The European Day of Languages

The Vigdís International Centre, STÍL – The Association of Language Teachers in Iceland and the Language Centre of the University of Iceland join forces every year to celebrate the European Day of Languages, with the support of the Ministry of Education.

This year, the program began with a short address by Þórhallur Eyþórsson, board member of the Vigdís International Centre, followed by the talk of Birgit Henriksen, professor emerita from the University of Copenhagen, on the subject of the book Hvorfor gør jeg det, jeg gør? (2020). In her talk, she discussed how teachers’ own ideas, their knowledge and experience in language learning and teaching often shape their teaching methods. Birgit believes that reflecting on one’s own practices is the basis for teachers’ work to be in tune with the times and for progress to be made in teaching.

Finally, Ragnheiður Kristinsdóttir, a teacher at Verzlunarskóli Íslands and a lecturer at the University of Iceland, shared her experience of teaching Spanish. She talked about diverse teaching and learning methods, where various methods are used to promote the joy of teachers and students in the classroom and the students’ positive attitude towards learning.

The event was chaired by Eyjólf Már Sigurðsson, director of the University’s Language Centre.