European Award for Languages

News summary

Time is running out to nominate an outstanding language initiative to receive a European Award for Languages. The deadline for this year’s Awards is 1 February 2008. The most innovative language initiatives will receive one of the prestigious awards, which recognise creativity in improving the quality of language teaching, and the ability to motivate students and maximise available resources. The Award is part of a Europe-wide scheme supported by the European Commission, with CILT, the National Centre for Languages as the UK co-ordinator. Applications are invited from primary schools, secondary schools, colleges, universities, businesses and all other institutions engaged in innovative and effective foreign language teaching.

All winners receive a prize of books, teaching resources or vouchers from a range of sponsors, as well as a certificate signed by the European Commissioner for Education and Multilingualism.

Special additional prizes of £1,000 are awarded for the Euro London Appointments Business Language Prize, the Albatross Travel Group Community Languages Prize, and the TDA Initial Teacher Education Prize, which recognise innovation in each of these sectors.

Each year one of the winning projects is selected by the Mary Glasgow Language Trust to receive its annual award of £2,000. In 2007 this special award went to Easy Spanish, a family learning project run by Glasgow-based community organisation Playbusters, in which parents learn Spanish side by side with their child through a variety of fun activities.

All winners will be presented with their prizes at an awards ceremony in the summer.

For more information and to make a nomination, visit the CILT website
www.cilt.org.uk/eal