An initiative of IDP Education, ACE has established its position as the premier provider of English Language Teaching (ELT) in Cambodia. Now operating six campuses (five in Phnom Penh and one in Siem Reap), ACE was the first ELT college in Cambodia to achieve NEAS Quality Endorsement. The Centres deliver a wide range of English language courses to students of different ages, from younger learners to adults. The campuses returned to face-to-face delivery at the start of 2022 and total enrolments have returned to 2019 figures. Approximately 25,000 students are currently enrolled, with some 70% being Under 18. The campuses benefit from active and effective marketing, as well as a strong social media presence. Drawing on 30 years of distinguished operations, ACE has established its reputation as a leading ELT provider in the country.
Congratulations to ACE on its continued growth and success!
With just seven weeks before the start of the 2023 NEAS Management Conference we are excited to throw this spotlight on the NEAS Lifetime Member Award.
The annual NEAS Management Conference sees the presentation of many different awards, but the most prestigious award is the NEAS Lifetime Member Award. Since its inauguration in 2019 there have been four, highly regarded recipients. They are NEAS members who have shown distinguished, meritorious, and sustained service to the ELT Sector and to NEAS and its Quality Endorsement and Assurance process in ELT.
By popular demand we have extended this year’s Lifetime Award nomination period to 31 March 2023!
This award reflects the quality ideals that NEAS stands for and if you are thinking about nominating someone for this award, we would like to propose the following guidelines – they are by no means prescriptive, but that may help you nominate.
For example, your nominee should have at least 15 years of English language teaching, leadership and contribution to the ELT community; a demonstrated impact (over time or distance) on building capacity, communication or advocacy by upholding the NEAS quality assurance standards; achieved something significant, such as a great outcome overcoming resistance or challenge while delivering great QA results; driven QA initiatives across multiple NEAS QA Areas, influencing significant cultural change; contributed to and/or delivered a legacy item for the ELT industry.
Let’s not miss any silent achievers that we know of, in the nomination process! Legacy is one thing that you can’t buy but is important to many intellectuals and teachers who want to know that in the end ‘they made a difference’.
To assist you in articulating reasons for your choice, you could start with: ”This life member has lived the NEAS values/standards by……”
To nominate your confidential suggestion for the Lifetime Award for 2023, please complete the attached JotForm and submit it by Friday 31 March 2023. Please note the NEAS Board makes the final decision on the recipient/s and all nominations remain in-confidence.
Remember, if you are coming in person, don’t forget to purchase your Gala Dinner tickets here, so that you can enjoy the entertainment, gourmet menu as well as the Awards Ceremony.
Speaker Spotlight – A Strong ASEAN Representation!
Our Speaker Spotlight this week throws the light on the International Panel of Leading Professionals. It is our great pleasure to remind you that Dr Choltis Dhirathiti, the Executive Director of the AUN Secretariat who currently also lectures in Politics at the Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University, Thailand, will be presenting on The Importance of the ELT Profession in Bilateral Relations among Southeast Asian Nations and the Rest of the World at this year’s NEAS Management Conference at Doltone House, Darling Harbour, Sydney, 3 – 5 May. As an eminent speaker in this panel Dr Dhirathiti will be joined by Ms Pamela Arumynathan, a Senior Teacher at James Cook University, Singapore and currently completing a PhD in Education, and Dr Alexander Nanni, Associate Dean for International Affairs at Mahidol University International College (MUIC). Their discussion promises to provide professional insight into the ELT profession and the importance of global ties.
With just eight weeks before the conference, our Australian members are starting to benefit from strong international ties in the ASEAN Region.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) University Network (AUN) Secretariat continues to collaborate with NEAS as the recognised QA body in the region. A number of ASEAN ELT centres are set to start engaging with Australia and NEAS, in Bangkok on 14 March 2023. While fostering bilateral opportunities in business for our Australian members and ELT centres in the region, this initiative will ensure high quality ELT delivery. As always, the NEAS Standards will be the backbone of all QA activity, and as ASEAN member centres become endorsed, they will become important additions to the NEAS network in a global ELT community. This benefits Australia in many ways, not least in terms of Australia’s global reach in its search for high-quality employees proficient in English. We are, together with you, building a truly Global Profession of English Language Teaching organisations and professionals.
Remember, if you are coming in person, don’t forget to purchase your Gala Dinner tickets here, so that you can enjoy the entertainment, gourmet menu as well as the Awards Ceremony.
AUN Secretariat – building strong ties in the ASEAN Region
NEAS, with foresight into the importance of international promotion in Quality Assurance (QA) has continued to nurture connections in the Southeast Asian region. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) University Network (AUN) Secretariat has collaborated with NEAS as a recognised QA body in the region, with a proposal that enables university ELT centres to be endorsed by NEAS. With a number of ASEAN ELT centres keen to engage with Australia and NEAS, this initiative will commence in Bangkok on 14 March 2023.
This AUN Secretariat initiative is particularly important to Australian NEAS members because it not only opens bilateral business opportunities, but ensures quality delivery of English language courses to students in the ASEAN region. NEAS recognises that good quality English language tuition is central to students’ career capital and that by possessing good English language proficiency, students’ job prospects can widen and lifestyles can be elevated. For Australia this also extends its global reach in the search for high-quality employees and bolsters healthy competition in the world of jobseekers.
Amazingly, this project coincides with the presence of Dr Choltis Dhirathiti, the Executive Director of the AUN Secretariat, who will be presenting on The Importance of the ELT Profession in Bilateral Relations among Southeast Asian Nations and the Rest of the World at this year’s NEAS Management Conference at Doltone House, Darling Harbour, Sydney, 3-5 May. The Closing Plenary speaker at the conference will be the Ambassador of Ukraine, His Excellency Mr Vasyl Myroshnychenko. The attendance of these two important diplomats will illuminate the preponderance of cultivating global ties in the English Language Teaching (ELT) sector.
Ukraine Workshop Series(Live Webinar): Tuesday 18 April, 9:00 am to 10:30 am (Ukraine time)/4:00 pm to 5:30 pm (Sydney time). Registration: FREE. CPD Points: 6
English is a powerful tool. Generally accepted as the lingua franca it connects people globally in business, socially and academically. It is common these days for students anywhere in the world to be studying their chosen subject via the vehicle that is English – their second, third and sometimes fourth language.
At NEAS, we have students and education at the core of our focus and, as an Australian Charity and independent, industry-led and expert Quality Assurance provider, we are enhancing bilateral relationships between English Language Centres all over the world. Our Australian members now have an opportunity to connect and create meaningful partnerships with the ELT community in Ukraine. The Ukraine Workshop Series is in support of displaced teachers and students and is aimed at helping maintain the quality of English language teaching during times of crisis, while increasing and strengthening ties between Australian NEAS members and their counterparts overseas. This workshop is for strategic ELT decision-makers and teaching professionals in Ukraine and Australia. The Ukraine Workshop Series coincides with this year’s NEAS Management Conference, where the Ukrainian Ambassador, His Excellency Mr. Vasyl Myroshnychenko will be the Closing Plenary speaker.
The workshop in April will be centred around trauma-informed practice and teaching, maintaining student and teacher motivation and mental health, and building resilience. It will be an opportunity for sharing teaching and learning innovations and quality assurance activities of High Schools, Vocational Colleges, Universities, and English Language Centres, that are either operating in Australia or Ukraine. This workshop is in partnership with GoGlobal, which is an initiative of Global Office NGO aimed at promoting language learning and the volunteer movement in Ukraine.
In the weeks leading up to this workshop, NEAS will release pre-recorded presentations addressing the themes with presentations from keynote speakers from both countries sharing their expertise and practical techniques and the live workshop will be held on Tuesday 18 April from 9:00 am to 10:30 am (Ukraine Time) 4:00 pm to 5:30 pm (Sydney Time). The workshop will feature a live virtual panel with panellists His Excellency Mr Vasyl Myroshnychenko, Ambassador of Ukraine to Australia and New Zealand; Dr. Patrick Pheasant, CEO NEAS Australia and Ms Liubov Zaliubovska-Head of Education at GoGlobal NGO.
Sandra Pitronaci is National Academic Director ELICOS & Pathways at ILSC Education Group and has been actively involved in COPs throughout her ELT career. Sandra is currently Convenor of English Australia AMSIG; Classroom Talk Editor of the English Australia Journal, Newsletter; Editor and Committee Member of IATEFL LAMSIG and one of a dedicated Admin team for the 2,000+ members #AusELT online COP. At ILSC, Sandra leads the team of DOSs across ILSC Australia’s four national campuses. Sandra will be co-presenting The Building of the ELT Profession at the NEAS 2023 Management Conference with Lucas Chiusoli on Friday 5 May at 13:50.
