There are some students who love language and are motivated to study it for personal interest.  However, for most language students, the motivation to study a language comes from more practical reasons, to gain access to something that they want—a better job, further education, or perhaps to gain entry into another country.  This author has ‘been on the ground’ at the intersection between the classroom and the places that his students are trying to gain entry into, working in job placement, immigration amnesty, and adult and higher education.  All of this has informed his understanding of the students he has worked with.

Having a concern for social justice and the plight of immigrants and refugees, this author worked in program and curriculum development for an Amnesty program for undocumented immigrants in California, also developing an ESL program for an adult education centre and a university transitions program for students entering university.  He then worked with mostly Southeast Asian refugees in an employment preparation program in the San Joaquin Valley in California.  Later, he also worked for a non-profit organization raising money for and purchasing medical equipment for a hospital in the Dominican Republic, supporting a drinking water supply project in Thailand and a construction project in Mexico.

His career then brought him to work in the administration and management of an international student exchange program and later as Program Director of a large multi-program international language institute in Los Angeles County.  He also developed a transition program for students entering university.  Scattered through all of this was the beginning of a career teaching EAP as an adjunct EAP instructor at various community colleges in central California and several universities in Orange County, including the University of California, Irvine, and California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.

Finally, after spending two and a half years studying Japanese and teaching English in Japan, he moved to the Metro Vancouver area of British Columbia, Canada, earning an MA in TESOL, teaching briefly at the University of British Columbia, and then beginning what has been an eighteen-year career of teaching in the English Language Studies Department at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, where he also served on the Senate, various committees, and finally as Co-Chair of the Department.

His education includes an MA in TESOL and other graduate studies in the areas of anthropology and linguistics, Southeast Asian studies, Education, world religions and philosophy.  He holds California Community College Credentials for teaching Basic Education and also Philosophy and World Religions.

Underlying his approach to teaching English to students is the belief that people are very complex, and teaching includes the incorporation of an understanding of human psychology, cognitive processes, motivation, behaviour, creativity, and emotion.  On top of that, the instructor must have an awareness of the very practical and ‘real life’ circumstances that students find themselves in.  The author’s approach to teaching reflects all of this, incorporating Cognitive, Humanistic and Behavioral elements into instructional methods.

ChatGPT Version (Edited by the Author)

While some students study language out of personal interest, most are motivated by practical goals such as career advancement, further education, or immigration opportunities. This author has firsthand experience bridging the classroom and these aspirations, having worked in job placement, immigration amnesty, and in adult and higher education.

Driven by a commitment to social justice, international education, and the needs of immigrants and refugees, he worked to develop and establish an Amnesty program for undocumented immigrants in California (Kern County Community College District, designed ESL and university transition programs, and supported Southeast Asian refugees in employment preparation. His efforts extended internationally, raising funds for medical equipment in the Dominican Republic, and supporting a water supply project in Thailand and a construction initiative in Mexico.  He also developed and facilitated consultations on Teacher Training and ELS education between officials from the Thailand Ministry of Education and key educators and educational administrators in the Los Angeles and Orange County areas.

In administrative roles, he managed international student exchange programs and directed a multi-program international language institute in Los Angeles.  Then, throughout his career, he concurrently taught English for Academic Purposes (EAP) at various community colleges and universities, including UC Irvine and Cal Poly Pomona.

After studying Japanese for one and a half years near Nagoya and then teaching English in Toyota-shi, Aichi-ken, he relocated to the Metro Vancouver region in British Columbia, Canada, earning an MA in TESOL.  This led to an eighteen-year career of teaching in the English Language Studies Department at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, where he also served on the Senate, various Department, Division, and Senate committees, and finally as Department Co-Chair.

Informing his work is the belief that learning integrates elements of human psychology, cognitive science, motivation, creativity, and emotion. His teaching approach combines cognitive, humanistic, and behavioural methods to address the complexity of human learning.