Abstract
Building capacity is critical to human development. It starts with building skills and knowledge in individuals and communities, and leads to the growth of societies and nations. The English Language Training for Officials (ELTO) programme,a five month content-based course funded by the New Zealand Aid Programme, builds capacity in the government sector in Southeast Asian nations. One of the long-term goals is to support sustainable economic development in participating nations through participants� improved use of English for international communication. Secondly, the programme aims to facilitate and contribute to enduring cooperation, people-to-people and economic ties between New Zealand and the region. This paper will present a case study of the experiences of Timor-Leste officials studying on the ELTO programme. Initially, the paper will focus on officials in Intake 43, for which the theme was agriculture. The study will investigate three areas of change for the participants: 1. empowerment through improved English language skills 2. expanded professional knowledge and capabilities 3. increased intercultural awareness of other participants and New Zealanders Secondly, the paper will focus on the reflections of Timor-Leste alumni on the impact of the ELTO programme on their professional lives as they respond to the development challenges their country faces as it builds resilience. The paper will conclude with a discussion of the aspects of the New Zealand language training programme which contributed to improved capacity.
Author Information
Deryn Hardie Boys, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand
Madeline Carroll, Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology, New Zealand
Paper Information
Conference: ACEID2017
Stream: Education for sustainable development
This paper is part of the ACEID2017 Conference Proceedings (View)
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