D-1.2.1 Transversal Remarks
The terms discussed below concern at least two of the three lists of resources within the CARAP -FREPA framework (Knowledge, Attitudes, Skills).
Understand
A very ambiguous term which can mean (among other possibilities) :
to understand the sense (of a linguistic utterance, of a gesture …) in a situation of communication. In this
not particularly specific to pluralistic approaches;
understanding how something works (a linguistic system, cultural realities …). Again, this is a skill ;
it can also mean “to admit”, “to accept”, in which case the word becomes an attitude.
We use this term cautiously, striving to ensure that the context removes any possibility of ambiguity.
Conceive
An ambiguous term which can relate to knowledge as well as to attitude. In this way “to conceive of language as an object” means both
to know that language is an object;
to consider language as an object (cognitive attitude)
In other examples, such as “to conceive the existence of directions of reading different from those known and accepted in one’s own language” the meaning is close to that of “accept” and is therefore an attitude.
We avoid this term, preferring less equivocal ones like “consider”
Conscious (to be / become … of)
An ambiguous expression which refers most often to knowledge, but can also refer to an attitude (in the sense of being sensitive to), as well as to a skill (“being able to observe, to analyse”).
We avoid this term and using less equivocal terms such as know, being aware, being sensitive to, can observe
…).
[N.B. one must be wary of certain uses of “to become conscious (of)”, in the formulation of objectives, which can confuse the process by which the learner masters a competence and the competence itself (which would be knowledge)].
Recognise
An ambiguous term which can designate, among other meanings:
a skill (recognising a word one has already met);
an attitude (recognising – meaning to acknowledge – the identity of someone, recognising the interest of cultural diversity).
The following terminological remarks concern Attitudes and Skills.
We do not feel the need for any specific terminological remarks concerning the list for Knowledge.
This is partly due to the limited variety of predicates and, partly to a strict correspondence of our terminology to that of the CEFR.
D-1.2.2 Remarks concerning the list for Attitudes
Reminder: see also the terminological remarks for the CEFR, in particular understand and recognise.
Appreciate, esteem, value, have regard for
All these verbs can express the predicate “give value to” and could allow us to avoid “valoriser” in French (cf.
below). However, the first two can also be used to mean “assess” which is more of a skill, so we have also avoided them.
In the case of esteem, the second meaning can be avoided by using the noun (have esteem for) – an attitude – which is clearly different from estimation – a skill [translator’s note – in English this difficulty is avoided by the distinction between “to esteem” and “to estimate”]. This is the term (“to have esteem for”) we have used
“regard” for one of our categories of predicate (cf. A-6. °Respect / Regard°). However, not all these predicates can work in all contexts (* “Have esteem for linguistic / cultural contacts”); here we have used
“Valuing [appreciating] °linguistic / cultural° contacts” A-6.2
Attention
The expression has a number of nuances which can be closer to skills (pay attention to… focus on…) or to attitudes (be receptive to…).
We use it here in the second meaning
Readiness / being disposed to
These expressions are to be understood not as the fact of having certain capacities for action available (which would make them skills), but as existential, an attitude of the subject towards the world.
Sensitivity [being sensitive to], Openness…
We have used these two expressions to illustrate something we have mentioned in Sub-categories “the objects”: the fact that an object which is connected to a predicate has an influence on its meaning (in linguistic terms we could describe this either as a collocation or attribute it to the pragmatic effect of the context). The expressions can be linked to concrete objects linked in a general way to diversity [as in A-5.3.3 Openness towards the unfamiliar (linguistic or cultural)] or be applied in a more abstract way to individual characteristics A-17 Sensitivity to experience.
French “valoriser”, giving value to
An ambiguous expression which can mean either:
“esteem as having value” (which is an attitude);
“present as having value” (which is a skill);
“enriching” (which is frequently used in engineering, and also a skill).
The French version (but not the English one) has generally avoided the concept of “valoriser”, preferring less equivocal words translated as: having esteem for, giving value to, (esteeming), (appreciating) … cf. above …
D-1.2.3 Remarks concerning the list for Skills
Reminder: see also the terminological remarks for the CEFR, in particular understand and recognise.
Identify64
This word can have the basic meanings of :
an operation which leads one to decide that one object and another object (or more precisely: two occurrences of the same object) are the same object. For example: identify a word as being the same as one already encountered;
an operation which leads one to decide that an object belongs to a class of objects with a common characteristic. For example: identify a word as one of the loan words used in several languages from the Arabic zarâfa (giraffe).
In both cases, “identify” poses the question of the “identity” of the object. But there are examples of
“identify” which are not about questions of identity. For example, in “can identify the characteristics of a culture” in the meaning of “being able to take note of these characteristics / to say what they are”.
We use identify (like recognise, cf. D-1.1.3 below) only in meanings a and b above. For the other uses we prefer other verbs (like specify, decide on…).
64 Cf. D’Hainaut 1977, p. 205.
Recognise
See Identify, above.
Transfer / make a transfer
We use this expression to indicate any process or activity concerning languages and cultures (reflective or communicative) which profits from the knowledge, skills or attitudes which one has available in another language.