University of Southern Maine

Multicultural Education
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Kennedy Park ESL Collaborative Home

Introduction

Roles of Support Staff

Women in the Class

Work Efforts
- Student Work
- Tools of the Teaching Trade
- Customized teaching, learning/curriculum
- Assessment
- Certificate / Recognition

Future

Bibliography

Photo Gallery

Poster

Questions for Students (created by support staff)  

• What do you like about this class? What is different about it? What do you not like about it?
• How is the Kennedy Park class different from Portland Adult Education classes?
• Why do you come to class? What are your needs?
• If you do, how would you like your life to change? Is this class helping - - how?
• Has your life changed since you started taking this class? What is different about it now?
• Have you started to think about yourself in a new way since taking classes? About yourself as a learner?
• When you think about yourself as an adult learner, what other kinds of classes would you like to take in your life?
• If you are thinking about working, what kind of job would you like to do? What do you need to do before you think about work?
• How do you like having a much larger group, a class with many women from different cultures? What do you think about that?
• What do you think about having Americans teaching the class? Would it work better to have a Cambodian, Vietnamese…teacher?
• How do you like working with the teacher assistants who can talk in some of the students’ native languages?

Anh Huynh
April 11, 2003

A long time ago I go school in California.  I can’t remember.  I can’t learn. I went work in morning.  I go school at night.  When study here happy.  I am happy when I can understand language.  I like study here. People help me to understand.  Important, I don’t understand English well.  I speak Chinese, Vietnamese, Cambodian and English a little.  I like to go to work. When lobster open I go back to work.  I work Barber Foods four months.  I very cold and dizzy from machine.   I speak Chinese at home two sons and daughter.  I’m Vietnamese.  My mom was born in Hong Kong.

Rath Chea
May 28, 2003  

I like learn about speak, read. I talk a lot sometime.  It look fun.  I like your better. Over there at adult school they’re too high. Here they help me out a lot. Caroline sometimes, I don’t understand….. you all help.

More confident about reading now. Reading kid books… I like that.  Sometimes I read to my niece. She goes to school so she ask me a lot questions.

Citizenship test is too expensive.  I wanted to go to Cambodia but passport is too expensive. I wait next year.  My parents make temple over there.  I want to take my grandmother over there.  

I like to work at Asian Market part-time, when they need me.  I help them a lot. I put everything away - - vegetables, some meat, some stuff. I unpack vegetables. Sometimes a lot of people come and sometimes it’s quiet.

Yan Kim
March 27, 2003  

I like to come to class because I don’t work.  The teacher helps me to read and write. Now I can read a little bit. Sometimes I like to speak English. 

At home I have five children. I need to wash, clean. Sometimes I’m tired.  I like to be quiet. I talk to Lauren. I’m happy with everything. I’m too busy to take more classes. This is better for me. I don’t have money to fix my car but I drive. In June I work at lobster. Now I come to class. I like class.

Anh Duong
March 25, 2003     

I really like the class because there are many people from too many countries. People are very friendly. I get time to practice my English here. I like to practice reading and writing. Here we do that, I like to go to school.  Someday I want to work doing nails. I think you need a high school diploma for that. 

I come here.  If I don’t I just stay at home. At home I speak my language. That’s why I want to come to class. I want to write, to speak. At home I don’t want my daughter to loose my language.

After I come to this class a couple of times I speak English a lot. I speak more. I speak to my friends. My English is better even after a few classes. I could tell. If I go to school I can help my daughter with her homework. Mothers from Korea , from Somalia they must go to school. If they don’t go to school they cannot help their children with their homework.

It is helpful to have Caroline and Lauren because they are very helpful. If I go to Adult Education no one can help me. Here that’s much better. I see people talk to Susan when they have trouble, when something is wrong. They can talk to her. I never try, but maybe someday I will need to talk, if I have trouble. I like that they are very close to students.

