“A1 for Everyone”: Outline of a Plurilinguistic Project

Abstract

Summary The paper presents a new tool for approaching foreign languages. The “A1 for everyone” (A1FE1) project aims to promote multilingualism (meaning the ability of an individual to use different languages) in tune with the focuses of EU language policy, i.e. “to make a wider range of languages available to learners to allow individual choice”. A1FE1 aims to create a series of compact manuals, language introduction guides, different from self-study courses or tourist phrasebooks, which should allow everyone to reach level A1 (“Breakthrough”) in a foreign language (L2), using the technologies available today and a new reader-tailored approach. In fact it is not a guide for a single language being translated into several others, but each L2 guide is written specifically for a type of L1 users, since combinations of typologically distant languages (Danish for Spanish, Czech for Finnish) must tackle the same A1 material in a different way compared to especially genetically similar languages (Danish for Swedish, Czech for Slovaks). The paper introduces the Italian language guide for Lithuanians (Italų kalba šnekantiems lietuviškai). There are two main principles in this project: the comparative and contrastive approach, which proceeds from what is familiar (L1) to illustrate what is new (L2) and the central role of the lexicon as vehicle of communication and unifying element of the three components of grammar (phonetics, morphology and syntax). This is the reason why the bulk of each guide consists of four sections presenting the sounds, the basic forms, logical connections and words of the L2, followed by a two-way minimal dictionary full with communicative examples. The level descriptors of the Common European Framework are not language-specific, hence A1 structures and lexicon should be selected according to teaching practice resources available in the countries where the L2 is spoken, such as syllabuses, word frequency lists, etc. Audio recordings of all L2 material presented in the guides and additional videos following the books’ structure can be accessed online. Italų kalba šnekantiems lietuviškai will serve in fact as a prototype, outlining practical and problematic aspects to take into consideration when drafting other guides. After its release, feedback from users and field experts will help evaluate the real development possibilities of the project, including the involvement of institutions at European level.