Have you ever wondered how Express Yourself: North East Festival of Languages came into being, how it evolved and became what it is today – well wonder no more!
Declan and Sarah Edgar sat down to talk to Will Marks for The Language Lab podcast.
The podcast episode aired on 13th November and is available:
Will explored with his guests how Our Newcastle, Our World and the Express Yourself Festival of Languages have turned partnership and passion into a movement.
Will said this is, “A must-listen for anyone who believes language learning should build bridges, not tick boxes.“
In a wide ranging discussion, Declan and Sarah answered Will’s questions about:
- Our Newcastle Our World, the framework for collaboration in Newcastle, developed with city-wide stakeholders from 2018
- the development of Newcastle City of Languages in 2019 and its launch in 2020, following in depth consultation with young people and those who work with them, identifying priorities and supporting partnership actions
- the three interconnected workstrands developed to support schools in increasing opportunities for children and young people around languages, international experiences and intercultural awareness
- why the approach is important and how it prioritises underrepresented groups and disadvantaged children, as well as celebrating all pupils and the diversity across the schools in the city
- how and why Express Yourself: North East Festival of Languages developed as part of Newcastle City of Languages, the impact it has had across the North East and how it has grown and evolved since the first annual Festival in 2021
- the importance of building ownership and a strong partnership to fulfil the aspirations of children and young people who do want to speak languages, travel, engage with diverse cultures and build connections
The conversation also explored:
- technology, innovation and access
- the importance of supporting Home Heritage and Community Languages (HHCL) and showing how this is an unrecognised superpower for many children and young people
- providing opportunities for young people to take GCSEs and A Levels in HHCL, as well as Modern Foreign Languages
- the strong links to careers and employability
- some of the language innovators who inspire Declan and Sarah
- issues around language take up and assessment
- how complementary initiatives such as Schools of Sanctuary, British Council’s International School Award and English as an Additional Language work are supported by the Festival
- the growing movement of Cities of Languages across the UK
- the need to recognise that it is important to advocate for languages in national policy