“I want to know everything that the doctor is saying when I take my child to doctor appointments.”
In July, nine students graduated from the first English as a Second Language (ESL) course for Parents and Little Scholars (PALS) alumni. The brand new curriculum specifically focuses on the needs that PALS students have shared with The Literacy Coalition. Asked how English language skills could help them in their lives, parents indicated that they want to be able to communicate better with their children’s teachers and doctors, help their children with school, and feel more confident engaging with others in English.
Zoila Estrella Burrego Rodriguez, mother to three, says that she feels “really excited because I learned a lot” and that she would “absolutely recommend the class to someone else.” The ESL course builds on what families have learned during the PALS program, incorporating parenting skills, early childhood development, and real-life scenarios families experience into English language acquisition. Role playing scenarios, like going to the doctor, was one of Zoila Estrella’s favorite activities during class.
Born in California and spending much of her life in Mexico prior to moving to Texas, Zoila Estrella says that she understands quite a bit of English but wants to be able to speak the language more. Using our evidence-based instructional model called English Forward, all Literacy Coalition ESL classes aim to have students speaking as much as possible during class time, so that they can gain the skills and the practice they need to build confidence and conversational proficiency.
In this pilot course to introduce ESL instruction into our PALS family education program, the classes covered vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation, numbers, and more. By using games and creating a comfortable online class environment, students were able to practice their new language skills in a safe community, taking chances in an encouraging atmosphere.
“The teachers were great; always there to help us stay motivated. They were always passionate,” Zoila Estrella says about the two ESL instructors leading the course. While she says that she has improved in all areas, and has the learning gains to prove it, Zoila Estrella tells us that she felt her pronunciation was one of the biggest things holding her back from speaking in English.
Now that she has worked on those skills during the 15-week course, she is able to speak with more confidence. Since the class, Zoila Estrella practices wherever she can, no longer fearing speaking English with people like her car insurance agent.
This ESL course came at just the right time for Zoila Estrella, as her children will be entering a new school this fall. The children’s previous school was bilingual Spanish-English and their new school will be English only. She knows that her new English skills will enable her to help them in the new school year and beyond.