Description of the project

The MiLLaT Project (Mediation in Language Learning and Teaching) has been initiated as a response to the most recent innovative developments in the field of language teaching, learning and assessment refined in CEFR/CV (2018). The project aims to reinforce the main methodological message of the CEFR, which implies that the learner is to be viewed as a social, plurilingual and pluricultural language user, whose learning process has to be driven by action and task, and whose assessment is to be guided by their communicative ability in real-life situations. The key position in the action-oriented approach does hold MEDIATION, the notion which constitutes the focus of the present project. The needs analysis conducted prior to the project has demonstrated a considerable need for further exploration of mediation, the importance of collaborative research into the state-of-the-art mediation activities and strategies, and a great demand for educational materials, which could offer practical mediation guidelines for teachers and to assure the development of students’ mediation activities and strategies. In view of this, MiLLaT has been created to raise the teachers’ and learners’ awareness of the mediated and complex nature of language learning, to highlight the importance of incorporating mediation (linguistic, cultural, social and pedagogic) into the curriculum
development, and designing teaching materials and courses based on real-world communicative needs.

The MiLLaT project pursues the main objectives, as follows:

  • developing language, intercultural skills in the area of mediation, and digital competences of teachers and indirectly students in order to prepare university students and teachers to better coexist in multilingual and multicultural societies;
  • implementing and disseminating innovative pedagogies to design open educational materials for blended and online language courses;
  • implementing learning and teaching mediation activities and strategies into language classrooms relevant to the concept of mediation by sharing good practices and know-how;
  • developing approaches to foreign language learning supported by ICT and open educational resources in the academic context;
  • meeting the needs of students relevant to the labour market by developing mediation activities and strategies which support the acquisition of transversal competences.

The four Foreign Language Centres will take part in the project representing their universities and countries: The University of Helsinki, Finland, Vytautas Magnus University, Lithuania, Charles University, the Czech Republic, and the University of Warsaw, Poland as a project coordinator. The partners will cooperate within the framework of the Erasmus+ Programme, KA 203-Strategic Partnerships for higher education. All the participating universities have considerable experience enabling them to successfully participate in the project. The MiLLaT is expected to attract a wide range of foreign language teachers from all partner institutions and its objective is to promote inclusion by giving all the participants access to a variety of activities, such as mediation workshops and training, peer observations, conferences, creating and piloting materials for online and traditional courses, etc. The partners will use a mixed-method approach to achieve the project results, prepare detailed reports, evaluate the foreign language teachers’ and students’ needs with regard to mediation and ensure that the project will contribute to a better understanding and more effective use of mediation activities and strategies, produce and disseminate tangible intellectual outputs.

The project is to develop multiple innovative web-based and in-class mediation tools, resources and materials that could be used effectively by all language teachers. Students will develop better language mediation and intercultural skills, which will open up more academic and career opportunities in an increasingly multilingual and multicultural society. MiLLaT will encourage building an international community of higher education language teachers focused on self-development. It is believed that the project will maximise the benefits of the integrated cooperation and networking at transnational level, broaden teachers’ educational scope and provide the highest standards of language education, in accordance with the mission of the Council of Europe to prepare university students to better coexist in super-diverse societies. The project results will make a valuable long-term contribution to the development of the European Education Area.

Description of the project: