Number 4 February 2007

VOLUME 38 NUMBER 4 FEBRUARY 2007
San Diego Hosts 38th Annual
CATESOL State Conference
By Mary Ellen Butler-Pascoe
H
ow fitting that “Transcending Borders,” the theme of
the 2007Annual CATESOL Conference, is being hosted
in beautiful San Diego, just minutes from our border with
neighboring Mexico. The entire 2007 Conference Committee
has been working diligently, as Conference Chair Virginia
Guleff noted, “to provide an exceptional conference that
invites, inspires, and empowers” all those who attend. To be
held from Thursday, April 12, through Sunday, April 15, at the
San Diego Town and Country Resort and Convention Center,
the conference will feature a wide assortment of activities
to enlighten our minds, renew our spirit, and enrich our
professional lives. Join in on any of these activities:
 Newcomers’ Orientation
 Plenaries and other sessions featuring leading
TESOL practitioners and scholars
 Intensive Pre-Conference Institute and Featured
Sunday Workshops
 Hundreds of concurrent sessions addressing needs
of teachers at all levels
 The Electronic Village
 Publishers’ Exhibits
 Friday President’s Lunch
 Special Presentation on the Lost Boys of Sudan
 Exhibition by the Outside the Lens youth media literacy
program
 Job Fair
 Interest Group Meetings
 Materials Swap
 Poster Sessions
 Educational Level Rap Sessions and Workshops
 Graduate Student Forum
 CATESOL 2007 Fun Walk
 Escorted/Networking Dinners
 Baja Soft Taco Bar and Fresh Fruit Reception
Conference Opens with an Inspiring Performance
The conference will begin
with an exhibition by students
from the Outside the Lens
program of photography and
poetry that tells their poignant
stories of children of migrant
revamping instruction in a variety of ways.
workers living in a bi-cultural
I have always felt privileged to be in the
situation I am in, but my gratitude has
world. This will be followed by
intensified since I finished teaching my
the opening plenary, featuring
first few “Basic Computer Skills for ESL
Dr. Margarita Luna Delgado
Students” courses this past year. I heard
speaking on “Beyond Politics,
comments from students like Loan Lam
Beyond Racism, Beyond
from Vietnam who was amazed that, at 50
Borders: Si Se Puede.” A
years old, she was finally learning how to eprofessor at the Universidad
mail her son, who is in college. She hugged
me daily from the beginning of the semester Iberoamericana in Tijuana,
and told me over and over how much this
Mexico, Delgado has presented
(continued on page 3)
meant to her.
(continued on page 7)
Computer Skills Classes Open
New World for ESL Students
By Charmaine Phipps
Community College Level Chair
I
am continually amazed by how we, as
ESL teachers, affect people’s lives through
our work. I’m also proud to be associated
with dedicated individuals who never stop
improving their skills. As we look toward
our State Conference and examine the
“Innovations in Curriculum” that will be
presented in our community-college-level
workshop, I am impressed by the examples
of how teachers are examining and
Things to Do in San Diego — p. 4 •
Bay Area Chapter Forming — p. 11
ge
ssa
e
M
s
’
t
den
Presi
I
want to begin by reflecting on the
regional and chapter conferences that
I had the opportunity and privilege to
attend this fall. I say “privilege” because it was an honor to meet and talk
with many of the wonderful volunteers
who took time out of the semester to
organize events in San Diego, Orange
County/Los Angeles, Livermore and
Las Vegas, to name a few.
In addition to the events I attended
were many more in other areas for
which I wish I had had time. I am
certain the quality of workshops,
keynote speakers and volunteers
was equal to those at which I was
able to present. I want to thank the
conference chairs for your dedication
and efforts for CATESOL, as well as
the committees that worked to put
together registration materials, arrange
site set-up and perform the countless
other tasks that hosting a conference
requires. All the organizing was done
by CATESOL volunteers, devoted
to providing quality professional
development and networking for those
of us working with English learners
throughout California and Nevada. It
was exciting to see first-hand the depth
and commitment of local advocacy
throughout our two states.
It was also encouraging to see such
enthusiastic attendance at each of these
events, ranging from 150 to well over
200 participants,
I believe the themes of all our
conferences were inspiring and well
received. The elements that informed
the Los Angeles/Orange County
“E3” Conference (Engage, Educate,
Empower) were reflected in all the
events I attended and will, I am
certain, underpin the upcoming State
Conference in April. Indeed, those
elements are fundamental to the goals
of CATESOL.
