We’re delighted to announce that our 2025 Language Teachers’ Conference will be held on Friday 26 and Saturday 27 September at Somerville College. We very much look forward to once again welcoming teachers to Oxford!
Conference Programme
2025 sees us re-invigorating our standard conference programme to make it more interactive and collaborative. For the first time, the Conference will have a theme – ‘Collaboration and Connections’ – which will underpin all of the sessions and talks that are taking place across the two days. We hope that, by creating more space for meaningful discussions, teacher-led content, and undergraduate student perspectives, the event will provide more useful opportunities for delegates and Faculty members to share best practice, network, and learn from one another.
We are pleased to be holding the conference at Somerville College once again after a successful event last year. Somerville was established in 1879 as a hall for women, who were barred from the university at the time, and throughout its history it has remained committed to equality. Today, Somerville marries beautiful architecture with a proud emphasis on inclusivity and diversity.
The full provisional event programme can be found here.
We are delighted to say that the first day of this year’s conference will be held, very appropriately, on European Day of Languages! The event programme will kick off with colleagues from the University’s Education Department providing an overview of new research into modern languages teaching practices, followed by a chance to ask questions. This is a new addition to our regular conference programme and we hope it will informative and beneficial to everyone in attendance.
After a short tea break, our annual panel discussion will take place, once again with an emphasis on languages education policy, following a similar successful session last year. This year’s discussion will focus on ‘the future of modern languages’, looking ahead to potential changes to the subject following the pending Curriculum and Assessment Review report, and considering the ongoing challenges facing the subject area. Alongside a panel of Faculty academics and colleagues involved in languages advocacy, contributions from the floor will be invited and encouraged.
This year’s taster session led by a Faculty academic will be more workshop-style than in previous years, presenting an opportunity for teachers to engage more actively in the academic content. It will focus on one of our beginners’ languages, Czech, and will include some time dedicated to discussing the various options for studying a language from scratch at university and the barriers to taking up a new language facing prospective students.
Our final Friday session will see a recent Oxford alumnus talking about their experiences of studying Modern Languages at Oxford, and where life has taken them since graduation, before we enjoy a drinks reception and sit down for dinner. This will all be followed by a chance to socialise and network with fellow MFL teachers and colleagues from the Faculty in the College bar!
Following a successful session last year, Saturday morning will start with another interactive and energising example of the creative translation workshops offered to schools by The Queen’s College Translation Exchange. The workshops are designed to make translation accessible and creative for school pupils by using the Stephen Spender Trust’s ‘Decode – Translate – Create’ method.
After a coffee break, the Saturday morning will continue with our annual admissions slot which will provide an overview of our admissions process and any necessary updates. Unlike in previous years, we are aiming to involve more undergraduate students in this session, presenting an opportunity for teachers to ask questions about the students’ personal experiences of the entire decision-making and University application process.
A particular highlight of this year’s programme is scheduled for Saturday morning – our ‘Collaboration carousel’ session will involve invited MFL teachers speaking about the exciting and innovative projects they have been working on within their school or local area to promote language learning. To end on a high and offer delegates a chance to continue discussions from the final session before heading home, lunch will be provided in Somerville’s dining hall.
Delegate rates and booking
Below are the various rates and ticket options available for both state and independent school teachers.
| State school rate | Independent school rate | |
| Full conference, including accommodation and breakfast | £150 | £300 |
| Full conference, excluding accommodation | £100 | £220 |
| Friday only | £50 | £110 |
| Saturday only | £50 | £110 |
Please visit our online bookings webpage to secure your place. You will need to create an account (or log in if you’ve used our website before) and select the right rate for your school type and length of attendance. Bookings will close on 8th September.
We have a select number of subsidised places available for non-selective state schools. The Faculty has some funding set aside to cover the cost of the conference ticket and to reimburse reasonable travel expenses for teachers from these schools travelling to and from Oxford. Preference will be given to teachers from schools that either:
- have never attended the conference before (or that have not attended in the last three years);
- are located in areas of the country from which fewer students attend University;
- have high proportions of students on Free School Meals.
If you wish to apply for one of these places, please fill in this very short form by Tuesday 1st July at midday.
If you have any questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to contact Nicola Brown at schools.liaison@mod-langs.ox.ac.uk.
We look forward to seeing you in September!