PEACE BOAT 98th Global Voyage

Study Pack 3 – GET Philosophy and Methodology

The aim of this study pack is to give an overview of the GET Programme philosophy and methodology. It
is divided into four sections:

1. Peace Boat

I. Peace Education on Peace Boat (In Ports, On Board)

2. Get Programme

I. Get Philosophy

II. GET Methodology (Global English, Communication Tool, Task-based Learning, Global
Content, Tailor-made Curriculum

III. What Can I Prepare Before Departure?

3. Curriculum Design and Lesson Planning – A Framework

I. Planning Your Curriculum (Steps 1-4)

II. Planning Lessons On Board

4. Levels and Assessment Within GET

I. ROYGBIV

II. Explanation and Example Tasks For All Levels

1. PEACE BOAT

Peace Boat is a Japan-based international non-governmental and non-profit organisation holding

consultative status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations, ECOSOC. The
organisation works to promote peace, human rights, equal and sustainable development, and respect for
the environment.

The Peace Boat objective:

To build a culture of peace in the world

We pursue this aim through the organisation of global educational programmes, responsible travel,
cooperative projects, and advocacy activities. These activities are carried out through partnerships with
other civil society organisations and communities in Japan and around the world. Education for peace
and sustainability is an integral part of the peace building process. Since its foundation in 1983, Peace
Boat has been active in the field of education for peace and sustainability through the organisation of
educational voyages; based on lectures, workshops, and study-exchange programmes both on the ship
and in ports of call.

I. Peace Education on Peace Boat

Peace Boat’s first voyage was organised in 1983 by a group of Japanese university students as a
creative response to government censorship of state school history textbooks regarding Japan’s past
military aggression in the Asia-Pacific region during World War II. They chartered a ship to visit
neighbouring countries, aiming to learn first-hand about the war from those who experienced it and
initiate people-to-people exchange. These aims - learning from those directly involved in the issues -
have remained a key focus of Peace Boat's peace education programme since then.

 In Ports

On exchange programmes, participants and local people come together to share common
activities and move beyond the barriers of language and cultural difference. By dancing and singing
together, playing sport, or learning each other’s traditional crafts; participants can build friendships
and understanding across nations and cultures that are fundamental to peace and sustainability.

On study tours, participants can visit partner NGOs or other local groups to witness and learn
about issues that are affecting the communities that they visit.

As well as learning about the issues affecting communities around the world, participants are also
encouraged to experience first-hand the daily lives of local people. Through engaging in local
activities, from non-violence workshops to the planting of mangroves, participants learn about the
different ways people around the world are working to find creative solutions to problems in their
own communities.

 On Board

Peace Boat seeks to raise awareness through programmes, such as lectures and workshops that
take place every day on the ship. This can be a great learning opportunity itself, but it also prepares
participants for the experience in ports. The programmes cover a wide variety of contemporary
global issues including globalisation, conflict, human rights, and the environment. They vary from
voyage to voyage, depending on the ports of call and route. As mentioned in previous information
 that was sent out, guest educators (often referred to as mizuan) are experts in their fields, and
provide a window to the wider world. Participants are actively encouraged to get involved with these
educators in order to gain a deeper understanding of the issues.

As described in Study Pack 1, passengers on Peace Boat voyages are called participants or
sankasha in Japanese. They are encouraged to participate in life on board, organising or becoming
involved with events and educational programmes. They can:

 Volunteer to help guest educators with their lectures and workshops. This also gives
participants the opportunity to get to know the guest educators more closely. These volunteers
are called mizupa (mizuan partners).

 Be involved in creating ship-wide events such as the Sports Festival or Earth Day.

 Initiate and organise events themselves. The participants and staff all learn from each other
through the self-organised events (jishukikaku) on board. Peace Boat participants come from
a variety of backgrounds and different ages, and everyone has different experiences they can
share. They can talk about their own experiences of war or activism, teach dance classes or
organise craft workshops; the opportunities are limitless. Onboard life not only creates
wonderful opportunities for international and inter-cultural exchange, but also inter-generational
exchange.

Peace Boat aims to reach as wide an audience as possible, including people who would not normally be
interested in peace issues.

