Who are we and why do we exist?
The E4L ENGLISH4LIFE STORY
Witnessing the Wonder of Life
through the wonder of language
by way of lifelong learning
as a labor of love
What does it mean to learn to listen to Life’s call by receiving the wonder of language and to respond to Life’s call by caring for it; conveying this wondrous gift of language, which carries so much grace and so much power, in a way that treads with responsibility and reverence — that is, with wondrous virtue?
E4L ENGLISH4LIFE intends to enable prospective learners to pursue this question as an invitation to a living learning quest, a journey of learning by way of discovery. We are committed to supporting learners in the pursuit of life-enriching learning through the wonder of language by way of compassionate communication…for a life worth living.
e4l english4life
Life-enriching learning via the wonder of language by way of compassionate communication
Founded by Ali Galestan in Karlsruhe, Germany, in 2014, E4L ENGLISH4LIFE is an aspiring adult education and lifelong learning service provider intent on helping learners from all walks of life discover life-enriching learning for a life worth living.
E4L ENGLISH4LIFE does this by accompanying learners on live, immersive, conversational learning quests through the wondrous gateway of language by way of empathetic communication.
These English-language learning adventures become the way (or the means) through which learners integrate the personal, family, social and professional domains of their lives. We welcome learners from all walks of life, regardless of whether they are business professionals (managers, directors, consultants etc.), students (high school and university students) or lifelong learners; organizations, cultural institutions, or businesses.
Instead of settling for artificial constructs, impersonal methods, and rigid, imposed curriculums that estrange learners from the wonder of life-enriching learning, we intend to draw upon the innate, native ability of learners and begin with their actual immersion in life’s persistent challenges and promising prospects. The learners’ lives become the very “learning materials” — the “books of life” and “websites” of discovery — for fresh, interactive language-and-communication learning adventures. In this way, E4L continually strives for organic, integral, transformative, sustainable learning that emerges live from the lives of learners themselves.
We are committed to helping learners and learning organizations discover the wonder of language as the gateway to life-enriching learning, meaningful communication, and a life worth living. By growing in fluency and confidence in language learning and communication and appreciating language as a window or gateway to life-enriching learning and a fulfilling life, learners may even come to face their personal and professional challenges with a deepened sense of mindfulness, wonder, empathy, resilience, and appreciation.
Because Life is happening live and its meaning is being conveyed live through the various languages in use in each unique life-world, 1.) being present and attentive to the signs of Life, 2.) opening up and receiving the gift of language with humility and gratitude, 3.) cultivating care and growing in responsibility for the flow of meaning through language, and 4.) becoming a vessel of authentic, empathetic communication through which words of wonder and the grammar of life flow to where they must and where they may…is of the essence!
Ali Galestan aspires to be a life-long learner of Life’s wondrous languages of meaning by traversing the various domains, horizons and life-worlds through which he’s led, seeking to listen to and comprehend the meaning of what Life is conveying here and now (and there and then). Over the last twenty-five years, therefore, he has assumed various roles, including that of academic research assistant, reference librarian, university English instructor, English-language communication trainer, in-house corporate language and communication coach, learning consultant, pedagogical advisor and English-language proofreader and editor. E4L ENGLISH4LIFE was born as a living confluence of those different streams of learning and discovery.
Throughout his journey of growing as a lifelong learner, Ali Galestan has sought to support prospective learners in discovering and developing their language, communication and learning proficiency in a way that is life-enriching — that is, inspiring, intentional, effective, and meaningful. This extends all the way back to his time as a university student, research assistant and teaching assistant at The University of Virginia, continues to his graduate studies and teaching roles at the University of Toronto, on to his roles as university instructor of English at The University of Education Weingarten and at The University of Applied Sciences Karlsruhe (HsKA) in Germany, all the way to the founding and ongoing development of E4L ENGLISH4LIFE (2014 - present).
Ability as a native speaker of English, a passion for the wonder of language and communication, more than two decades of teaching experience in both the university and corporate contexts, and a commitment to learning as a way of life have all been crucial in helping Ali support learners on their journeys of learning via English. But above all, it has been the exemplary souls whose lives have been a testament to the way of knowing, loving, and serving that have left an indelible imprint upon his soul and inspired him to intend to follow…