The University of Stirling has developed a new international partnership which sees language education students teaching English in Brazil.
Two Stirling students from the School of Education are currently teaching at São Paulo State University (UNESP) through this new venture in partnership with the British Council.
Master’s students in Teaching of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL), Ben Dickson and Jana Valentova are applying their degree skills to prepare undergraduates at UNESP to sit the IELTS (International English Language Testing System) exam.
Jana, from the Czech Republic, said: "Through this experience I can build my confidence, put my freshly gained academic knowledge into practice and learn from the UNESP highly qualified members of staff.
"This is a great chance to grow professionally as well as personally and I hope to return home as a better and more experienced teacher."
Stirling’s highly successful TESOL postgraduate degree has been in place for the past 25 years and currently supports 50 students.
Study abroad programmes at Stirling continue to grow, with one in ten students now making the most of opportunities in over 30 countries worldwide, whilst the University campus has more than 115 different nations represented.
Dr Vander Viana, Lecturer in TESOL and Applied Linguistics in the School of Education, said: "This is a fantastic opportunity for our TESOL students to gain invaluable teaching experience alongside their degree. We are delighted to have developed this partnership with our colleagues at São Paulo State University and look forward to creating further international teaching opportunities worldwide."
Dr Regiani Zacarias, UNESP Assistant Provost for International Affairs, said: "UNESP is very proud and honoured to have a partnership with the University of Stirling in the IELTS training programme. This is a highly effective programme, supported by the British Council, that impacts upon the community. The beauty of this programme is that on both sides students are teaching and learning foreign languages and culture. It is a unique experience."
Find out more about the TESOL degree programme.
Find out more about São Paulo State University.
Media enquiries to David Christie, Senior Communications Officer on 01786 466653 or david.christie1@stir.ac.uk