www.iol.org.ukNEWS & EDITORIALThe campaignfor languagesThe latest from the languages worldScotland's 80% dropin language assistants The Scottish government has met withdiplomats and local authority representativesafter it was revealed that the number ofForeign Language Assistants in Scottishschools had dropped by nearly 80 percent inthe last six years. In 2011, only seven out of32 local authorities chose to employ languageassistants, who are native speakers ofChinese, French, German, Italian and Spanish.Alasdair Allan, the Minister for Learning,met the Edinburgh Consuls General forChina, France, Germany, Italy and Spainand the Convention of Scottish LocalAuthorities (Cosla) in January to discuss theissue. He said: "Thisgovernment fullyrecognises that Foreign Language Assistantsmake a valuable contribution to Scottishschools, enhancing classroom learning andproviding a cost-effective complement tolanguage learning."Under the scheme, which is run by theBritish Council Scotland and funded by theScottish government, three schools canshare a Foreign Language Assistant for thecost of just £7,911 a year. Yet the numberemployed fell from 284 in 2005 to 59 lastyear. In England and Wales, where individualschools (rather than local authorities) decidewhether or not to take on languageassistants, there was a 21 percent decreasein the same period.The deadline for applications to host aForeign Language Assistant in the 2012-13school year is 28 February. For details seehttp://schoolsonline.britishcouncil.org/funding/language-assistants.The campaignfor languagesIf you haven'theard about Speakto the Future - thecampaign forlanguages - yousurely will in 2012.Launched last year,the initiative issupported, and indeed hosted at Saxon House, by the Chartered Institute of Linguists. Established inresponse to a worrying decline inlanguage learning and concern over thenumbers of specialist linguists producedby the UK, the campaign is steppingoutside the languages world andhighlighting the importance oflanguages, language learning andprofessional language activities. Itsobjectives are clear and ambitious:1Every language valued as an asset2A coherent experience of languagesfor all children in primary school3A basic working knowledge of at leasttwo languages, including English, forevery child leaving secondary school4Every graduate qualified in a secondlanguage5An increase in the number of highlyqualified linguistsThe campaign, which receives funding from the British Academy, haslaunched an online form on its website(www.speaktothefuture.org) where youcan register your interest and pledge todo your bit for the cause. If you knowhigh-profile individuals or businesseswho would like to get involved, pleaseget in touch with Project ManagerDominic Luddy via the campaignwebsite. You can also follow on Twitter.Look out for a regular feature inforthcoming issues of The Linguist,where you can follow campaign progress and find out more about whatit aims to achieve over the coming years. Dominic LuddyCollins has launched a free online version ofits English language dictionary and bilingualdictionaries in French, German and Spanish.www.collinsdictionary.com went live on 31 December, giving open access to 120,000dictionary entries in English (rising to220,000 in March), each with a wordfrequency graph, images, informationon alternative meanings, word use andword history, and translations into 38languages, including Arabic, Finnish and Thai. Unlike with other renowned dictionaries,such as the Oxford English Dictionary, whichoperates a subscription-based online system,Collins' publisher HarperCollins has madethe fully-searchable site free to all users. Youcan browse the dictionaries and Englishthesaurus by letter or search for specificwords, with an audio file giving thepronunciation for every listed word.Collins launches free dictionary© MATWRITTLE6 TheLinguistFEBRUARY/MARCH

Vol/51 No/1 2012FEBRUARY/MARCHTheLinguist7CIOL FEATUREChair of Council, Tony Bell, outlines the CharteredInstitute of Linguists' Strategic Plan 2012-2014It is a proper part of the life of the Instituteand, indeed, of any organisation, periodicallyto assess its purpose and to plan for its future.Such a review takes time, and the drafting ofa formal Strategic Plan was an important focusof effort in 2011. Appreciation is due to thoseinvolved in the working groups drawn fromthe staff of the Institute, members of Counciland committee members, who worked on theStrategic Plan through much of the year.The Institute's Strategic Plan for 2012-2014was adopted by Council on 26 November2011.1Its publication, however, should beseen as a beginning, not an end: it should berecognised as an up-to-date statement ofwhat the Chartered Institute is, what its valuesare, where it aims to be and how it intends toget there.The Strategic Plan does not stand on itsown. It is a set of concepts and objectives thatare made concrete through a one-year rollingOperational Plan, as a guide and template foraction. The Operational Plan provides thechecking and monitoring mechanismsneeded to enable review and periodicrevision of the Strategic Plan.The main elements of the Strategic Plan are the Mission Statement, the statement of Values and the Key Objectives,framed in a brief outline of the professionaland educational context in which the Institute operates. These are set out anddiscussed below.Mission Statement'The Institute is the pre-eminent UK-basedprofessional membership body for languagepractitioners, and aims to enhance andpromote the value of languages andlanguage skills in the public interest.'affected by the national situation regardinglanguages. As has been noted before in thesepages, there is not sufficient, consistentgovernment support for languages.Despite the strong political, economic andcommercial arguments2for greater priority,languages and language learning do not havethe policy support that they should. Thetendency to rely on the 'rest of the worldspeaking English' is well known, and - thoughthis is not as well-known as it should be - theUK is badly under-represented in theprovision of essential language services ininternational organisations, especially in EUinstitutions3and in the UN system.The economic benefits of speaking otherlanguages have been demonstrated, and yetUK employers tend to undervalue linguists; or,if they do value language skills, are more likelyto hire foreign than British graduates.4Looking at educational policy, especially inthe last decade, it is clear that languageshave suffered from low priority. Languagesare no longer compulsory post-14, and fewersecondary-school pupils are taking uplanguages. On an encouraging note, therecent introduction of the EnglishA strategic planMuch discussion went into the redrafting ofthe Mission Statement to reflect the purposesof the Institute - service to its members,service to the profession, capacity to work forand speak for the cause of languages, andawareness of its public interest responsibilityas a chartered body. These purposes arestated in the Strategic Plan as the Values ofthe Chartered Institute.Values'The purposes of the Chartered Institute ofLinguists are founded on the belief thatknowledge of languages and interculturalcompetence benefit society economically,culturally and politically. 'As a chartered body, the Institute holds thevalues of professionalism and responsibility tothe wider community as fundamental to itsaims. The Institute values equality andrespects diversity and difference.'ContextNo organisation exists in isolation. TheContext section of the Strategic Plan thereforeexamines both the current situation oflanguages in the UK, and the Institute's ownorganisational capacity and strengths. TheInstitute is the largest UK membership bodyfor professional linguists, and has a broadmembership and wide reach, as the onlyprofessional body covering all areas oflanguage work. Its chartered status andauthority to award individual CharteredLinguist (CL) status give the Institute theopportunity to lead in its field.The CIOL's arena of operations extendsbeyond the UK. However, as a UK-basedorganisation, with most of its members livingand working in the UK, it is profoundlyThe Plan was adoptedon 26 November. Itspublication, however,should be seen as abeginning, not an end