How has English language teaching (ELT) developed in Senegal?
Senegal is a former French colony. Leopold Sedar Senghor, our first president, was a great intellectual, a man of culture. His vision was for people to master their own culture, while at the same time opening a window to the world. Language learning was introduced very early. Following independence in the 1960s, English became a compulsory subject in secondary school; it gained a remarkable place thanks to parents’ demands. In general, students receive 3 to 5 hours of English instruction per week. There have been a variety of innovations in teaching English to children, including • fostering a positive learning environment with the use of visual aids, such as posters, combined with the creation of effective learning situations that link saying and doing • using an effective communicative approach (with instruction in English, for example) • developing a child-centered learning process, with topics that children find interesting What are the main challenges related to ELT in Senegal tod
