DESIGNING AND IMPLEMENTING AN INTENSIVE LINGUISTIC PROGRAM FOR ADULTS: AN INTEGRATED APPROACH

With the adoption of institutional bilingualism of French and English in Canada, public institutions, in designated regions, must hire the necessary bilingual employees, competent to communicate and serve the public in both official languages. In addition, many private companies seek multilingual employees to best meet the needs of their clients. Nonetheless, employees who are not proficient in their second language, adults preparing to penetrate a bilingual workplace, employees required to take institutional tests and newcomers to the country are all faced with overwhelming linguistic challenges to overcome. Despite the availability of generic courses and training available, these particular categories of adult learners require pragmatic, timely and focussed programs specifically designed on the basis of their main learning objectives. From a teaching perspective, as documented in the literature, most linguistic programs are confronted with the dilemma of providing real English input in meaningful ways (Hilliyard et al., 2007). Consequently, the idea of a holistic integrated intensive linguistic program with an authentic and contextual underpinning philosophy seems to be an appropriate response to surpassing these linguistic barriers. To do so, the authors draw from the social constructivist perspective the notion of authentic or situated learning according to which the participant takes part in activities directly relevant to the application of learning that takes place within a culture similar to the applied setting (Brown et al. 1989).
This presentation is a retrospective review of the design and implementation phases of an intensive linguistic program for adults over a two year period adopting an integrated approach within a situational learning context. The program was delivered as a professional development initiative at a tertiary level institution in the capital region of Canada. From a case study perspective, the paper draws on the authors’ involvement in the program and narrates the managerial process pursued to successfully and effectively deliver a linguistic program for adult participants. Blending learners’ needs and teaching methods proved to be efficient in meeting adult learners’ objectives.
Managing the design and implementation phases of an intensive program for adults was an insightful and positive learning experience. Programs founded on integrated and authentic approaches by means of the intensive mode are undoubtedly a step in the right direction for learners in efforts to meet proficiency levels within pressing time constraints. In addition, we conclude from our managerial experience that the success of the re-structured program including the development of the new socio-pragmatic component was a direct result of a thorough design phase. In terms of implications, practitioners working closely with intensive programs for adults ought to adopt a holistic, authentic and integrated approach in the design and implementation phases of a program. From a research standpoint, more research regarding intensive programs is required to further investigate and analyze diverse experiences.