## Misconception Alert! ## Peace Boat is open to anyone who wants to participate, so the majority of
Peace Boat participants are not activists; they are a cross section of Japanese society. Some of the
participants may originally come on board to relax after retirement or to see some of the world’s famous
tourist spots and World heritage sites.

However, once people are on board they are exposed to different issues and different perspectives.
Because of the unique environment on board the ship, many of the participants embrace the opportunity
to learn about the world and become more and more interested in the issues of the voyage as time
passes.

2. GET PROGRAMME

The GET Programme is the language programme on board global voyages organised by Peace Boat.
GET Universal Co. Ltd., the company responsible for organising the GET Programme, is part of the
Peace Boat Group. As part of the Peace Boat Group, the GET Programme’s aims are parallel to those of
Peace Boat and are reflected in the official GET Programme objective

The GET Programme objective:

To empower people with communication tools necessary to build a culture of peace

I. GET Philosophy

GET sees language as a communication tool, not as an academic subject or a collection of

grammatical formulae and vocabulary. Language is simply one of many communication tools used
to achieve an outcome, whether it be making a request, displaying gratitude, sharing an opinion, or
asking for help.

In a world that is becoming more inter-connected every day, GET believes people have an
increasing responsibility to play an active role in global society. Increasing awareness and
understanding of cultures and religions, political and economic issues, human rights, and the
environment is important in trying to develop a more peaceful and sustainable world. GET sees the
provision of communicative language study programmes as a key mechanism for empowering
people to learn more about the world through their own experiences.

Through globalisation, the Internet and satellite broadcasts, English is becoming the “global
language of communication”. The demographics of those who use the language are also changing,
as is the way the language is being used. Reflecting these changes, “global English” has
developed as a way of flexibly and creatively using uncomplicated English for international and
cross-cultural communication. It focuses on the ultimate goal of communicating messages between
people, rather than simply obeying the traditionally strict rules of structure and usage which are
becoming increasingly outdated.

GET promotes global English as a model of English usage that best represents the new
demographics of the English-speaking world, which also respects the linguistic and cultural diversity
of its users. We believe that this model is most suited to dealing with the evolution of the language,
and also most practical with regard to teaching English as a foreign language in an interconnected
world.

GET sees global English as the property of no one country or group and works to breakdown
perceptions commonly held by language learners and language teachers that traditional “native-
speaker” English models are the “correct” forms of English. GET sees global English as a powerful
asset to help people work together towards shared goals, engage in dialogue, and ultimately to build
a more peaceful world. Recognising that English is not the only such global communication tool, the
GET Programme also explores the use of other lingua franca (“common languages”) such as
Spanish.

GET believes “task-based learning” to be an ideal method for the teaching of global English usage,
especially in the context of a Peace Boat global voyage. A teacher using the task-based learning
method first focuses on what students need to be able to do, then selects the appropriate language
for them to be able to do it. Task-based learning focuses on relevant practical language to be used
 in real-life situations, providing students with immediate opportunities to use the language studied.
Under this model, students obtain an immediate response to their language usage and are able to
evaluate their own ability to complete the task they set out to achieve. Under the task-based learning
method students are encouraged to take control of their own learning, to review their successes and
difficulties, and to work on the areas they want to improve. Through task-based learning we guide
students to follow a “Learn-Use-Learn-Use” cycle – a cycle that GET believes provides the most
effective language acquisition. Task-based learning necessitates the tailoring of curricula to
individual student and class needs and goals, and therefore GET does not teach from a textbook.

GET encourages teachers to create a classroom environment that is highly student centred. This is
not only reflected in the task-based learning method, whereby students’ immediate needs dictate
curriculum design, but also within each individual lesson. Students are encouraged to take control of
their own learning and to provide input into curriculum design and lesson structure. Teachers are
considered facilitators rather than instructors, and students are encouraged to view each other as
valid language partners both inside and outside of class. Equality in the classroom is reflective of the
atmosphere of equality promoted across the ship on a Peace Boat voyage.

