English language schools, like other travel-related businesses, have suffered a dramatic setback in the last two years due to the disruption caused by COVID.
So it was good to hear that the situation is improving. This summer promises to be significantly better than last year, Times of Malta has reported. Still, the language school business needs to develop a survival kit as new challenges loom.
The Federation of English Language Teaching Organisations (FELTOM) is cautiously optimistic about the recovery prospects of the industry. Caroline Tissot, FELTOM CEO, told this newspaper that “the numbers (of bookings) are encouraging and last-minute bookings are constantly coming in, so things are looking up and are very positive”.
However, Andrew Mangion, chief executive of EC English Language Centres, which has schools in all the leading countries where English is taught, appealed for “realistic” expectations as old and new challenges continue to confront the industry.
After the elimination of COVID-related travel restrictions in all countries, the war in Ukraine is likely to have an impact on all language schools in Europe. The increase in fuel prices will impact the cost of travelling, while general inflation will make student stays less affordable.
Moreover, countries that promote English language teaching, like Ireland, the UK, Canada and Australia, are striving to become more competitive by offering a better experience to language students.
The local English language teaching industry’s main competitive advantage is the lower cost of learning in Malta. Like all other local travel-related ventures, low-cost-low-return strategies have significant risks that taxpayers cannot underwrite for long.
During the pandemic, some language schools in competing destinations, such as Ireland and the UK, adapted their operations to provide online classes, where teachers were requested to teach live on-screen for six hours a day. Many teachers were discharged and others decided to leave the industry because they could no longer tolerate the employment insecurity. Malta’s tight labour market poses a similar risk for the industry that needs to be addressed.
In a 2021 Financial Times article, Mangion said that “the UK is still an aspirational destination” for many potential students. This was noted in the context of the challenges that high-cost English language schools face in Ireland and the UK, especially after travel constraints following Brexit.
FELTOM members need to exploit the challenges facing high-cost destinations by offering a still more competitive package to prospective students.
The industry acknowledges that it needs “to learn from its mistakes” of last year. Some language schools only stayed open because the government offered generous support with taxpayers’ money.
The government can offer further help by emulating the measures taken by Australia and Ireland to entice students to choose them as destinations to learn English. Both countries provide accredited language courses that offer students the right to work up to 20 hours a week to defray the cost of their studies. Such a measure could also help the catering and accommodation establishments ease some of the pressures caused by a critical shortage of staff.
The medium and long-term effects of rising inflation remain uncertain. Educational tourism generates extensive economic benefits. But the industry needs to review its strategies to attract the kind of students likely to sustain the industry’s survival over the longer term.
The survival kit for the industry, like that of other travel-related ventures, must include a commitment to invest in the often scarce and elusive commodity that is often defined as a “quality experience”.