Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education Commons^™

Addressing Linguistic Isolation Through Community Based Esl And Emergency Preparedness, Lisa Guay

Master's Projects and Capstones

Linguistic isolation acts as a barrier to the well-being and social integration of Limited English Proficient (LEP) adults. Community-based English as a Second Language (ESL) classes, designed with learner-centric curricula, may help LEPs gain access to social and navigational capital in the form of English proficiency, confidence and social integration. Community-based ESL programs provide adult English Language Learners (ELLs) with a path to English proficiency and social integration, but curricula should be geared toward ELLs’ needs. There is a need for ESL curricula focused on emergency and disaster preparedness, curricula which may contribute positively to adult ELLs’ speaking skills and …

Uncorking The Speaking Skill: Wine And Prosody In Conversation, Efren Antonio Serra

Master's Projects and Capstones

Although the skill of speaking is necessary for attaining basic interpersonal communicative skills (BICS), most traditional second language acquisition programs base their pedagogy and curriculums on lexis and grammar of the written form and phonology/phonetics. The purpose of this project is to demonstrate how to effectively adapt content-specific material for developing the speaking skill at community colleges with adult students who are interested in pursuing a career in the wine industry as a sommelier. Courses for becoming a sommelier or a server in the wine industry are traditionally offered at community colleges under the culinary arts and hospitality management programs, …

People, Not Headlines: Teaching English To Ukrainian Refugees, Katherine Gardiner

Master's Projects and Capstones

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24th, 2022, thousands of Ukrainians have fled their home country, many resettling in English-speaking countries. Ukrainian refugees bring with them many strengths; however, the challenges of surviving in another country on top of the language barrier and the trauma they may carry must be carefully considered and given special attention by instructors of refugees. The purpose of this project is to address the lack of English teaching material for the increasingly growing population of Ukrainian refugees in North America. The handbook is informed by current pedagogy on community building, promoting self-efficacy and …

Teaching American English Pronunciation In A Spanish Speaking Context: A Guide For Efl Teachers In Chile, Martin P. Quarto

Master's Projects and Capstones

This field project addresses the lack of education surrounding pronunciation teaching, and it specifically responds to the opportunities available within English as a Foreign Language settings. This project is especially relevant to English language teachers who would like to study pronunciation teaching and its history. The objective of this research is to inform educators of the validity of teaching pronunciation and to teach educators effective strategies that can be used. Theories of Contrastive Analysis and Error Analysis form the foundation of this project, as well as theories of Interlanguage and Markedness. The literature review includes extensive research into the subject …

Cross-Cultural Adaptation Of Mandarin-Speaking Undergraduate Students In The United States, Enhao Wang

Master's Projects and Capstones

ABSTRACT

Studying in the United States is many Chinese students' dream, but those who manage to achieve it encounter two main problems. The first one is the language barrier and the second one cultural shock. Chine is the highest provider of international students with 30% from statistics of 2017/2018 class. The primary language spoken by Chinese is the Mandarin language. All the other languages come in as a second language to most Chinese, including English. When they travel out of their country to further education as students, they are hampered by language barriers as they navigate through their struggle.

China …

Self-Directed Learning Practices In Esl: How Beginning Adult Latinx English Language Learners Can Increase Learning Outcomes, Jessica Parisi

Master's Projects and Capstones

This field project investigates the self-directed learning (SDL) practices that could increase learner outcomes in English language acquisition for beginning adult English language learners (ELLs), and presents on a website designed for the learner, the practices and local resources to engage them. Non-credit English as a second language (ESL) courses in community colleges in the San Francisco Bay Area have high enrollment and low levels of advancement, especially beginning levels. Latinx adult ELLs face unique challenges that contribute to their low rates of advancement, including linguistic isolation, and work and home duties that often prevent learners from attending classes the …

Using Sitcoms In Esl/Efl: A Handbook For Using Friends In The Classroom, Elif Konus