I feel better about myself and I learn about other people in the class. I know about the culture, about Sudan and other countries.  If I stay home I don’t learn. Sometimes I help people. I learn from you and if I can help some people I help them. If I go to Adult Education it’s very difficult, you are by yourself.
 

Be Thai
April 1, 2003  

Every time somebody help me they can help me. The Able class, they read so fast, I don’t understand. Now hard to understand the voice, they need to repeat.

Now I speak more English. I like to come to class. I learn how to write and how the language works. I worked for the American Army and I could understand Thai, Lao..many languages. After I fell down and had my accident, I don’t remember. My brain hurts.

Together we have fun, feel sad. I can’t walk sometimes, my shoulder hurts and the cold bothers my body.

Sometimes if I don’t understand Minh can explain so I understand better. This class is good for me. My brain hurts all the time. I can’t remember anything. If I didn’t fall I would be working. I would remember everything. Now my brain hurts all the time - - it makes me crazy.

Sokhon Sen
May 29, 2003

I want to talk and read and write.  I like talking and reading and writing.  I want to talk and read.  When I stay home I boring.  My talking is better because I talk with somebody.  I like to write about my family.

Right now I need Caroline help me apply for a job in laundry at Maine Medical Center.  I worked in laundry in Ithaca, New York for two years.

Now I have green card. I am so happy. My husband sponsor me. I wait twelve years for this.  I got it last week.  Maybe now I want to study for citizenship.

Ubah & Safia
May 1, 2003

I’m learning English. It is good to speak. Many people, many students in the class. We enjoy very much the class. All the students and teachers I like – Linda, Hibo. I like Susan, Caroline, Lauren, Minh.

In future I will stay in this class. I want to learn English very well. I want to speak English because I want to speak my children’s’ teachers, my doctors. I want to work, clean, housekeeper in a hotel. I work two years at Best Western in South Portland Saturday and Sunday only. I clean room and make beds and clean bathroom. I dust, do trash. I want to go afternoon to Portland Adult Education.

I’m understand now two months in class. Many people I like and many countries: Vietnam, Somalia, Sudan, Canada, Ethiopia, USA, in here.

Lan Nguyen
May 1, 2003

I like this class because you good teacher; you help me read and write and understand English. I like stay here because me no feel good. My head, I don’t want to think too much.

I want to understand English. I can speak English. I want to understand how to read. I think I am a good student. Something I don’t understand you help me.

Everybody in class same as me. Nobody speak English, come school learn. When I feel better I work. Maybe women here help me sell flowers I grow.

Tsega
April 1, 2003  

I wan to learn language. I want to know more English and get any kind of job cleaning house. It helps me explaining in my language - - it is better sometimes. I like to continue school up to GED.

An Sok
May 1, 2003

I like to learn English very good. I go school hair cut. When I got my license maybe I apply job hair.

A lot Linda, Minh, and people help me to find words I don’t understand and how to write. When I go to Able school nobody help me - - thirty people, only one teacher. I can’t hear too.

I need English, write, find words, listen. I like to meet friends. When I go to Able, a lot twenty-three, twenty-four students, when speaking look fun. I meet good friend here. I get driver’s license and then I help her too.

Nguon Thiv
March 27, 2003

It’s short from my house. I have time to take care of my mother and children and come to class. I like to learn English because I don’t have language when I come to the U.S. I like to know about language so I can help my children. I know reading stories a little bit. I like stories. Sometime I’m upset, my father pass away. Sometimes I’m proud. I look at his picture. I talk about him. I write about him.

When I don’t come to class I miss out. I don’t mind people come here black and white. I share, they are like my family. We learn language. I’m glad about that.

My sons help me at home. My son thirteen is in the 6^th grade. When I grow up in Khmer Rouge I have no school. I’m proud about my son. This class makes it easy. I like school. When I miss school one day I’m lost. I miss my family. I want to learn. Everyday I learn.