II. GET Methodology

 Global English

GET sees global English as an over-riding philosophy that should be considered every time
teachers are planning curricula and lessons. We all come from different backgrounds and speak
our own varieties of English and Spanish, none of which are more valid than others, and as
teachers we need to be aware of this. Of course, we cannot be expected to know all the
different varieties spoken around the world, let alone teach them, but we need to be constantly
aware that the English or Spanish we speak is not the only variety. It could also be the case that
the English or Spanish we speak is actually only spoken by a small group of people. English
teachers often spend a lot of time making sure that their students speak “natural English”
without realising those phrases or idioms being taught are only “natural” in their own small
speech community.

Unlike ESL students who are learning English to live in a specific English-speaking community,
Peace Boat participants are learning English to communicate in a global setting. Most of the
people students meet during a Peace Boat global voyage are not “native speakers” and each
speaks their own variety of English. When a Japanese person and Egyptian person are using
English as a communication tool, what difference does it make if they are speaking, for
example, American English or British English? In this situation, it does not matter whether they
are familiar with US or UK idiomatic usage or speak with a given accent. When planning
curricula and lessons teachers must constantly ask themselves what kind of tasks, exercises,
 and language are appropriate in a global English context. How much focus should be made on
the use of idiomatic language? How much focus should be put on pronunciation? How effective
are exercises such as minimal-pair activities?

 Communication Tool

GET sees global English as a communication tool so lessons focus mostly on helping students
improve their communicative ability. While students are encouraged to keep a journal and read
often, the core communicative skills of speaking and listening form the largest part of any given
lesson. Grammar and vocabulary are important communication tools, and while each lesson
should typically include the teaching of both, GET expects its teachers to do so with a focus on
improving communicative ability. GET does not see language as the only communication tool
and encourages teachers to include forms of non-verbal communication in their lessons, as well
as content designed to expand cultural understanding or learn about the societies we visit and
the world we live in.

 Task-Based Learning

There are many different teaching methodologies within language education and different ways
to plan a curriculum. A key concept that we use in GET is our own form of task-based learning.
In the case of the GET Programme on board the 98th voyage, students are experiencing a 105-
day global voyage on Peace Boat. Rather than thinking about the language course in terms of
what grammar an English or Spanish student of a certain level should learn over this time, the
GET programme looks more into what the students need to be able to do during and after
their voyage. These things the students need (or want) to “be able to do” are called tasks.

A task can most simply be described as the goal for using any given piece of language. The
task is the ends and the language being taught is the means to being able to achieve it.

Under the task-based system, when planning your curriculum and lessons, it helps to ask
yourself:

 What tasks do my students need to be able to do (on board and in the upcoming ports)?

 What language do they need to be able to complete these tasks?

You can also figure out how to link tasks and your lesson by completing the following sentence:

 “By the end of this lesson, my students will be able to……….”

Example: Students need to be able to ask for towels, toilet paper, soap, etc., from their cabin
attendant. This is the task. The language required to complete this task should be related to
making requests. Language to be taught might be:
Can I have a….. please? Vocabulary:
Could I have two please? - soap, towel, toilet paper, sheets, trash/rubbish
May I have some….. please? - changed, emptied, cleaned

This method can be applied to all levels. A beginner curriculum may begin with general survival
or travel English tasks such as greetings, asking for directions, shopping, ordering at a
bar/restaurant, etc. An advanced class curriculum could also include greetings or be set in
places such as a restaurant, but the tasks and language involved would be very different. There
is a marked difference between being able to order a dish on a menu, and being able to inquire
what is in the dish or how it is made, or how to compliment the chef. Understanding students’
needs and goals is paramount when designing a curriculum based on tasks. When students are
immediately able to use the language they are learning in class, there is a higher chance of
them retaining this language.

 Global Content

In the GET Programme, the students' experiences on board and in port are brought into the
classroom. The ship and the voyage itself is the greatest resource for curriculum and lesson
design. Due to the lectures and workshops given by guest educators, many of the students will
have become familiar with certain issues before coming to class. These issues may become
part of students’ lives and they may want to look at these issues in class. For students with
more advanced linguistic ability, talking about these issues can stretch their language to the
next level beyond everyday conversation. For the majority of GET students’ levels, most issues
will be too difficult to discuss in detail. However, GET believes it is still possible to include global
content in every lesson. A lesson does not need to be as challenging as, for example,
“expressing opinions about human rights issues in the Middle-East.”

