NIACE ESOL question time conference

I've just received this email from NIACE and thought I'd pass on immediately information about this important, to the guidance community, conference which is on

Monday 18 June 2007
Queens Hotel City Square Leeds LS1 1PL

Registration 9:45 -- the conference closes at 15:35

Recent announcements from the LSC and Government will exclude asylum seekers from any learning opportunities whilst they wait for a decision from the Home Office. The 25,000 annual applicants for asylum are amongst the most vulnerable and needy learners. They need survival English and the interaction with others that ESOL provides. These measures give rise to critical questions, such as:

• How to engage employers and secure their contribution to the costs of training their employees?
• How to provide a broader range of ESOL to satisfy wide ranging learner needs?
• How to improve the quality of provision?
• How to ensure that sufficient ESOL teachers are employed and that initial and teacher training and ongoing professional development meets their needs. ?
• The NIACE ESOL Committee of Inquiry recommended that there should be free ESOL tuition up to and including Level 1. By ignoring this recommendation there is a risk that social inclusion and community cohesion, two government priorities, will be at risk. Newcomers will be increasingly isolated if they cannot speak English to ask for their bus fare or buy a pint of milk. The rise of hostility towards immigrants may be fuelled. This is also likely to have an impact on those seeking to access ESOL Language with Citizenship courses. The issue of equity with literacy and numeracy has not been addressed.

This conference aims to:

• Consider the implications of the NIACE ESOL Inquiry recommendations in 'More than a language...' for policy and practice
• Consider the impact of the LSC's Annual Statement of Priorities, 2007 - 2008
• Share responses and approaches developed in response to the NIACE recommendations and LSC funding changes

This event provides an opportunity for all those connected with the field of ESOL to voice their views, propose their solutions and share their approaches to responding to learners' needs.

It will be a lively and stimulating event, based on questions and answers, argument and debate. Guests will be asked to respond to questions from an interviewer and also questions from the floor.

There will be plenty of opportunity to share views and experiences through round table discussions and as a whole conference. This will be a provocative and demanding day but one which will also provide a number of practical strategies to plan and deliver provision in September 2007.

Details at the link under the title of this posting
Enquiries to Gurjit Kaur
tel: 0116 204 2833
email: gurjit.kaur@niace.org.uk