Case Study: European Commission - Survey on Language Competences

Project
SurveyLang (survey on the language competences of young Europeans)

Client /Partner
European Commission

Background
As part of a wider consortium, Gallup was requested to conduct a pioneering survey on the language competences of young Europeans. Other SurveyLang members are the Dutch National Institute for Educational Measurement (CITO), Cambridge ESOL, the Goethe Institut, the Centre International d'Etudes Pédagogiques (CIEP), the Instituto Cervantes, the University of Salamanca and the University of Perugia.
The project covers those languages among the EU's official ones that are the first and second most widely taught as foreign languages (i.e. English, French, German, Spanish and Italian) in participating countries. The survey will follow international education survey standards comparable with PISA, PIRLS and TIMMS.

Client's Objectives
· To assist governments in gaining an overview of the language competences of young Europeans in order to develop language-learning policies.
· To assist in the construction of a European language indicator.
· To assist the European Commission's aim to "improve the mastery of basic language skills in Europe".

Gallup's solution
Gallup is responsible for the sampling and fieldwork operations and the design of the survey's computer-based testing platform. A minimum of 1,000 students per language per country will have listening, reading and writing skills tested.

Timing
· 2008-2012
Methodology
· Online and paper-based
More information
· http://www.surveylang.org/en/

Results
· A full field trial of the systems will take place in the first half of 2010.
· The main survey is expected to take place in 2011; this will be the first Europe-wide evaluation survey of that kind.
· The final report will include a comprehensive detailed "state of play" at both the EU and country levels and will be delivered to the European Commission in 2012.