## Misconception Alert! ## Although GET has the same aims as Peace Boat to build a culture
of peace, GET is not about teaching global issues in English / Spanish. It is a communication
course aimed at equipping students with the tools to communicate. It is not a global issues
course.

A variety of global issues are discussed on board through the organised lectures, workshops,
seminars, and events; and your students will probably attend some of these lectures. Your
students may also be participating in Peace Boat organised study tours and exchange tours.
GET focuses on teaching language to talk about their experiences and life. For this reason,
students may want to touch on certain issues covered during the voyage in their GET class.
Global issues can be included in a task-based curriculum. For example a student may need to
ask a mizuan about their lecture or ask an exchange partner on a study tour certain questions
 related to an issue.

However global issues in class need to be approached very carefully. Students’ interests may
vary widely and some students may not be at all interested in the heavier topics covered on
board. Talking about certain global issues requires not only a high linguistic ability and specific
vocabulary, but also background knowledge. They may have this background knowledge from
mizuan lectures or it is just as likely that the students have never thought about the topics in
their own language let alone English. Or the opposite could be true. Linguistic ability and
knowledge are not necessarily the same. It is quite plausible to have a super beginner level
English student who is an environmental scientist. It would be hard to match the content and
linguistic ability. Global issues can be covered but a great deal of care is required. It is often
more appropriate to leave these topics for the events and jishukikakus on board.

Global content on the other hand can easily be and should be incorporated into every lesson. It
can be anything that helps students learn more about the world. Introducing global content into
a lesson could be as simple as using a Singapore city map for a lesson on asking for directions
a couple of days before arriving in Singapore, or including Greek food on the menu when
having a lesson about ordering food before Greece. If the class is learning how to express
dates, we can incorporate UN designated World Days such as World Aids Day. We encourage
teachers to include global content into lessons wherever possible and will look deeper at how to
do so during the pre-departure orientation, along with curriculum design and lesson planning.

 Tailor-made Curriculum

In a “general” EFL course, students often study over a long period building slowly on grammar
and vocabulary according to a set curriculum. The onboard GET Programme is comparatively
short and intensive, consisting of 30 Spanish or 35 English lessons, interspersed with frequent
port visits. In order to make the most of this limited time it is necessary to produce a tailor-made
curriculum for each class. Using a tailor-made curriculum rather than a set curriculum provides
a more efficient programme for students focusing on practical and usable language, and also
minimises “wastage” - language that is either not communicative or not relevant to students
needs in the context of their voyage. A tailor-made curriculum is in accordance with the task-
based learning method catering to students’ specific needs, as well as enabling the inclusion of
global content related to the voyage calendar, ports, and themes. GET believes it is necessary
to know your students levels, needs, and goals as well as know them personally in order to
create an effective curriculum for each class. Using your initial time together to discover what
the students’ goals and requirements are incorporates the concept of a negotiated syllabus,
which is an important element in a Peace Education classroom.
III. What Can I Prepare Before Departure?

So if you cannot prepare your curriculum before the voyage departs, what can you do in the time
leading up to departure to ready yourself for the voyage? The first resource you have is the voyage
itself. Look at the ports and themes that are scheduled to be covered, and also at the certain regions
or countries. Look at the calendar dates during the voyage and look for events and international UN
days that will occur. Gather resources such as short movies, YouTube clips, audio files, music,
magazine and newspaper articles, etc., that could compliment your lessons throughout the voyage.
Think about what tasks students will need to improve their experience in ports, such as meeting and
dealing with locals; and on board with international guest educators and crew. Preparing these
resources will help you put together interesting and relevant lessons. In the coming weeks, we will
look at planning some lessons together, especially for the first few classes. We will ask teachers to
submit lesson plans and then give feedback to ensure that everyone is used to teaching within the
GET philosophy before we depart for the voyage.

In addition, after assigning teaching groups we will all use the forum to put our brains together and
brainstorm about possible lesson ideas, structures, activities, etc.
CURRICULUM DESIGN AND LESSON PLANNING – A FRAMEWORK

I. Planning Your Curriculum

To plan your curriculum you must know about your students’ levels, needs, goals, interests,
strengths, weaknesses, and the dynamics of each class. The flow chart below should help you think
about the steps involved when creating a curriculum using the GET methodology. A summary of
each step is provided on the following pages. We will discuss curriculum design in depth at the pre-
departure orientation, so please be sure to familiarize yourself with the following content.

