Dr. de Oliveira selected for prestigious project

The associate dean’s project with the U.S. Department of State will focus on multiliteracies and genre-based pedagogy in Vietnam at Ho Chi Minh City Open University.

Headshot of Luciana de Oliveira, Ph.D., taken August 2021.
Luciana C. de Oliveira, Ph.D.

The U.S. Department of State has selected Luciana C. de Oliveira, Ph.D., associate dean for academic affairs and graduate studies in the VCU School of Education, for an English Language Specialist project focusing on multiliteracies and genre-based pedagogy in Vietnam at Ho Chi Minh City Open University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Dr. de Oliveira is part of a select group, as her project is one of approximately 240 that the English Language Specialist Program supports each year. She will deliver a virtual keynote and workshop at the 10th OpenTESOL International Conference 2022 to be held May 27-28 at Ho Chi Minh City Open University. Her keynote is entitled “A Pedagogy of Multiliteracies for English as an Additional Language Classrooms” and her workshop is entitled “A Genre-based Approach to Writing Instruction for Multilingual Learners.”

The English Language Specialist Program is the premier opportunity for leaders in the field of teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) to enact meaningful and sustainable changes in the way that English is taught abroad. Through projects developed by U.S. Embassies in more than 80 countries, English Language Specialists work directly with local teacher trainers, educational leaders, and ministry of education officials to exchange knowledge, build capacity and establish partnerships benefiting participants, institutions and communities in the United States and overseas.

Since 1991, the English Language Specialist Program has supported in-country, virtual and mixed projects in which hundreds of TESOL scholars and educators promote English language learning, enhance English teaching capacity, and foster mutual understanding between the U.S. and other countries through cultural exchange. During their projects, English Language Specialists may conduct intensive teacher training, advise ministries of education or participate in high-level educational consultations, and offer plenary presentations at regional, national or international TESOL conferences. These projects are challenging and those selected represent the best of the U.S. TESOL community.