For more than four years the English-Speaking Society has offered informal instruction to newcomers who need assistance with a tongue that is not native to them: a recent immigrant, for example, or a secondary-school or college student from abroad, or a professional who has been brought to these shores by an embassy or by a multinational corporation. In most instances the pupils who sign up for help through English in Action have a fair grasp of the fundamentals of our language; they merely wish to acquire the basic skills in vocabulary, pronunciation, and usage that belong to those who have lived in an English-speaking society for an extensive period of time.

Volunteers who work with participants in English in Action tend to be ordinary citizens with normal proficiency, but no special training, in the use of conversational English. They arrange sessions with their pupils at mutually convenient times, and they spend an hour or so per get-together discussing any topics that seem pertinent.

Many of these gatherings take place in tutors' homes or offices; others may occur in locales as varied as a museum, a school, a library, or a restaurant. It's not unusual for tutors to become deeply involved in learning about the cultural backgrounds of their pupils, and in many cases these associations lead to rich and long-lasting friendships.