Shaping the Future of Language Education in Scotland
The Symposium brought together representatives from education, higher education, industry, and policy to examine the future of language learning in Scotland. The event provided a forum to assess current challenges, explore innovative approaches, and identify strategies for strengthening language education across all sectors.
The keynote address by Louise Glen of Education Scotland focused on the Curriculum Improvement Cycle (CIC), a collaborative initiative designed to reshape Scotland’s curriculum. Central themes included improving progression between educational stages, balancing knowledge and skills, and embedding communication, cultural understanding, and critical thinking at the heart of language learning. Teachers are being placed at the centre of curriculum development to ensure reforms reflect classroom realities.
Discussions on primary and secondary education highlighted challenges such as multi-level classes, teacher workload, and learner engagement. Speakers emphasised the importance of sustainable language-learning pathways, stronger links between primary and secondary education, and innovative methodologies. Drawing on international examples, Jonathan McBride advocated for greater immersion, storytelling-based approaches, and assessment practices that promote authentic communication rather than memorisation.
In higher education, Fiona Barclay and Paul Bishop examined declining language uptake and its implications for universities, society, and the economy. They argued that languages are essential for developing global citizens and supporting economic growth. Proposed solutions included strengthening progression routes, integrating languages more effectively within degree programmes, and highlighting the connections between language learning, commerce, culture, and employability. The roundtable discussion with student input further explored interdisciplinary approaches in higher education to language education, in particular the value of languages to STEM students.
Representatives from industry reinforced the practical value of multilingualism. Contributions from banking and technology sectors demonstrated how language skills support international trade, localisation, cultural awareness, and global competitiveness. Speakers also stressed the need to promote career pathways that combine language expertise with professional and technical skills.
A recurring theme throughout the symposium was the need to challenge perceptions that languages are difficult or of limited value. Participants concluded that language learning should be promoted as a lifelong skill that enhances communication, adaptability, cultural understanding, and economic opportunity in an increasingly interconnected world.
Future actions include collaborative policy work with Education Scotland and the UCFLS and a series of publications aimed at improving public understanding of the value of language education in Scotland. Current outputs: a collaborative article in Times Education Supplement (TES), Reversing the drop in languages study would help Scotland | Tes; and The Herald article, Is the importance of language being lost in translation? | The Herald.