Case Studies of Provision, Learners' Needs and Resources

NRDC is a national centre dedicated to conducting research and development projects in the fields of adult literacy, numeracy and ESOL.

In 2004 NRDC released a report on five case studies that show some of the formal contexts in which English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) learning takes place. They look at community-based and further education classrooms with learners ranging from beginners to advanced. Despite the heterogeneous nature of ESOL learners and the ESOL classroom, common themes emerge.
These include: the need for teachers to develop the skills and knowledge to provide the wider support that many of their learners require; the need for a more strategic approach to cross-agency support for ESOL learners; and the tensions between the dominant model of group work and the increasing individualisation of ESOL teaching through Individual Learning Plans. The report also highlights some of the distinctive features of ESOL learners, both in what they bring to the classroom and the implications of this for teaching. ESOL teaching is more than language tuition and the case studies highlight this in a number of different ways. They give an insight into the differing barriers ESOL learners face and the motivation and support they need to overcome them. Click here for the report.