Step 1:
STRENGTHS/WEAKNESSESS NEEDS/GOALS
INTERESTS

Step 2:

TASKS - these form the base of your

curriculum

Step 3:
LANGUAGE – the tool students need to complete the
tasks

Step 4:

ORDER - language and tasks should flow from lesson to

lesson

CURRICULUM
STEP 1: Needs assessment

1. What are my students’ needs?

Why are they studying English / Spanish as GET students and as individuals? What do they want to
gain from the course? What do they want to be able to do by the end of the voyage? What does
GET want them to gain? Are the needs of all students in the class similar? If not, how can you
accommodate all of their needs?

2. What are their strengths and weaknesses?

Maybe your students have a good base in grammar, but don't have the confidence to use it. Maybe
they are better at reading and writing than speaking and listening. Maybe the opposite is true.
Maybe they can give their opinions freely about a lot of different issues, but they find it difficult to
initiate conversations on board and in port. Constantly getting feedback from your students about
any tasks they’ve performed, tried to perform, and want to perform from exchanges in port to talking
with the crew is essential in order to evolve the curriculum as needs arise.

3. What are their interests?

Why are they joining the voyage? What do they like to do on board and in ports? Knowledge of
hobbies and personal backgrounds is also important when deciding on lesson content.
Incorporating your students’ interests into your lessons will make the content more personally
relevant to them, and therefore more enjoyable.

STEP 2: What tasks do they need to be able to do during the three month voyage?
In order to figure this out – ask your students, look at the voyage schedule, brainstorm with other
teachers, and review past example curricula. These should be specific tasks such as “make polite
requests at a home stay” rather than vague goals such as “become confident in English”. The tasks
should be suited to your students’ linguistic level, offer challenges, and help them think about the world
around them and the voyage that they are experiencing.

STEP 3: What language do they need to be able to complete these tasks?

This language (i.e. phrases and vocabulary) are the tools your students need to complete the tasks
you’ve come up with in step two.

STEP 4: Is there a flow to the language and the lessons / curricula?

Are you building on previous linguistic knowledge? Although this is different from a grammar-based
curriculum, it is important that your students can use and re-use the language studied. For example,
shopping, bargaining, and ordering in a restaurant or bar could all have cross-over in language used and
therefore might be a good “unit” of tasks to study.
II. Planning Lessons On Board

1) Start with the task.

 What do you want your students to be able to do at the end of the lesson?
 For example, by the end of this lesson, I want my students to be able to order food in a
restaurant at the next port.

2) What is the language focus of the lesson?

 Using the above example - students need to make polite requests and express desires
(though maybe not so politely as to need language like “I was wondering if I could...”) so
the language focus for a pre-intermediate level student might be “I would like…”
 Keep in mind that there are many different kinds of language to complete tasks.
 Elicit the language that your students already know. For example, for a pre-intermediate
student they may already know “... please”, “Can I have..?”, so after you’ve determined this,
you can now move onto “I would like…”

3) How can you introduce the task?

 The time we have with our students in the classroom is limited (only 30-35 days in a 107-
day voyage!) so make use of every minute you have. Link the warm-up to the task of the
lesson. For example, if the task is ordering in a restaurant, students could warm up with
talking about their favorite foods or new foods they tried at the last port.
 Introduce the situation with a role-play, hand out menus, and pretend to be a waiter /
waitress. See how students can complete the task with the language they already have.
Build their confidence with their current ability by eliciting language from them before
moving on to introduce new language.

4) How will you explain the language focus?

 For a pre-intermediate student, for example, it is not necessary to deconstruct the
conditional tense in the expression “I would like…” - it is enough for them to know that it is
a more polite version of “I want…” , which is something they may know already.
 What, if any, are the potential problems or misunderstandings? For example, making sure
students understand the difference in meaning between “I like…” and “I would like...”
 Will you introduce the question form “What would you like?”
 What vocabulary will you introduce?
 Is all the language you are introducing relevant to your students and is it “global English”?
5) How will students practice the task?
 Make the practice as realistic to the actual tasks that your students will face in ports or on
board. Use role plays or activities, and set problems for them to solve.
 Introduce global content by using the currency and food that they will encounter on the
voyage.

