Offers sought from higher education institutions and language companies
A language immersion conference will be held in October
A training course for accountants from the cultural associations of the umbrella organisations of national minorities
Estonian families gladly welcome young language learners
Language learning of educational staff with a mentor offers many success stories
Offers sought from higher education institutions and language companies
Since the end of August, competitions have been launched through which the Integration and Migration Foundation Our People (MISA) is seeking organisers of Estonian language training courses for the employees of public sector institutions and additional Estonian language training courses for students at the higher education level.
The procurement documents are submitted within the framework of two activities of the programme “Language Learning Development 2011−2013” financed by the European Social Fund. The objective of the activity “Additional language learning for students at higher education level” is to provide additional Estonian language training to Estonian students whose native language is other than Estonian during their studies at higher education level with the aim of improving their academic and specialised Estonian language skills. During the activity “Language learning of public sector employees”, the specialised language learning of adults whose native language is different than Estonian living in Estonia is supported to ensure that they manage in their daily and professional life at the required level.
The students of higher education institutions and the employees of public sector institutions will learn Estonian based on the programmes compiled by the initiative of the respective institutions and higher education institutions.
In the academic year of 2012/2013, targeted Estonian language learning activities that take into account the specifics and needs of the relevant specialities and occupations have been designed for around 300 students of seven higher education institutions and 160 employees of ten public sector authorities.
According to Eduard Odinets, the head of MISA Life-long Learning Unit, previous experience shows that participants will get more help from such specific courses intended for a very narrow target group than from trainings designed for a wider target group.
“A recent trend in official language teaching for adults is to prefer courses tailored to the needs of the learners where suitable opportunities are found for each client, rather than mass production. This type of instruction ensures more the active participation and commitment of students because the proposals have been made by the employees of the respective authorities and higher education institutions and the courses will mainly be carried out on the premises of the authorities and higher education institutions. The commitment and motivation of people participating in language learning is shown by the fact that most of the participants of the courses designed for public sector authorities have set their objective to take the Estonian language proficiency examination,” said Odinets.
“It is good to see that the proposals made by higher education institutions have skilfully integrated traditional language learning activities with additional training via e-courses and study trips to other higher education institutions or organisations involved in the same field for the purpose of language and subject studies. Such active short and long-term language practice is useful in many ways: a student will acquire practical skills for the work in the chosen field in addition to language skills and specific language vocabulary,” explained Odinets.
The competitions for the organisation of language learning for students of higher education institutions and employees of public sector authorities are published on the MISA homepage.
For further information, please contact: Jana Tondi, MISA Life-long Learning Unit, Coordinator, tel 659 9069, jana.tondi@meis.ee.
A language immersion conference will be held in October
The language immersion programme of the Integration and Migration Foundation Our People (MISA) will organise a conference for the language immersion programme entitled “Co-operation and acknowledgement” at the conference centre of the Tallinn Song Festival Grounds on 25−26 October.
The objective of the twelfth annual language immersion conference is to increase co-operation between the educational institutions and partners that have joined the programme at different levels and to introduce successful acknowledgement systems.
“The main topics of this year’s conference are linked to various aspects of acknowledging and cooperation. We wish to enlarge the circle of people with whom the experience gained from the language immersion programme is shared and this is why we share the conference plenary sessions with all interested parties via the Internet video transmissions,” commented Karin Piirsalu, a coordinator of the MISA Multi-cultural Education Unit.
In addition to the plenary sessions, five workshops will be held at the conference:
1. “Effective acknowledging” workshop for the heads of educational institutions
2. “Working in a group – what does it mean?” workshop for kindergarten teachers
3. “Is GROUP + WORK = GROUPWORK?” workshop for teachers of general education schools
4. “Acquisition of co-operation skills during group counselling”
5. “Co-operation with parents in a multi-cultural school”
The target group of the conference includes representatives of educational institutions (general education schools and kindergartens where the language of instruction is Russian), partners (representatives of universities, education officials of local authorities, representatives of ministries, etc.) and other organisations involved in education that have joined the language immersion programme.
The conference agenda will be published on the homepage of the Foundation at the following address http://www.meis.ee/keelekumbluskonverentsid. Registration for the conference will commence on 3 September and will end on 28 September.
The organisation of the conference is financed by the Ministry of Education and Research.
For further information, please contact: Karin Piirsalu, MISA Multi-cultural Education Unit, Coordinator, tel 659 9844, e-mail karin.piirsalu@meis.ee.
A training course for accountants from the cultural associations of the umbrella organisations of national minorities
The Integration and Migration Foundation Our People (MISA) will organise a training course for accountants from the culture associations of the umbrella organisations of national minorities in Tallinn in the second half of September.
The training will cover the legislation of non-profit associations, generally accepted accounting principles, the electronic submission of annual reports and typical errors that are made in foundations’ reports.
