In order to study the impact of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) on foreign language teachers' teaching and assessment practice, a survey, interviews and case studies were carried out in Dutch secondary education. Teachers' perceptions, their needs and plans, and the implementation of CEFR were studied. Results show that the use of CEFR is most widespread in the use of CEFR‐related textbooks. The group of teachers that apply CEFR more extensively is relatively small. Schools differ considerably with respect to the application of CEFR for curriculum planning and for assessment and professional development. These results are discussed in the light of factors that foster the implementation of educational innovations, such as compatibility and adaptation at school and teacher level.

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This paper presents the overall considerations and pedagogical approach which were at the basis of the development of an innovative web-based CALL application, Ellips (Electronic Language Learning Interactive Practising System). It describes the program’s most salient features, illustrating in particular the technical challenges involved in the realization of this multilingual, server-hosted, database-supported language-learning application. Ellips, the product of a cooperative project between four Dutch universities, offers effective web-based support for language learning in Higher Education (HE) institutions. Ellips focuses particularly on grammar training, listening and pronunciation skills; although it can be accessed on its own, it has been created with integration with virtual learning environments (VLEs) like Blackboard and WebCT in mind. As a matter of fact, Ellips offers functionality lacking in these systems, which have not been specifically developed for language learning and offer more assessment than practising opportunities. Moreover, in Ellips all learning materials are coded with language-specific metadata (mainly based on descriptors derived from the Common European Framework), so that developers can easily find and reuse materials and so-called ‘semi-adaptivity’ is allowed (students automatically receive more exercises on the topics which they have not yet mastered). Other important features of Ellips are full Unicode support, extensive feedback (for every item in an exercise and for the whole exercise), a student-tracking system, the use of (streaming) audio and video, and the possibility to record student input and store it in a portfolio.

The first section of this paper gives a brief overview of the experiences with LAN-based CALL programs for Arabic in the past 7 years at Leiden University (The Netherlands). The second section discusses constraints and technical challenges related to the use of Web-based CALL for Arabic, focusing in particular on a new Web-based CALL application, Ellips, developed by a consortium of Dutch universities. The Ellips system has been integrated into the Arabic curriculum at Leiden University since the autumn of 2003.

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