Institute of Languages, Cultures and Societies

Now postponed to a later date

📢 Tune into LBC tomorrow morning (Sat) at 10.50 to hear ILCS Director Charles Burdett talk to Matt Frei about languages and the decline in uptake.

@ucflangs.bsky.social

New HEPI report calls for urgent action on revitalising language learning UCFL welcomes the release of a new HEPI report, sponsored by Duolingo, that highlights the urgent need for action to support and improve the uptake of languages at school level and beyond. It empha…

Read UCFL's reaction to the new HEPI report on languages: university-council-for-languages.org/2025/07/31/n...
The recommendations for HE are particularly welcome, as are those around equality of access and social justice. @emmacayley.bsky.social @cforsdick.bsky.social

MA in Languages and Cultures Across Borders This interdisciplinary MA brings together teaching and resources from several University of London federation members, offering a unique breadth of expertise.

Tomorrow is the *final opportunity to apply for our MA in Languages, Cultures and Societies* - co-delivered with RHUL, UCL, QMUL, ULIP and KCL Language Centre! www.sas.ac.uk/postgraduate...

🎙️What’s the value of speaking other languages?

In this month’s Crossing Channels, Wendy Ayres-Bennett points out a major AI issue: big languages dominate training data, so smaller languages & dialects get left behind. That’s a problem.

🎧 pod.fo/e/2fb7e1

#AI #Multilingualism #podcast @iast.fr

Very many congratulations @clairelanghamer.bsky.social!

The British Academy welcomes 92 new Fellows in 2025 92 distinguished scholars have today been elected to the British Academy’s Fellowship, in recognition of their outstanding contributions to the humanities and social sciences.

Congratulations to all 92 newly elected FBAs including the wonderful @clairelanghamer.bsky.social whose sterling research is matched by her sterling (or is it platinum?) work for the discipline of History (in all its academic, public and other forms) at the also ace @ihr.bsky.social . 1/2

The ability to attract and retain global talent and international students is fundamental to the UK’s research and innovation excellence. We have today published our response to the Government’s Immigration White Paper. Read it here: buff.ly/0TEPdtz

The Thriplow Charitable Trust has established a bursary for the MA in Refugee Protection and Forced Migration Studies by distance-learning.

Apply by 1st August for the October 2025 intake.

Learn more about the bursary here: www.london.ac.uk/study/fees-f...

#RefugeeProtection #ForcedMigration

LANGUAGES, SOCIETY AND POLICY - HOME | LSP Languages, Society and Policy

✨ The Languages in UK Education special issue is now complete! Many thanks to our guest editors @wendya-b.bsky.social & @cforsdick.bsky.social for compiling this important collection, and to every contributor for sharing bold ideas to shape language education policy.
🔗 www.lspjournal.com

Our future may depend on the humanities For Peter Sutoris, the humanities hold the key to understanding and responding to the many civilisational crises we face

The humanities are not a luxury—they are where a society’s ethical and imaginative life takes shape. They won’t give us all the answers, but they keep us asking the right questions—and without that, no future worth having can be built.

wonkhe.com/blogs/our-fu...

A wonderful day of collegiality and sharing good practice for the @ucflangs.bsky.social Summer Plenary in the splendid surroundings of the @ilcs.bsky.social Spreading the good news about languages & optimism for our collective future. Thanks to our speakers and to all who made the effort to attend 💐

Our @ucflangs.bsky.social Summer Plenary today has a range of crucially important panels on current developments in languages provision in HE.

First up: David Clarke (Cardiff University) & Derek Hird (Lancaster University) on Modern Languages in a Global Humanities Landscape.

Restricted access to language learning, and to developing language awareness, is a serious form of deprivation of multiple affordances, *especially* given the rapid rise of language technologies.

Curriculum and Assessment Review The interim report of the Curriculum and Assessment Review (March 2025) classified 'Languages' as requiring Category 1 intervention.

Curriculum and Assessment Review: ILCS, ALL and UCFL issue a statement.

'The development of a sustainable model for language provision across the whole of the educational sector is of the highest concern to all members of the subject community'

Read the statement:

ilcs.sas.ac.uk/research-pol...

In Conversation with Professor Dame Angela McLean: The Humanities and Social Sciences in Policymaking Hear from Dame Angela on the value of the humanities and social sciences in delivery of the Government Chief Scientific Adviser’s (GCSA) priorities in putting…

Excited about this! Join us for a special live-streamed event with Professor Dame Angela McLean, the Government Chief Scientific Adviser, on Monday 7 July at 2.30pm. She'll discuss the value of the humanities and social sciences in policymaking.