We are thrilled to announce that this year at the 2023 NEAS Management Conference we will be presenting awards to more than 25 institutions! There will be two Award Ceremonies – one on Thursday afternoon, before the Cocktail Hour, and the other on Thursday evening during the Gala Dinner.
The first Awards Ceremony, sponsored by Learning Vault will be held on Thursday 4 May at 16:40 at Doltone House. Award categories are: Quality Provider Award – New Member (National and International); Quality Products & Services Award; Education Agent Award; Premium Product Award; Online Delivery Award and NEAS Master Practitioner Award.
The Gala Dinner special Awards Ceremony, starting at 18:00 will celebrate this year’s
NEAS 25 Year Endorsement Award
and the coveted
NEAS Lifetime Award
For last year’s award recipients please see their names in lights here. Most excitingly, we are looking for YOUR nominations for the NEAS Lifetime Award. This prestigious award goes to the person who has shown distinguished, meritorious, and sustained service to the ELT Sector and to NEAS. To nominate the person who you think most suited to receive this award, you must be a Full or Associate NEAS member and the nominee cannot be a NEAS Board of staff member.
To nominate, please complete the attached JotForm and submit it by Friday 3 March 2023.
Toby Jones is an education technologist and industry leader in the digitisation of learning. As Head of Education at Learning Vault – vocational education content provider and Australia’s first digital badging agency – Toby leads the strategic thinking and development of RTO courses, micro-credentials and digital credentials. Toby is a passionate commentator on the future of education and the potential application of emerging technologies. Toby will be speaking on behalf of Learning Vault in the Innovation and Strategy Session at this year’s 2023 NEAS Management Conference on Friday, 5 May at 12:30 in Park View 1 at Doltone House, Darling Harbour, Sydney.
NEAS Congratulates the University of Queensland College (UQ College) on the endorsement of The International Diploma in Language Teaching Management IDLTM as an Online Product.
IDLTM is a seven-month postgraduate qualification designed for experienced ELT managers and prospective managers who are seeking practical management skills and relevant workplace understanding. This course is suitable for experienced professionals working in positions that include operational management responsibilities.
IDLTM was originally developed by the former Institute of Continuing and TESOL Education (ICTE) at the University of Queensland in collaboration with SIT Graduate Institute, USA and Cambridge English. Since its initial launch in 2001, various changes to the course have been instituted to ensure it remains current and able to meet the changing needs of academic managers over time.
In a recent response to the COVID-19 pandemic and following two major curriculum reviews, the course has developed through changes to material and training approaches and has been relaunched in a new entirely online format.
The new, online format incorporates recorded video input sessions for asynchronous viewing, coupled with live synchronous online sessions using, broadly, a flipped classroom approach in an innovative way to replace the previously face-to-face training room sessions. Initial feedback regarding this approach from participants in the first such group has been very positive. One student said ‘’ I’m getting enormous benefits from the IDLTM. It’s as engaging and varied in its interactions and modes of study as I’d hoped it would be, and it’s even more relevant and practical in relation to my work than I’d expected.”, another student commented: “what I’m learning is enlightening, applicable to my situation, and will continue to be useful as I progress in my career”.
Congratulations to Macquarie University on achieving NEAS Endorsement for its English Medium Instruction (EMI) Course Suite, offered by the Macquarie University EMI Centre. The EMI Centre focuses on designing and delivering bespoke programs for higher education providers using English as the medium of instruction. As part of its customised services, the EMI Centre specialises in developing the English language proficiency of educators, as well as methodology and best practice for teaching in English.
NEAS reviewed the EMI Course Suite using Quality Area K of the NEAS Quality Assurance Framework, focussing the assessment on these key features of the target program: its underlying research; its fulfilment of purpose; its processes for maintaining quality; its uniqueness and innovation; and its contribution to the English Language Teaching (ELT) community. More information on Area K can be referenced here: https://neas.org.au/resources/neas-quality-framework/#area-k.
The EMI Course Suite was commended for the extensive research undertaken, and the expertise of its staff. The comprehensive needs analysis of the varying markets in Asia Pacific and Latin America, and the flexibility in the development and delivery of bespoke programs to suit client needs, were noted highlights. An EMI Centre Advisory Board has been established to provide ongoing guidance to quality assure the EMI Course Suite, and best practice industry standards are used to validate decisions and design. The EMI Course Suite aims to assist educational institutions globally to address the gap between policy and practice in the delivery of courses in English and enhance the skills of professionals within the client institutions.
February 2023
Media Enquiries
Reference recent press articles on the Homestay Standards:
