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ESL Support in Electronics Labs - San Jose City College |
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Program Components: Academic/remedial support
Title: English as a Second Language Support in Electronics Labs College: San Jose City College 2100 Moorpark Ave. San Jose, CA 95128 College Contact: Kathy WerleDean, Applied Science, Technology, and P.E. 408-288-3781 Target population: Limited English Proficient Students. At San Jose City collegeapproximately 48 languages are spoken by students. Vietnamese is the primary second language spoken by the students in the electronics program. Goals : To increase the educational and employment success of limited English proficientstudents studying electronics. Description: College officials noticed that even though limited English proficientstudents had the technical skills, they often had difficulty obtaining employment because they didn't have enough English language proficiency to interview well. The faculty encouraged students to enroll in English-as-a second-language classes, but few did so. The college Career and Technical faculty discussed this issue with their advisory committee and the ESL faculty. A strategy was developed to employ two English-as-asecond- language teachers to work in the electronics labs. These instructors challenged the students to speak English and explain the experiments they were performing, and assisted students with lab write-ups. The students were also encouraged to work in groups and use English with each other. Staffing: The lab is staffed by the regular instructor. Two English-as-a second-languageinstructors assist in the lab. The instructors are not fluent in Vietnamese, but have expertise in strategies for teaching English as a second language. Facilities, equipment, materials: No additional facilities or materials are required.Costs, funding source: VTEA funds were used for the additional lab support.Unfortunately, due to budget constraints, the college has been unable to continue offering this assistance. Outreach and marketing: The outreach that is conducted is to encourage students toincrease their English language proficiency. A poster was developed to encourage Career and Technical Education students to enroll in ESL classes. 98 Evidence of effectiveness: The activity was deemed very effective by faculty in buildingstudents' language skills, helping with critical thinking, and helping them become work ready. Electronics faculty learned to challenge students as they had observed the ESL teachers, and the ESL teachers learned a lot about the demands of this occupational area that they could take back to their general ESL classrooms. Suggestions for replication: Close cooperation should be maintained between ESL andCareer and Technical faculty. Bay/Interior Bay (3/4) Career area: Engineering/industrial technology
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