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Good morning everybody: before starting my presentation, I’d like to thank Generalitat de
Catalunya, ALTE, all the participants and colleagues for giving me the opportunity to talk about the
work that has been done so far by the LAMI Special Interest Group, I have had the honour of
coordinating since 2008.
My contribution will be focused on the 2 key words you can see in the title: migrants’ integration.
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2 hundred 14 millions migrants in the world. This impressive number involves quite a number of
considerations to be made about the concept of mobility and what is related to: people, lives,
experiences, cultures, languages.
Globalization, different but correlated forms of migrations, external and internal fluxes: the
European Constitution affirms that “diversity is wealth”, as well as multilingualism.
Managing multiple backgrounds and identities represents the challenge in order to improve the
social cohesion.
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The concept of integration has changed deeply in the last decade: different perspectives and
various approaches are still modifying the meaning of the word.
Kofi Annan said that “Integration is a two-way street. The word integrate means to make whole” in
terms of reciprocity, not assimilation.
In his tales, Igiaba Scego wrote: “In Rome everyone is always running, in Mogadishu people never
run. I am half way between Rome and Mogadishu; I walk at a fast pace.”
For the Council of Europe “Integration is a dynamic, two-way process of reciprocal interaction that
requires an effort from everyone involved: national and local authorities, institutions and
associations, local community, other migrant communities already present in the host country, the
migrants themselves”. There is a clear invitation to share a social commitment and this invitation is
extended to everyone, to every association, to ALTE as well; to each of us.
Work for integration implies overcome prejudices, stereotypes and ethnocentric views. At the same
time means analyze the migrants’ needs, also in terms of motivation in learning the host country’s
language. Within the migration context, 3 typical motivations should be taken into account:
instrumental (the language to obtain visa, citizenship, job); cultural (the language to understand
civics, traditions) and integrative (the language to live better in the society).
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Which could be the rule of ALTE and of LAMI within the scenario determinate by these 3
motivations?
LAMI means Language Assessment for Migrants’ Integration: it is a Special Interest Group that has
been central to the discussion ALTE has been engaged in, for almost a decade, to consider the
growing prominence of language testing in the European migration policy.
As you know, due to the increasing migration flows across Europe, several countries have started to
require the assessment of language competence in order to provide long-term residence permits,
citizenship or just a visa to enter a country to study, to work or for family reasons.
On one hand we have to consider the just mentioned scenario, on the other hand we have to look
at the requirements, particularly in relation to the compulsory language tests. Which could be the
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LAMI perspective? Of course, supportive, in terms of competences, but with a critical eye. A critical
approach is absolutely needed, because…
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The social and political developments of the last decade had as a consequence a political use of
language assessment, that implies a potential distorted use of language tests. We have to be very
careful in using language tests to control migration fluxes. We have to avoid the risk we can sum up
in the wrong passage: from tests of language competence to tests to contain arrivals.
According to a critical approach, there are 3 main questions, represented by these 3 key points:
1. The ethical considerations related to the Kunnan test fairness framework, with particular
regard to the concept of language test as benefit for the whole society.
2. The usefulness of the test results, in terms of validation process. VRIP: Validity + Reliability +
Impact + Practicality.
3. The reflections concerning the construct: policymakers very often require not only language,
but also KOS, knowledge of Society.
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In relation to the 3 points just mentioned, LAMI can plays an important role, and it’s what, as a
group, we tried to do up to now.
Reflecting on the balance of our work, it is important to consider what LAMI achieved in the past,
what is doing now and what will do in the next future. Starting with the past, I would like to talk
about our first 11 years in terms of …
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Actions and concrete results.
Several actions realized on your left: share, cooperate, contribute, work, present, analyze, organize,
reflect, research, study, review, update, think about, project.
On the right, concrete results: surveys, posters, documents, data, questionnaires, panel forums,
case studies (for instance from: Italy, Germany, Belgium, UK and Holland), good practice, guidelines,
reports, instruments.
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All has been realized through a constant collaboration, not only via web, but during the SIG
meetings around Europe.
The LAMI group was agreed in Salamanca in November 2002. The first meeting was in April 2003 in
Ljubljana. After Ljubljana, there was a first workshop in Athens in November 2003. Then, the LAMI
Tour started: Cardiff, Copenhagen, Sofia, Sevres, Vilnius, Bilbao, Alcala, Santiago de Compostela,
Maynooth, Luxemburg, Frankfurt, Prague, Perugia, Bochum, Lisbon, Munich and Barcelona.
