More than 200 public sector employees undertake language training this autumn
Around 250 students will have additional Estonian language training
Students staged a play by Kivirähk as part of their Estonian language course
Findings of the survey on foreign language competences revealed
More than 200 public sector employees undertake language training this autumn
Estonian language courses for more than 200 public sector employees supported by the European Social Fund will commence in autumn.
85 proposals from public sector institutions all over Estonia were submitted to the second proposals round of public sector authorities organised by the Integration and Migration Foundation Our People (MISA). The majority of proposals came from Ida-Viru County and Tallinn but also from Harju County and Pärnu. Although the experts approved 57 proposals, only ten activities will be initially financed due to limited budgetary funds. The Foundation tries to find the additional money to support the organisation of more language courses.
“The learners come from education institutions, hobby education and culture organisations and city governments this time around. Usually, versatile language teaching courses last 60-120 academic contact hours, during which time focus is also on professional or work-related language practice and study tours to experience the language environment or in-service training positions are organised,” explained Eduard Odinets, Head of Lifelong Education Unit of MISA.
“For example, kindergarten teachers will be offered an opportunity to practice their language skills during two-day practices in various Estonian-speaking organisations in Tartu, Tallinn or Rakvere, in addition to language classes to help them overcome their language barrier,” explained Odinets.
According to Odinets, the combined language learning method ensures the learners’ greater involvement and commitment, for the language learning activities included in the proposals have been prepared by taking into account the organisations’ specific wishes and needs.
The experts analysed the proposals based on the contribution of an organisation and/or a learner to the language learning activities and took into account compliance with the goals, versatile teaching methods, how likely it is to achieve results, learners’ motivation and harmony between the budget and the activities.
In 2012–2013, public sector language learning is supported with around 60,000 euro. The language courses will be conducted within the framework of the activity “Language Learning for Public Sector Employees” of the programme “Language Learning Development 2011−2013” financed by the European Social Fund.
For further information, please contact: Jana Tondi, Coordinator, Lifelong Learning Unit of MISA, tel 659 9069, [email protected]
Around 250 students will have additional Estonian language training
As a result of the proposals round organised by the Integration and Migration Foundation Our People (MISA), in the coming academic year around 250 students whose mother tongue is different than Estonian will be given an opportunity to undertake an additional Estonian language course to enhance their academic development.
Altogether, 15 proposals by eight higher education institutions all over Estonia were submitted to the proposals round and the assessment committee decided to support 12 proposals for organisation of language learning courses. While half of the ten approved proposals come from Ida-Viru County, the rest originate from Tartu and Tallinn. The course participants are students learning the following subjects: education, art, social work, agriculture and information technology.
“The goal of additional language learning is to help students whose native language is different than Estonian to cope with their academic studies and offer them an opportunity to obtain specialised language skills indispensible at higher education level. The approved activities usually include contact learning in a classroom, but learning trips and activities in the appropriate language setting will also be organised,” said Eduard Odinets, Head of Lifelong Learning Unit of MISA.
“Language learning that is supported via a proposals round is much more productive, allows greater involvement of learners and motivates students more than a common teaching approach. The organisation of proposals rounds gives an opportunity to take into account the needs of higher education institutions and support their initiatives,” added Odinets.
These courses ensure greater involvement and commitment of learners because proposals concerning language learning are made at the initiative of the higher education institutions themselves and the courses are conducted using different teaching methods than the traditional approach.
During the programme, several additional study aids will be developed, including, for example, several e-courses in the Moodle environment.
MISA supports language-learning courses of students of higher education institutions selected through a proposals round with around 80,000 euro. The activities are financed within the framework of the activity “Additional Language Learning for Students of Higher Education Institutions” of the programme “Language Learning Development 2011−2013” supported by the European Social Fund.
