Adults learning English and literacy at the same time (often called LESLLA learners: Literacy Education and Second Language Learning for Adults) need different teaching from literate learners, even at the same speaking level.
Learner profiles
| Profile | Description | Starting point |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-literate | First language has no common written form | Concepts of print: text carries meaning, left-to-right, letters vs words |
| Non-literate | L1 has a written form but learner had little or no schooling | Concepts of print, letter formation, phonological awareness |
| Semi-literate | Some schooling; reads and writes a little in L1 | Build on what they know; systematic phonics; fluency |
| Non-Roman-alphabet literate | Literate in another script (Arabic, Chinese, Tigrinya, Amharic...) | Transfer reading strategies; teach Roman letters, direction (if right-to-left), sound-letter links |
| Roman-alphabet literate | Literate in a Roman-script language | Mainstream ESL with spelling-sound differences |
Ask (sensitively, often in L1 with an interpreter) about years of schooling and reading in any language; observe with a short task (copying, reading a sign, writing a name) rather than a formal test.
Principles
- Oral language first: learners decode words they can already say and understand.
- From known to new: start with learners' names, familiar signs, their own stories.
- Systematic phonics with meaningful text: letter-sound patterns taught in order and applied in decodable, adult-relevant texts.
- Lots of repetition and recycling with variety.
- Adult content: never childish materials; real-life topics (health, shopping, transport, work, forms).
- Explicit instruction in classroom skills: holding a pen, using lines, copying from the board, organising papers.
- Respect experience: adults have rich knowledge and life skills; literacy is one skill they do not yet have.
Lesson routine (60-90 minutes)
| Stage | Activity |
|---|---|
| Oral warm-up | Talk about a picture or a real object; key words orally |
| Review | Letter-sound cards; read last lesson's words |
| New pattern | Introduce one grapheme: sound, mouth shape, letter formation, words with it (oral first) |
| Blending | Teacher models s-a-t -> sat; learners blend with cards |
| Segmenting | Teacher says a word; learners say the sounds, then build it with letter tiles |
| Decodable text | Short adult text using taught patterns + taught sight words (decodable_check.py) |
| Writing | Copy, then write words and a sentence from dictation |
| Functional literacy | Real-life text: sign, form field, bus timetable, medicine label |
| Language Experience | Learners tell a short story; teacher writes it; learners read it back |
Language Experience Approach (LEA)
- Shared experience (a trip, a photo, a recent event).
- Learners say sentences; the teacher writes exactly what they say (lightly corrected).
- Read together, then individually; cut into sentences and words to reorder.
- Use the text for word work (letters, sight words).
Functional literacy targets
Writing name, address, phone number and date of birth on forms; reading signs (Exit, Toilet, Push/Pull, No entry); reading prices, times and dates; recognising medicine labels; reading text messages from schools or employers; using a phone keypad and simple apps.
Assessment
Use observation checklists and portfolios: can recognise letters, can write name, can read 20 sight words, can read a decodable text with 90% accuracy, can complete a simple form. Progress is slower than for literate learners; celebrate small steps.
academic-english-eap-course-planner
Plan English for Academic Purposes (EAP) courses: pre-sessional, in-sessional, foundation, IELTS preparation and discipline-specific EAP, with syllabus strands (academic reading, lecture listening and note-taking, essay and report writing, paraphrase, summary and synthesis, referencing and plagiarism, seminars and presentations, academic vocabulary, critical thinking), a 10-week pre-sessional outline, exit assessment, IELTS-CEFR alignment and academic style (formality, hedging, cohesion, reporting verbs). Estimates study hours and weeks to close an IELTS gap from overall or per-skill scores (IELTS rounding, minimum per skill, priority skills, feasibility before a deadline), and checks learner texts for contractions, informal words with academic alternatives, unhedged claims, 'you', And/But/So starts, rhetorical questions and missing citations.
actfl-proficiency-curriculum-mapper
Map world language curricula to the ACTFL framework: proficiency levels (Novice, Intermediate, Advanced, Superior, Distinguished with sublevels), functions, contexts, text types and accuracy, proficiency vs performance, the three modes of communication (interpretive, interpersonal, presentational), the 5 Cs World-Readiness Standards, backward-designed thematic units with Integrated Performance Assessments, typical programme targets and FSI time estimates. Looks up approximate ACTFL-CEFR-ILR equivalences with what each level can do, and checks a unit map for missing modes, rehearsed skits mislabelled as interpersonal, translation or word lists as interpretive tasks, and units without an integrated performance assessment.
authentic-material-lesson-adapter
Turn authentic material (news articles, podcasts, videos, songs, menus, timetables, adverts, social media posts, forms, infographics) into language lessons by grading the task rather than the text. Selects texts for interest, relevance, exploitability, coverage, cultural load and rights; finds the 4-6 words to pre-teach, words to gloss on the page and words learners can ignore, plus names and cultural references to explain, with reading time by level; and builds a lesson shape (lead-in, pre-teach, gist or scanning, graded detail task, language focus on chunks and register, response) with task ideas per material type and level from A1 to C1. Covers copyright, fair dealing and fair use, Creative Commons and attribution.
can-do-statement-writer
Write and review can-do statements for language courses, units, lessons and learner self-assessment, CEFR or NCSSFL-ACTFL style: action (observable verb) + text or situation + level-specific conditions, learner ('I can') and descriptor ('Can') versions, progressions of one activity from A1 to C1, and coverage of reception, production, interaction and mediation. Includes a verb bank by mode and level and condition and text-type banks. Lints statements for teacher-centred phrasing, knowledge instead of use (learn, know, understand the passive), missing context, two skills in one statement, vague quality words, grammar items as outcomes, overlong statements and missing modes in a set.
cefr-aligned-syllabus-builder
Build language course syllabuses aligned to the CEFR (A1-C2, plus levels, Companion Volume 2020): entry and exit levels, guided learning hours and course length (with an L1-distance adjustment), syllabus type (topic, functional-notional, task-based, skills-based, multi-strand), unit-by-unit can-do outcomes, grammar from a core inventory by level, vocabulary, functions, pronunciation, balance of reception, production, interaction and mediation, recycling and assessment points. Checks a syllabus for units without can-do statements, core grammar for the level not covered, items above the course level, skills missing from most units and units with no vocabulary or functions.
classroom-management-for-esl-coach
Coach ESL/EFL teachers in classroom management: the instruction sequence (attention, group first, graded imperatives, demonstration, ICQs, hand out, start, check), ICQ examples, online instructions, routines for the first weeks (class agreement, L1 use, phones, lateness, homework, seating), strategies for L1 use in tasks, dominant and quiet learners, mixed levels, large classes, fast finishers, low motivation, disruptive young learners and teens, cultural expectations, classroom language to teach early and teacher presence. Checks planned instructions for length, missing ICQs, useless ICQs like 'Do you understand?', no demonstration, long sentences, filler and missing grouping or timing, and builds seating plans that keep named learners apart, seat learners who need the front, mix first languages and alternate stronger and weaker learners.