Raised all my life in Puerto Rico and then transferring to America was a great challenge. I had to overcome various difficulties in order to adapt to new ideas, cultures, and lifestyles. One of the obstacles I encountered was adapting to school. Since I was five my parents wanted me to imbibe the English language in order to have an exceptional future filled with opportunities, but when I arrived all my hard work in learning English did not seem to matter at my middle school. I arrived in this country thinking I was going to be in the most challenging classes and be at the top but reality smacked me in the face the first day I entered eighth grade. To my disadvantage the counselors did not care about my previous grades in Puerto Rico. Seeing that my parents were only able to speak Spanish, the school deduced my English was not well-developed enough and consequently I was placed in English-language learner (ELL) classes. After testing me in reading, writing, and hearing I was …show more content…
I knew I was capable of doing it. Because of my positive response my situation improved. I gain more knowledge and insight about the IB Program. Doing the IB Personal Projects helped me view the world differently and inquire about what is around me. After IBMYP I decided to enter full IB Diploma Program. It helps me achieve academic success and is helping me become a well-rounded learner that is capable of thinking outside-the-box, analyzing, questioning, and connecting ideas. As a result, I am currently in the top five percent of my class and am ranked as the valedictorian. In my academic life there has been many “bumps in the road”, but with my determination and willpower I was able to overcome each one of those bumps. The decision I made in eight grade molded my path to success for the upcoming years. If I had the chance to go back in time I would have done the same thing without
In summary, as Latino’s English language learner students lag in communication skills and in science vocabulary, it is vital that educators are knowledgeable on how to prepare the students to compete in the 21st century economy. Poplin and Phillips (1993) argued that often students are wrongfully labeled as “learning disabled” due to what some educators thought as a language difference in Latino English language learners, and inadequately recognizing the relationship between vocabulary knowledge and comprehension of text. On the contrary, Campos, Delgado and Huerta (2013) suggested that educators need to recognize the misconception about English language learners and provide accommodations to support their teaching and learning in the classroom,
A person's view on culture heavily influence how one sees and views the world around them. People are influenced by the cultures surrounding them as well as where they live. In the personal essay Two Ways to Belong in America ,written by Bharati Mukherjee, Bharati and her sister Mira were both born in Calcutta, India , but later moved to the United States. Bharati loved America and said "I am an American citizen and she is not" speaking to how she had embraced and been influenced by her surroundings but her sister had not.
The parent’s perspective towards bilingual education was like the student’s opinions because both individuals felt immersion classrooms benefit the students and the parents. The father of Jason was proud his son was the first in his family to read, write, and speak in English. Jason’s father knew his son would have many career opportunities by learning English at school. Learning the English academic language was not the only proud language Jason’s father encouraged for Jason to learn but also the Spanish language as well. Jason’s father only speaks Spanish so if his son was to lose his home language, a language barrier would form between father and son.
My Cultural Change from Louisiana to Kentucky It was about four years ago on the day of the traditional parade in Louisiana known as Mardi Gras. This was the day that I found out the news that before I knew it, would change my life in many ways that even I didn’t expect. When I was in the place of my comfort zone, I remember the great time my family and I were having during the parade yelling things like “ Throw me something mister”, and attempting to catch as many beads as possible. Little did I know that during the process, my father had received a phone call stating that my family and I would have to transfer to Kentucky in order to maintain his job at General Motors.
Lee Elementary School is in the northern part of Irving, with the student population consisting of primarily Hispanic (42.5%) and African American (41.9%) students. The at-risk of student dropout population within this school is 63.6%. This school utilizes the Dual Language Two Way model. In accordance with the demographic information, I have gathered from this campus, the model they are using is great for their students. They are promoting inclusivity and helping students reach educational goals with long-term educational outcomes.
What does it mean to be an American? Many people believe it's just a status, and there is no culture or difference in it. The thing is being American is more than just a citizenship status, it is a symbol of resilience, diversity, freedom, and becoming better. It means embracing differences and coming together as one nation under the principles of liberty and justice for all. It is about representing the American Dream, the belief that through hard work and determination, anyone can achieve their goals and attain success.
Rodriguez’s English was not the best, and because of that he would either be silent or quietly mumble when asked to participate by one of the nuns (73). Since his lack of participation was noticeable and showed little progress, some of his teachers visited Rodriguez’s home to ask his parents to “encourage your children to practice their English when they are home?” (73). Rodriguez one day walks in on his parents speaking Spanish, but when they see him they switch to English, which offends and over the days that follows angers him enough to decide to seriously learn English. Rodriguez even willingly decides to participate in class (74).
There are approximately 12 million illegal immigrants in the United States spawning from many different countries and continents. Illegal immigrants come to America to escape from many different kinds of mistreatment from their home country. When an individual moves they are often followed by others who are encouraged to find a better quality of life. Obtaining a citizenship is strenuously difficult to attain because of raised standards, language and education barriers, along with the fear of the United States government and society projecting bias towards immigrants. The feeling of being burdensome, unappreciated, and unintelligent due to the language barrier when communicating with others.
The first day of class, I responded to what it means to be an American, by saying that I lived in America. I was free and had the promises that were promised when America was founded by the first settlers. My answer for what makes, The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne, American is no different. The novel by Hawthorne, was set in America it also had values that were American as well. “The wrong-doing of one generation lives into the successive ones (Hawthorne 14).”
Teachers that are receptive to emergent bilingual students have an in depth understanding of how language and subject matter education occur and have a broad span of tactics and methods to education as well. The only and greatest way for emergent bilingual students to achieve success in school is if we give them real chances in our classrooms to use language. According to Lucas, Henze, and Donato, there are a couple things we can do as teachers to contribute to the success of emergent bilingual students in our classrooms. We should put worth on language and culture and have high hopes for our emergent bilingual students. When one student in my practicum class went to Mexico for two weeks, my cooperating teacher made it a point to ask her about her trip and allowed the student to tell the class about her family in Mexico.
According to the Pew Research Center, there are approximately 20 million adult American-born children of immigrants living in the United States. I fall into that category. I am the son of two immigrant parents from South Korea. As the only family living in the United States, my roots are not embedded on the grounds below me, but rather extend to different parts of the world. I am an American citizen, but that label did not suit me as a child.
These children are entering school speaking little or no English at all, making it difficult for them to adjust to school. The authors explain “The U.S. teaching force is not well equipped to help these children and those who speak vernacular dialects of English adjust to school and learn joyfully.” (Fillmore & Snow, pg. 3.) I agree that it is substantial for teachers to be prepared and to continue on with ongoing training in order to be able to help students with their language development and learning. It was interesting to read that teachers
What in your previous personal/professional/academic experiences has prepared you to pursue a graduate degree in American Studies? My academic experience has prepared me the most for a graduate degree in American Studies. This past year I wrote my senior thesis. Writing a thesis has improved my researching, writing, and argumentation skills.
I understand the fact that the English learning program was meant to help us grow but the reality was that one cannot leave the program without passing the test given during high school even if one felt like this program was not needed anymore. I believe that the students enrolled in the program at this age should have a say about whether or not they want to stick with it. The program at this age was still similar in some of the concepts from before but it was now developed to help out high school students. There was one big test offered every year which consisted of failing or passing the program.
I was born and raised in Vietnam, an okay country to live. But to a major part of the population, from middle to upper class, it is not an ideal country to live in. I grew up with an American dream, not my dream but my family's dream. There are sayings that follow me throughout my growing up. My relatives often say, "Only go to America can make you happy, only go to America can give you good conditions to grow."