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Registration for the A2, B1 and B2 Estonian language courses starting around the country in September is now open.
Advance registration is open to anyone interested in the courses on the website of the Integration and Migration Foundation until August 30, 2015.
"We need to keep contributing to Estonian language studies at the beginner and intermediate levels," said Anne-Ly Reimaa, the deputy secretary general for cultural diversity at the Ministry of Culture. "The better the people who live here speak Estonian, the more effectively they’ll be able to participate in social life – it’ll be easier for them to find a job, they’ll find themselves part of Estonian media space and they’ll enjoy greater social activity."
The Estonian language training courses at the beginner and intermediate levels (A2, B1 and B2) will start for the first groups on September 1. Each course will last 100 academic hours. The aim is to offer language training to at least 540 residents of Estonia and new immigrants who wish to improve their Estonian skills.
The Integration Foundation has also launched a public procurement to find a provider for the language training. "We’re currently awaiting tenders to find Estonian language trainers and to run the courses around Estonia," said Jana Tondi, the area manager for language and cultural immersion at the Integration Foundation. "The courses are designed to develop and improve people’s skills in Estonian and to broaden their everyday vocabulary."
"It’s important that the knowledge they gain on the courses helps them make more use of Estonian in their studies, at work and in their daily lives," she added. "And it’s important to us that the language skills people need on an everyday basis and that they use in their work improve. People have to be able to feel confident when speaking the language in ordinary situations and have the courage to use the knowledge they have. We also hope the courses turn more attention to situations that pop up in real life and to people’s actual needs."
The Integration Foundation has previously coordinated and supported Estonian language training via the state budget through the Ministry of Culture and the European Fund for the Integration of Third-Country Nationals as part of the "Estonian Integration Program 2008-2013." More than 1,500 people have taken part in these courses.
The foundation also supported studies from the state budget via the Ministry of Education and Research and the European Social Fund programs. With the support of the latter, language training was undertaken by 11,000 public sector workers (including teachers, police officers, medical workers and librarians) as well as university and vocational school students, people with impaired vision and hearing and employees from the third sector.
The courses will be run with the support of the "Activities supporting integration in Estonian society" program of the European Social Fund. The total amount being invested in language training in 2015-2016 is 237,600 euros.
Those expressing an interest will be informed of the exact dates and venues of the courses by the organizers.
Editor: M. Oll