US embassy cable - 05SANTIAGO2408

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 SANTIAGO 002408 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR WHA/PDA (MDCONNERS, GADAMS, NKLOPFENSTEIN, 
DPRINCE) 
STATE FOR WHA/BSC (DBARNES, ISHERIDAN) 
STATE FOR ECA/A (TFARRELL, JCONNERLY, JCAVANAUGH, 
JWALTERS) 
STATE FOR IIP/G/WHA (GJORIA) 
STATE FOR R/PPR 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OEXC, KPAO, OIIP, CI, ESLCO 
SUBJECT: PROMOTION OF ENGLISH IN CHILE:  ACHIEVEMENTS AND 
CHALLENGES 
 
1.  Summary: Over the past two years, Embassy Santiago 
has made a substantial contribution to the advancement of 
English teaching in Chile.  PA has initiated and 
implemented a variety of projects with the assistance of 
the Office of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) and 
the Office of International Information Programs (IIP), 
in partnership with the Chilean Ministry of Education or 
the Fulbright Commission.  The surge in English learning 
may be one factor contributing to the doubling of the 
number of Chilean students, from 1,612 to 3,290, choosing 
to study in the U.S. in the past year. The case for a 
Regional English Language Officer (requested in last 
year's MPP) to be located in Santiago is stronger than 
ever. End summary. 
 
2.  The Government of Chile has made English teaching and 
learning a priority.  Minister of Education Sergio Bitar 
originally stated that Chile should be bilingual by 2010, 
the year of Chile's Bicentennial celebration.  His 
expectations have since scaled back, but English 
education remains a priority for the Lagos administration 
and will remain so for the incoming administration as 
well. It became apparent that Chile must first improve 
the quality of teaching, so teacher training has become 
the thrust of the GOC's work in English education. Post 
has responded to the request from the Ministry of 
Education to assist in this endeavor in many ways, 
enumerated below. 
 
3.  English Language Fellows: For the last three years, 
PA and the ECA Office of English Language Programs have 
provided a Senior English Language Fellow to work with 
English teacher trainers at the Ministry of Education, 
binational centers (BNCs), and universities for a period 
of ten months.  This has had an immediate impact in 
increased professionalization of the English teacher 
corps. 
 
4.  Teacher Resource Site: The Fellow from last year 
worked with the NGO "Fundacion Chile" and the Ministry of 
Education to develop an English teachers' resource page 
on the Internet. Fundacion Chile provides assistance to 
the Ministry and had maintained a general education site 
for years, but it only recently, with PA's help, 
developed this English language resource site for 
teachers.  Now teachers can log on to find readings, 
tests, games, and lesson plans -- all with American 
content. 
 
5.  Teacher Networks:  PA contracted an English-language 
teacher trainer to work with the Ministry of Education to 
establish training networks for English teachers and to 
work on curriculum development.  The networks are the 
only way to provide in-service training to the 3,000 
English teachers in Chile. They are thriving, and are 
functioning well into their second year.  In addition, 
thanks to funding from ECA, the Ministry of Education is 
giving mini-scholarships to teachers of English in four 
key cities for enhanced professional training. 
 
6.  English Language Specialists:  In the past year, we 
have had six English Language Specialists come to Chile 
(a significant increase over previous years) to provide 
short-term training.  These specialists have developed 
workshops for public school teachers, BNC teachers and 
university professors.  This program is particularly 
effective because we are able to choose a specialist 
based on the needs of the host institution, and these 
specialists are flexible enough to provide workshops to a 
variety of different audiences. 
 
7.  Speakers: PA has also brought in speakers through ECA 
for curriculum development in areas such as American 
Studies, African American literature, English for Special 
Purposes, and marketing techniques for English language 
schools (including the BNCs). In parallel, speakers 
recruited by IIP have shared expertise on a variety of 
MPP-related topics. While not all speakers have 
specifically addressed English learning, the content of 
their presentations have encouraged scholars and other 
professionals to improve their fluency and advance their 
skills in using English for research. 
 
