Edward Thorndike said that, “Colors fade, temples crumble, empires fall, but wise words endure.” I suppose in a lot of ways though we often tend to associate our words with our language but if we are willing to look at the course of human history it seems telling that language is only telling of the empire to which it subscribes and as such tends to break down in meaning and understanding as the powers that be do.

I guess I share that in light of an English as a Second Language group I just started in our Expressions Community. Words are powerful; especially when you consider that they have the ability to shape the way things are created and the way people and society’s live their lives (John 1:1- 3). (more…)

Oscar Garza is a Latino construction worker whose picture appeared in the July 2006 issue of “Salud: A Health and Safety Quarterly for Farm Workers and the People who Serve Them.” The construction worker Oscar Garza is one of the many immigrants who are changing the face of New Orleans. In the picture, he stands below a sign that says “N’awlins style poboys sold here.”

Garza was one of the speakers at a symposium titled “La Nueva Orleans? Race and Immigration in Post-Katrina America.” Organized by Zocalo Public Square, a Los Angeles not-for-profit, Friday’s gathering examined the impact of immigrants as experienced in the United States in general and New Orleans in particular.

Much of what has happened and will happen in New Orleans as result of the Latino influx is not surprising. In fact, it has already happened in other parts of the country.

“If you are seeing a substantial influx in young Latino males coming here, you know to start planning to expand your kindergarten classes and to hire (English as a Second Language) teachers in five to seven years, ” said Roberto Sura, a professor at the University of Southern California’s Annenburg School of Journalism. (more…)

English is a very complicated to learn as a second language. It has a lot of inconsistencies, which means that there are a lot of things for people learning the language to remember. For that reason, it’s important to set small goals when learning English so that you don’t start to feel overwhelmed.

Overall, any person who is learning English as a second language probably has the same long-term goal, and that is to speak the language fluently. That is the sort of goal that can take years and years to achieve, so it’s important to set small goals that can be achieved in relatively short amounts of time. That can help keep things from becoming frustrating and make each goal seem more attainable. (more…)

Rowan University’s College of Education has been awarded a $3.2 million federal grant over the next five years to provide students with urban teaching experiences, expand math and science training and improve professional development, officials said.

A focus of the grant money enables Rowan to pair at least 25 graduate students over the next half decade with urban schools for rare extended teacher-mentorship relationships in high-need subject areas such as math, science and Spanish.

This new program requires students to pair with an urban school district such as Camden and spend at least one year developing skills for urban school teaching. (more…)

With English speaking students volunteering for the English as a Second Language conversation partner program, ESL students could learn about American culture and daily uses for English.

Some students believe some aspects of the program could use improvement.

“They focused on how to do a test and how to read,” Sara Al-Ghamdi, a freshman from Saudi Arabia, said.

Al-Ghamdi said she believes there was not enough focus on conversation that these students will experience each day.

Other students agreed. (more…)

English in India has a unique identity of its own. With such a big population of people speaking the language, it could really influence the way English is spoken in the future.

The perception of English in India is best described in a very famous Indian film, called Namak Halalâ (can be translated as -Loyal To The Hand That Feeds You).

Its protagonist, played by the superstar Amitabh Bachchan, when looking for work in a fancy hotel is asked if he can speak English? (more…)

Highline Community College is now offering free ESL (English as a Second Language) classes at the Federal Way Community Center on Mondays and Wednesdays from 8:00 a.m . to 10:00 a.m. Classes will run through December 7 and then re-start in January.

Classes are available to all and are offered on an open enrollment basis: students may start the class on any day and register when they arrive, but are expected to attend the sessions thereafter.

ESL classes help students learn Englsh at every level, including those who speak no English. (more…)

Luis Mejia plays a vital role in the Kane County criminal justice system. He is a professional interpreter, sharing a load of about 700 cases a week with interpreter counterparts in the Elgin Branch Court.

Mejia’s job is to translate orally what is said in the courtroom into Spanish for defendants, witnesses and victims who don’t understand English. He also translates their responses back to English for the court.

Although born in the United States, he spent his early years in Mexico. When he began grade school in the United States, Mejia only spoke Spanish, and the English language gave him trouble through middle school.

In high school, English as a Second Language classes helped Mejia become fluent, and today he works doing medical and legal interpretation for Interlate Systems Inc., a well-established interpretation/translation service in Aurora. (more…)