New Young Learners Group launched by Marketing English in Ireland
Ireland is a well-known and popular destination for English Language Education (ELE) attracting students from all over the world. The majority of students are from Italy, Spain, France, and Austria and from outside the EU area countries such as Brazil, South Korea, Mexico, and Japan.
With the pandemic still preventing ELT students to travel and experience language learning, the plans to improve the situation for when it is safe to welcome the students again are at a standstill.
ELT association Marketing English in Ireland (MEI) has introduced a Young Learners Working Group aiming to achieve the quality and the promotion of junior programmes in Ireland and ensure the reopening for the sector when it is safe.
The Young Learners Working Group has started plans for summer and setting guidelines and protocols for the re-opening of junior summer centres. Their task will be also to monitor the developments in international travel and testing in order to provide guidance to partner schools and agents so they can advise the students accordingly.
MEI consist of around 65 language centres and together with the second largest association of English language schools in Ireland Independent Language Schools Group (ILSG) decided to merge.
The ELE sector depends and is supported by other industries and the potential loss of the revenue affect a great number of people all around the country. They include the host families who accommodate international students, private bus companies, state schools that hire their premises during the summer, and countless businesses within the tourism sector.
Lorcan O’Connor Lloyd, Marketing Manager of MEI, said that the Young Learners Working Group sees the junior ELT market as ‘education and cultural tourism’ and will aim to promote it in that light.
He said: “when ELT students choose to visit other countries, they do not just immerse themselves in a language but they also meet new people and broaden their view of the world. It is sometimes the first and most memorable experience that a young student has, and they will play this trip out in their minds throughout their life. This in turn manifests itself in business, politics and culture as people remember fondly the Irish welcome. No greater part is played than that of the Irish host families who welcome the students into their homes and make them feel part of their family. There are approximately 30,000 host families in Ireland.”
MEI group work closely with Government to advocate for the ELT industry and since the start of the pandemic has been ensuring that the health and safety requirements given by the government are implemented by the schools to protect students and staff.
