Institute for Language Education (ILE)

Established in 2020, the Institute for Language Education (ILE) challenges ways of thinking about languages, literacies and interculturality by interpreting language education as critical transformative praxis that enables educators to bring about social change to educational institutions across the world.

Staff

NameRoleEmail
Dr Kenneth FordyceCo-head of Institutekenneth.fordyce@ed.ac.uk
Dr Ashley SimpsonCo-head of Instituteashley.simpson@ed.ac.uk
Dr Michele Saraiva CariloDeputy Head of Institute
Liz Anderson-WhymarkOperations CoordinatorMHSES.Institutes@ed.ac.uk
Sean AtkinsOperations AdministratorMHSES.Institutes@ed.ac.uk
Sarah PullarOperations AdministratorMHSES.Institutes@ed.ac.uk

Study with us

We offer large-scale, world-class masters' programmes in:

The latest research in the areas of language and communication underpins all of our teaching. 

Our staff make critical contributions to other programmes and work closely with teacher education teams in other institutes.  

Our programmes align with the Shared Learning Spaces initiative. This initiative aims to connect people around the world by breaking down physical and language barriers so everyone can share in and enjoy teaching and learning.

ILE staff
Shared Learning Spaces blog

Research

We carry out cutting-edge interdisciplinary research into global language education issues and challenges.   

Research hub

Language(s), Interculturality and Literacies Research Hub

The LIL Hub focuses on the nature and roles of language learning, language in learning and language use in diverse educational contexts. It brings together a broad range of fields into three key groupings: language(s), literacies and interculturality.

Language, Interculturality and Literacies Research Hub

Cross-college centres and networks

Edinburgh Centre for Data, Culture & Society (CDCS)

Second Language Teacher Education (SLTED) Conference

“Curriculum change in second language teacher education: Dynamics, flexibility, and transgression”                               

​9 -11 September, 2026. Edinburgh, UK

Organised by the Institute for Language Education (ILE) at MHSES

The conference will feature presentations on the enactment of praxis (successes, failures, and explorations in the classroom) as well as empirical studies in all areas connected to curriculum change on all target languages of second language teacher education. We are open to all kinds of methodologies and all scales of change. Within “curriculum” we are including practice and research on the enacted curriculum, what happens in a SLTED classroom, as well as materials and policy.

Keynote speakers: Dr. Dr. Florence Bonacina-Pugh (University of Edinburgh), Prof. Anne Burns (University of New South Wales), Prof. Donald Freeman (University of Michigan), Prof. David Gerlach (University of Wuppertal), Prof. Silvia Melo-Pfeifer (University of Hamburg), & Dr. Vander Tavares (University of Inland Norway)

Details about the plenaries, call for papers, and registration can be found at the SLTED Conference website. 


This article was published on