UpDate - Vol. 14, No. 38, Page 6
August 3, 1995
Summer: Busy time at English Language Institute
Summertime.... and the livin' is easy. That's what the song says,
but it's definitely not the case at the English Language Institute
(ELI), where a variety of activities keep staff and students busy.
ELI's nine summer programs range from a summer camp for French
and Brazilian teens to a training program for English teaching
educators from Africa to a program to prepare Thai students for
graduate studies.
"We've developed a good reputation as an English language
teachers' training center," Scott Stevens, director of ELI, said. "We
provide workshops and seminars in current teaching methodologies,
under the heading, "English as a foreign language."
This summer, 26 educators from 15 African nations are
participants in the Summer Institute for English as a Foreign Language
(SIEFL).
In its third year, SIEFL is funded by U.S. Information Agency
grants for training in English as a foreign language for
professionals. After completing the program, participants are chosen
for their leadership potential as teachers of English when they return
to their home countries.
"The goals are to train them in this field and to train them to
train others," Kathy Schneider, ELI associate director, said. "We're
hoping that, as a result of the workshops, they will have a better
idea of how to do this when they return home."
As part of the program, the visitors also sample American
cultural life by spending weekends with American host families.
"The response has been wonderful," Grant S. Wolf, ELI instructor
and associate coordinator of SIEFL, said. "The visitors count it as
one of the high points of their stay here, and often they maintain
contact with their host families for many years afterward."
Other ELI programs are:
* FOOD SERVICE PROGRAM-Fifteen students of the Nicaraguan
Peace Scholarship Program are involved in an 18-month,
English for Specific Purposes and food service program
designed with Mir Islam, professor of food science. They
will work in the food science field when they return home.
* YOUNG ASIAN LEADERS-Twenty-nine students from Japan, Korea,
China, Taiwan and Hong Kong began a three-week stay July 14
as part of the DuPont Asia Pacific Young Leaders Program
(DAPYL). "This is the first time a group like this has been
sent here by their employer to take part in an intensive
study program," June Quigley, coordinator of DAPYL, said.
"The program will help enhance the oral and written
communication skills of these individuals and provide
training in marketing."
* LEGAL INSTITUTE-The American Law and Legal English Institute
(ALLEI) provides participants with an introduction to the
fundamentals of American legal English and the legal system.
"It gives participants an opportunity to concentrate on
specific areas that foreign attorneys are interested in and
concerned about," Christopher Wolfe, an attorney and
academic coordinator for ALLEI, said. Those taking part in a
four-week course, which ends Aug. 11, include Fulbright
Scholars from Argentina, Austria, Germany and Mexico, plus
several private attorneys from Brazil, Spain and Japan. When
the scholars finish the ALLEI program, many will attend
American law schools to get their law degrees. Others will
return to their home countries to continue practicing law.
"English is the international law of business, and,
therefore it is also the international language of law,"
Wolfe said. "This program is seen as a valuable jump start
to the individual's American legal education."
* YOUNG VISITORS-A group of 13- to 16-year-olds from France
and Brazil will be staying at Camp Sandy Hill, near North
East, Md., for a five-week language and culture summer camp.
Mornings are devoted to English lessons, but afternoons and
evenings are set aside for sports and recreational programs,
including live entertainment and interactions with other
camps. The camp gives the teen participants a chance to meet
Americans and to experience American culture through trips
to nearby cities. "We can offer a lot of different things
for our students to do, because of our central East Coast
location," Joe Matterer, assistant director of ELI and
coordinator of the summer camp program, said. "The students
are having a good time, and it gives them a chance to be
immersed in English while living with people their own age."
* THAI GRAD STUDENTS-Shortly after the summer began, a group
of students arrived from Thailand for an introduction to
graduate school, American-style. The students were selected
through a competitive process as part of a long-term project
by the Thai government to strengthen the country's academic
infrastructure, especially in the sciences and mathematics.
The program helps students become familiar with the rules
and regulations of graduate programs, including an academic
writing course. Students also are taught the concept of
becoming a critical reader and writer, with responsibility
for honest and thorough research. Another component of the
program is the pairing of Thai and American graduate
students at the UD, with an introduction to graduate-level
classes and seminars. All the students have been accepted
for graduate school, some at Delaware.
* FOREIGN BUSINESSES-The Summer International Business
Institute (SIBI), from July 24 to Aug. 18, involves students
from Korea, Japan, Poland and several Spanish-speaking
countries, who focus their attention on international
marketing, business vocabulary and terminology and general
business classes. "I'm looking forward to seeing students
from different cultural backgrounds interact and watching
their reaction to the various corporate visitors who will
present programs," Michelle Kline, academic coordinator for
the program, said. Visits will include trips to local
businesses. "The program enables them to see the differences
between marketing strategies in their countries and
America," Kline said. "It lets them learn how important
cultural differences are in business."
-Jerry Rhodes