8.  English via Broadcast:  One of the first projects 
Post contributed to the GOC was the purchase of one 
year's worth of "Sesame English", a series designed to 
help young Spanish speakers learn English.  This full 
year of programming, shown on national television on 
Saturday mornings as well as on the educational network 
used in classrooms, recently ended, but PA Santiago is 
negotiating to extend it for another year. 
 
9.  Essay Contests:  PA Santiago sponsored an English 
essay contest two years in a row for English teachers, 
university students and high school students.  Winners in 
each of the separate categories won two-week study trips 
to the U.S. Anecdotal evidence indicates they became 
"citizen ambassadors" for the U.S., and advocates of 
English, on their return. 
 
10.  Embassy Web Site: PA created its own English 
teachers' web page that contains links to teacher and 
student resources, international testing materials, and 
online publications.  In October, this English site 
logged 686 hits. Since it is accessed from the main 
Embassy web page, which gets an average of 120,000 hits 
per month, we expect a rapid increase in users. PA's 
Information Resource Center has also generated resource 
material with U.S. content for English teachers. 
 
11.  Book Donations:  PA has begun systematic 
contributions of books in English to public schools, 
American Corners, the binational centers, and 
universities.  This is an effective means of providing 
not only goodwill but also materials that are needed in 
Chile, as the cost of books in English is high and the 
availability is limited.  Chile has few public libraries, 
and schools have limited collections. 
 
12.  Revival of TESOL Chile:  Post has collaborated with 
several organizations to promote English language 
education. PA was instrumental in launching the new TESOL 
Chile, a professional organization for English teachers. 
PA provided funding, books, and speakers for the last 
three TESOL conferences and newsletters.  Due to poor pay 
and lack of training, English teachers often feel they 
are on the margins in terms of professionalism and 
respect.  The regeneration of this once defunct 
organization has given English teachers more prestige and 
has provided a venue for teacher training workshops. 
Last year, PA sent a member of Chile TESOL to the 
international TESOL conference, where she made valuable 
contacts. 
 
13.  Intensive Residential Seminar: Drawing on the idea 
of Summer Institutes at others posts, PA was instrumental 
in early 2005 in creating "English Summer Town", a two- 
week summer English immersion camp for teachers. The 
Fulbright Commission and the Ministry of Education signed 
on as eager partners once the concept and benefits became 
clear. January 2006 will mark the second annual "Town," 
during which two sets of 80 teachers each will spend a 
week in a series of workshops, discussions, and evening 
cultural events. As last year, PAO Santiago will host an 
American style barbecue at her residence for the entire 
group. Post will also provide a presentation on Martin 
Luther King, Jr., including a lecture and video. 
 
14.  Books in a Box Pilot Project:  At English Summer 
Town this year, two specialists and the English Language 
Fellow offered a weeklong intensive "Books in a Box" 
training.  PA provided 25 sets of the books to 25 
teachers and conducted the official pilot project for the 
program in Latin America.  Results have been mixed in 
terms of cost effectiveness, since discussions with the 
teachers who received the books and training indicate 
they have not shared them widely with others. 
 
15.  ExpoIngles:  The ExpoIngles Fair, the first of its 
type in Chile, involved all of the Anglophone embassies 
in Santiago and other institutions that promote the 
teaching of English. Five thousand students and teachers 
interested in studying either in Chile or abroad, 
attended. PA's booth promoted American destinations for 
study. 
 
16.  International Visitors: In FY 2005, for the first 
time, an International Visitor candidate was selected to 
examine U.S. language education for native speakers as 
well as English as a Second Language.  This Ministry of 
Education official works on curriculum development in the 
English language program, and has incorporated some of 
the lessons learned during the visit into the curriculum. 
As such, these changes will affect the way students will 
learn English nation-wide. 
 
17.  Voluntary Visitors: PA is organizing a Voluntary 
Visitors' program for five English teachers for January 
of 2006. These are highly active members of a Ministry of 
Education network who hold key roles in their schools and 
communities in English teaching. None has traveled abroad 
in the past. They are involved in TESOL, in teacher 
training, and in educational reform. These teachers plan 
to visit schools and learn how American teachers deal 
with immigrant children who do not speak English.  They 
will also learn about new methodologies and techniques 
for working with few resources. 
 