The training will be held in Russian and it is only designed for the culture associations of the umbrella organisations of national minorities. More detailed information on the training is made available via the homepage of the Foundation at the following address www.meis.ee.
The organisation of the training is supported by the Ministry of Culture within the framework of the “Estonian Integration Strategy 2008−2013”.
For further information, please contact: Kristina Pirgop, MISA Multi-cultural Education Unit, Coordinator, tel 659 9024, e-mail kristina.pirgop@meis.ee.
Estonian families gladly welcome young language learners
For the fourteenth summer in a row, students whose native language is not Estonian had an opportunity to practice Estonian language within an Estonian family or take active participation in a youth camp.
The objective of the camps and family learning financed through the Integration and Migration Foundation Our People (MISA) is to support the learning of Estonian for 7−18 year old young people through communication with peers and active participation in various activities.
The target group for the Estonian language camps and family learning are young people that are nationals of European third countries or with undefined citizenship and support students that speak Estonian and hold Estonian citizenship. More than 640 young people participated in camps and family learning this summer. Family learning means that the young people take part in the daily life of the hosting family for 14 days, go on trips with the family and help to do domestic chores together with the other children of the family. The language camps offer the students Estonian language training through non-formal and active activities, where language learning is supported by same age support students and teachers whose native language is Estonian.
Learners find great pleasure in country life and family learning
Sandra Nuudi, a coordinator of the MISA Multi-cultural Education Unit, confirms that family learning is an effective language learning method and refers to the qualitative study commissioned by the Foundation in 2009 on camp and family learning, according to which the students participating in family learning in the country had made very good progress.
“The feedback from the participants shows that a number of children are extremely glad of the opportunity to live in the country and spend time in clean air. Children have also said that communication with the hosting family’s children that are of the same age as the learners was motivating,” commented Nuudi. Nuudi said that almost 20,000 young people have benefited from the Estonian language camps and family learning since 1998 and by the end of this summer 100 young people will have participated in family learning and 400 young people will have been in Estonian language camps.
Estonian families welcome children from other families
Pille Kulberg, who has been involved in family learning programme for 14 years and is the manager of MTÜ Veeda Vaheaeg Võrumaal, said that most of the families that take a child whose native language is other than Estonian to live with them for two weeks are teachers, as is Kulberg herself. Kulberg coordinated the work of language learning in ten families this summer and said that a sufficient number of families have been interested in this programme.
“I have never been told no, not in one summer, and parents call before summer begins and ask whether family camp activities will be organised this year. This is motivating and it is good to hear that you have done well. There is a sufficient number of families for my projects and I also know other families that would like to be involved in this programme,” said Kulberg.
According to Kulberg, the experience has shown that children adjust easily; however, it takes a few days for the first-time students involved in family learning to adjust to their new environment. In case of family learning, it is monitored that a student is treated as a family member and that there is a child or children in the family of the same age as the student.
“The family treats the student as its member, which means that the learner will not get any special treatment or will be subjected to rejection. During the initial days, necessary everyday words are learned or language use is corrected,” explained Kulberg and added that during the daily routine as well as trips Estonian-language words are repeated, the learners try to remember them and learn new expressions.
MTÜ Veeda Vaheaeg Võrumaal organised trips and hikes for the participants of family learning and this year’s programme included visits to Suur Munamägi, Rõuge Ööbikuorg, Estonian Road Museum, various hiking trails and other sights. In addition to trips, the participants of family learning had an opportunity to take part in various manual activities, from glass painting to pottery.
“I am convinced that family learning is a very effective method of language learning. Of course, it is not possible to learn Estonian in 14 days, but if a child is motivated to acquire the language and can practice it later, he/she will learn the language,” believes Kulberg.
The big role of support students in language camps
In addition to family learning, summer language camps are organised to enable students practice the official language through practical activities and communication with peers. This year, nine MISA-supported camp projects were organised all over Estonia.
The camp titled “Nine occupations of Hunt Kriimsilm”, which was managed by Marge Toome who is a teacher in Tallinna Laagna Gümnaasium, offered camp activities to 36 students this year. According to Toome, the motivation for organising learning activities in summer is the opportunity to achieve a better relationship with students or smoother studies, together with the joy of activities shared with young people.
Toome’s experience is that the students whose native language is not Estonian are not often very motivated on the first days in a camp, although their attitude changes while they are in the camp: “The most significant change I have noticed is that while at the beginning of the camp they try to avoid joint activities, by the time the camp is half-way through, the children have forgotten this approach, and near the end they do not even remember that they had this idea of avoiding participation,” commented Toome. Toome agrees that it is not possible to learn Estonian in one week, but children remember generally used expressions in the camp setting, sports terms and other words that are related to living in a camp. Although the teacher considers the camp to be an effective language learning method, she also believes that efficient learning is possible only if there is a sufficient number of support students whose native language is Estonian in a language camp to avoid switching to Russian for convenience.
