Symposium presentation at IATEFL conference 2009

1. English for Work and the
Workplace in Sub Saharan Africa
Paul Woods English Manager Sub Saharan Africa,
British Council, Gaborone

2. English for Work and the Workplace in Africa has
surfaced as a hot topic
 in the former British colonies where English is frequently both the
second or national language and the medium of instruction in
schools
 in other countries where French Spanish or Portuguese is the
national language and English is generally taught only as a
secondary school subject
 at different levels, (secondary, vocational and tertiary)
“Globalisation has led to a desperate race in many countries to
upgrade the skills of their workforce faster than their economies
are being forced up the value chain. Building human capacity has
become a process of chasing an ever-moving target. Rather than
achieving well-established goals, it is now about institutionalising
flexibility, creativity and innovation and the management skills
required to generate and cope with constant change.” (D Graddol)

3. Issues include
 The relevance and affordability of what is taught
 In schools - the need to relate what is taught much more closely
to the needs of employers and industry
 At tertiary level – the need to relate the language required for
academic study with the language needed as a medium for
professional communication and for employment
 The need for ESP to re-invent itself, to cater for the specialised
language needs of different sectors, eg business and commerce,
mining (in S Africa), the oil industry (in Nigeria, Sudan and Angola)
 The need for language tests which are relevant to workplace
needs – eg Trinity has just introduced an exam in Spoken English
for Work (SEW)
 Appropriate curricula and materials for English for Work

4. Papers later today from Africa will include
 Adejoke Jibiwo, presenting research and solutions to the
problem of graduates lacking essential communication skills in the
workplace in Nigeria. In resource-poor environments we cannot
afford to teach academic courses in ESP which are unrelated to
the future needs of graduates in workplace contexts
 Nigussie Negash, describing how university courses have been
re-engineered in Ethiopia.
 Leonardo Mack describing steps being taken in Angola to meet
specific needs and to improve the quality of EL training for the Oil
industry. Vocational Education,
 Sunday Sotarius from Nigeria telling us how he has reinvigorated
Vocational ESP teaching for secretarial and agricultural workers
using innovative techniques involving literature and Nollywood
movies.

5. Skills for Employability
 British Council is currently developing a global Skills for
Employability Project with five strands, one of which is “English for
Work”. We expect this to be highly relevant to employers and
educators across Africa.
 We began last year with a two-day regional symposium in July
2008 in Johannesburg
 The objective was to bring together representatives from technical
and vocational education, English language researchers and
practitioners, ministry officials, academics and other interested
parties from the Southern Africa region including people from
government training agencies and employers to discuss the
English language needs of employees in the workplace.
 The symposium attracted 60 participants from South Africaand
other countries in the region including Malawi, Mozambique and
Zambia and helped to set the tone for future developments.

6. The 2008 Symposium on English for Work
 Fourteen speakers gave presentations on topics including the
effectiveness of different languages and the role of English,
bridging the school-to-work gap, and broadening the accreditation
process.
 One of the most interesting papers was on the role and future of
Funakalo (a pidgin used underground mainly for giving orders and
swearing) in the mines in South Africa. Although Funakalo is the
lingua franca and language of induction for 500,000 miners
underground, its use frequently causes accidents and distorts
messages. Research has shown that nearly 90% of South African
miners support replacing Funakalo with English.
 Opening the Symposium, Tyobeka Palesa highlighted the need for
effective communication through both English and indigenous
languages. In South Africa, SETAs have done extensive work on
defining the communication requirements of different sectors but
these specifications have tended to be generic rather than
language-specific.

7. Hornby School on English for Work: Curricula,
Materials and Methods in Cape Town, 20-24 April
2009
 Bringing together 30 English for Work practitioners from all over
Sub-Saharan Africa, half from S Africa, half from other countries
including Botswana, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Mozambique, Namibia,
Sudan and Zimbabwe for a hands-on practical workshop focusing
on classroom teaching at school and university levels
 Jointly organised by British Council, SATEIL, the IATEFL ESP SIG
and partly funded by the A. S Hornby Educational Trust.
 Course Director is Mark Krzanowski and Course Tutors are
Christine Winberg of Cape Peninsula University of Technology
and Bernard Nchindila of UNISA

8. The British Council Skills for Employability Global
Project
LEADERS
Flagship event to promote
research publication
International research on
the “economic value of
English”
Pathway of products and
services for developing English
in educational institutions
Regional symposia
INFLUENCERS ASPIRANTS
Pathway of products
and services for
developing English in
educational institutions
Specific tools to help
institutions to develop
quality English
language training for
the workplace
English language
resources for learners
who will be entering or
progressing through the
world of work
Online showcase of the
British Council and UK
offer