After the BBC indicated to ALL in March that online languages for adults was to be abandoned, there appears to have been a significant change of thinking.
A new BBC Trust Service Review of Online and Red Button (via merged service licence) proposes that languages should be included as an essential life skill in BBC provision of formal learning resources for adults. A previous stage of this Service Review (published in May) made no mention of languages.
The new Review is in public consultation stage until 12th August and ALL will certainly be writing to welcome and reinforce the inclusion of languages in the BBC’s provision. For access to the draft Review: http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/our_work/services/online/service_reviews/online_redbutton_consultation.html
If any ALL members wish to express their views to us (by 5th August), we will be pleased to bear them in mind in shaping ALL’s submission. The BBC will continue to provide some level of language resources for schools – there has been no change in this.
Note that ALL first wrote to BBC Controller of Knowledge and Learning in March to investigate and then express its views on plans to abandon languages for adults. We argued that languages are an essential life skill for adults. ALL made the same point to the BBC Trust in response to publication of the first BBC Online and Red Button Service Review in June. We cannot claim for sure, of course, that it was ALL’s intervention that has led to the change in plans, but we cannot think of a better explanation!