Empowering migrant professionals: Strategies for effective language teaching
- Dana Taylor
- May 5
- 6 min read
In this post, we'll dive into a topic that’s incredibly important for ESOL teachers: helping migrant professionals, especially internationally qualified nurses (IQNs), integrate into workplace and social settings through effective language teaching.
The ability to navigate workplace conversations and position oneself within a professional community isn’t just about language—it’s about their sense of professional self. How do migrant professionals feel when entering a New Zealand workplace? How does communication shape their professional identity and relationships with colleagues?
This post is all about turning research into practice. I’ll share practical strategies that you can bring into your classrooms—whether you teach in person or online.
Workplace Realities and Language Needs
As teachers, we see firsthand how language goes beyond grammar and vocabulary—it’s about confidence, culture, and connection. In my research, internationally qualified nurses highlighted key challenges:
Shifting their communication style to match New Zealand’s informal workplace culture
Navigating hierarchy differences—some migrant nurses come from countries where strict professional hierarchies shape workplace interactions
Understanding Kiwi slang and cultural nuances—words and phrases like ‘sweet as,’ ‘chocka,’ and even indirect communication styles can feel unfamiliar
Experiencing workplace challenges, including bullying and exclusion, which can impact their professional identity
This raises an important question: How can teachers help migrant professionals gain the language tools to confidently navigate these situations?
Classroom-Based Strategies (Face-to-Face and Online)
Story-Led Conversations
What is a Story-Led Conversation Prompt?
A story-led conversation prompt is a structured discussion tool designed to help migrant professionals share their real-life workplace interactions in a way that deepens their understanding of professional communication and identity.
Rather than simply asking learners to describe an experience, this approach encourages reflection, dialogue, and analysis of workplace interactions—whether positive or challenging. Through story-led conversations, learners explore how their communication choices and workplace experiences shape their professional identity.
Story-led conversation prompts ceate a safe and supportive space where migrant professionals can:
express their workplace experiences
examine how they positioned themselves within the conversation, and
consider how different communication strategies influence workplace relationships.
Why Story-Led Conversations Matter for Migrant Professionals
For internationally qualified nurses, office workers, retail staff, and other migrant professionals, adapting to a new workplace culture can be complex. They may encounter unfamiliar workplace norms, indirect communication styles, hierarchy shifts, or even exclusion and bias.
By telling and analysing their own workplace stories, migrant professionals can:
Recognise patterns in their communication—what worked well and what created challenges.
Build workplace confidence—knowing how to navigate conversations effectively.
Understand professional identity positioning—how interactions shape their role within a team.
Learn from peers—hearing similar experiences fosters reflection and mutual support.
How a Story-Led Approach Supports Professional Identity Development
Professional identity is shaped by communication, relationships, and workplace culture. When migrant professionals reflect on their workplace stories, they begin to see how language, cultural expectations, and positioning affect their sense of belonging.
Through structured storytelling and guided conversation, ESOL learners practise expressing workplace challenges and successes while developing strategies for future interactions.
For example:
Nurses struggling with workplace hierarchy may realise that they can adapt their communication style to be more assertive while remaining professional.
Retail workers experiencing customer conflicts may learn that active listening and clarifying questions help avoid misunderstandings.
Migrant employees who felt excluded from team discussions may find strategies to engage more confidently with colleagues.
A story-led conversation prompt helps migrant professionals reflect on who they are within a workplace setting, how communication shapes their career pathways, and what strategies support long-term professional integration.
Story-Led Conversation Task: Workplace Interactions
The following Story-Led Conversation activity aligns with my research on workplace discourse and professional identity positioning. This pair-conversation task prompt has been designed for elementary to pre-intermediate level ESOL learners, featuring one person who works in an office and the other in a shop. The language level is kept simple while still encouraging workplace communication practice. This task builds workplace vocabulary, problem-solving, and confidence while keeping the conversation simple and structured.
Step 1: Setting the Scene
Teacher Introduction: "Today, we will practise talking about workplace experiences. You will share one story about a challenging situation and one about a successful situation at work.
One of you works in an office and the other in a shop. You will ask each other questions and talk about what happened."
