Universities in continental Europe should position English as a parallel or second language to their country¡¯s mother tongue, according to leading institutions.

Bernd Kortmann, director of the Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies and author of a report for the League of European Research Universities, told Times Higher Education that institutions had ¡°gone too far¡± if there was ¡°no longer a place for the local language¡± in lecture halls and classrooms.

¡°There is very good reason if we have international students coming to, for instance, continental Europe for a master¡¯s programme or a PhD programme [for them] to also learn the relevant national language,¡± he said.

However, Professor Kortmann said, he would not make national language classes mandatory for foreign students.

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¡°It should be on offer; it should be a strong encouragement. But I?would not force this on people,¡± he said.

The Leru briefing paper, , says that universities outside the Republic of Ireland and the UK should ¡°position themselves¡­with regard to¡­the use of English either as a parallel language to the national language or merely as a possible second language for teaching, research and administration¡± and also to the requirement for undergraduate and postgraduate students to ¡°master at least one foreign language besides English¡±.

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¡°Besides their mother tongue(s), international students, faculty, and administrative staff must be expected to speak the national language of the host institution (at least on a receptive level) and English (or possibly other languages relevant to their field) on an academic level,¡± it?adds.

A proposed law in the Netherlands would require universities to have a legal duty of care for their international students¡¯ Dutch language proficiency, although it stops short of mandating that all foreign students take part of their courses in Dutch. Ninety-five per cent of master¡¯s programmes at Leiden University are taught in English, according to the paper.

There is also increasing political pressure in Sweden, Denmark and Finland for universities to ¡°maintain a clear position for the national language and not to overdo it in terms of offering degree programmes exclusively in English¡±, Professor Kortmann said.

However, he said, universities did not necessarily have to row back on English-language instruction in order to promote the national language.

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¡°One can do the one thing without forgetting about the other things,¡± he said. ¡°The trend towards English-language instruction is one that is increasing, but one should restrict it to those programmes where it really makes sense.¡±

The Leru study, which strongly advocates that universities develop institutional language policies, also includes the results of a 2017 survey of the 23 Leru member institutions. It found that 11 universities require foreign students to ¡°acquire competencies¡± in the institution¡¯s national language as part of the admissions process, while a further seven institutions recommend that foreign students do so.

ellie.bothwell@timeshighereducation.com