MULTILINGUALISM IN SOCIETY AND EDUCATION: THE UKRAINIAN CONTEXT

Abstract

Due to migration and job-related mobility, the communicative effects of globalisation and multilingual societies have become the norm in Europe. Considering the need to respond to the diverse social groups on the educational level, the Council of Europe’s language policy goals are oriented toward plurilingual and pluricultural learner groups (Council of Europe, 2020). The purpose of this paper is to present a thematic literature analysis in order to establish the framework for the project titled «Insights from the CEFR: Multilingual Education and Assessment,» which received funding from the Volkswagen Foundation. The CEFR (Council of Europe 2001) and its Companion Volume (Council of Europe 2020) are cornerstones of this thematic literature analysis. This article aims to present our conceptual understanding of important terms, which will guide our future exploration. Additionally, it analyzes multilingualism in the Ukrainian context, taking into account its multilingual sociocultural realities and language education policy. The study examines the objectives of plurilingual education, with a specific focus on the Ukrainian context, and explores approaches that can be employed to incorporate plurilingual perspectives into language teaching. This progress report is intended to contribute to multilingual teacher education, making teachers aware of their learners’ linguistic resources and the approaches that promote (multi)plurilingualism.