What is the CEFR?
The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment, abbreviated in English as CEFR, CEF o CEFRL, is a guideline used to describe achievements of learners of foreign languages across Europeand, increasingly, in other countries. It was put together by the Council of Europe as the main part of the project “Language Learning for European Citizenship” between 1989 and 1996. Its main aim is to provide a method of learning, teaching and assessing which applies to all languages in Europe . In November 2001, a European Union Council Resolution recommended using the CEFR to set up systems of validation of language ability. The six reference levels (see below) are becoming widely accepted as the European standard for grading an individual’s language proficiency.
Hystory of the CEFR
The idea of developing a CEFR was launched in 1991 during a major Council of Europe symposium organised in Rüschlikon in co-operation with Swiss authorities. A working party was set up in 1992, which worked closely with a research group in Switzerland (thanks to the support of the Swiss National Science Foundation). The aim of this research group was to develop and scale descriptors of language proficiency. Four members of the working party were chosen to be the authors of the CEFR. As a result of the symposium, the Swiss National Science Foundation set up a project to develop levels of proficiency, to lead on to the creation of a “European Language Portfolio” – certification in language ability which can be used across Europe.
A preliminary version of the Manual for Relating Language Examinations to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) was published in 2003. This draft version was piloted in a number of projects, which included linking a single test to the CEFR, linking suites of exams at different levels, and national studies by exam boards and research institutes. Practitioners and academics shared their experiences at a colloquium in Cambridgein 2007, and the pilot case studies and findings were published in Studies in Language Testing (SiLT). The findings from the pilot projects then informed the Manual revision project during 2008–2009.
As a common framework of reference, the CEFR was primarily intended as a tool for reflection, communication and empowerment. The CEFR does not tell practitioners what to do, or how to do it. It is a tool for reflection for all professionals in the field of foreign/second languages with a view to promoting quality, coherence and transparency through a common meta-language and common scales of language proficiency.
The strength of the descriptive scheme is based on long years of experience working on the specification of learning objectives for specific languages; the strength of the scales of language proficiency lies in the fact that they result from long research, including rigorous empirical examination, and the fact that they are directly rooted in the parameters and categories represented in the descriptive scheme of the CEFR.
The result of over twenty years of research, the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment (CEFR) is exactly what its title says it is: a framework of reference. It was designed to provide a transparent, coherent and comprehensive basis for the elaboration of language syllabuses and curriculum guidelines, the design of teaching and learning materials, and the assessment of foreign language proficiency.
Use of the CEFR
The CEFR provides a common basis for the elaboration of language syllabuses, curriculum guidelines, examinations, textbooks, etc. across Europe. It describes in a comprehensive way what language learners have to learn to do in order to use a language for communication and what knowledge and skills they have to develop so as to be able to act effectively. The description also covers the cultural context in which language is set. The Framework also defines levels of proficiency which allow learners’ progress to be measured at each stage of learning and on a life-long basis.
Main objectives of the CEFR:
– promoting plurilingualism and diversification in the choice of languages in the curriculum
– supporting the development and demonstration of the plurilingual profile of individual learners
– developing and reviewing the content of language curricula and defining positive ‘can do’ descriptors adapted to the age, interests and needs of learners
– designing and developing textbooks and teaching material
– supporting teacher education and cooperation among teachers of different languages
enhancing quality and success in learning, teaching and assessment
– facilitating transparency in testing and the comparability of certifications
The CEFR is intended to provide a shared basis for reflection and communication among the different partners in the field, including those involved in teacher education and in the elaboration of language syllabuses, curriculum guidelines, textbooks, examinations, etc., across the member states of the Council of Europe. It is offered to users as a descriptive tool that allows them to reflect on their decisions and practice, and to situate and co-ordinate their efforts, as appropriate, for the benefit of language learners in their specific contexts.
The CEFR is therefore a flexible tool to be adapted to the specific context of use – a fundamental aspect fully reflected in the level system which can be adapted and exploited flexibly for the development of learning /teaching objectives and for assessment. This flexibility may be seen in the development of Reference Level Descriptions (RLDs) for particular languages and contexts.
The CEFR levels
The CEFR organises language proficiency in six levels, A1 to C2, which can be regrouped into three broad levels: Basic User, Independent User and Proficient User, and that can be further subdivided according to the needs of the local context. The levels are defined through ‘can-do’ descriptors.
The following three tables, which are used to introduce the Common Reference Levels, are summarised from the original bank of “illustrative descriptors” developed and validated for the CEFR in the Swiss National Research project. These formulations have been mathematically scaled to these levels by analysing the way in which they have been interpreted in the assessment of large numbers of learners.
Table 1 (CEFR 3.3): Common Reference levels: Global scale.
It is desirable that the common reference points are presented in different ways for different purposes. For some purposes it will however be appropriate to summarise the set of proposed Common Reference Levels in a holistic summarized table. Such a simple ‘global’ representation will make it easier to communicate the system to non-specialist users and will provide teachers and curriculum planners with orientation points.
Table 2 (CEFR 3.3): Common Reference levels – Self-assessment grid.
In order to orient learners, teachers and other users within the educational system for some practical purpose, a more detailed overview is necessary. Table 2 is a draft for a self-assessment orientation tool intended to help learners to profile their main language skills, and decide at which level they might look at a checklist of more detailed descriptors in order to self-assess their level of proficiency.
Table 3 (CEFR 3.3): Common Reference levels – Qualitative aspects of spoken language use.
The chart in this table was designed to assess spoken performances. It focuses on different qualitative aspects of language use.
SOURCE: COUNCIL OF EUROPE
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