From Learner-Centered Education (LCE) to Emancipatory Learner-Centered Education (ELCE): A comparative case study of language education for adult migrants in four European countries

Abstract

This article discusses the findings of qualitative case-study research that looks at pedagogical contexts of adult education programs for migrants in Cyprus, Scotland, Malta, and Estonia. The goal of this research is to understand how Learner-Centered Education (LCE) is promoted within a human-rights framework and implemented as an approach to emancipatory social change. The findings show significant discrepancies in the implementation of LCE. Differences emerged between educational interventions that influence the language-learning and assimilation-integration processes of adults with migrant backgrounds. Informed by these findings, this article builds a case for Emancipatory Learner-Centered Education (ELCE)—a pedagogical approach that goes beyond course adaptations, to engage migrants in consciousness-raising and confidence-building, while fostering communal action between migrants and adult educators.

Educational inclusion for migrants and refugees through language learning: difficulties, challenges and ways forward

“…Students may already be familiar with these situations because they are speakers of one or more languages, but in different contexts they have to learn to cope with the resources of a new language (Little, 2007). In this sense, it is also important to establish a correlation between the educational program designed and the educational needs of the students (Gravani et al, 2023).…”