The quality of language teaching that we may rightfully expect must have an educational dimension and should not, as such, be judged solely on the basis of the efficacy of teaching methods or their conformity with norms and standards.
Teaching unfamiliar languages also has a part to play in personal development. This humanist perspective, the continuation of a long-standing cultural tradition in Europe, has now led to a teaching method we have come to call intercultural education, designed to allow learners to react thoughtfully when they come into contact with the various forms that otherness can take.