6) Can students practice the task on board?

 Think of ways for your students to immediately utilize the “Learn-Use-Learn-Use” cycle.
 For example, go to dinner together that evening or to the onboard bar where they can order
something from the English-speaking crew. Or assign homework of politely ordering
something on the ship or in the next port, and then have them report about it in the next
class.
 Again, introduce global content. Apply the lesson to the port that your students will be
visiting next by talking about the food that is eaten in that country. What food do people eat
in Cyprus? You can set the task of learning about local food in the next port.
 Talk about experiences of eating in restaurants in the different ports. How were these
experiences different from eating in restaurants in Japan or their home country?

7) Expand the task.

 How can your students use the language they have previously learned? For example, in a
restaurant they can use “What is this?”, “Do you have...?” – try to apply the language your
students already have to the current task.
 Link the language focus of this lesson to other tasks - for example, “would like” can be used
not only in a restaurant, but also when on exchange tours. In some exchange tours,
participants are paired with a partner. They can now express what they want to do, and ask
their partner what he / she wants to do. For example, on the Singapore challenge
programme - “What would you like to do in Singapore?”  “I would like to visit Little India.”

8) Student-focused / Student-centered
 Always make sure that your class is student-centered and that you are a facilitator.
 Questions to ask yourself: Are your students being presented with enough opportunities to
speak and use the language? What is a good teacher-student talk time ratio? Is there a
nice balance of teacher-student talk time in your classes? Do the language and content
come from the students?
 Don’t be afraid to elicit and work with the language they already know.
 Give your students chances to share and talk about their lives on the voyage and before
the voyage, as well as their dreams after the voyage. For example, ask them if they have
 ever ordered in English before and how the experience was. Draw on the experiences that
your students have had and give them a chance to share those experiences.
 Give your students enough opportunities to work in pairs as well as in a group. Through
collaborative learning they will learn as much from each other as they will from us. It is part
of our job to help them realize and utilize this resource that they provide for each other just
by being in the same class. Create activities where your students work together, cooperate,
and use their imaginations.
3. LEVELS AND ASSESSMENT WITHIN GET

I. ROYGBIV

Since its inception in 2001, the GET Programme has developed considerably and continues to
evolve with each new GET team. We expect to further improve the programme over the course of
the voyage, both on board and in Tokyo. The Spanish component is younger than the English
component of GET, and while it has also grown and strengthened significantly since its inception, it
is still under development, and therefore not all of the following information is applicable. We are
currently in the process of redeveloping our assessment / evaluation so any feedback and input is
greatly appreciated.

Within the current GET structure, students are divided into one of seven general ability levels. To
avoid classic linear ability ratings we have decided on a colour system - Red (beginner), Orange
(elementary), Yellow (pre-intermediate), Green (intermediate), Blue (high-intermediate), Indigo
(advanced), Violet (high-advanced). The majority of GET students on Peace Boat voyages fall
between Red and Blue for the English programme, and Red and Orange for the Spanish
programme.

Because the ROYGBIV system is not a linear system, students have the chance to expand
knowledge and ability in one area, topic, or skill, while also improving communicative ability in all
areas. As the rings move outwards they widen, denoting an increase in individual or collective
abilities. Thus a student who, for example, works as a receptionist at a hotel and is generally a
Yellow level may wish to advance their skills in specific task areas such as telephone English or
fielding complaints. Using this system, it would be possible for them to progress to Green or Blue in
this area while advancing more steadily in other areas.
 Rather than periodic written and oral examinations, GET aims to evaluate students on a daily
basis. GET curricula on board are designed around providing useful language and communication
skills for immediate use on board and in ports. In keeping with the GET philosophy, we assess
students' abilities to achieve tasks within a communication framework. An example of daily
evaluation could be to simply set up a role-play at the end of a lesson to observe and make note of
each student’s ability to complete the task and use the target language. This way, it is easy to see
the area(s) that each student struggles with, and could be the focus of review in the next class.