First, the value placed on
ENGAGE is evident in the creation
of conferences where teachers and
professionals have the chance to
2
develop and nurture collaborative
networks within and across programs,
schools and communities. The goal of
EDUCATE is obvious at the more
than 800 annual sessions in chapter
and regional conferences that focus on
areas on professional growth, teaching
pedagogy and policy. It was apparent
at every conference in Nevada and
California that participants found
themselves educated in new ways, while
finding value in what works best. Finally,
EMPOWER is an important aspect of
what we do not only as collaborative
professionals among ourselves, but
also in the classroom. I believe we
cannot directly empower others, but
we do have the ability through regional,
chapter and state conferences to
provide time and space to allow others
to become empowered. By engaging
in critical dialogue and discussion with
colleagues, and educating ourselves
in recent theory, practice and policy
we become empowered individuals
prepared to bring what we learn back to
our schools and communities.
I applaud all our members who
work tirelessly for both their students
and CATESOL in a variety of roles. I
want to also encourage those of you
involved on the local level to consider
taking your passion and energies to
the State Board level, for it is your
excitement and spirit that drives our
organization from the grassroots up.
Our State Conference in San
Diego, Transcending Boarders, is fast
approaching. It begins April 12 with our
Pre-Conference Institutes, following up
on April 13-15 with exciting workshops,
speakers, and events. I look forward
to seeing you at the conference, and
invite you to attend our CATESOL
Town Meeting to learn more about the
organization and to meet the board.
In peace,
Karen Cadiero-Kaplan
Karen Cadiero-Kaplan
President, CATESOL
CATESOL NEWS
(USPS- 010-177 issn 1070-387X)
is a publication of CATESOL, a
professional association for those
concerned with the teaching of English
as a second language or dialect and
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All rights revert to the author upon
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CATESOL NEWS is available through
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is published four times annually, in
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for $6 a year by the California
Teachers of English to Speakers
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Periodicals Postage Paid at Orinda,
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POSTMASTER: Send address
changes to: CATESOL NEWS, 21C
Orinda Way #362, Orinda, CA 94563
DEADLINE FOR MAY ISSUE:
April 1, 2007
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[email protected]
3818 Latrobe Street
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INQUIRIES ABOUT MEMBERSHIP
OR PROBLEMS SHOULD BE
ADDRESSED TO LINDA PATTEN
CATESOL Membership Services
(925) 253-8683 • [email protected]
State Conference
Promoting Student Interaction
...catesol 2007
(continued from page 1)
numerous papers and teacher-training sessions on enhancing
the teaching and learning
process through promotion
of cultural sensitivity and
understanding.
Famed Experts Speak
At the President’s
Lunch and Plenary on
Friday, Dr. Francis Njubi
Nesbitt will examine the
political identities of
Somali, Sudanese, and Ethiopian refugees in California in his
comparative study on “Africans in California: New Identities
in the Diaspora.” Nesbitt is an associate professor of
Africana studies at San Diego State University and has written
extensively on international migration and transnational
identities and is well equipped to address the diversity of
African identities in the state and to explore the social,
business, and cultural ties they maintain with their countries
of origin.
On Saturday, Dr. Jim Cummins, renowned expert on
literacy instruction and language development from the
University of Toronto, will present “I’m Not Just a Coloring
Person: Cognitive Engagement and Identity Investment in
Multilingual Classrooms.” He will discuss the role served
by language learners’ cultural knowledge and first language
skills as cognitive tools and learning resources in bilingual,
ESL, and mainstream classrooms. Following his presentation,
Cummins will join a panel on “Perspectives on
Developing and Implementing Quality Curricula
for Academic Literacy in California Public
Schools” together with Carmen E. Quintana,
Robin Scarcely, and Lily Wong Fillmore.
• Supporting Adult Student Retention
• Enhanced Grammar Learning with Focused
Listening Activities
• Teacher Development: Essential to Non-Native
English-Speaking Teachers’ success
• Success for ESL Students
With Learning Disabilities
• Designing and Adapting
Grammar Tasks for Academic/
Professional English
• Professional Development
Through Classroom Research
• Two-Way Immersion:
Preparing All Students for the
Future
On Sunday morning after the conference (but covered by
your regular conference fee), several selected workshops will
be featured.