I would like to remind you of the 3 forums we had so far: in Berlin 2005, in Cambridge 2008 and in
Krakow 2011 and the 2 LAMI day (seminar and conference) again in Berlin 2009 and Rome 2010.
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The posters produced by LAMI represent a first concrete result of the SIG work. At this moment we
have collected 9 posters from 9 LAMI members’ countries. We are working now on a new template,
with a new graphic layout and updated information. Through the posters we take a snap with
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regard to various aspects. In fact, the posters give an overview of migrants’ population, policies,
language courses, stakeholders and tests. They represent an useful tool not only to obtain a picture,
but also to identify trends that have emerged in the last decade.
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For instance, a very evident trend is directly related to our history, history that we can cover
through acronyms. At the beginning there was LTC: the topic was ‘Language Testing & Citizenship’.
In 2003 the SIG was known as Language Assessment & Citizenship (LAC) Group. In the same year,
during the first LAMI workshop in Athens, Dr. Rita Suessmuth opened the discussion saying “ALTE
members had to bridge the gap between their professional language testing ethical stand and the
demands by politically motivated sponsors of state or government authorities. The way the bridging
of this gap was conducted in a number of cases where ALTE member run language testing systems
for citizenship purposes will be the focus in the workshop”.
Finally in 2006 we switched into LAMI. The new name reflects the new trend: not only language
requirements for citizenship, but language requirements for access too. This word is really a key
word …
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Also for Bill Gates access reminds us of the idea of a key, fundamental to open the 4 doors related
to the 4 domains of our life: personal, public, professional and educational.
Nick Saville relates access to 6 stages of the migrants’ journey, from newcomers to citizen: preentry, initial entry, extension of stay, settlement, request for citizenship, naturalisation. During this
journey the access evolves, concerning different aspects: host country, visa, language course,
society, KoS course, employ, long term residence permit, welfare, citizenship, in same case literacy,
in other higher education, and language test, of course.
Moreover, we have to look at access also in terms of right to have a voice, to express needs, to ask
for.
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In fact, the second concrete result of the LAMI work look at this concept of access. I am referring to
the Booklet elaborated in 2007, Language tests for social cohesion and citizenship: an outline for
policymakers.
I would like to thank Piet Van Avermaet, the first LAMI chair, that gave a fundamental contribution
in order to define aims, structure and contents of the Booklet, translated into English, French,
German, Italian and Bulgarian and available in the Council of Europe website. The Booklet
represents the LAMI contribution concerning ethical considerations, practical suggestions for policy
makers and reflections, for instance about how it is possible to use and adapt the CEFR descriptors
in the migration context.
As you can see in the slide, the Booklet intends not only identify needs and share approaches, but
also state principles related to the social cohesion, define guidelines for the test development with
regard to our specific users, search for solutions to crucial questions, like: What will the
consequences of a test on society be? What will the impact for the migrant be?
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In these 2 fundamental open questions the focus is on the vowel in VRIP: I for Impact. The attention
is related to the metaphorical meaning of access, in terms of access to voice. The Weir’s concept of
consequential validity is strongly involved.
The socio-political aspect of life-long learning for migrants, and the consequences arising from
language tests, require good practice procedures, taking into account the impact on personal, social
and educational level. It is therefore necessary to look closely at the effectiveness of the whole
testing process.
Elana Shoahmy wrote about the power of tests, “test is not an isolated event; rather it is anchored
in political motivations and intentions. Research shows that these tests lead to impacts, in the form
of intended and unintended consequences”.
In front of us there is only one way: Dyane Wall affirmed that “collecting feedback from
stakeholders can be useful in order to look at the impact of assessment”. In his impact by design,
Nick Saville underline the need to collect data. Moving from this approach, last year LAMI decided
to concentrate on….
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…what nowadays is the third concrete result of our work: the LAMI questionnaire, intended for
adult migrants who have attended language course and/or taken a language test. It was elaborated
in order to investigate the impact, giving the chance to use a common instrument. In fact, we have
an English general template that works as sample as neutral as possible, in order to let it be more
suitable and useful for the LAMI members. In other words the English version is a general template
to be adapted, according to the various contexts of the different countries. We have just added 4
other versions in German, Italian, Portuguese and Slovenian and we have just started with the
administration of the questionnaire, collecting more than 1 thousand and 3 hundred samples.
