[Music]
my name is sue and I'm in English as a
second language teacher I teach adults
in language instruction for newcomers to
Canada or link some of my colleagues
teach French as a second language which
is called cool dog bodis amiga or Canada
or clique my students are a mix of
newcomers some have just arrived in
Canada while others have been here a bit
longer
some need help improving their English
to get a job or to prepare for more
specific skills training others want to
learn how to navigate everyday
interactions like visiting the bank or
going to a doctor's appointment
developing language skills is very
important for settling and integrating
into Canadian life that's where teachers
like me can help link students learn
language skills that will help them live
work and thrive in their community but
how they learn is just as important as
what they learn they work through course
materials that have been developed using
the Canadian language benchmarks
framework which we usually call CLB the
clb is a national standard for planning
course content for English as a second
language instruction it provides a
framework for learning teaching and
assessing adult learners the benchmarks
identify levels on the continuum of
language ability there are 12 CLB
benchmarks in each of the four language
skills listening speaking reading and
writing these benchmarks describe
competencies and tasks that demonstrate
English language knowledge of immigrants
living and working in Canada
they are arranged in three stages from
basic to intermediate to advanced each
learner may have a different CLB level
for each language skill evaluating
language in a framework like this helps
students to be placed in programs at the
right level they can plan their language
learning set their goals and monitor
their progress
it also helps teachers easily see where
their students are at and how they're
doing watching their skills improve
along a consistent path the course
materials are designed to be task based
offering students real-life relevant and
meaningful activities to help them learn
English my French colleagues who teach
click use course materials that have
been developed using the Nevada
competence linguistic Canadian or NC LC
which are similar to the English
benchmarks but based on the French
language in some ways I'm a student too
I regularly improve my skills by taking
training courses to study new materials
and practices based on the clb framework
I learn how to plan lessons and evaluate
language skills in a way that makes sure
my students can transition smoothly from
my classes to other programs or
institutions I also have access to a
wide range of resources that I can order
download or learn via webinar
hi my name is Jen and I host
professional development webinars link
instructors from across the country use
my webinars to better understand the
concepts and structure of the CLB
framework and how to apply it to what
they do the CLB standard provides a
national framework for describing and
measuring the English language abilities
of learners so I show them how to use
its structure to prepare lesson plans
adapt materials teach and assess
students consistently for example if a
student's goal is to achieve a minimum
CL before in listening and speaking
skills to apply for citizenship that can
do statements for this level are useful
reference or if a student wants to
develop more complex language skills as
part of a highly skilled profession the
framework provides a common transparent
base for all instructors to assess a
student's language skills and abilities
and tailor training to suit their needs
gaining a better understanding of the
CLB framework helps language teachers
appreciate the role they play and their
students outcomes and some instructors
may also develop course content my name
is Kareem and I'm a language teacher who
specializes in creating workplace based
language training I work with employers
and their employees to develop and then
deliver classes that are specific to a
workplace I'm a first-generation
immigrant my family arrived in Canada
when I was 13 when I talked to clients
about the CLB I introduced it as a
national framework and I can speak about
its value from two perspectives from the
point of view of a newcomer and from the
point of view of a language teacher when
my family and I came here my brothers
and I fell in love with Canada and
quickly picked up English in school but
for newcomers adjusting to a new home
and learning a new language
can be hard today I developed workplace
language training the goal is to help
people understand each other better at
work I customized the course content and
exercises to address areas that may be
challenging for some newcomers many
employees who take these courses are new
to Canada and need to improve their
language skills so that they can
communicate better our Canadian values
culture and history are new to them
things many of us take for granted like
learning health and safety rules or
understanding and using work-related
vocabulary newcomers often need help to
navigate these tasks and situations or
they may need to improve their English
skills to be able to do more complex
tasks at work that's where my experience
with the clb framework comes full circle
I lean on its structure and guidelines
to help me develop workplace trading
programs for employers the goal is to
build a strong workforce to compete in
today's economy but from a personal
experience I know that newcomer
employees and society benefit too
because communities are stronger when
everyone is engaged connected and well
integrated that's why the CL B's are so
important to newcomers and to teachers
and to Canada the CL B's are a framework
for success because when immigrants
succeed Canada wins to get a copy of the
CL B framework go to Canada see a
forward slash immigration learn more
about the Center for Canadian language
benchmarks at language CA or join the
community of practice and download
resources when you register at tutela
dot see a
you