Looking for new software, a textbook or job?
Be sure to leave time in your schedule to peruse the
latest books, videos and software that will be on display
by hundreds of leading publishers in the Publishers’
Exhibit Hall. If you are hunting for employment
or employees, a Job Fair will be available to assist in
matching job seekers with the right job openings.
Want to learn more about using technology?
Learn about wikis, blogs, podcasting and Webcasting to
promote language learning and student engagement in online
instruction. The Electronic Village will provide two computer
rooms: one for hands-on workshops in learning a new skill or
(continued on page 5)
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In addition to the plenaries and hundreds
of engaging concurrent and poster sessions by
TESOL professionals from diverse educational
settings, a variety of specialists will present
workshops in their areas of expertise. Even
before the main events begin, Intensive PreConference Institute Workshops will offer an
opportunity for hands-on learning experiences
in interactive sessions on a wide range of
pedagogical topics to hone your teaching skills.
Check out the complete list of topics in the
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Sample topics include:
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3
State Conference
Places to Visit Between Workshops
By Ken Kelch
T
he San Diego region’s diversity offers something for
everyone, from beautiful beaches and parks, to museums
and golfing, to
theme parks and
sightseeing. There
are so many
things to see and
do, you’ll have
a difficult time
deciding.
From the
conference site in
Mission Valley, it’s
easy to take the
trolley to Mission
Making herb and corn flour griddle
San Diego and
cakes in Old Town
San Diego State
University. Or,
heading west, you can visit Mission Valley and Fashion Valley
shopping malls, Old Town, downtown San Diego, and the
convention center (http://www.sdcommute.com/Rider_
Information/trolley/trolleymap.asp).
If you want to avoid the high prices, and long lines
and so-so food at restaurants in the Gaslamp Quarter
and Old Town, head north on the I-5 to 5th and 6th streets
on University Avenue, where there are numerous good,
reasonably priced restaurants in the Hillcrest area.
A visitor favorite is Sea World, located on beautiful
Mission Bay. With its numerous attractions, exhibits
and shows, Sea World offers the best in marine life and
entertainment. Shamu, the famous orca, dolphins, sharks, and
penguins headline the list marine animals that will both amaze
and amuse you (http://www.seaworld.com/SWC).
Want more animals? Then be sure to visit the San Diego
Zoo and Wild Animal Park. The Giant Panda Discovery
Center is a wonderful learning experience, and from the
panda viewing area you can see Hua Mei, the first giant panda
born in North America, or any of the other pandas living
here. While at the zoo, you will also enjoy Gorilla Tropics,
Rain Forest Aviary, Tiger River and Sun Bear Forest. At the
Wild Animal Park, a short drive north of San Diego, you will
find animals such as lions, elephants, cheetahs and giraffes
living in a natural habitat setting. For best value, buy a 3-for-1
pass to see all of these great attractions (www.sandiegozoo.
org).
If your interest is museums, don’t miss Balboa Park.
It offers something for everyone. You’ll find the Rueben
H. Fleet Science Center, Museum of Art, Museum of
Man, Natural History Museum, Air and Space Museum,
Automotive Museum … and more. Centro Cultural de la
Raza, Japanese Friendship Garden, and Mingei International
Museum, as well as shops and restaurants, round out your
tour of this San Diego landmark (www.balboapark.org).
If you want to see some of San Diego’s world famous
beaches, then be sure to take a trip to Coronado Island and
the visit the legendary Hotel del Coronado (http://www.
hoteldel.com/). Or try Pacific Beach if you prefer a more
vibrant atmosphere. And no trip is complete without
seeing the jewel of San Diego … La Jolla (http://www.
lajollabythesea.com/home.php).
Golf enthusiasts have more than 70 courses to
choose from in San Diego County. But your best bet for a
challenging, newly-renovated course conveniently located
adjacent to the conference site in Mission Valley, is the
Riverwalk Golf Club, where you can play a round, take
a lesson, or simply use the driving range (http://www.
riverwalkgc.com).
Whatever your taste for fun and entertainment, you are
sure to find it in San Diego!
