Call for papers

International Conference

January 19-20-21, 2026

Training in Languages: From Educational and Linguistic Policies to Language Classes

Research Unit UR 4030, HLLI, Research Unit on History, Languages, Literatures, and Intercultural Studies, F-62200 Boulogne-sur-Mer, France, in partnership with INSPE-Lille-HdF.

Locations: The conference will take place at two sites, in Boulogne-sur-Mer, 21 rue Saint-Louis, and at Inspé-Lille-HdF site in Outreau.

Keywords: foreign modern languages, school and second languages, educational and linguistic policies, teacher training, comparative perspective, allophony, CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning).

Overview: This conference invites multicultural and multi-category perspectives, from primary school to university, focusing on modern languages both as a means of knowledge transmission and as an object of learning and training. Three viewpoints are considered: training policies, teacher training and/or practice, and students' perspectives. The perspectives may be diachronic and/or synchronic, covering teacher training and knowledge acquisition (linguistic or otherwise) in various geographical areas, all within a comparative framework.

Submissions may fall under the following themes:

Theme 1: Educational and Linguistic Policies

Educational and linguistic policies aim to reconcile various missions: cultural roles, elite training, inequality reduction, and internationalization. They intersect various logics (economic, social, professional, and academic) influencing these policies' evolution. Key questions include:

• What are the current changes in linguistic policies?

• What are the stakes and potential consequences of current linguistic policies on language teacher training and language learning for students?

• What roles do educational and linguistic policies play in programmatic choices and their impacts on training and language classes?

• How do school languages influence educational systems, and how do educational systems influence school languages?

• Which linguistic provisions add value to linguistic policies? This theme welcomes proposals addressing the subject from a synchronic and/or diachronic viewpoint.

Theme 2: Training of Language Teachers

This theme focuses on language training for teachers at all levels (from primary to higher education), whether they specialize in languages or other disciplines, from the beginning of their higher education to continuous training and pre-professionalization. Key questions include:

• What are the different modes of recruiting language teachers (criteria, means, status)?

• How can quality language teacher training be ensured?

• What level is required in the target language to start teaching training?

• How is this training validated?

• What about teaching internships?

• To what extent should language teacher training focus mainly on languages?

• What is the role of certification in language teaching?

• What are the pros and cons of simultaneous or consecutive training?

• What is the place of different subjects and skills (use of the target language, teaching approaches, didactics, language and culture, education sciences, other subjects) in training?

• What cooperation exists between universities and partners in preparing language teachers?

Theme 3: Language and Culture Didactics

This theme addresses the role and place of the target language or school language (first or otherwise) in teaching subjects in a foreign language and implementing foreign language courses and CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning). It also covers issues related to language acquisition and the learning of linguistic and cultural skills. Finally, it considers questions and feedback on welcoming newly arrived allophone students (EANA): allophony, inclusion, and the languages of migrant children in school. Key questions include:

• What are the difficulties in acquiring oral/written language for both teachers and learners?

• How can teaching be adapted to the difficulties of acquiring oral/written language?

• What is the place of the learners’/teacher’s mother tongue?

• What difficulties/obstacles do learners and teachers face in acquiring culture?

• How can cultural interrelations be managed in language classes?

• What can we learn from the comparative study of CLIL teaching/learning in other countries?

• What are the effects of CLIL teaching/learning on developing language skills for language learners and acquiring school knowledge?

• What can be learned from EANA (newly arrived children) welcoming provisions developed in other countries?

• What place should be given to EANA’s mother tongues?

• How can these languages be valued?

• How can EANA be included within educational institutions?

Submission Guidelines for Proposals:

Proposal Format: Proposals should not exceed 200 words, excluding bibliography and keywords. They should be accompanied by a short biography of the author(s) (max. 100 words). Proposals must be submitted on the conference website (https://formerenlangues.sciencesconf.org) no later than 3 March 2025.

Notification of Acceptance or Rejection: 31 March 2025.

Presentation Format: 20 minutes of presentation followed by 10 minutes of discussion.

Working Languages: French and English.

Contact :

Isabelle.Girard@univ-littoral.fr,  marc.capliez@univ-littoral.fr, ewen.lecuit@univ-lille.fr, imelda.elliott@univ-littoral.fr, michael.murphy@univ-littoral.fr, deborah.vandewoude@univ-littoral.fr, Emilie.Perrichon@univ-littoral.fr