Language & Democracy

The Power of Language - The Language of Power

Kreisau, Poland, 12th - 16th of February 2000

The working group meeting in Kreisau continued investigating the interdependencies of language and (in)equality in education. The group concentrated on exploring more theoretical and practical facets of tolerance education and language issues.

The discussion started off with an introduction to the issue of language and education analyzing intercultural discourses in the German educational system. Ulrike Wolf-Jontofsohn outlined different patterns of language policy (going from monolingual to bi- and multilingual concepts) The meeting centered around the workshop "The Power of Language - The Language of Power" designed by a sub-group consisting of members from different network NGOs. The group had created a "train the trainer concept" addressing different fields of concern connected to language issues. After having worked through the exercises with all participants of Working Group I, the activities were debriefed. Participants worked on adaptations, changes and additional exercises. These will be eventually included in the conceptual work of the language handbook.

Philia Thalgott from the Council of Europe presented the project "European Year of Languages" which will be launched by the Council of Europe in 2001. The group discussed possibilities of cooperation concerning the publication of the handbook and workshops addressing language issues.

At the end the next workshop was planned. The major focus will be on the examination of the dimensions of "Body Language" for educational purposes. The workshop will be held in Wendgr°ben in September 2000.

Withold Lesniak who helped organizing the network-meeting in Kreisau enriched the stay with a walking tour through Kreisau and a historical introduction to the "Kreisau Circle". We did appreciate his support which made our stay unforgettable. The network meeting ended with a short visit to Wroclaw.