Ken Kelch is ESL Program Director at Alliant International
University in San Diego.
Be Active as a CATESOL Volunteer in San Diego
By Holly Wilson
Volunteering for CATESOL is a fun
and rewarding experience. Every year,
a variety of opportunities present
themselves for you to donate your time
and energy to the operation of regional,
chapter and state conferences. In fact,
most people who work for CATESOL
in any capacity are volunteers.
Right now we are getting ready
for the 38th Annual State Conference
4
in San Diego from April 12-15. Mark
Manasse is the conference’s Volunteer
Coordinator. You may have seen
the volunteer sign-up sheet that he
e-mailed... He continues to collect
names of those who can give some
of their time to help the conference
run smoothly. This month, he will
be assigning volunteers to various
committee chairs, who will assign them
their specific jobs. Some things you
might want to volunteer for are the
conference bag assembly, which begins
during the pre-conference session;
registration, which includes on-site and
pre-registration tables; audio-visual
assistance, which involves helping
out in the technology room; and the
information booth, where members can
inquire about events and services.
Mark, a freeway flyer who
teaches at Miramar Community
College, the American Language
(continued on page 6)
...catesol 2007
(continued from page 3)
another where you can participate
in the distance-learning and Internet
fairs or take time to preview a wide
collection of software. For those new
to technology for use in the classroom,
EV volunteers will be available all day
Friday and Saturday to answer questions
and assist you.
Networking and Sharing
Participate in one of the four
CATESOL Interest Groups with other
professionals with similar interests
at the panel discussions and group
business meetings. Join one of these
groups that best addresses your area of
interest:
• Intercultural Communication
• Non-Native Language
Educators’ Issues
• Teaching English in the
Workplace
• Technology-Enhanced
Language Learning
Participants will have a chance to
share their most successful teaching
techniques and benefit from those of
their colleagues by sharing handouts
at the Materials Swap located at the
hospitality table. Be sure to bring 100
copies of your most effective lessons
or ideas. If this is your first time
attending the CATESOL conference,
take advantage of the Newcomers’
Orientation offered early Friday
and Saturday mornings. A seasoned
CATESOL member and conference
participant will give you an overview
of all the services offered at the
The Fun Walk will let early
risers give their legs a 2kilometer stretch around
the resort grounds.
conference and help guide you through
the program to help you maximize the
benefits of your time at the conference.
This is a perfect occasion to meet
others new to the conference who share
the same excitement and challenges
as you. There will also be a Graduate
Student Forum that showcases papers
focusing on effective classroom
practices or investigating research topics
that affect ESL pedagogy and theory.
Taking Breaks to Relax
The Conference Committee has
arranged special events to give you
a chance to relax and meet with
colleagues in a social setting. The
opening plenary will be followed by a
complimentary Baja Soft Taco Bar and
Fresh Fruit Reception in the main foyer
of the hotel from 8-10 on Thursday.
On Friday evening there will be
local escorts provided to accompany
groups of up to 20 people to selected
restaurants in scenic areas of the city.
For the early risers and outdoors
enthusiasts, the Fun Walk will give you
a break from the meetings and provide
fresh air and exercise. Join others at
7:30 Saturday morning to enjoy the
2-kilometer walk around the attractive
resort grounds. Of course, San Diego
is known for its beautiful beaches,
museums, zoo, and parks where you
can enjoy the sun, southern California
ambience, and friends. (See related
article on page 4 for places to visit in
San Diego.)
Mary Ellen Butler-Pascoe is Professor
and Director of TESOL and Language
Education at Alliant International University
in San Diego.
SIGN UP NOW!
CATESOL 2007 Pre-Conference Institutes
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Town and Country Resort Hotel and Spa, San Diego
These exciting intensive workshops (3 hours long!) appeal to a wide range of
interests and tastes, featuring seasoned presenters who are experts in their fields. Come
get to know the presenters, learn their tricks of the teaching trade, and come away with
great classroom ideas! Refreshments included. Register NOW at www.catesol.org or by
filling out the form in the preregistration booklet!
