The College’s award-winning Conversation Café has marked the New Year with an international foods event at the Taunton campus Learning Resources Centre (LRC).

ESOL (English for Speakers of other Languages) students, their teachers, LRC staff and international colleagues came together and shared food from all over the world and exchanged recipes. They learnt about New Year customs and traditions in different countries including Wassailing, a joyful celebration of sharing and singing that is held every January in cider-producing areas of England. The students saw a representation of a cup that symbolises a drink of apples and spices used to toast the blessing of ‘Good Health’.

The Conversation Café is a weekly opportunity for students to practise conversational English in a friendly and supportive environment. Learners originally come from Ukraine, France, Romania, Russia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Afghanistan, Albania, Nigeria, Brazil, Spain, Turkey, Venezuela, Iran, Hong Kong, Japan, Syria, Bangladesh and India.

Miki, a student from Japan, said,

Before I joined the Conversation Café, I couldn’t speak English at all. It’s been a year and a half since I started here, and my English has improved. I prepared chicken karaage for the international food event, and it’s always a great experience to share and try different things.

Jolanta Peters, Research & Library Services Manager, explained,

Over 30 students and staff joined our unique Conversation Café event to mark the start of the New Year. We are proud that it has become an annual tradition to celebrate the Conversation Café with international foods to promote diversity, multicultural blending and learning from one another. The Café also promotes reading and student engagement in wider LRC initiatives to support their literacy development and lifelong enjoyment of reading.

Following the event, the students borrowed books from the LRC to take part in the Reading Ahead challenge, run in collaboration with the Reading Agency which enables students to receive a certificate of completion when they finish reading six books.

The College runs ESOL courses for young people and for adults. Find out more about the course for 16–18-year-olds here, and the adult course here.