The Estonian language camps and family learning are supported from the European Fund for the Integration of Third-country Nationals and the Ministry of Culture through the state budget within the framework of the “Estonian Integration Strategy 2008−2013”.
For further information, please contact: Sandra Nuudi, MISA Multi-cultural Education Unit, Coordinator, tel 659 9855, e-mail sandra.nuudi@meis.ee.
Language learning of educational staff with a mentor offers many success stories
The Integration and Migration Foundation Our People (MISA) has supported the language learning of teachers and heads of schools where the Russian language is the language of instruction through the aid a mentor since 2009 and will also launch language clubs in September.
The activity conducted within the framework of the European Social Fund (ESF) programme “Language Learning Development in 2011−2013” uses the model designed during the previous period of the fund and the previously trained mentors whose task is to support the Estonian language learning of teachers and heads of educational institutions in Ida-Viru County. In addition to learning with a mentor, language forums are held and four language clubs will begin functioning in Narva, Kohtla-Järve, Jõhvi and Sillamäe in September. The idea of language clubs is to preserve and improve the level of acquired Estonian language skills. The participants of the clubs are the public sector employees that have undergone public sector language training courses within the framework of the previous ESF programme “Language Learning Development in 2011−2013”.
The mentees, i.e. people that are counselled by mentors, meet their mentors at least twice a month outside a routine work and living environment, such as at culture or sports events, to encourage communication and enable more varied language practice.
Educational staff holds the key role
“The main challenge when living and working in Ida-Viru County is language practice, because many forget the acquired language and lose the courage to communicate in Estonian. This is why we offer a more individual learning experience as well as opportunities to go to language clubs and practice Estonian,” explained Eduard Odinets, the Head of the MISA Life-long Education Unit.
According to Odinets, the language learning of teachers and heads of educational institutions through the aid of a mentor is also significant because teachers provide an example to students and the community at large: “A teacher is an example and an opinion leader for both children and parents. We can not uphold a culture in which language skills are considered important if a teacher does not know Estonian sufficiently well, keep up with the news or culture of Estonia and know how to relate with colleagues,” believes Odinets.
“Estonian language skills are extremely important for the heads of educational institutions, because they have to know current legislation and communicate with state and local authorities as well as set an example for their employees,” added Odinets.
In the 2009/2010 academic year, Estonian language learning with the help of a mentor was conducted within the framework of the ESF programme “Language Learning Development 2007−2010”, in which 50 subject teachers from schools where the language of instruction is Russian participated over the course of 13 months. The activities were continued within the framework of the “Language Learning Development 2011−2013” programme and ten mentor-mentee pairs were involved in language learning, which lasted for six months in the 2011/2012 academic year. In the upcoming 2012/2013 academic year, the Foundation will offer language learning with the assistance of a mentor for more ten teachers and heads of educational institutions in Ida-Viru County.
To shops, concerts, discussions – the success story of Irina and Helgi
Mentor Helgi Neelov and her mentee, Irina Šapolova, participated in the mentor programme and considered cooperation with other mentor-mentee pairs and colleagues of mentors and mentees to be very important in addition to learning Estonian.
Helgi explained that together with her mentee they visited a ballet, the plot of which they studied together prior to the performance, concerts, a fair, shops, a school, an exhibition, and were guests at each other’s home.
“We have discussed at the round table the problems of Estonian education, the issues related to communities that live side-by-side in Estonia, the daily problems of teachers at schools where the language of instruction is Estonian or Russian and the learning problems that students and prisoners face,” said the mentor Helgi Neelov.
“Irina thoroughly enjoyed the “Memory” concert held in Jõhvi, where she heard talented Estonian actors and singers. She was also inspired by the play “The Estonian man and his son” at Endla Theatre in Rakvere. She was most fascinated by Sepo Seeman as an actor. From the point of view of language learning, this was a good listening exercise,” explained Neelov.
“Our mentor pair’s story will continue until Irina takes the C1 level Estonian language proficiency examination,” believes Neelov.
A telepathic connection – the success story of Kai and Natalja
Mentor Kai Kitsing and her mentee, Natalja Nikanorova, think that they work together well. As proof of their special connection, Kai Kitsing relates: “Whenever my mentee thinks about me, I call her and vice versa. Our telepathy works wonderfully.”
A supernatural story as told by the mentor: her mentee was compiling a very complex letter to a state authority at her workplace and felt that she needed to call her mentor. “I called her at this precise time and said that I would like to go to Narva. This was a “Eureka!” moment, because Natalja really needed my help and I was going to Narva. What synchronicity!” recalled Kai Kitsing.
Kitsing added that her mentee’s language proficiency was already very good and the work has been correcting language use. She thinks that Natalja Nikanorova’s self expression skills and confidence have significantly improved.
More success stories from MISA blog: www.integratsioon.wordpress.com
For further information, please contact: Riina Ring, MISA Life-long Education Unit, Coordinator, tel 659 9030, e-mail riina.ring@meis.ee.
