Page 3 - ELG1601 Feb Issue 433

ELlanguage news
February 2016 Page 3

Refugee crisis sees unis Pearson

turn to tech solutions gives push

to 4,000
Four years into the Syrian conflict, English language departments of the
world’s universities continue to devise new initiatives to teach English to
Syrian refugees and refugees in general.
In Germany, which as of late last year was expecting to receive 800,000 THE WORLD’S biggest edu-
refugees, the L2TOR (Second Language Tutoring Using Social Robots) cational publisher, Pearson,
project at Bielefeld University is running trials with language teaching announced in January it would
robot Nao and refugee children. Its researchers are ‘developing modules shed 4,000 jobs (around 10 per
that recognise a child’s language abilities and motivation so that the robot cent of its global workforce,
can react individually to each child’. according to the Guardian) fol-
The project focuses on giving ‘immigrant children the chance to acquire lowing another profit warning.
their new language in a playful way’, according to L2TOR’s Professor Dr The UK-based multinational
Stefan Kopp, who added, ‘This also goes for German children first recently sold its stakes in The
experiencing a foreign language, such as English.’ Economist and the Financial
Other responses to the refugee crisis in Europe include that of the Times, but still owns the PTE Aca-
University of Leicester’s English Language Teaching Unit, which now demic test for English and many
offers free English language lessons to refugees. The Guardian reported school and university textbook
that the department is making its expertise available free of charge and is titles, and supplies textbooks and
using university facilities to train volunteers teachers to teach refugees standardised tests to some state
locally. Its English language classes are open to all levels. education departments in the US.
At McGill University in Montreal, Canada staff are offering free online Chief executive John Fallon
tutoring sessions to Syrian refugee students in London, Australia and South blamed the ‘cyclical and policy-
Korea to prepare them for the Toefl exam, broadcaster CBC reports. Students related challenges in our biggest
markets’ which ‘persisted for
at some McGill halls of residents have been tutoring Syrian refugees in
Courtesy CITEC / Bielefeld University FIRST STEPS Bielefeld University in Germany committed to sponsoring ‘four more student refugees, in addition to the two UK universities including UCL
longer than anticipated’. Several
Montreal in English and French since last November. McGill is also
purged Pearson materials from
it already sponsors annually’ until the end of the current academic year.
course reading lists, the Telegraph
ELT initiatives for refugees go beyond English-speaking countries. In
reported last year. This followed the
Austria the ELT Research and Methodology Unit of the University of Graz
announcement by Pearson’s higher
has set up a tutoring programme in partnership with a local faith charity.
education unit that it was sharply
Its aim is to train volunteer teachers to lead English language classes for
increasing prices for its e-book
‘refugee children and other children with migrant backgrounds’ starting
is using robots to teach refugee children
licences to university libraries in
this summer.
the light of falling sales for print
textbooks direct to students. n
Dubbing heading for the dustbin?
SPAIN IS considering end- promoting a minimum amount according to state ideology.
ing dubbing by actors on TV of television content broadcast One of the most famous
in order to boost the country’s in the original language with examples is the film Casa-
English language skills, the subtitles. Following recent gen- blanca. When the film was
Daily Telegraph reports. The eral elections, Rajoy now has to broadcast in Spanish all ref-
conservative Popular Party (PP), win over other political parties erences to the character Rick
led by Prime Minister Mariano to implement this measure and fighting fascism were removed.
Rajoy, has launched measures transform an industry which is Mogambo and The Lady from
related to ‘English proficiency’, firmly entrenched in the country. Shanghai were other classic
writes Andrea Pérez. The PP’s The issue of dubbing remains films changed by the regime,
electoral manifesto includes one of the great controversies in with plots involving adulterous
Spain’s cinema industry, accord- relationships dubbed out.
ing to Vanity Fair. Dubbed
Such practices ceased after
Shooting films in Spain are a vestige of Franco’s death and today the
Francisco Franco’s dictatorship
quality of dubbing in Spain is
(1939–75). Franco’s goal was
high. Despite their objectives,
sparks fear to control the content of foreign politicians cannot ignore a dub-
films. Using dubbing, govern-
bing industry that employs
ment censors changed plots or 30,000 people and generates
aspects of leading characters €300 million per year. n
THE FATAL shooting of Jiang
Yue, a Chinese accounting stu-
dent at Arizona State University
(ASU), in a January road rage Non-English orthodox
incident, has pulled Chinese stu-
dents into the already heated US school forced to close
debate on gun control and the
right to bear arms. Some Chi-
nese students are reportedly now AN ULTRA-ORTHODOX more than twenty hours a week
considering purchasing guns. Jewish school in London which must be registered.
Jiang Yue stopped after her operated illegally for forty Inspectors who investigated
car was rammed by Holly Davis years and does not teach chil- the school, which has more
at a red light. Davis got out of dren English has been ordered than 200 pupils, said that its
her car, walked to Jiang’s vehi- to close. This follows closures curriculum, taught in Hebrew,
cle and shot her through the of unregistered Muslim schools encouraged ‘cultural and eth-
window. Davis was arrested on feared to be promoting Islamic nic insularity’. According to the
murder charges. fundamentalism. inspection reports, the school
While many Chinese students Last December Sir Michael states that ‘as a matter of reli-
at ASU were reported by CBS Wilshire, the chief inspector gious principle’ it does not allow
and the Wall Street Journal as of schools in England, vowed pupils to learn English.
favouring stricter gun controls to close all unregistered faith Writing in the Jewish Chroni-
following Jiang’s death, WSJ schools which did not meet basic cle, former Conservative MP
China reported several local educational standards. Sir Daniel Finkelstein com-
Chinese students, including one The Charedi Talmud Torah mented, ‘The failure to teach
who knew Jiang, as saying they Tashbar school in Stamford Hill, or communicate in English is
were considering buying guns north London, was ordered this a deliberate strategy by those
for protection. After two years of month to close by the Depart- with power in a community to
study in the US holders of some ment for Education. Any school prevent those without it from
student visas become ‘resident in England teaching more than being able to communicate with
aliens’ and can buy guns. n five children under sixteen for the outside world.’ n