Language action: update on National Language priorities—The National Language Conference, Language transformation roadmap, and the military Language Conference

Military Intelligence Professional Bulletin, Jan-March, 2005 by Peter A. Shaver

"The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of the Departments of the Army and Defense, or the U.S. Government."

The National Language Conference

The National Language Conference, co-sponsored by the Department of Defense (DOD) and the Center for Advanced Study of Language (CASL), was held at the University of Maryland at College Park, Maryland in June 20042 The conference was prompted by the recognition of the greater need for citizens with foreign language competence to help respond to requirements of the 21st century and the Global War on Terrorism, the increasing globalization of industry, and the need to provide government services to a diverse and multi-lingual population in the United States.

More than 300 people attended the event, representing federal agencies, academia, the nation's educational system, industry, language experts, and researchers. Conference speakers and panelists outlined the needs of the federal sector and industry, and the capabilities and possibilities of the American educational system. Conferees then met to propose actions that might be taken to make the United States population more competent in foreign languages. (2)

Dr. David S. C. Chu, Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, summarized the desired outcomes in his forward (see below) to the conference follow-on White Paper, A Call To Action for National Foreign Language Capabilities: The National Language Conference, 1 February 2005. The White Paper proposes national policies and programs to address foreign language needs, a first step toward spurring national action on this issue.

"The Call to Action for National Foreign Language Capabilities is the culmination of an unprecedented 2004 gathering of leaders from government, industry, academia, and language associations. At this National Language Conference, the leaders recalled October 4, 1957, when the Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik 1. Congress immediately passed the National Defense Education Act to respond to the threat of Soviet technological superiority. The generation of scientists, engineers, mathematicians, linguists, and area specialists created by this act put a man on the moon, helped win the Cold War, and today has a spacecraft 756 million miles from Earth soaring amidst the rings of Saturn.

"During the Conference, the participants agreed that the terrorist attacks of 9/11 had served as a second "Sputnik moment": Our national security requires foreign language education and regional expertise in the United States.

"The objective of the Call to Action is to describe the thoughts of the conference participants of a vision for the future, a future in which the United States enhances its global leadership through increased proficiency in foreign languages and understanding of and respect for the cultures of the world. While the views expressed in this white paper do not necessarily represent the views of the Department of Defense, A Call to Action identifies a number of areas in need of national leadership and lays out a series of recommendations to address those urgent needs.

"Improving the Nation's foreign language capability requires immediate and long-term engagement. Every sector of our society has a role to play. The publication of this document is meant to spur the necessary effort that will move the country forward. This is a Call to Action."

The White Paper Executive Summary (see below) states the 21st century vision and outlines the basic assumptions and recommendations of the conference:

"Our vision is a world in which the United States is a stronger global leader through proficiency in foreign languages and understanding of the cultures of the world. These abilities are strengths of our public and private sector and pillars of our educational system. The government, academic, and private sectors continue to, and mutually benefit from, these national capabilities.

The terrorist attacks of September 11th, the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), and the continued threat to our Homeland have defined the critical need to take action to improve the foreign language and cultural capabilities of the Nation. We must act now to improve the gathering and analysis of information, advance international diplomacy, and support military operations. We must act to retain our global market leadership and succeed against increasingly sophisticated competitors whose workforces possess potent combinations of professional skills, knowledge of other cultures, and multiple language proficiencies. Our domestic well-being demands action to provide opportunities for all students to learn foreign languages important to the Nation, develop the capabilities of our heritage communities, and ensure services that are core to our quality of life."

Defense Language Transformation Roadmap

Post 9/11 military operations reinforce the reality that the DOD needs a significantly improved organic capability in emerging languages and dialects, a greater competence and regional area skills in those languages and dialects, and a surge capability to rapidly expand its language capabilities on short notice. (4)