TEFL blog » ESL in Europe

Two different views “from the field” today.

Firstly, have a look at T’s blog for her fascinating account of the highs and lows of volunteering as an English teacher and Development Instructor in Mozambique.

Secondly, a more lighthearted look at one blogger’s first teaching experience (in Switzerland) since securing a two-month TEFL certificate by correspondence.

Finally, and on a totally unrelated note, teaching English abroad has made it to the top of this list on CNN of the top five jobs that let you see the world. The others, incidentally, are Chef, Massage Therapist, Au Pair and Caterer.

Ten Americans have left Belarus after allegedly “singing religious songs and reading spiritual literature” in what was supposed to be an English conversation class. The volunteers had arrived in the country in early February to work for a humanitarian aid organisation. They were given $14 fines for teaching without a license and violating the country’s laws which forbid the promotion of religion by an NGO, according to eCanada Now…

We posted a while ago about the £110 million that the British government spends on translation services for immigrants every year.

Well, it seems that the argument that this money could be better spent on English lessons is winning, as the government is proposing to cut benefits to claimants who do not take English lessons.

This is an important step by the government in recognising that English language skills are important both for work and for social integration. Brendan Barber, writing in the Guardian Online, however, highlights the other side of the coin, a catch-22 where many low-paid immigrants will suffer simply because ESOL classes are not available for them to take in the first place.

What do you think about this paradox? Have a look at the article and post a comment below…

The British Council is renowned worldwide for its English language teaching programmes. According to their website, in 2005-2006 they employed over 2000 teachers to teach 1.1 million English class hours to 325,000 learners in 53 countries.

Unfortunately though, in the New Year, their teaching centre in Moscow is to stop providing English classes. This is reportedly due to the Russian Foreign Ministry’s demand that the Council apply for a teaching license. A license has not been required before and applying for one is, according to the British Council’s Natalya Minchecnko, quoted in this article, “an arduous and time-consuming process which the British Council finds practically impossible to complete”.

Although the students who have signed up for classes in 2007 will have to look elsewhere, the British Council does stress that its non-teaching services will not be affected, and that it remains committed to “working in Moscow and across Russia and delivering projects and activities in science, arts and education, including the Information Centres and exams”.

What do you think about the Foreign Ministry’s demand and the British Council’s decision? Post a comment below…

A debate is raging in Switzerland over the teaching of English at primary school level. Legislation is being introduced aiming to protect Switzerland’s national languages German, French, Italian and Romansh, and includes a proposal to give one of these languages preference over English in foreign language teaching.

Supporters are arguing that national languages should be given priority as many young people have trouble communicating in them, and worry that the national languages could be eclipsed by English.

But several regions have already introduced English at primary school level.

So, in a country with four national languages, should children be taught two of these before considering English, or should English take priority? What do you think? Post a comment below…

At a time when issues of integration and cross-cultural understanding are hot political topics in the UK, the British government has revealed, according to this report in the Daily Express, that it spends £110 million a year on translation services for immigrants.

Apparently, the costs include a local council translating details of its refuse collection service into 15 languages so that non-English speakers can understand the recycling system, and one-to-one “Quit Smoking” sessions in Turkish.

The report quotes the head of MigrationWatch UK as saying “We should expect immigrants to learn English and should not remove the incentive to do so by spending millions on translation.” A Bangladeshi woman quoted in the report agrees, saying “When you are trying to help us you are actually harming… We don’t need to speak in English at all.”

On the other side of the argument, the head of the Commission for Racial Equality is quoted as saying that the costs were a feature of globalisation that we should “just soak up”, and a project manager for a local council project says “If they need it in their language we make sure they have it… everybody should have equal access to knowledge of the services”.

So, who is right?

Could this money be better spent on teaching English, to help migrants integrate into British society, taking on the “obligations that come with the privilege of living and working in Britain” as Tony Blair pointed out in a speech on migration two years ago.

Or should everyone have the right to access knowledge in any language regardless of the cost to the British taxpayer?

What do you think? Post a comment below…

In a recent post, we suggested that complacency was finally catching up with English speaking countries, as businesses start to lose out competitively due to lack of foreign language skills in their employees. The US Department of Education stated that “critical need foreign language skills are necessary to advance national security and global competitiveness”

Well, it seems Conservative Party leader David Cameron is thinking about addressing this concern in the UK too, with a suggestion that the Party would bring back compulsory language lessons in British schools. At the moment, pupils can choose to stop studying languages at the age of 14, which has led to a sharp decline in numbers going on to take Modern Language GCSE exams at the age of 15 or 16.

With the US Education Department’s goals of increasing the number of Americans with critical language skills, and now Cameron’s hint at a policy pledge, are we seeing the start of a much-needed reversal in attitude towards foreign language learning?

What do you think? Post a comment below…

Here’s a question from one of our visitors, Erica Lupocz:

“What is the going salary rate for TEFL teachers in Hungary at the moment? Which is a better option, private schools or language schools? I would like to teach at a summer camp - how do I apply?”

If you can help Erica with these questions, please post a comment below.

by Emmanuel Mendonca

The employment situation can be quite uncertain for newcomers to Greece and therefore many people choose to try teaching English as a foreign language, on a full or part-time basis. It can bring in a good income whether it is your preferred career choice, or you wish to do it short-term until another career choice pans out… Read the full article