Join live: vimeo.com/event/5202389

Fewer pupils in less affluent English schools taking languages, survey finds Less than half taking foreign languages GCSEs compared with 69% in most prosperous state schools

“We’re at real risk of language education being accessible only to young people in the most affluent schools in England. This would be a disaster, shutting many young people out of essential education” : @cforsdick.bsky.social

YouTube video by SchAdvStudy Thinking Strategically: Developing the Policy Dimensions of Research

'Watch the Policy Dimensions of Research'

Olivia Glaze (@oliviaglaze.bsky.social), the current MHRA Languages and Policy Postdoctoral Researcher, gave an inspiring webinar under the auspices of the ILCS (@ilcs.bsky.social) in May, and the video is now available:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkdg...

Another #language piece in the @theconversation.com @uk.theconversation.com (by our own @saschastollhans.bsky.social) focusing on #German and the benefit of language learning/of a curriculum that introduces students to #linguistics and linguistic concepts theconversation.com/learning-ger... #edusky

A rare opportunity for a permanent lectureship in German in our fabulous School! Please circulate to your networks. @ucfl-eca.bsky.social @ucflangs.bsky.social

Think Like a Linguist: Community and collaboration for a new languages curriculum In this article, Charlotte Ryland reflects on how the learning from creative translation and languages advocacy projects can feed into languages curriculum reform. By focusing in particular on the lin...

What does it really mean to think like a linguist?
Charlotte Ryland argues it's time to move beyond grammar drills and embrace creativity, culture, and collaboration in language education. 🔗 www.lspjournal.com/post/think-l...
✍️ Collection Edited by @wendya-b.bsky.social & @cforsdick.bsky.social

Curriculum and Assessment Review The interim report of the Curriculum and Assessment Review (March 2025) classified 'Languages' as requiring Category 1 intervention.

Curriculum and Assessment Review: ILCS, ALL and UCFL issue a statement.

'The development of a sustainable model for language provision across the whole of the educational sector is of the highest concern to all members of the subject community'

Read the statement:

ilcs.sas.ac.uk/research-pol...

having a great time at the Brenner-Archiv in Innsbruck looking at the papers of Max Riccabona. Many thanks to archive director @ulriketanzer2.bsky.social and everybody at the archive and to @ilcs.bsky.social
(pictured Georg Trakl's and Ludwig von Ficker's graves and railway viaducts with mountain

Devastating news: "An end to teaching and research in ancient history, religion, theology, Portuguese, German, and Italian. The schools of ancient history and theology will close."

Elizabeth Ward is keen to hear from academics with an expertise in either film relations between the GDR & African countries or film relations between the GDR & Southern/East Asian countries for a potential edited volume contribution should contact Elizabeth directly. Contact details below.

White banner with a close-up image of a person's hands typing on a laptop keyboard. The words 'International Writing Workshops 2025' are written on the right-hand side.

Applications are now open for the International Writing Workshops. The scheme is designed to help early-career researchers enhance their writing skills and increase the uptake of their research in academic publications. Learn more: buff.ly/GxYuIKT

This free training event is taking place tomorrow! You can still register if you'd like an overview of the whole process of academic book publishing.

www.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...

#Authors #Publishing #AcademicSky #Researchers

Graphic for a Special Issue of the Journal of Romance Studies: Journal cover displayed to the left, the cover is a warm white with a decorative square tile in the centre, the journal's title is in a slim mid green font. Behind the cover sits a close up of the decorative tile from the journal's front cover, decorated in blue, green and yellow with a floral motif. On top sits text that reads 'ECOMODLANG: GREENING THE FIELD OF LANGUAGES AND CULTURES Edited by Armelle Blin-Rolland, Margaret C. Flinn, and Martín Veiga'. A white Liverpool University Press logo and a white Institute of Languages, Cultures, and Societies, School of Advanced Study University of London logo sit at the top. Below sits a green button with white text that reads 'special issue'.

🌿 A new special issue of Journal of Romance Studies explores how language teaching & research can address ecological crises. Featuring global voices, eco-pedagogies & cultural insights.
Read more: bit.ly/ECOMODLANG
@ilcs.bsky.social @erieriverbirch.bsky.social‬ @eedgington.bsky.social #envhum ‬

UCFL 2025 Summer Plenary The UCFL Summer Plenary will take place on the 4th of July at the Institute of Languages, Cultures and Societies (School of Advanced Study, University of London).  The schedule …

Panels will look at
- Developments in the Modern Languages Curriculum in HE
- Sustainability and Entrepreneurship in Modern Languages
- Diversification of languages and levels offered
For full details of the programme: university-council-for-languages.org/2025/06/06/u...

@ilcs.bsky.social

UCFL Summer Plenary

Sign up now for our UCFL Summer Plenary on 4 July!
You can join online or in person - registration closes on 18 June!
Secure your place here: ilcs.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...