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English Language Learning Resources for Refugees and New Immigrants and Americans

Refugees, immigrants, and new Americans make up over half of the student population in WIOA -funded adult education programs in Virginia. As of the 2023-2024 program year, 57% of adult education students were enrolled to learn English, and over 3,700 foreign-educated students were internationally trained professionals with a postsecondary degree or credential.

The information and resources on this page can be used to support newly arrived refugees, immigrants, and new Americans with accessing English language learning opportunities through federally-funded adult education programs, community-based organizations, or other educational materials. This additional resource can be provided to newcomers to support their access to programs and materials for learning English.

Refugees will need assistance with downloading applications to their phones and with learning how to navigate through the learning application that they are using. Most applications will require login credentials, so refugees will need support in creating and documenting their login information and potentially will need support in creating email accounts if the application they are using requires an email address. The following resources provide best practices for onboarding and orienting learners to mobile learning.

It is helpful to create onboarding guides (offering these guides in video is also an effective practice) for refugees to follow to support the downloading and navigation of the mobile applications for learning. To see models of these guides, see this resource from Literacy Minnesota. This resource shows guides for using Zoom, Google Meet, and WhatsApp; however, these can be used as models for creating guides for English language learning mobile applications. In addition, there are several YouTube videos available that can be used to help onboard refugees. 

Information to include in the orientation and onboarding for independent digital learning:

  • Steps for downloading the application
  • Keyboard literacy
  • How to log into the application and save login information 
  • How to navigate the sections of the application
  • How to set up notifications for the application
  • How to use closed captions 
  • How to set up language preferences in the applications when applicable
  • How to use translation services if necessary 

Literacy education and second language learning for adults (LESLLA) learners are defined as adults who are learning to read and write for the first time in their lives in a new language. For more information on LESLLA learners, please see the LESLLA website.

The links in this section direct you to the website for the application; however, all of these are available for free download for mobile or tablet devices. 

These resources are not endorsed by the Virginia Adult Learning Resource Center or the Virginia Department of Education.

While the language used in the resources will most likely be above level for a majority of the refugee population, these resources also have visuals and videos that can be used to help model and scaffold how to use digital devices, tools, and common applications. 

These resources are not endorsed by the Virginia Adult Learning Resource Center or the Virginia Department of Education.

These resources can be a good place to start when providing learners with introductory English language lessons. Most of these resources can be printed out and distributed to refugees. Refugees will most likely need someone to read written words out loud and to work with a translation service, like Google Translate, in order to understand new vocabulary. 

These resources are not endorsed by the Virginia Adult Learning Resource Center or the Virginia Department of Education.

Teaching English

These resources can be used to train English language tutors and to locate adult education programs in your area.

These resources are already developed and free resources that tutors or instructors can use for English language instruction. These resources include digital and print options. 

Additional materials can be found in VALRC’s ESOL Literacy Toolkit.

Websites:

These resources are not endorsed by the Virginia Adult Learning Resource Center or the Virginia Department of Education.

Adult Education Resources

  • Connecting refugees to adult education: Connect refugees or community liaisons with adult education providers in the resettlement community. Adult education providers offer English language classes; civics, digital literacy, and workforce preparation instruction; and integrated education and training to earn in-demand industry-recognized credentials. Providers also connect learners to other community workforce development services.  Provider Directory for Adult Education Services
  • The Virginia Adult Learning Resource Center: This resource was curated by the Virginia Adult Learning Resource Center (VALRC) which provides technical assistance, resources, and professional development for adult education programs in Virginia. For more information on adult education resources in Virginia.

This Google Slide presentation can be used to introduce learners and partners to adult education services.

Additional Refugee/Immigrant Serving Organizations

These are additional organizations that provide services to the refugee and immigrant community.

To see other refugee/immigrant serving organizations, please see this resource from the Office of New Americans.