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The students at Learning In Style are adults, mostly in their 20s and 30s. A typical student might be brand new to this country, having been sent to LIS by family members on arrival. On the other hand, he or she might have lived in Minnesota for years, simply getting by. One of the biggest motivations for foreign-born Minnesotans to become more fluent in English is so they can talk to their own children who have learned to speak it in public school. Some of the students at LIS might have learned a few words of English in refugee camps. Some were college-educated professionals back home who simply never learned English. But a substantial number of students, especially those from rural areas of the globe, have no schooling of any kind. They have never been in a classroom, owned a book, held a pencil. They are illiterate in their own language, let alone in English. They have to begin at the beginning. |
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The beginner’s class. “Light-ning,” says Teacher Martha Kieffer, CSJ, pointing out the word on a worksheet. “What is…light-ning?” a Somali man asks. Immediately, three Somalis at the end of the table begin to chatter in their native tongue, trying to explain the concept to each other. Students helping students isn’t just allowed , it’s encouraged. Teacher Martha colors in the lightning on the line drawing with a yellow crayon. “Oooh,” they all say, as they begin to understand. The sound of the word, the letters, the drawing, and the real life event suddenly make sense. “Light-ning,” they exclaim. Over and over, “Light-ning,
light-ning, light-ning.”
It takes a dozen or so faculty and administrators to keep Learning In Style going.
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Most are Sisters of St. Joesph while some aren’t, but they take pains to avoid making a distinction. “We don’t say Sister because there are so many religions here. We say Teacher. That’s what we all have in common,” says Teacher Judy Madigan, CSJ. The teachers at LIS are mostly former elementary school teachers. Knowing how to teach reading is essential. They don’t know the languages their students speak——which results, by default, in total immersion English classes. |
The intermediate class. Today the students in this class take turns speaking out loud. They explain in English what they used to do for a living in their native countries as well as what they do now. Their stories have a certain poignant uniformity. Bus driver, now janitor. Nurse, now janitor. Chocolate maker, now janitor. Teacher, now janitor. The last to speak is Patricia. She was a dental assistant in Mexico. She too is cleaning office buildings to feed her family. “But I am studying English very hard,” adds Patricia proudly. “I want to be a dental assistant again someday. ” Continued... |
