Debora Carrai

• Carrai, Debora; Hellekjær, Glenn Ole & Nielsen, Tone Holt (2026). L2 English and L3 Foreign Language Use and Needs in Foreign Affairs. HERMES - Journal of Language and Communication in Business. ISSN 0904-1699. p. 75–94. doi: 10.7146/hjlcb.vi66.164508. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The present study investigates foreign language use and needs in the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a government ministry with numerous international contacts and extensive foreign language use. To examine L2 English and L3 language use and needs, we used an online survey that combined multiple choice with open-ended questions. It was answered by 486 of the 1447 respondents in and outside Norway, giving a 35% reply rate. The findings show that while English dominates, the L3 languages are used extensively and considered highly important, but more often in informal or social contexts. The most used L3 languages were French, German and Spanish, while some less frequently taught languages such as Arabic or Chinese were under-used due to the lack of speakers of the language. While English proficiency is considered high, there is still need for improved knowledge of highly specialized vocabulary and advanced oral and written genres according to subject and area of responsibility. For the L3, improving general language proficiency and language maintenance are most needed, in addition to more speakers of several less frequently taught languages. For both English and the L3 it is also necessary to develop the linguistic and cultural awareness needed for rapport building in formal and informal situations. A key implication for higher education is the need to integrate the teaching of occupationally relevant English and L3 language skills into non-language degrees.

• Carrai, Debora (2025). Hvordan bryte tausheten. ELLA – Education, Literature, Language – Utdanning, litteratur, språk. 3(5). doi: 10.58215/ella.55. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Formålet med denne artikkelen er å drøfte hvordan fremmedspråklærere kan fasilitere elevenes deltakelse og språklige trening i klasserommet gjennom bruk av en lekende tilnærming til språklige aktiviteter, nærmere bestemt gjennom spill. Tidligere studier har fremhevet relevansen av affektive elementer for elevenes språklige produksjon i fremmedspråk, og nyere norske studier om elevenes motivasjon for fremmedspråk på ungdomsskolenivå har vist viktigheten av lærerrelaterte faktorer som for eksempel tilfredshet med det valgte språket. Lærerens rolle i tilretteleggingen for elevenes deltakelse i klasserommet har vist seg å være essensiell, men likevel er det fortsatt utfordrende å skape de rette forutsetningene for elevenes deltakelse og muntlige produksjon. Denne kvalitative studien om bruk av spill i undervisningen benytter data fra to ulike kilder: 1) observasjoner og intervjuer av en gruppe med nyutdannede spansklærere, og 2) videodata fra og intervjuer av to lærerdeltakere i DIVA-prosjektet, et innovasjons-prosjekt ved ProTed. Disse dataene understøttes av observasjoner og tilbakemeldinger fra deltakere på et kurs for fremmedspråklærere. Funnene tyder på at lærerne har gode erfaringer med bruk av spill for å fremme deltakelse i klasserommet. Denne artikkelen kan derfor bidra til å utvikle lærernes undervisningspraksis ved å trekke frem teori om motivasjon, engagement og affektive elementer i språklæring og undervisning erfaringer fra bruk av spill for å motvirke negative affektive faktorer som kan ramme læringsmiljøet og elevenes deltakelse. Artikkelen gir også konkrete eksempler på hvordan to ulike spill kan fylles med et språklig innhold og brukes til å engasjere elevene i ulike typer aktiviteter.

• Drange, Eli-Marie D.; Vila, Xavier Llovet & Carrai, Debora (2024). Utdanning av spansklærere i Norge : Utforsking av muligheter for samarbeid om PPU-utdanningene på tvers av universitetene i Agder, Bergen og Oslo. Norsk pedagogisk tidsskrift. ISSN 0029-2052. 108(2), p. 123–139. doi: 10.18261/npt.108.2.4. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Despite significant changes in Spanish language teacher education over the last 20 years in Norway, little is known about how training is organized at various educational institutions. In this article, we map out how Spanish teacher education is organized in the one-year teacher training program (PPU) at UiA, UiB and UiO to identify opportunities for collaboration across universities. The discussion of similarities and differences between the various programs reveals that it is mainly the teaching of foreign language and Spanish didactics that opens up possibilities for more binding collaboration.

• Carrai, Debora & Hatlevik, Ida Katrine Riksaasen (2024). Exploring Coherence between Teacher Education and the Competence Required to Facilitate Students' oral Participation in Foreign Language Classrooms, Coherence in European Teacher Education. Theoretical Models, Empirical Studies, Instructional Approaches. Springer. ISSN 9783658437213. p. 135–152. doi: 10.1007/978-3-658-43721-3_8. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This chapter reports on a case study aimed at exploring how newly qualified Spanish teachers perceive coherence between their recently concluded teacher education programme and their own acquired competence in facilitating oral activities in the classroom. Our starting point is that the core components of sensing coherence are comprehensibility, manageability, and meaningfulness. Our findings indicate that teacher education is perceived as comprehensible and meaningful in terms of facilitating oral participation. However, the findings also indicate that teacher education, both at the university and in practice schools, has room for improvement regarding the facilitation of oral activities.

