English as a second or foreign language

Programs such as ESL are designed as academic courses to instruct non-native speakers in English proficiency, encompassing both learning in English-speaking nations and abroad.

[citation needed] Methods for teaching English encompass a broad spectrum, from traditional classroom settings to innovative self-directed study programs, integrating approaches that enhance language acquisition and cultural understanding.

The efficacy of these methods hinges on adapting teaching strategies to students' proficiency levels and contextual needs, ensuring comprehensive language learning in today's interconnected world.

[3][4][5] In some programs, educational materials (including spoken lectures and written assignments) are provided in a mixture of English, and the student's native language.

In other programs, educational materials are always in English, but the vocabulary, grammar, and context clues may be modified to be more easily understood by students with varying levels of comprehension.

However, without proper cultural immersion (social learning grounds) the associated language habits and reference points (internal mechanisms) of the host country are not completely transferred through these programs.

Typically, EFL is learned either to pass exams as a necessary part of one's education or for career progression while one works for an organization or business with an international focus.

Typically, a student learns this sort of English to function in the new host country, e.g., within the school system (if a child), to find and hold down a job (if an adult), or to perform the necessities of daily life (cooking, taking a cab/public transportation, or eating in a restaurant, etc.).

It is technically possible for ESL to be taught not in the host country, but in, for example, a refugee camp, as part of a pre-departure program sponsored by the government soon to receive new potential citizens.

This is evident in the Oxford English Dictionary; for many years it experimented with various spellings of 'SIGN' to attain a fidelity with the said principle, among which were SINE, SEGN, and SYNE, and through the diachronic mutations eventually settled on SIGN.

For example, a study among Chinese ESL students revealed that preference for not using the tense marking on verb present in the morphology of their mother tongue made it difficult for them to express time-related sentences in English.

For example: Languages may also differ in syllable structure; English allows for a cluster of up to three consonants before the vowel and five after it (e.g. strengths, straw, desks, glimpsed, sixths).

For example, in advocating for classroom-based instruction in African-American English (also known as Ebonics), linguist Richard McDorman has argued, "Simply put, the ESL syllabus must break free of the longstanding intellectual imperiousness of the standard to embrace instruction that encompasses the many "Englishes" that learners will encounter and thereby achieve the culturally responsive pedagogy so often advocated by leaders in the field.

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) in the United States reported that the percentage of dropouts in the non-native born Hispanic youth population between the ages of 16 and 24 years old is 43.4%.

In this setting, some ESL students will fail to participate, and often have difficulty understanding teachers because they talk too fast, do not use visual aids, or use native colloquialisms.

[47] Supporters of ESL programs claim they play an important role in the formation of peer networks and adjustment to school and society in their new homes.

ESL programs also allow students to meet and form friendships with other non-native speakers from different cultures, promoting racial tolerance and multiculturalism.

Among their research, they found that these textbooks perpetuated the "myth of linguistic homogeneity—the tacit and widespread acceptance of the dominant image of composition students as native speakers of a privileged variety of English.

"[50] While the textbooks were successful in referencing global and international perspectives, the portrayal of the intended audience, the you of the text, ultimately alienated any individual not belonging to a predominantly white background and culture.

In Kwon & Klassen's research, they also identified and criticized a "single native-speaker recipe for linguistic success,"[51] which contributed to anxieties about entering the professional field for ESL technical communicators.

There is a major concern about the lack of accessibility to translation services and the amount of time and attention their English proficiency is given throughout their educational experiences.

[59] Since there is not enough funding to afford tutors, and teachers find it hard to educate all students who have different learning abilities, it is highly important to implement peer-tutoring programs in schools.

It was also found that the literature on the efficacy of peer tutoring service combined with regular classroom teaching, is the best methodology practice that is effective, that benefits students, teachers, and parents involved.

"[63] It is important to highlight the idea that the school system needs to focus on school-wide interventions in order to make an impact and be able to help all English learners.

However it was mentioned that by developing effective peer tutoring programs in schools could be a factor that can potentially decrease the achievement gap in the United States.

ESOL learners in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland usually take the national Skills for Life qualifications, which are offered by several exam boards.

There are also different qualifications for those who manage or direct TESOL programs[71][72] Most people who teach English are in fact not native speakers[citation needed].

Teachers teaching adult ESL in Canada in the federally funded Language Instruction to Newcomers (LINC) program must be TESL certified.

Some U.S. instructors at community colleges, private language schools and universities qualify to teach English to adult non-native speakers by completing a Master of Arts (MA) in TESOL.

Native speakers must possess teacher certification in their home country in order to teach English as a foreign language in most institutions and schools in United Arab Emirates (UAE).