Kirsi Sorri, Technology Industries of Finland | Assistant, Industry Networks
Kirsi Sorri, assistant for industry networks at Technology Industries of Finland (Teknologiateollisuus ry), has been studying English on Promentor Web and in contact training groups since autumn 2013, as long as this opportunity has been offered in the organization. Other languages would also be of interest, but finding time to study them is difficult. However, in Kirsi's work, English is the most important language. For example, Swedish speakers usually start work conversations in English, though in a relaxed Nordic group setting the language might switch to Swedish as well.
Especially when Promentor Web was first introduced at Technology Industries of Finland, Kirsi studied actively online. Nowadays, leisure time is filled with many other mandatory chores that take time away from language study. For that reason in particular, Promentor's contact training of 1.5 hours in the middle of the workday is a really good thing – it prompts active language practice. When there is contact training, at least something gets done online as well. The trainer is welcome to assign real homework that is reviewed in class. That way learning is effective.
Kirsi believes a lot could be gained from Promentor Web if one had time to study properly even twice a week. On Promentor Web, language learning is supported by immediate feedback on exercises, freedom to study as much and whenever one wants, the ability to test one's skills multiple times, and material that certainly won't run out. As challenges, Kirsi experienced the varying difficulty level of tasks and strict penalties for small mistakes. (Note: Scoring becomes more flexible in the Promentor Web 2.0 version released in autumn.)
Technology Industries of Finland has always offered contact training to its employees, for instance hiring an English teacher from the university. Every now and then there are various training days, and EK has also organized training. Contact language training is a good way to learn because it activates speech; practice happens weekly with direct corrections and feedback from a skilled trainer. In training, it is important to cover domain-specific vocabulary. A good exercise, for example, was having everyone talk about their own job. An added benefit of training is often getting to know colleagues better, as there might not otherwise be time for socializing. Naturally, it is important to like the trainer's personality, but in the best case, contact training also brings colleagues closer together. According to Kirsi, English contact training encourages language learning and supports progress, which is one of the main goals of Promentor's training programs.
By combining online and contact training, results in language learning have started to show. After two years of study, Kirsi's English proficiency rose by one full level. Largely inspired by the training, Kirsi has started reading at least a couple of English books a year, and book discussions are held with the trainer too. Kirsi understands English extremely well in seminars, and is no longer nervous about speaking the language with colleagues or in other workplace situations.