Step 2: Conversation Task
Partner A: Sharing a Challenging Workplace Interaction
Instructions: Think about a challenging interaction at your workplace. Maybe you had a difficult conversation with a colleague, a customer, or your manager.
Talk about:
What happened?
Who was involved?
What did you say?
What did the other person say?
What did you do?
What happened at the end of the interaction?
(Example: "One day, my manager gave me too much work. I felt stressed. I asked my manager if I could finish some work tomorrow. My manager said yes. I felt better.")
Partner B: Asking Questions
Instructions: Listen to your partner's story. Ask questions to learn more.
Example questions:
What else did [your colleague] say?
How did you feel?
What did you do to solve the problem?
Step 3: Switching Roles
Partner B: Sharing a Positive Workplace Interaction
Instructions: Now, think about a positive workplace interaction you had with a colleague at work. Maybe you helped a customer, solved a problem, or worked well with a team member.
Talk about:
What happened?
Who was involved?
What did you say?
What did the other person say?
What went well?
What happened at the end of the conversation?
(Example: "One of my workmates could not find the coffee in our staffroom. I helped them. They said thank you. I felt happy.")
Partner A: Asking Questions
Instructions: Listen to your partner’s story. Ask questions about their experience.
Example questions:
What else did [your colleague] say?
How did you feel?
Step 4: Reflection & Discussion (Teacher-Led)
Instructions: Now, talk about what you learned.
Think again about your challenging and/or positive workplace interaction. Is there anything you would do or say differently?
What advice would you give another migrant professional in a similar situation?
What advice would you give to a manager of migrant professionals?
Teaching Tips
Use sentence starters for lower-level learners:
“One day, at work, I…”
“I had a problem with…”
“I felt…”
“To solve the problem, I…”
A story-led conversation prompt is inteneded to be more than just a discussion—it’s a bridge between migrant professionals' past experiences and future success. Role-play alternative responses so learners practise different communication styles.
For online learning, use breakout rooms on Zoom or Teams and ask learners to write key phrases on a shared whiteboard to share ideas.
Soft Skills and Assertiveness Training for Workplace Success
In addition to language skills, soft skills help professionals stand their ground in workplace settings. Teachers can help migrants develop their soft skills in the following ways:
Teach how to say ‘no’ diplomatically. Some migrant nurses struggle with refusing overwhelming workloads or speaking up in stressful situations.
Practise negotiation language at an appropriate language level, e.g., 'Can we find a solution that is good for us both?'
Use group discussions on workplace challenges. Students share experiences, analyse problems, and suggest solutions.
Bridging Cultural Gaps & Te Tiriti o Waitangi Principles
In many New Zealand workplaces, especially in regions like Gisborne, Hawke’s Bay, and Northland, an understanding of Māori protocols is essential for workplace interactions.
Teach key phrases in te reo Māori that learners might hear from colleagues.
Use real-life scenarios (e.g., understanding protocols around seating arrangements or greetings).
Encourage learners to reflect on their own cultural backgrounds and compare workplace expectations.
For online teaching, assign digital research tasks, where learners explore Treaty principles and their impact on New Zealand workplaces.
Sustaining Migrant Professionals Beyond the Classroom
We want migrant professionals to feel confident beyond the ESOL classroom.
Some strategies include:
Mentoring programmes—help learners practise professional conversations with experienced colleagues.
Encouraging peer learning—migrant professionals share their workplace stories with newer learners.
Teaching resilience and workplace rights—help learners identify bullying, know how to report it, and feel empowered to stand up for themselves.
For online teaching, create role-play scenarios and have learners brainstorm conversations as a whole class before practising workplace dialogues with peers.
Conclusion: The Role of Educators in Workplace Integration
As teachers, we have the power to shape how migrant professionals thrive in their workplaces.
This blog post has outlined practical strategies based on my doctoral research that teachers can implement immediately. For example, incorporating story-led conversation tasks in ESOL lessons ensures learners gain real-world communication tools, self-awareness in professional interactions, and a stronger sense of belonging in their workplace community.
By integrating language skills, soft skills, and cultural awareness into ESOL lessons, we do more than teach English—we equip learners to succeed in their careers and build meaningful relationships.
Closing Prompt for Reflection and Discussion
"What’s one classroom strategy you’d love to implement from this post?
Leave your reflections below...
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