For further information, please contact: Jana Tondi, Coordinator, Lifelong Learning Unit of MISA, tel 659 9069, [email protected]
Students staged a play by Kivirähk as part of their Estonian language course
Last month, an additional Estonian language course designed for the students whose native language is different than Estonian was completed in the University of Tartu, culminating with the production of the play “Rehepapp” by Andrus Kivirähk in the courtyard of Tampere House.
Additional Estonian language learning courses for students of higher education institutions whose native language is different than Estonian have been supported via proposals rounds organised by the Integration and Migration Foundation Our People (MISA) since 2008 and more than 900 students have passed these courses.
In June, a group of 30 learners from the Department of Estonian Language as a Foreign Language of the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Tartu completed their three-month course during which period the learners attended lectures, did group assignments and practical exercises. The goal of the course was to improve the students’ pronunciation and vocabulary and enhance their public speaking skills. The underlying theme of the whole process was Estonian drama, which the learners had a closer contact with when staging “Rehepapp” at the end of the course.
“We not only studied language at the course, but we challenged ourselves as actors. It was an exciting and useful activity for me. The course was useful because we conversed a lot, learned new words and improved our pronunciation. This approach does not let you become bored – you discover new words and find new friends,” commented one of the course participants, Olga Shumilina.
According to Shumilina, staging the play by Kivirähk in a beautiful historic Tampere House created an intriguing atmosphere for everyone, and her opinion is that such a language learning approach should be much more widely spread: “I would like to see that our teachers continue employing this method of teaching and more people wish to participate in these courses!”
The organisation of additional language learning for students of higher education institutions is funded by the Integration and Migration Foundation within the framework of the activity “Additional Language Learning for Students of Higher Education Level” of the programme “Language Learning Development 2011−2013” financed by the European Social Fund.
For further information, please contact: Jana Tondi, Coordinator, Lifelong Learning Unit of MISA, tel 659 9069, [email protected]
Findings of the survey on foreign language competences revealed
Last week, the new European Survey on Language Competences was presented, in which the English and German language proficiency of Estonian students was examined and their results compared with similar data of the 14 participating European countries.
The survey on language competences initiated by the European Commission studied the foreign language proficiency of students from 14 countries in the five most widely taught foreign languages in the European Union (English, French, German, Spanish and Italian). Information was collected about the language proficiency of students in the last year of basic education or the second year of the upper secondary education.
In Estonia, the survey was conducted as a collaborative effort of the Integration and Migration Foundation Our People (MISA) and the Foundation Innove. The implementation of the survey was supported within the programme “Language Learning Development 2011-2013” financed by the European Social Fund.
During the programme, the English and German language listening, reading and writing skills of students in the last year of basic education in Estonia were studied. In addition to assessing the level of language proficiency, the survey also examined some aspects of attitudes held as regards language learning. The survey confirmed that better language proficiency is ensured by learning a foreign language at a very early age and the students that understand the necessity of language learning show better results.
“Based on the survey findings, we can plan integration process in Estonia and guide the teaching process at school to prepare the young people to be successful in both the Estonian and European labour market,” commented Eduard Odinets, Head of Lifelong Learning Unit of MISA.
“The survey showed that although the English language proficiency of the young students was very good, the findings concerning other languages were not so good. The proficiency of German was average compared to the findings in other European countries. Estonian society is multilingual and multilingualism always gives a society a competitive advantage, making it important to develop the proficiency of other languages besides English,” added Odinets.
This was the first survey on language competences that actually measured language proficiency, because earlier similar surveys were based on people’s own assessment of their language proficiency. The survey was conducted in compliance with international research standards.
The representative sample of the first European Survey on Language Competences comprised approximately 53,000 students (over 3,000 from each country). In every country, foreign language skills were measured in the two most widely taught languages out of the five test languages (English, French, German, Spanish and Italian), calling them the first and second test language. The language proficiency of a student in the sample was measured in one language only.
More detailed information about the survey findings is available here.
For additional information, please contact: Tea Kotkas, Lifelong Learning Unit of MISA, Coordinator, tel 659 9061, e-mail [email protected]
