"It's Not Easy for Us, But We Are Here": A Study of How Speaking, Listening, Reading, Writing, and Mothering Shaped Language Learning During a Global Pandemic

The purpose of this research study was to explore how the four domains of language, speaking, listening, reading, and writing, were taught in a workplace adult English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) course and to recognize what factors contributed to the variance in teaching certain language domains over others. I was ultimately interested in learning how these possible variances may influence student knowledge and use of the language in a workplace environment. Through field observations and one-on-one interviews with the course instructor and four student participants, I collected qualitative data for this small-scale research project. Data analysis was centered around the theoretical framework of constructivism to situate English language learners (ELLs) at the center of the course's curriculum and pedagogical practices. Findings highlighted the language domains as well as well as other themes related to gender, motherhood, COVID-19, and the role and identity of instructors.