II. Explanation and Example Tasks For All Levels

The following is a general description of each level and example tasks that students in that level
should be able to do.

RED

description of level
Below ORANGE level
Students need to become accustomed to the language learning environment
Usually an absolute beginner

description of abilities
 May be able to read the English alphabet
 May know some common English words when addressed slowly and directly
ORANGE

description of level
Often switches to Japanese to maintain dialog
Prompting and assistance are necessary to continue conversation
Known language is often memorized, such as greetings or giving thanks
description of abilities
 Can establish social contact: greetings, introductions, giving thanks, farewells
 Can name familiar items
 Can describe a scene using a few basic words
 Can answer basic questions about things in their daily life
 Can shop in ports only in routine exchanges
 Can ask for clarification and repetition
 Can understand and use WH questions
 Can order food using simple words, set phrases, and gestures
 Can handle numbers, size, color, food, animals, body parts, weather
 Can express likes and dislikes using very simple terms

YELLOW

description of level
Basic functional English level and control of basic grammatical structures
First language interference remains but is limited
Use of English paralanguage is present (thinking sounds)
description of abilities
 Can express opinions, likes, and dislikes
 Can compare and ask about others’ experiences
 Can talk about plans in port
 Can talk about habits and routines
 Can negotiate a price in the market
 Can report about a previous conversation
 Can give and follow simple directions
 Can expand descriptions using adjectives
 Can function in common situations if the information is straightforward and non-specialized
 Can give basic advice
GREEN

description of level
Often use conjunctions, pauses, and other indicators to aid the flow of conversation
Common mistakes include tense, word order, articles, and prepositions
Some colloquial language is used but may be out of context or used incorrectly

description of abilities
 Can give commands and instructions with more than one step and with complex sentences
 Can communicate without using first language
 Can check and confirm detailed information
 Can use vocabulary to express actions, feelings, and attitudes in a broad range of familiar
topics
 Can use appropriate language to start, continue, and conclude a conversation
 Can make and respond to suggestions as well as agree and disagree with others (participate
in a debate)
 Can generally identify the topic of discussion
 Can tell short stories
 Can indicate, in simple ways, degrees of certainty and obligation
 Can report on the experiences of a third person

BLUE

description of level
Common mistakes include articles, phrasal verbs, complex tenses
Comfortable with a broad range of everyday language and situations
Students have briefly lived overseas or studied at a university level or equivalent
 description of abilities
 Can convey meaning in context in most situations
 Can use appropriate register in most situations
 Can reproduce and use newly learned language in various situations
 Can explain cultural aspects of their respective country in detail
 Can mediate between two people who are having a disagreement
 Can use non-formulaic phrasing
 Can express different degrees of certainty and obligation
 Can handle converse without reliance on stock phrases
 Can make appropriate language choices for a wide variety of situations
 Can complement or complain politely using appropriate tone

INDIGO

description of level
Common mistakes include nuance with word choice
Lack in language ability may be due to lack of experience
Language is produced easily in a variety of conversational contexts
description of abilities
 Can use accurate and contextually appropriate language to express complex concepts
 Can modify register according to audience and medium
 Can debate hypothetical situations and discuss abstract concepts
 Can spontaneously make long statements and questions
 Can recount or rephrase in multiple ways
 Can use a variety of intonation, volume, pacing, and emphasis to change meaning
 Can use some common idioms and colloquialisms
 Can use appropriate synonyms to convey the meaning of unknown vocabulary
 Can communicate with precision and accuracy
 Can use language flexibly to be allusive or joking

VIOLET

description of level
Highly competent within a wide range of topics
It is most likely that they have lived for an extended period of time in a country where English /
Spanish is the primary language used in communication
Above INDIGO level
 description of abilities
 Can handle negotiation, argument, and debate as well as they can in their first language
 Can communicate on sensitive issues in appropriate ways
 Can skillfully utilize figurative language
 Can use euphemisms
 Can understand and use many colloquial references
 Can recognize how language choices may affect biases or prejudices related to gender, race,
or class
 Can understand non-literal meanings, even when hearing them for the first time
 Can listen to lectures on any topic without interpretation assistance and take notes in the
language the lecture is given
 Can understand and use specialized and technical language
 Can communicate comfortably and eloquently in any situation