Any employment-related English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) program, whether conducted on the job or as pre-employment training, results from five steps: conducting a need analysis of the language and cultural awareness needed to perform successfully in the workplace; developing a curriculum, based on objectives, that identifies and prioritizes…

The evolution of the Workplace Education Service that operates in South Australia is chronicled. Begun as a single program designed to integrate workplace literacy, English as a Second Language, and literacy education for both native and non-native English-speakers in an automobile plant, the project grew into a network of programs and services in…

The Orange County Public Schools' Job Site English Project was initiated to provide employees of businesses and industries with work-related English for speakers of other languages. The program features individualized curricula that are developed after the curriculum writer visits the business/industry in need of services, analyzes the…

Although basic skills and English language instruction are often viewed as real needs at the workplace, few companies provide this for their workers. Those that do are motivated by one or more of these factors: product quality improvement, commitment of top management to training and education, or the sales effort of an educational provider. Those…

Labor unions have provided English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) instruction in the workplace since the early 1900s, to serve a growing immigrant workforce. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, an increase in immigrant population, decline in manufacturing jobs, new technology, and work restructuring brought a new urgency to union-sponsored worker…

From August 1988 to June 1989, Rock Valley college, in cooperation with a local literacy council and the English Language Study Center, administered a project whose goal was to recruit, provide tutoring to, and provide English-as-a-Second-Language classes to employees at their place of employment. The project functioned well, with each partner…

This guide describes the process used by the Cambodian Mutual Assistance Association of Greater Lowell, and Altron, Inc., a local manufacturer, to design, establish, and operate a workplace literacy program. The first chapter outlines steps and considerations in setting up the program, including the establishment of a successful collaboration,…

This guide identifies four distinct approaches to employment-related training for limited-English proficient (LEP) adults. All of the approaches assume an intensive language instruction component, Vocational English as a Second Language. Following an introduction is a section that deals, in a general sense, with some key concerns shared by all…

The writings included in this student-produced publication are those of students in the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union's (ILGWU's) Worker-Family Education Program technical and English-as-a-Second-Language classes at a Bronx (New York) local unit. The collection of writings consists of personal narratives, interviews, dialogues,…

This handbook capsulizes the many steps in developing, implementing, and evaluating a workplace literacy program, and is written from the perspectives of both the educator and the employer. The handbook has been written for business leaders and for adult basic education and English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) educators. While the suggestions in the…

The content and design of a workplace communication workshop jointly sponsored by a university teachers' center and a local union are described. The workshop objective is to provide workers for whom English is a second language with upgraded writing skills needed to fill out report forms, improved document reading skills for reading charts and…

This issue of an annual publication on second language teaching contains nine articles. All but one of the these is written in French; each paper, however, is preceded by an English-language abstract. The articles are as follows: "Des cultures, des pubs" ("Cultures, Advertising") (Sophie Bailly, Isabelle Tolle);…

A Pima County (Arizona) adult workplace education program in English as a Second Language (ESL) is outlined. Salient elements in program design, student recruitment and program marketing, student assessment, instructional methods, and program evaluation are noted, and the topical content of the ESL curriculum is charted. Tasks/competencies and…

The report describes results of interviews with 18 workplace literacy education providers across the United States. Respondents include program directors, curriculum writers, teacher trainers, teachers, and consultants to programs serving a range of learners. An introductory section summarizes study methodology, workplace literacy program types,…

An 8-week English in the Workplace course was conducted by Portland Community College (Oregon) at Leupold & Stevens, Inc. for workers with limited English proficiency (LEP). The curriculum for English as a Second Language focused on job-related support skills and not primary job skills, since job performance was not a concern. Objectives were…