Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko is getting a head start on the president's initiative to make 2016 the year of the English language in Ukraine.
His administration this month on Sept. 14 will start providing free English-language courses to everyone who qualifies and is 18 years or older in each of the capital’s 10 administrative districts.
“English as a language of international communication eliminates barriers between people and offers great opportunities,” Klitschko said of the program on his personal website. “Today English is the language of education, business… We want to give the people of Kyiv the opportunity to learn English.”
Called Capital English, the two-month program consists of one-hour classes that start on Sept. 14 taking place every weekday at 3 p.m., 4:15 p.m. and 6 p.m. The city is providing specially equipped rooms in government buildings for the lessons.
The courses are designed for novices who will take the beginner A1-A2 level courses under the common European system. In order to form groups, candidates will be tested in English language proficiency. If a student doesn’t attend two consecutive classes, they will be dismissed.
Sept. 9 is the deadline for applicants, but organizers urge that people register as soon as possible because the number of spots is limited.
Alisa Berezutska, one of the organizers of Capital English and a representative of Kyiv Investment Agency, told the Kyiv Post that there will be six groups in every district with 30 students in each. Overall, the city expects to register about 1500-1800 students. Applications are accepted at www.kyivcapitalenglish.org and more than 12,000 people have already applied.
The second semester will start in January 2016, and may include B1-B2 courses, the next level language proficiency.
The U.S. Embassy and British Council are providing financial assistance for the free courses. English language school Speak Up and Cambridge Assessment provide curriculum materials, language teaching methodology and teachers.
Moreover, special language courses will be given to the Kyiv police patrol and employees of the Kyiv City State Administration.
In early August, the Education Ministry increased the number of classroom hours for foreign-language learning. Students in grades 10-11 will get 3.5 hours of foreign-language study, while pupils in the 5th-8th grades will get 3 hours of study, and 9th graders two hours.
Addressing parliament on April 4, President Petro Poroshenko said the year “2016 will be the year of the English language.”
“In global ratings, Ukraine is among countries with the lowest level of language skills. This limits the access to scientific research, 80 percent of which is written in English. About 55 percent of websites are also in English,” Poroshenko said.
Kyiv Post staff writer Denis Krasnikovcan be reached at [email protected]
