Theme1
Sub-Projects – Theme 3 – Socio-cultural integration
“LABS” - Language Bridges – general description of the project
Many border regions are characterised by specific linguistic features like a bi- or even multi-lingual situation. Therefore multilingualism of the inhabitants is important for mutual understanding as well as for a functioning labour market and in order to facilitate the mobility across borders.
For the participants of the LABS project it is important to find out more about the advantages and potentials of multilingualism as it is often still considered as a disadvantage and barrier by people and companies not practicing it. The partnership agrees that a multilingual situation should be understood as strength and used as a tool for regional development. But why do some people learn a new language easily, while others struggle? Why do some individuals have no interest in a language, while others become enthusiastic for it? How can the status of a language be elevated? These are the main questions of the researchers involved in the project. Through the exchange of experience and the elaboration of answers to the above mentioned questions, the project furthermore leads to a better cooperation in the field of education in multilingual regions.
The sub-project “Language Bridges” is initiated by the European Academy (EURAC) of Bozen / Bolzano and deals with the problem of multilingualism in border regions. It focuses on four core topics: motivation for language learning, status of languages, new technologies and better awareness on languages learning within the population.
