In 1958, Richard Hugh Fisk opened the first Fisk school in Brazil and began offering English courses to students. He believed that his new technique, the Fisk Method, would help Brazilian English language learners succeed. The organization expanded throughout the years, and is now known as the Fisk Foundation. Through a variety of English language and educational programs, the Fisk Foundation contributes to the cultural and intellectual development of the local communities.
In 2014, Fisk administrators decided to add the Michigan English Test (MET) to their offerings. They knew that their students were successfully reaching their English proficiency goals, so they wanted to prove the validity of their teaching method by offering this international certification.
“Our intention was to validate our method using the high standards of an international institution.”
Students come to Fisk to improve their resumes by studying English and earning an international certification. At the end of the course, students take the MET, which Fisk offers four times per year.
“Speaking English is a great advantage when looking for a job, so most people who come to us are looking to improve their resumés and stand a better chance of succeeding in their careers. . . . The MET certification is an additional perk for our course.”
Fisk students are glad to prove their English with the MET and to use their international certification to achieve their educational and career goals. The administrators at Fisk are satisfied with their students’ success, which proves that their teaching method is working well. Additionally, the fact that MET is a multilevel exam that does not have pass/fail results is especially appealing to Fisk students, teachers, and administrators. Test users appreciate the score reports that show their English proficiency accomplishments.
“We have no doubt that choosing the MET as our end-of-course evaluation was the best decision we made, and having it added to our curriculum has certainly added more value to our courses.”
The MET has proven so valuable for Fisk that the foundation plans to continue to expand its use of other Michigan Tests, including by replacing its own proficiency examination with Michigan Language Assessment’s Examination for the Certificate of Proficiency in English (ECPE).