ELTAP: UMM's English Language Teaching Assistant Program

Don't just travel!

Looking for more than the average international experience? Then consider UMM's Engish Language Teaching Assistant Program (ELTAP). With ELTAP, you don't just visit, you contribute...to the children, the teachers, and the entire community of an exciting and enriching international destination. ELTAP—for those who want more than a trip.

ELTAP at UMM is open to all eligible college and university students.

Eligibility and selection
"I'm fluent in English. Is that enough?" The English Language Teaching Assistant Program (ELTAP) is a short term study/volunteer international experience for English language speakers offered by the University of Minnesota, Morris. ELTAP participants become part of another culture and community sharing knowledge of their culture and language with teachers and students studying English. In return they experience life in another culture as no tourist can and earn credit toward an undergraduate or graduate degree or a certificate for international service. ELTAP is open to students from all colleges and universities of any field of study and non-degree seeking adults who want a meaningful international experience. Graduate credit and certificate options are also available.

Prerequisites:

1. Completion of one year of college or univrsity study with a minimum GPA of 2.75 or alternative status
2. Clarity and fluency in spoken English
3. Interest in helping people in another country learn English

ELTAP participants are NOT necessarily:

preparing to be teachers of English as a foreign language
studying to be a teacher
familiar with the school system or culture in which they are assigned
skilled in any instructional procedures

Placements and orientation
ELTAP placements are four or ten weeks in length. Placements in the Northern hemisphere are during the September to June school year and in the Southern hemisphere during the February to December school year. Participants will receive information about their responsibilities, travel, the hos country and its educational system, classroom techniques for assisting teachers of English, English grammar, and processes that improve the effectiveness of cross-cultural communication.

Faculty and assignments
ELTAP faculty (professional educators around the world) are committed to assuring a successful experience for all ELTAP participants, especially the students we seek to serve in host schools. They accomplish this by fostering effective relationships among school teachers and administrators, university personnel, and each ELTAP participant. ELTAP assistants participate in three to four class sessions (clock hours) each school day for five days a week during their placement in the host school. Participants are expected to fulfill responsibilities and often assist in co-curricular and other activities in the school.

Enrollment options, expenses, and financial aid
No fee or salary is paid to the ELTAP participant. Participants are responsible for arrangements and expenses associated with their own travel and room and board. University of Minnesota students may use their financial aid for ELTAP expenses. Other colleges can arrange for their students to use financial aid for ELTAP expenses. UMM's Continuing Education & Regional Programs Office cannot provide financial aid for participants in ELTAP.

Participants in ELTAP enroll for undergraduate or graduate university credit or for a non-credit certificate through one of six options. Each enrollment option has appropriate reporting and assessment requirements that are detailed in the relevant course syllabus or guideline. All participants are expected to:

serve the host school and students effectively by helping students and teachers, for whom English is a foreign language, improve their oral communication skills in English

complete a minimum of four to a maximum of a ten week assignment when school is in session (not including school holidays)

complete written assignments as required

Questions?
Free free to e-mail Dr. Pam Solvie, UMM's interim director of ELTAP. Also, remember to visit your campus international programs office to learn more about the educational system, culture, politics and economy of your host country.

Application materials