Teaching ESOL to Adults with Limited Literacy (TEALL) Certificate Course Description

Thanks to the generous support of the Office of the Mayor, the New York City Council, and the Department of Youth and Community Development, the Literacy Assistance Center is pleased to offer two cohorts of the  TEALL Certificate Program at no cost to all participants who are selected for 2020 .

Course Description 
This certificate program provides insight into the needs of adult English Language Learners who have minimal first language literacy. The course addresses questions such as:
  • Where do you start?
  • How are these learners’ needs different from other adult learners?
  • How can you create engaging activities when their skills are so minimal?
  • What does the research say about best practices in teaching adult English language literacy learners?

Format 
Participants attend 27 hours of in-person classes, in addition to 80 hours of study and reflection online as part of a professional community of practice. For those who wish, a 30-hour teaching practicum placement will be made available. 

Course Objectives & Outcomes 
By the end of the course, participants will be able to identify the needs of literacy learners, and will be able to create evidence-based instruction for learners in both literacy and multi-level English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) classrooms. The course features a range of activities including classroom discussion, hands-on activities, observations of ESOL literacy classes, as well as an online component that allows participants to reflect on assigned readings and material presented during in-person meetings.  

Participant Expectations
To receive a certificate in this course, participants must attend all in-person sessions, participate in online forums, and complete all required activities and assignments. Optional: For those who wish, a 30-hour teaching practicum placement will be made available. 

Instructor Bio 
Judy Trupin has been an ESOL adult educator for more than 25 years, and has worked as a teacher, curriculum developer, trainer, and administrator. She has taught all levels of ESOL from basic literacy through advanced.  Currently, Judy is the lead ESOL professional developer at the LAC where she conducts workshops and curriculum development projects, and leads the LAC’s TESLA and TEALL certificate programs.  Judy is a nationally certified trainer for the BEST Plus assessment, holds New York State K-12  ESOL certification and an M.S. in Teaching ESOL, and is co-author of chapters in two publications: New Ways in Teaching Adults and New Ways in Teaching Content-Based Instruction.​

William Linn has been teaching ESOL in community organizations since 2008. He earned his MA in TESOL from SIT Graduate Institute in 2011 and he has worked as a teacher trainer since 2015. William has also taught English Applied Linguistics in the SIT Graduate Institute's MA in TESOL program. William is currently the ESOL Professional Development Associate at the LAC and is an instructor in the TESLA certificate program.

To learn more about the content of the TEALL course, please contact Judy Trupin at 212.803.3348 or judyt@lacnyc.org

Learn More

Please fill out this form if you would like to receive more information about the Spring 2020 TEALL course.

Digital Literacy

The LAC Academy's online learning platform, Moodle, offers participants the opportunity to build on their digital literacy skills. Skills covered in Modules 1, 2, and 4 of this assessment are particularly important in an online learning environment. Each module begins with very basic tasks, but stick with it, they get more challenging! Assess your Digital Literacy skills here