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Business ESL Programs at the ELIThe University of Delaware's ELI has, for over twenty years, provided high quality intensive and semi-intensive Business English as a Second Language (ESL) instruction for business professionals from around the world. Companies that have used our services include: Chrysler Corporation, Gore Associates, Hewlett Packard, Hercules Corporation, Konica, American Life Insurance Company, Himont Inc., Terumo Medical, Astra-Zeneca, and Du Pont de Nemours, Inc. Each Business ESL course is designed to meet the specific needs of both the clients and their corporate sponsors. Instruction can range from private tutoring, to small group instruction, to entire courses with multi-leveled sections. Businesses expect results from their investment in personnel development, which is why the best recommendation of our program is the number of companies who return to the ELI for additional Business ESL training. The ELI's impressive reputation among business firms is derived from the quality of our faculty, curriculum, and administration. The faculty whom we assign to our Business ESL programs are specialists in business English and oral intelligibility development. Drawing upon current communicative-based methods and proven materials, our faculty provide instruction that is both individualized to each client's linguistic needs and also tied to learning objectives--the attaining of which becomes the joint responsibility of the instructor and client. Methods such as Strategic Interaction, Silent Way, and Drama-based voice training approaches for professionals, which have been developed and refined at the University of Delaware, have earned wide respect for the ELI in the field of ESL. In addressing the language needs of individuals or small groups, our trainers begin by testing each client in all of the skill areas: reading, writing, structure, vocabulary, listening, and speaking. With an assessment of a client's language proficiency in hand, trainers work collaboratively with the client to design the most effective and appropriate program of instruction. Where there is an emphasis on oral production (i.e., fluency, pronunciation, intonation, stress, rhythm, idiomatic usage, reduced speech, and oral grammar), private and group instruction make use of a variety of language development activities that include:
Instructors conduct regular progress checks with clients and, where requested, keep sponsors informed as well with progress reports. Often a client's supervisor or colleague is asked to provide feedback on the extent of the individual's communication skills development in the workplace. These progress checks allow for adjustments in the training--both in terms of intensity and skill focus. Final reports are submitted to the client and his sponsor upon completion of the training program. Courses of Study The English Language Institute offers a number of courses and programs for international business professionals, as described below: Private or Small Group Corporate Tutoring On-site Corporate Tutoring Courses meet twice weekly, each session lasting two hours. Classes run on either a twenty or forty-hour schedule. At the conclusion of each cycle, clients are re-evaluated and either recommended for exiting or continuation. It can be expected that a client will need at least forty hours of instruction to achieve significant, noticeable improvement in oral communication skills. Corporate tutoring courses are inherently flexible. They can commence on virtually any date. At the same time, rescheduling of classes is strictly limited to ensure that a client makes progress within a reasonable time period. Business Oral Communications is a course that provides training in formal business presentations and informal negotiations, idiomatic use of English, oral intelligibility, and listening development within the business context. This course is offered as an elective within the ELI's regular intensive program, and includes both a high intermediate class and an advanced case studies class. Written Business Communications is an elective within the regular intensive program that addresses business correspondence, business reports/proposals, and reading/vocabulary for specific business purposes. This course is also available in two tracks for both the high intermediate and advanced writer. Business English for Professionals is a program tailor-made to clients' specific needs. This program serves the short-term visiting international associates of companies with multi-national branches--as well as permanent or long-term transfer employees in nearby corporations. Instruction, which can be conducted individually or in small groups, addresses communication skills used in international business with emphasis on oral presentations and negotiations--as well as all forms of written correspondence and reports. Instruction can take place both at the ELI or on corporate sites. Specialized programs can also include corporate visitations, business workshops on themes specified by the client, and cultural excursions. International Business Institute is a four week program offered in cooperation with the College of Business and Economics designed to help international business managers improve their ability to communicate effectively in English and to gain greater awareness of business practices and culture. The program includes Business seminars, Business English, corporate visitations, and cultural programming. Dr. Scott Stevens, the Director of the English Language Institute, can be contacted at 302-831-2674, email: sstevens@udel.edu. 
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