Sonja Barfod Lund

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Curricular coherence in language subjects – vertically and horizontally

With a MA in Danish and German from 2009 and a PhD in sociolinguistics on language use in the international workplace from 2017 (Roskilde University), I have worked with and taught languages in the educational system for many years.

My postdoctoral project focuses on the coherence or lack thereof in the curricula of language subjects vertically, that is, across the educational system (from upper secondary school to university) and horizontally, across the language programs.

The project stems primarily from my work at the Danish National Centre for Foreign Languages. Since August 2022, I have been involved in a larger study that identified a number of challenges in connection with language teaching in upper secondary education. The study indicates a discrepancy between teaching practice and theory and policy documents. In continuation of this, I will explore how the language study curricula can be strengthened for the many graduates who will go on to teach a foreign language. I will examen the academic priorities in the curricula in the different language subjects and study programmes as well as progression and transitions across the secondary and tertiary levels of education. The study will also include a historical perspective.