Surviving and Thriving in a New Stage I LINC Class

We live in interesting times in the national LINC program. In 2026, 29 years since CLB 5 programming was introduced, LINC will cease offering English instruction at CLB 5, 6, 7, and 8. Add to that funder-mandated cost-saving program cuts, and many teachers will be scrambling for a new job. If they stay in LINC, they will need to adapt their teaching approach to be successful with Stage I LINC learners. This means adapting the style of communication used in the classroom, the pacing of lessons and approach to instructions and activities, and importantly, the choice of teaching materials. Changing to a new CLB level and making all these adaptations is stressful! From the combined 130+ years experience in the LINC and EAL fields of the presenters, feeling comfortable at a new CLB level can take several months of trial and error; more if the teacher is new or newer to teaching and classroom management. Over that time, teachers can become frustrated and exhausted, especially when learners don’t understand and don’t progress. In this hands-on workshop, the ISSofBC LINC Instructional Coordinator team will provide guidance and direction to participants on how to adapt their teaching approach to a new LINC teaching assignment and much more quickly meet the needs of Stage I CLB level learners. Both new and experienced teachers will learn how to adjust their classroom and written communication to the CLB Profile of Ability of learners; how to choose appropriate materials based on the CLB Features of Communication; and what interactive, communicative lesson delivery needs to look like for Stage I CLB learners to succeed. Teachers will walk away feeling better prepared and more confident to thrive in a new teaching assignment in Stage I LINC.