• Carrai, Debora (2022). Secondary school pupils' language choice satisfaction in the L3 classroom: The roles of teaching, motivation, language choice and language classroom anxiety. In Wilde, Vanessa De & Goriot, Claire (Ed.), Second language learning before adulthood Individual differences in children and adolescents. De Gruyter Mouton. ISSN 9783110743043. p. 225–259. Full text in Research Archive

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• Carrai, Debora (2023). Introduksjon til fremmedspråkdidaktikk, Introduksjon til fagdidaktikk. Universitetsforlaget. ISSN 9788215066066. p. 72–88. Full text in Research Archive
• Vila, Xavier Llovet & Carrai, Debora (2023). Vacío de información, juego y motivación: Propuestas de activación oral del estudiante en la clase de ELE. Full text in Research Archive
• Carrai, Debora (2021). Hva krever LK20 av den profesjonelle spansk- og fremmedspråklæreren? Full text in Research Archive
• Carrai, Debora (2021). Exigencias de LK20 para el profesor ELE. Full text in Research Archive
• Vila, Xavier Llovet & Carrai, Debora (2021). Hva krever LK20 av den profesjonelle spansk- og fremmedspråklæreren? Full text in Research Archive
• Vila, Xavier Llovet & Carrai, Debora (2021). Exigencias de LK20 para el profesor ELE. Full text in Research Archive
• Vilà, Xavier Llovet & Carrai, Debora (2019). På vei eller på bærtur? Necesidades y desafíos de los profesores con LK20. Full text in Research Archive
• Carrai, Debora (2009). Motivasjon og frafall fra språkundervisning : en pilotundersøkelse. Full text in Research Archive
• Carrai, Debora (2009). La motivazione per lo studio delle lingue: dalla definizione alla misurazione. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Definisjon og måling av begrepet "motivasjon for språklæring". En gruppe forelesninger om bruk av kvantitativ metode i språkfag.

• Carrai, Debora (2009). Motivasjon for språklæring : definisjon og måling : resultater fra en pilotundersøkelse. Full text in Research Archive
• Carrai, Debora (2009). Motivasjon for språklæring: definisjon og måling: resultater fra en pilotundersøkelse. Full text in Research Archive
• Carrai, Debora (2009). La motivación para el aprendizaje de idiomas : Parte I: Una definición (im)posible. Full text in Research Archive
• Carrai, Debora (2009). La motivación para el aprendizaje de idiomas : Parte II: Medición y análisis de la motivación : Resultados de una encuesta piloto. Full text in Research Archive
• Doetjes, Gerard; Carrai, Debora & Vold, Eva Thue (2017). Språk uten grenser. En rapport om nettbasert språkopplæring. Kompetanse Norge. ISSN 9788277242644. Full text in Research Archive
• Carrai, Debora (2014). Fremmedspråk på ungdomstrinnet. En analyse av motivasjon og andre faktorer involvert i elevenes fagvalg og tilfredshet med faget. Universitetet i Oslo. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The present survey is a descriptive, exploratory correlational study which aims at understanding some of the elements involved in language learning and teaching in Norwegian lower secondary education. The pupils’ motivation for subject-choice at the beginning of the 8th grade and their satisfaction with foreign languages as subjects are among the main variables. The latter is, in my interpretation, assumed to be a motivational outcome. In the present study special attention is paid to Spanish, which is the preferred choice among students and at the same time the subject with the highest frequency of those who leave the subject at the lower secondary level. The main research purpose of this study is to understand the meaning of some key factors involved in the pupils’ choice and satisfaction. This involves examining subject-changes, the relation between foreign languages and in-depth studies in both English and Norwegian, the Spanish language situation, and general situation for foreign languages in lower secondary education. This study comprises an initial round of interviews used to develop the first version of the questionnaire, followed by a pre-pilot and a pilot study which were used to test and further refine the questionnaire finally used in the main survey of this study. A small survey among 100 Spanish language teachers is also part of the study. The main survey is a large-scale study with 1521 systematic randomly selected 9th grade pupils from 25 schools. The sample comprises large and small schools with a good geographic distribution and from a mix of urban and rural, and achieved a high reply rate. These elements contribute to its meeting the criteria for the sample being representative for the whole population of 9th graders, and for the generalizability of the results. The questionnaire is self-developed, although inspired by other internationally acknowledged similar instruments, and has shown good psychometric properties. It comprises items about different aspects of foreign language learning and teaching, language anxiety, self-discipline and learning strategies. Questions about the Norwegian-specific educational context related dimensions are also part of the survey. The main variable in study is pupils’ satisfaction with the chosen subject, which is used as a dependent variable in the analysis. A closer analysis confirmed the importance played by information, motivational elements and environment for subject choice, in addition to the role of teaching and learning as the variables with the highest predictive power with regard to the pupils’ satisfaction. The status of the foreign language in lower secondary education and perceived difference in difficulty between foreign languages and the in-depth studies competitors also seem to be important for subject-turnover. The comparison of results among foreign languages, between foreign languages and in-depth studies and between genders has revealed many statistically significant and relevant differences. In addition to this, the findings emerging from the survey among Spanish teachers reveal a number of factors that impact on the situation for this language in Norwegian lower secondary education. The present study has a number of implications, both for the field of motivational research and for the educational context in Norway. In the former it is because it underlines the role teacher, teaching variables and satisfaction play in understanding the development of pupils’ motivation. In the latter it is because it leads to critical questions about the status of foreign languages in the school system, and about dimensions of the educational context which affect the foreign languages in general, and Spanish in particular. At the same time the results of this study shows the need to improve teaching quality at the lower secondary level as well as in higher education. Thanks to the number of variables and the representativeness of the respondent sample, this study can, in addition to its contribution towards answering to the main research questions, provide a much needed database for the study of foreign language teaching and learning in the Norwegian lower secondary school. Given the time limitations of this doctoral project, this database could not be exploited fully. However, it can provide data for further research on foreign language teaching and learning at the lower secondary school level. Given time and resources it is also possible to analyse variables which were not prioritized in this study.

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