The language schools paralysis

I was sitting in his office and the brilliant sun was piercing the Venetian blinds. The wall to his left seemed to have a fresh zebra skin stretched over it. Inside it was not sunny at all. His eyes lacked the sparkle they usually have. He was telling me that his school, one of the leading ones in the teaching of English as a foreign language sector, was passing through a very bad patch and had only three students for the following weeks. It will only be at the end of June when more would start arriving.

"Very difficult to make ends meet as costs continue to rise while income goes down." The day before he had laid off a number of teachers. In the coming days he would lay off more.

When I went home I found his e-mail: "I am sorry the subject of our meeting was a very sad one. Believe me there is nothing worse than telling your colleagues you have no work for them and you have to let them go. It hurts more than anything. If you can help us, please use your influence. I am proud that my staff represents all sectors of Maltese society; our situation affects everyone the same. No crocodile tears! We are hurting body and soul."

His school has spent thousands of liri trying to penetrate new markets and slowly but surely he was making headway in the Asian market. Then, Maltese human traffickers allegedly murdered a number of Chinese who left Malta trying to enter Sicily illegally. Since then the government has clamped down hard and stopped all Chinese trying to come to Malta to study.

The ministries of foreign affairs, home affairs and tourism have let more than six weeks pass without giving schools any idea of what they are going to do about the delicate issue of granting visas to Chinese and other students who want to come to Malta.

While the Maltese government is paralysed, thousands of Chinese students continue to arrive to study in other European Union countries like Britain, Italy, France and Holland. University courses and English language teaching are a very competitive and profitable industry. Other governments do not hesitate to give their industries a leading edge by easing obstacles for border crossing and visa facilitation.

The English language schools are under the impression that the government wants to discourage them from trying to attract students and clients from non-EU countries. They have been told to look for other markets! This does not make business sense and is depriving our schools from reaping the benefits of growth regions in Asia, Latin America and the Arab world.

Worldwide, English is being increasingly seen as the language of business, technology, science and modernity. No wonder there is a huge world market for English teaching. We can increase our share of this market but we must ensure top quality courses in our schools as we have to compete against established schools in Britain, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand and the United States. There is a growing market for this business and we must work hard to increase our share of this market. At present we have just under seven per cent of the European market.

At least 57,000 come to Malta and Gozo every year to take a course in one of the 45 schools teaching English as a foreign language.

This sector generates Lm39 million every year, employs over 1,100 teachers, mostly part-time, provides income for over 1,700 host families and creates business for catering establishments, entertainment spots, shops and transport. The English language learning segment constitutes just under five per cent of tourist arrivals and nine per cent of tourism expenditure.

It is good news that the Federation of English Language Schools and the Malta Tourism Authority are finally working on a strategic plan for the sector. But the government must shake itself out of its present paralysis and give its support to enable this sector to survive and thrive in the years ahead.

Mr Bartolo is the Labour Party's main spokesman for tourism.

evaristbartolo@hotmail.com