Dear listers,

Below is a message related to the adult ESL/ESOL and learning disabilities discussion cross-posted from the Focus on Basics list. The email is from a practitioner in a correctional setting. I wondered whether some practitioners on this list may have some comments to share.  Thanks

Lynda Terrill
English language list moderator
lterrill at cal.org

**************** 

-----Original Message-----
From: focusonbasics-bounces at nifl.gov [mailto:focusonbasics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of iris.broudy at SDH.state.ma.us
Sent: Friday, February 17, 2006 9:30 AM
To: focusonbasics at nifl.gov
Subject: [FocusOnBasics] a lament
Importance: Low

Thanks to Robin for hosting this discussion.  I have no answers to specific questions posed this week, but I feel a need to use this forum to express my frustration and sense of helplessness.  I hope you will indulge me.  I have
12 years of ESOL experience, in a great variety of settings, and a master's in ESOL. In July 2002, I took a position in correctional education, teaching beginning ESOL to male inmates in a large county facility in Massachusetts that is well-known for its education program.  When I came here, I had no training or experience in working with special-needs students.  Yet, as you all probably know, a great percentage of incarcerated adult students have learning issues. Many of the ESOL students here are nonliterate in their first language, which in this case is Spanish.  It is difficult to know, when a nonliterate inmate comes through orientation, why he can't read because we have no screening protocols.  He simply gets placed in the beginners class. (This is if his oral SPL is 0 to 2; if he can communicate at an intermediate level but can't read, that's another challenge that we cannot meet.) In rare cases, such as that of Rodolfo, a 21-year-old from Guatemala, the student simply had not been to school. I initially thought Rodolfo had LDs. In addition to being nonliterate, he seemed unable to produce oral language. But over time I discovered that Rodolfo lacked confidence and self-esteem. Eventually, he began speaking (with excellent pronunciation).  As for reading, early on I had little success using a phonics approach. Then I discovered that he was very good at word recognition in context. 

In most cases, however, there are issues of LDs, head injuries, substance abuse, childhood trauma, low intelligence, etc. Take Anibal (age 30) or José and Hector (both in their late 50s): After months of school, despite individual work with a peer tutor (inmate) and one-on-one tutoring from me when I could manage it, they still could not read a simple word.  Since I've been here, I have attended several workshops on learning disabilities, including an excellent one presented a year ago by Robin herself at this facility.  But I am far from a trained reading specialist. And I cannot even apply what I have learned so long as the special-needs students are integrated with beginning learners who are literate in L1 and may even have high school diplomas.  Yes, I can provide things like Irlen overlays. But we do not have the resources to creat special-needs ESOL classes. So most of these men sit and do busywork or, when possible, work on computer software.
With intensive tutoring, they might be able to learn. But under these circumstances, they make little or no progress, and because they are mandated to be in school, they take spaces in class that could go to students with greater learning potential. So this is my frustration. I'm not trained to teach a large number of our ESOL students, and even if I were, limited resources prevent delivering what they need. I feel that I'm burning out and question the value of what I'm doing.  Perhaps teachers in other kinds of adult programs face the same issues. 

Iris L. Broudy
ESOL Instructor/Programs Dept.
Hampden County Sheriff's Department
627 Randall Road
Ludlow,  MA  01056
(413) 547-8000  ext. 2468
Fax:  (413) 583-3099
iris.broudy at sdh.state.ma.us



-----Original Message-----
From: Julie McKinney [mailto:julie_mcKinney at worlded.org]
Sent: Thursday, February 16, 2006 10:02 AM
To: focusonbasics at nifl.gov
Subject: [FocusOnBasics] Use this address: focusonbasics at nifl.gov


Hi All,

Please note that the correct address to send postings to is:

focusonbasics at nifl.gov

Cut out the"dev":
Those of you who have been with us for a while may still be using the old address focusonbasics at dev.nifl.gov. This one no longer works. 

You can also just reply to a message from the list, but consider if you want the subject line to match what you are replying to, or if you want a new one.

Thanks folks!

Julie

Julie McKinney
Discussion List Moderator
World Education/NCSALL
jmckinney at worlded.org

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