18.  WorldTeach:  PA Santiago has provided information 
and encouragement to the not-for-profit organization 
WorldTeach run by Harvard, which brings volunteers to 
teach English.  The pilot program in Antofagasta last 
year was so successful that WorldTeach increased its 
number of volunteers from 16 to 30 and lengthened their 
tours from one semester to two.  PA also works with U.S. 
universities with sizable student populations in Chile, 
encouraging students to volunteer at schools to provide 
Chilean counterparts with exposure to native speakers. 
 
19.  English Teaching Assistants:  The Fulbright 
Commission has become involved in the English education 
movement by establishing six American English Teaching 
Assistants as a pilot project for school year 2005 and 
planning for another 10 for school year 2006.  All 
assistants are placed in universities and serve as in- 
class native speaking resources rather than as teachers. 
Most are also volunteering in public schools. Fulbright 
maintains contact with these assistants through Internet 
and phone contact and PA staff meet with them when 
traveling to their cities. 
 
20.  Binational Centers (BNCs):  PA Santiago supports a 
network of BNCs in Chile, the oldest of which was 
established 67 years ago.  There are currently BNCs in 
Santiago, Iquique, Antofagasta, Calama, La Serena, 
Valparaiso, Curic, Chillan, Concepcion, Osorno and 
Puerto Montt. Since the cut-off of funding of BNCs by 
USIA, the centers have survived through offering English 
courses.  A priority goal for the embassy this year has 
been to ensure that the BNCs meet a standard of 
excellence in providing instruction, academic advising, 
and library resources in a safe, congenial environment. 
PA Santiago assistance to BNCs has been in the form of 
training educational advisors, librarians/research staff, 
administrative personnel and directors.  In addition, we 
have made donations of books and journals, sponsored 
speakers and English Teaching specialists, and some 
equipment, such as computers and power point projectors. 
 
21.  American Corners:  The Corners provide easy and 
attractive access to a wide range of resources, informal 
dialogue, and speakers, to promote greater understanding 
of U.S. culture, policy, and current affairs. We created 
two Corners in Santiago in the past year and our overall 
goal is to establish three more, in Arica, Valdivia and 
Punta Arenas.  While the Corners do not offer courses, 
they do offer informal chat sessions in English, and 
lectures, seminars and exhibits supplied by PA.  The 
Corners are perfect venues for embassy officer outreach; 
recently an embassy consular officer gave a talk on 
modifications in the student visa process, and a 
political officer addressed United Nations reform. 
 
22. Peace Corps:  Post is exploring the possible return 
of the Peace Corps to train English teachers in 
collaboration with the Ministry of Education.  This 
project is awaiting final approval from the Peace Corps 
following two exploratory visits to Chile by the Chief of 
Operations for Inter America, but budget limitations may 
put it on hold.  The plan involves having Peace Corps 
volunteers work with the Ministry's networks for teacher 
training. 
 
23. Conclusion: Despite the wide attention given to 
English language education in Chile over the past two 
years, serious deficits still exist not only in the 
average Chilean's ability to speak English but also among 
the English teachers themselves. Only an estimated three 
percent of Chileans are fluent in English. The decision 
of the GOC to require testing and credentialing for all 
teachers has created widespread discontent, even 
rebellion, among the teachers. 
 
24. The Ministry has requested help from PA Santiago in 
this next step of credentialing, another sign that the 
Embassy has surged forward to become a major contributor 
in the area of English teaching in Chile. Providing the 
kind of guidance needed to effect transformation of the 
education system requires specific skills and full-time 
focus. The addition of a RELO in country would boost this 
project and would provide the opportunity to insert 
American content into what continues to be a heavily 
British curriculum.  The regional officer would also work 
with the network of Binational Centers to standardize and 
upgrade the level of English taught there.  In short, 
while PA's efforts in English teaching in the past two 
years have yielded positive, tangible successes, a RELO 
would provide the professional expertise needed to 
coordinate all of PA's programs in this area, to build on 
and sustain this momentum. 
 
KELLY