welcome to the minnesota esl, bilingual, and migrant conference
DESCRIPTION
interactive, multilingual welcome addressTRANSCRIPT
WELCOME
THE 30TH ELL, BILINGUAL, AND MIGRANT EDUCATION
CONFERENCE
RIVER CENTER, ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA
APRIL 14 & 15, 2011
IN HOW MANY LANGUAGES CAN YOU SAY THE WORD
WELCOME
IN HOW MANY LANGUAGES CAN YOU SAY HOW ARE YOU?
In how many languages can you say the word English
If I were a student in your school…
by Ruslana Westerlund
If I were a student in your school…What would I see in the hallways?What would I see on the walls?Faces of the great presidents?Turkeys, feathers, Indians,Hispanic heritage month postersThat come up in Novembercome down by the end of December?
What would I hear by my locker?What would I feel in the lunchroom? Would I feel welcomed? orWould I be treated like a Hispanic token?Would I hear laughter behind my back?Would I be seen as somebody intelligent orJust an ESL student?
If I were a student in your
reading class…
Would I read Cat Sat on a Mat
in sixth grade?
Would I have to write about
my vacation?
Again and again and the
weekend’s fun?
Will I ever reach my true potential
If I write another sentence
“My weekend was fun”?
If I were a student in your class,
Would you see me as a 21st century learner?
Would I be creating, blogging, networking?
Will my voice reach the farthest corner?
Will I be asked to participate in the digital world
Or be an outsider
who is utterly bored?
I am a student in your class!
I speak three languages or half of the two
The school took away my first one
And my second language is still new.
I’m already on the outskirts of the academic content
I want to learn science, biology, and words like circumvent.
Yes, I want to engage, because I can!
To design, analyze is more than skim and scan.
Yes,
I need the fundamentals,
Yes,
I need to
read and write
But if my
words are stuck on paper
Who cares
if the grammar is right?
Who cares
if I can decode
if the words
are on worksheets only?
Who cares about literacy
If it’s for the world in which you are lonely?
Can my words fly across the ocean?Can they reach uncharted places?Can they change this world even a little bit?Can they put smiles on children's faces?
If so, I am lining up at the door!If not, then I need this no more!
©Ruslana Westerlund
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HAVE A GREAT DAY!