The neurolinguistic approach at the heart of discussions in Spain

Delphine Guedat-Bittighoffer, a teacher-researcher at Cirpall, has been coordinating the Second Language Learning at School for all teenagers (SLS4Teens) research project since 2023. The teachers and researchers of the EU Green alliance met in Spain in mid-March for a progress report.

The participants exchanged views on 13 and 14 March in Spain.The SLS4Teens project is the winner of a call for projects under the Erasmus+ programme. Led by Delphine Guedat-Bittighoffer, in collaboration with three EU Green partner institutions (Extremadura, Parma, Magdeburg) and the University of Nantes, it promotes innovative practices, in particular the neuro-linguistic approach (NLA), for learning foreign languages in a playful way.

"In language classes, it's often the best students who take part," says Delphine Guedat-Bittighoffer. "NLA aims to get all the students to express themselves orally, whether in role-playing, in pairs or talking about their hobbies, for example. In this way, they become more involved and take greater ownership of the language".

But how can we measure their progress? That's the purpose of the SLS4Teens research project. Delphine Guedat-Bittighoffer continues: "An interview grid has been designed to measure the impact of NLA and to collect data on the students (has their level of oral skills improved? are they happier than before?). We also co-designed a logbook that the teachers must fill in weekly".

A closing conference in Angers in 2026

Between November 2023 and March 2025, fifty volunteer secondary school teachers took part in training modules on interculturality, digital tools, grammar, neuroscience and oral production, developed by researchers from the universities involved. "The teachers will be testing their pupils next October. Of the fifty, twenty-four are training in the use of NLA to offer more ‘innovative’ courses and a second test will take place in March 2026."

While waiting for the two assessments, the other twenty-seven teachers of English and German met in Spain on 13 and 14 March to discuss their practices. The teachers trained in using NLA and the researchers will meet again in Nantes on 22 and 23 May, after which all the participants will take part in the closing conference at the University of Angers in September 2026.