This document summarizes doctoral research on communicating research findings to ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) learners who participated in the study. The researcher observed two community ESOL classes for 30 hours and wanted to inform participants of what was being learned without using analysis. To do so, the researcher wrote the participants a book with photos and text descriptions. The book was then read together in class, and participants enjoyed seeing themselves mentioned. The research aimed to understand how ESOL learners interact with information both in and out of their classes.

1. Jessica Elmore, Sheila Webber and Peter Stordy
Information School, University of Sheffield
ESOL (English for Speakers of Other languages) Learners’
Information Practices: Communicating research to participants
Doctoral research
Research process
• Challenging negotiation of ethics and informed consent.
• Wanted to research “with” not “on” participants.
• 30 hours of observation: joining in with lessons, accompanying on
two visits and co-organising information-based class activities.
• Observation effective method but needed a way to tell them what
I was finding out.
• Wrote them a book with photos and text, description not analysis.
• ESOL learners are migrants learning English as part of
adult basic skills provision.
• Aim: How do learners interact with information in and
out of their ESOL class?
• Method: Case study of two community ESOL classes.
• One of these classes was a women-only beginner
class. Some learners had little previous schooling.
• Poster describes communicating with this group.
Sample extracts from book
“It is difficult to read information.
In one lesson we looked at what
post you get. You use pictures to
help you understand but lots of
you need help. [The teacher] said
you can bring letters to class.”
“You like to get information from
people you trust. You all trust
[school worker]. Family are also
important. P1’s mother-in-law
helps her a lot..”
• Read the book together in class.
• Only received limited feedback.
• Participants enjoyed the parts where
they were named:
• “P3 looks up at me and smiles when
she reads the page where I mention that
she liked the little birds.”
Response from participants
“You also talk about what’s
happening in your home
countries. We watched a funny
video of a panda in the snow. P2
told us about the snow in
Pakistan.”
Contact: Jessica Elmore jrelmore2@sheffield.ac.uk twitter.com/jelm0re
Acknowledgements: Funded by a University of Sheffield Faculty Scholarship
With thanks to the learners and teachers who made this research possible
CoLIS 9, Uppsala University, Sweden, June 27-29, 2016
BY-NC-ND 2.0 Mehgan Murphy, Smithsonian's National
Zoo. Other images all rights reserved
Mehgan Murphy, Smithsonian's National Zoo Panda