TESL Context in Canada and Language Learning

Instructor: Jennifer A. Foote
Course: EDPY 416/516, Fall 2025
Institution: University of Alberta, Faculty of Education

Class Materials:
- The PowerPoint presentation for this class can be found on Canvas for note-taking purposes.
Assignments:
- The first discussion board is due next week, specifically in Week 3 (September 18).
- Assignments: Discussion Board 1 (4 points)
Surveys:
- Appreciation for those who completed the introductory survey. The survey is still open for those who haven’t participated yet.
- Week 1 (September 4) involves an introduction survey (0 points).

Activities:
- Begin with an acronym activity as a warm-up.
Topics:
- Discuss the TESL context in Canada, with brief mentions of contexts outside Canada.
- Examine who our learners are.
- Investigate how long it takes to learn a language, with a focus on the concepts of BICS and CALP (Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills and Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency).

Fill in definitions for the following acronyms related to language learning:
- ESL: English as a Second Language
- EFL: English as a Foreign Language
- ELF: English as a Lingua Franca
- ELL: English Language Learner
- ELT: English Language Teaching
- ESP: English for Specific Purposes
- LINC: Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada
- TEAL: Teaching English as an Additional Language
- TESOL: Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages
- TOEFL: Test of English as a Foreign Language
Important acronyms:
- L1: First Language
- L2: Second Language
- Expectation of further acronyms throughout the course.

Analyze different types of language programs available, including K-12 special ESL programs, mainstream programs, immersion programs, and bilingual programs for languages other than English.

Note that second language learners may exist even in mainstream classes without special ESL programs.

LARCC Directory of ESL/EAL Programs:
- URL: https://larcc.cssalberta.ca/School-Directory
- A tool to assist newcomers in finding English classes, training programs, funding, language testing, and credential assessments.

Comprehensive discussion on various ESL programming and their focus areas:
- Community Classes: Employment Readiness, Citizenship Test Preparation, Health Literacy, Medical English for Newcomers, Professional Engineer Exam Preparation, Nursing English, Hospitality Operations Certificate, and Parenting literacy classes.
Bridging Programs: Designed for professionals such as pharmacists, engineers, accountants, and internationally educated teachers.

NEWCOMER ESSENTIAL SKILLS TRAINING PROGRAM:
- A 6-month program aimed at improving essential skills for newcomers like reading, writing, communication, and more.
- Offered by the Edmonton Mennonite Centre for Newcomers (EMCN).

General Issues:
- Waiting lists for programs, cost implications, mode of delivery (online vs. blended vs. face-to-face), accessibility challenges (e.g., childcare, gender-specific classes).
Focus on adults looking to learn English for academic purposes (EAP) and those entering the LINC program.
- Notable attendance (over 60,000 requests annually) for the federally funded LINC program catering to newcomers.

Reference to the impact of immigration on the Canadian labor market, drawing from insightful quotes by Hon. Jason Kenney regarding the challenges newcomers face.
Notable statistics about employment rates correlating language proficiency to job acquisition and wage gaps, emphasizing the importance of English language skills.
- Over 87% of employers cite language skills as a barrier to entry for foreign-educated professionals.

Overview of diverse groups involved in English learning:
- Temporary Foreign Workers (TFWs)
- International Students
- Refugee Claimants
- Permanent Residents: Divided into economic class, family class, and refugees.

Discuss the 2014 demographic of permanent residents categorized by language ability (English, French, both, neither)
Note that economic class immigrants generally exhibit higher language skills upon arrival compared to refugees who may have limited English.

Three Lives of a Refugee:
- Life 1: Pre-migration (experiencing persecution, war)
- Life 2: Migration
- Issues faced during migration, such as interrupted education and dangerous conditions.
- Life 3: Experiences in refugee camps (challenges like fear, poor conditions).

Discuss challenges faced across three demographics: adults, children, and families:
- Framework includes social isolation, language barriers, financial stress, housing issues, employment challenges, and psychological impacts like anxiety.

Establishing a trauma-informed approach in teaching:
- Help students find safety, encourage asking for help, and reduce surprises in school to create a stable environment.

BICS (Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills):
- Entertains basic communication and familiar discussions (6 months - 2 years for proficiency).
CALP (Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency):
- Entails academic language required for complex communication and understanding (5+ years to achieve proficiency).

Discuss the characteristics of academic language that complicate learning:
- Higher-level vocabulary, complex sentence structures, and greater abstraction.

Read Chapters 1 & 2 of Lightbown & Spada.
Exploration of how learning a first language differs from learning a second language.
Comparisons of similarities in learning processes between both types of language learning.