Church-based English language provision for newly arrived migrants: why and who is interested?

Church-based English language provision for newly arrived migrants

As the number of migrants continues to rise globally, there is an increased need to understand: how they can connect with and integrate in their new countries and communities. In this regard, we are conducting a study that aims to address a number of questions related to new arrivals and their integration processes through their language learning lived experience.

This blog shares what we have done, and the lessons we have learned from those supporting new migrants in community spaces as follows:

• Why learn/teach language in the church?
• Who enrols in the English language programmes provided by the church?
• Why does the church provide these programmes? e.g. Are these programmes an extension of the church’s agenda to support people facing hardships and promote Christianity?

The project is investigating the communicative demands of new arrivals’ integration in the UK and the training needs of teachers of English as a second language (ESL) in the church context. To explore the above questions, we have so far interviewed* 11 learners attending the English language provision in their local church. The data gathered revealed two different threads which we will follow on in the next phase of the project.

Re-thinking the categorisation approach of migrants 

When we engaged with the English learners at the church, it was immediately clear that their migratory profile was much more diverse than we expected. The focus of our study was to identify migrants’ learning needs to shape teacher training for non-formal ESL provisions. As we gathered data on their immigration status in the UK, we recognised that the profiles of learners attending church English language provision were particularly interesting not only to inform ESL teacher training but also discern the scope of ‘super-diversity’ as Vertovec (2007) has termed. The term super-diversity encompasses the complexity of today’s migrants in Britain, and according to Vertovec (2007) it summarises the multiple patterns of immigration to the UK, ethnicities and other variables that impact the rights of the migrant communities. Thus, categorising migrants is becoming increasingly complex as the disparity among the different pathways for migration, legal statuses, modes of movement and entry are continuously re-invented.

Among our 11 interviewees, we met a partner of a mature international student at the local university, a British citizen born abroad who had recently relocated to the UK, a partner of an NHS worker and those granted resettlement in England via a UK government resettlement scheme for British Nationals Overseas. We have identified other churches that cater exclusively for learners with forced migration background which opens up potential for further study. Mapping the learners’ profiles and their needs will allow us to reimagine the dynamics of migrant categorisation in the UK and around the world. And, by having a better understanding of the diverse nature of migrants, we can challenge assumptions of migrants in the UK who seek support.

Spiritual Capital and English language teaching at church

The second thread of this study concerns the nature of church-based English language provisions. Can we view this initiative by the church as either missionary or needs-based fulfilment? Churches are much more than faith promotion organisations, with the responsibility to aid those in need in society being integrated in their mission. The church is a community hub where needs meet faith, and we are interested in understanding how spiritual capital is operationalised for generating English language provisions at church. There is a longstanding link between religion and education especially language learning (Durham & Kim, 2019). This link is not predominately held by churches and Christianity as a faith but also it exists within other religions (Gao & Thondhlana, 2021). Historically education has been delivered by faith organisations in many locations and contexts and this tradition continues today in the UK through faith school across the country. The trend for the church and other charity organisations running non-formal ESL courses and other educational activities is widespread in the UK. Funding cuts to formal language courses for migrants operated by local colleges and authorities contributed to the rise in demand for non-formal provisions such as church-based English courses.

During our interviews, learners placed teachers’ attitudes and approaches at the core of what made the courses at church engaging. Two out of the eleven learners we engaged with self-identified as Muslims during the interview. Both learners complimented the teachers’ inclusive approach in the classroom. In this regard, the learners felt that teachers have not attempted to include religion in lessons dedicated to English only, which contributed to their continuous attendance. Teachers volunteered at the church and courses were free for learners. This enabled those on limited income to find a learning provision that they could easily enrol in. The church context is then useful in understanding the influence of teachers’ values, faith, and spiritual identity on their teaching.

The language and terminology used in migration studies are important. The church-based English learning provision context will allow us to reflect on the implications of migrant categorisation approaches that have been outdated by the shift in paradigm of migration studies as the migration trends continue to change. The church context will also inspire exploratory research into the factors that guide teachers and the role of faith in teachers’ professional identities. Educational landscapes continue to offer insights into discourses and debates in the social science sphere and we believe the future phase of our research project will reveal many more threads to follow. Understanding the diversity of those attending these programmes allows us to better conceptualise the language needs of migrants to inform ESL teacher training. The aim here is to ensure that non-formal education programmes are more visible because they are an integral part of the newly arrived/migrant experience engaging with the community.

*Interviews were conducted in native language or aided by interpreters.

Research Team: Haya Fakoush, Kristina Pokasic, Xin Gao, Juliet Thondhlana

This project is funded by the University of Nottingham and supported by Nottingham Civic Exchange.

References: 

Durham, L. & Kim, S. (2019). Training dilemmas and recommendations with volunteer instructors in small, faith‐based adult ESL programs. TESOL Journal, 10:1

Gao, & Thondhlana. (2021). Education. In S. Pihlaja, Analysing Religious Discourse. Cambridge University Press.

Vertovec (2007) Introduction: New directions in the anthropology of migration and multiculturalism, Ethnic and Racial Studies, 30:6, 961-978