The Research Group Language and Education (L&E) is one of the six research groups within the Utrecht Institute of Linguistics OTS. L&E investigates first and second language (L1 and L2) teaching and learning and communication processes in educational contexts, where language learning can be fostered pedagogically by effective curricula, tasks, instruction and feedback. Our research focuses on the interface between pedagogy, learning processes and learning outcomes in terms of language proficiency, attitude and intercultural competence.

Our goal is to understand which factors make L1 and L2 teaching and learning effective, and to provide an evidence base for the development of effective curricula, pedagogies and educational materials.

Team members are based in the Department of Language, Literature and Communication, both in Foreign Languages and in Dutch. Several researchers are also involved in the Graduate School of Teaching (GST), while others combine their research position with a teaching position in primary or secondary education or a teacher education institute.

Our research is relevant for societal partners from the educational field and is frequently initiated in collaboration with those partners, including educational publishers, language teacher educators, Vereniging Leraren Levende Talen, Stichting Lezen, Cito and College voor Toetsen en Examens. This enhances the ecological validity of our research, and increases the usability of our research outcomes.