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Talking about structure and contents: the questionnaire is articulated in 9 pages, 32 questions are
provided. Around 30 minutes are requested to answer. It is subdivided in 5 main sections focused
on the migrant, considering the different relationship with the society, the target language, the
language course and the exam.
Through these sections the aim is to collect data concerning:
1. The profile of our users, in order to better define the population.
2. The perception about the host country society.
3. The use of the target language: self evaluation, also with regards to the basic four skills.
4. The feedback about the attended lessons and the teaching material.
5. The feedback about the exam: level of difficulty, topics, time provided, instructions,
examiners, exam conditions.
In terms of documents related to the questionnaire, LAMI shared the aims, 11 guidelines for
translator and 14 guidelines for administrator, elaborated to guarantee standard procedures. In
particular, the guidelines for translator have a double function:
1. Underline the importance of adhering to the English template, in order to let the data
collected in different countries comparable.
2. Clarify that the translator has the chance to adapt the template according to the context.
All these documents and all the versions of the LAMI questionnaire are available in a specific Web
site, with a free download.
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The LAMI Questionnaire website has been online since last September. Writing this address www
lami hyphen q doc org, you go to the home page that reflects and summarizes the various aspects
of the work: migration and mobility all over the world, feedback through a paper-based
questionnaire, computer data collection.
Going to the reserved area, using user name and password, LAMI members can enter into a
platform where they may insert and then analyze the data collected through the questionnaires’
administration: different types of reports can be created.
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This is in brief the LAMI history, in terms of our contribution to the crucial theme of the migrants’
integration. I illustrated 3 concrete results as a part of a unique coherent evolution process:
• First: observe situations and identify trends, giving a general picture, an overview
• Second: state principles related to the social cohesion, giving suggestions for policy
makers, considering ethical aspects related to the consequences of language tests for
migration purposes.
• Third: elaborate instruments to collect feedback and investigate the impact.
So, step by step, with a clear file rouge, the LAMI Posters, Booklet and Questionnaire, with their
covers. In my view these 3 covers summarize a shared walk that LAMI members did and are doing
together. Which now is the direction of this walk? In other word …
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What will the SIG do? As a group, we have to decide where to go, in terms of communication (talks,
articles) and new areas of investigation. So, looking at the future developments, what will LAMI do
in terms of events and research? An important event is approaching: the ALTE International
Conference in Paris, next year in April. Under the Tour Eiffel a new LAMI forum is scheduled:
particularly the focus will be more on cosmopolitism, migration and integration in the metropolitan
areas. Again in Paris, a new LAMI Posters session is on the Conference Agenda, with updated and
enlarged samples from various countries.
With regard to the research work
I can’t not start with the LAMI questionnaire in terms of first results of data analysis, more versions
in different languages, more administrations around Europe and thus more data collection,
following a clear virtual circle.
In addition, we will work to increase the collaboration and the linkage between LAMI and other
ALTE SIGs. For instance the link with the Teacher Training SIG, that implies the focus on:
1. the bridge education-assessment in the migration context;
2. the value of the test at the end of a coherent formative process;
3. the need to get more feedback from teachers who work daily with adult migrants.
Another link could be with the Language test for Specific Purposes Group. In fact, 4 LAMI members
are working at the moment on the elaboration and administration of questionnaires for employers
and migrant employees, within a project funded by the European Commissions’ Fund for Integration
(action 8 "Exchange of experiences and good practices")
But we are also considering new fields of interest for LAMI: for instance:
Language teaching and assessment for young migrants at school (possible link with the Young and
Adolescent Learners SIG).
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And a survey on illiteracy in the migration context, fundamental and very urgent, as a first step to
elaborate descriptors for different stages of illiteracy, investigating what is present before and
under the A1 level and helping users and teachers in filling the deep gap between oral interaction
and writing, so strong in the linguistic profile of the adult migrants with scarce schooling.
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So…many things to do… for sure our work represents only a small contribution in a very sensitive
and complex area, only a drop in the ocean, but drop by drop we hope to do something… For this
reason we can also interpret the LAMI acronym in a different way: LAMI as Meetings for Lucky
people (first because we have a work, second because we love our work, having the chance to put
passion into it); but also Ambitious people (because we have the ambition to believe that our
contribution can be useful); or….if you prefer, idealistic people….
If you like the new meaning of the acronym …
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Let’s come and…join us! Gracies
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