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Research at the Research Centre on Multlingualism

Completed projects

Through its research projects, the RCM pursues the ambitious goal of contributing scholarly and empirically supported research findings on social questions pertaining to multilingualism. Priorities and focus of all research are defined in a multi-year plan which, when proposed by the RCM, undergoes approval by the steering committee.

In all its research activities, the RCM is committed to the principles of good scholarly practice. Applied research done at the Research Centre on Multilingualism (RCM) includes the areas "Multilingualism in individuals", "Language teaching and learning, assessing and evaluating language skills", and "Multilingualism in institutions and society".

Multilingualism in individuals

This area of research deals with the simultaneous or successive acquisition of several languages (first, second and third languages) in various age groups and in varying demographic sectors – including the immigrant population. Through longitudinal empirical studies, researchers will shed light on the factors that influence the development of individual language competence.

Direction: Prof. Raphael Berthele

Language aptitude: why and how to assess it?

The potential to learn foreign languages varies from one individual to the next and has been investigated by many researchers as of the early 1950s. Individuals’ ability...

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Teaching and learning languages, assessing and evaluating language skills

Research in this area focuses on developing, diagnosing and guiding multilingual and pluricultural competences. It addresses three main issues: first, language acquisition in its non-guided, guided (classroom) and autonomous forms; second, the didactics of second languages and multilingualism including key aspects such as teaching and learning objectives, curricula and syllabuses as well as methods of teaching and learning languages; and third, the assessment of language competence and the evaluation of language programmes.

Direction: Prof. Thomas Studer, Prof. Anita Thomas

Literature review: literacy development for adult migrants

Literacy courses designed for adult migrants have been offered for decades in countries experiencing significant immigration. The recent past has seen an increase in research on the teaching and...

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