Master's Projects and Capstones

English learning has become the most significant objective throughout the world for learners of English as a second language (ESL) and foreign language (EFL). Unfortunately, most learners do not have a chance to learn the language in English-speaking countries. In most ESL and EFL classrooms, teachers have solely adapted their teaching method through textbooks even though there are numerous teaching techniques to support learners’ language process. Considering the fact that we live in an age of constant change of technology in which students’ attention spans have been shortened, students might lack engagement and motivation in learning English through solely textbook-adapted …

Teaching With Empathy In The Adult Esl Classroom: A Training Guide, Maureen Carapia

Master's Projects and Capstones

Many view empathy as a necessary skill for relating to different groups of people and successfully communicating across cultures. Research supports empathy’s importance in the education field for promoting positive outcomes in the classroom and fomenting a culturally sensitive class environment. Teaching with empathy is particularly important in the context of adult ESL (English as a Second Language) instruction, given the culturally diverse classroom environment and instructors who likely possess different cultural norms than their students. Regarding effective strategies to teach these students with empathy, however, the research falls short. The mere notion of defining empathy breeds disagreement, as many …

English For Baking: Lessons For Kitchen Workers Using On-Site Learning, Christopher Torossian

Master's Projects and Capstones

Today, the back of house staff in culinary kitchens is comprised largely by migrant workers whose native language is something other than English. At times this can create issues among workers due to communication errors or complete lack of communication all together, posing issues for not only cooking, but it can also be a threat to kitchen safety as well. Additionally, due to native speaker stigma surrounding non-native speakers of English, many workers are often denied the chance at a higher position in the workplace simply because of their low communicative competence, despite their actual talents and skills in the …

Empowering Students To Develop L2 Identity - Supplemental Online Lessons, Laura Espino

Master's Projects and Capstones

As an immigrant, learning English is part of acculturating to the new culture. From this process, a new identity emerges in the context of the new language and culture. Currently, identity issues and intercultural competence are explicit objectives in language learning. The implications of neglecting identity formation in second language acquisition include vulnerability to culture shock, mental health issues, and the inability to thrive. The unique set of needs, motivations, and strengths of immigrant English language learners should inform language instruction design in order to achieve sustainable and equitable successful language learning and acculturation. Explicitly designing instruction that incorporates issues …

Effective Teaching Techniques And Study Strategies For English Language Learners In Esl Community College Classes, Dorothy M. Steiner

Master's Projects and Capstones

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this field project, Effective Teaching Techniques and Study Strategies for English Language Learners in ESL Community College Classes, is to provide guidance to the busy instructors who work with adult ESL students, particularly in non-credit programs. This field project can also be used by instructors of credit community college ESL classes, Adult schools, or (Community Based Organizations) CBOs. The handbook is designed to be a resource on the many areas that present common challenges in the ESL classroom such as diverse needs, low literacy levels, building academic rigor and vocabulary, communicative language teaching, increasing engagement and …

Teaching Efl/Esl College-Level Learners Through Current Global Topics: Integrated Lessons For Efl/Esl Teachers, Chaiyeon Sylvia Lee

Master's Projects and Capstones

The importance of educating effective English users competent in communicating and interacting in a variety of social settings is highlighted in today’s highly globalized world. Being able to understand and discuss complex global topics related to current cultural, social, and business issues and events has become an integral skill of English learners to achieve greater international connectivity. Unfortunately, many EFL/ESL college-level students, specifically Korean EFL students, do not seem to have sufficient preparation to build English communicative competence and cultural awareness necessary to cope with various situations in which they need to communicate meaningfully and purposefully as effective English users. …

Using Humor To Enhance Metalinguistic Awareness And Expand Cultural Competence In Adult Esl Classrooms, Jean L. Hilburn

Master's Projects and Capstones

Research has shown that there are many benefits to using humor in the ESL classroom. Although this is known, oftentimes humor is avoided. There are a variety of reasons for humor not being incorporated into the ESL classroom. In addition, because much of the research and curriculum development regarding humorous wordplay and its benefits for ESL students has been focused on children, there is a paucity of curriculum, materials, and resources which focus on humor and wordplay relating to adult topics and themes.

The purpose of this project is to fill the gap between what is available and what is …