means to identify current and emerging trends in the language education field.

Links to the full-text report are available at http://wp.me/pNAh3-8I.

For more information, contact Dr. Eaton at 403-244-9015. She can also be reached by email at seaton@ucalgary.ca or sarahelaineeaton@gmail.com.

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