CONTACT | Research
Bridging the language gap: Challenges and opportunities for English education in underdeveloped countries
Abstract
In an increasingly globalized world, English language proficiency is crucial for accessing international opportunities in business, education, and diplomacy. For underdeveloped countries, enhancing English education represents both a challenge and a potential catalyst for socioeconomic advancement. This paper examines the challenges hindering effective English language instruction in these regions, proposes principles for context-sensitive curriculum development, and analyzes…
A decade in the making: A review of LINC to Work programming at Conestoga LINC
*See PDF for images and/or Appendices
Background
In 2013, as part of the response to the ongoing emphasis on employability training for newcomers to Canada, Conestoga LINC (Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada) created a LINC to Work class. For over a decade, Conestoga LINC faculty have been instructing student-focused LINC to Work lessons on…
Spotlight — Shahriar Mirshahidi
Congratulations! You received the OCAD University Employee Equity Award. Talk to us a bit about that award and what it means to you.
I am deeply honored to receive the 2023 Employee Equity Award for my work as an English Language Learning Specialist at OCAD University’s English for Art & Design Program and the Writing…
Promoting intercultural communicative competence in ESL classes
*Note: For article appendices, please see the PDF.
Introduction
In a globalized world, ESL teachers are increasingly urged to consider developing students’ intercultural communicative competence in language classes. This paper starts with the definitions of communicative competence (CC) and intercultural communicative competence (ICC) from different perspectives. It then explains what teachers need to teach to…
EGAP: What is missing?
The number of international students seeking enrollment in higher education in Canada has increased four times in just twenty years from 122,665 in 2000 to 621,565 in 2021 (Crossman et al., 2022). Thus, it is evident that there will continue to be a need for more EAP programs to prepare EAL (English as an Additional Language)…
Lessons learned during COVID-19: Towards blended learning and teaching in LINC and ESL
ESL and LINC teachers and programs were shifted abruptly to online and blended teaching as COVID-19 closed physical classrooms in March 2020. In this article, we look back at some of the resulting changes in ESL/LINC teaching and learning due to COVID-19. We examine the growing shift towards blended learning that occurred because of pandemic restrictions,…