David Nunan and Kathi Bailey on Classroom Research
Kevin Keating on Communicative Activities
Susan Kesner Bland on Grammar and Listening
Eleanor Black Eskey on Reading Fluency
Sue Miller on Pronunciation
Carol Deemer on Learning Disabilities
Lida Baker and Judy Tanka on Authentic Listening
Jack Bailey on Adult Student Retention
John Liang on NNEST Concerns
Charlene Fried on Integrating the Four Skills
Sharon Hilles and Noël Houck on Contextualized Grammar
Nenette Adelson-Rodriguez and Linda Hardman on Two-Way Immersion
Brought to you by Stefan Frazier ([email protected]) and Gena Burgess ([email protected]), PCI Coordinators
5
TELL-IG
Check Out Our Fabulous Electronic Village
By Marian Thacher
TELL-IG Coordinator
ur Electronic Village is growing. At each CATESOL
State Conference, the EV, as we lovingly call it, has
been a stronger presence, and this April there will be three
different rooms with 20 computers each. The browsing
room will once again host the Internet Fair and Software
Fair on Friday, and the Distance Learning Fair on Saturday.
The fairs are fun because you get to hear six or eight
different presenters showing the Web sites, software, or
online teaching tools that they are most excited about.
There are also many hands-on technology workshops
this year. If you’re a technology novice, there will be several
O
Position Announcement
The CATESOL Journal
seeks a new
Book Review Editor.
Duties of the Book Review Editor include:
1. Soliciting eight to ten book reviews for The
CATESOL Journal each year. (Some of these
reviews could also focus on electronic materials,
such as language learning software or webbased language resources.)
2. Working with the review authors to ensure
that reviews are well-written and well-edited.
3. Compiling and managing a list of new books
of interest to CATESOL members, to be published on the CATESOL web page.
The reviews you solicit may be written by
teachers, researchers, graduate students, or
other professionals in the field of TESOL. The
reviews should be current, interesting and
appropriate for the CATESOL readership. The
CATESOL Journal is published once a year. The
manuscripts of reviews are due in November for
publication in December.
Applicants should have strong writing skills
and some academic publishing experience.
Benefits include a stipend (currently $225
per issue) and free books from publishers.
If you are interested or have questions,
please contact Mark Roberge, Co-editor of The
CATESOL Journal, at [email protected].
6
opportunities to get acquainted with some new skills such as
PowerPoint slide presentations. For those more adventurous
attendees, audio has become very popular. You can learn
how to use audio recording for assessment, for teaching
pronunciation, and for student or teacher podcasts. What’s a
podcast, you ask? Come to the EV and find out!
How about using online comic books to teach
language, or having your students create digital stories with
MovieMaker? These are just a sample of possibilities you can
explore by visiting the Electronic Village in Terrace Salon
Two and Three, and the Electronic Outpost in Pacific Salon
Four. See you there.
Marian Thacher is Coordinator of Technology Projects for the
Outreach and Technical Assistance Network (OTAN), a California
adult education leadership project.
...volunteers for catesol
(continued from page 4)
Institute (ALI) at San Diego State University and the TESL Certificate
program at UCSD, is a volunteer himself. A recent arrival to San Diego, he
chose to become involved in the local TESOL community and get to know
teachers at other sites.
Kristine Chadsey, another recent arrival to San Diego who also
teaches at ALI, has just made a career change and become an ESL
instructor. She wants to get to know the organization and develop her
professionalism. Kristine says she is interested in working at registration,
and would consider performing other functions in the future.
Toan Humphrey, with many years’ experience teaching in adult
education for the San Diego Community College District, has volunteered
several times for State Conferences and CATESOL’s San Diego Regional
Conference. She volunteers out of a sense of duty to the profession and
enjoys actively participating in the organization. Last year she helped
at registration at the State Conference in San Francisco and acted as
treasurer for the San Diego Regional Conference held last October. She
says that every time she volunteers, she learns new things about how
the organization operates and about why teachers choose to attend the
conference. She likes the feeling of being a part of a team that she gets
from volunteering, and encourages members to volunteer as a way to learn
more about CATESOL and connect with other teachers from all over
California and Nevada.
As you can see, volunteering is a great way to help out the other
people who donate so much of their time to maintain CATESOL as
the professional organization that it is, and to network with your fellow
TESOLers. If you are interested, you should contact Mark Manasse
by mail, e-mail, or phone. He needs to know who you are and how to
contact you. Information about what days and times you are available, and
what job you prefer to perform would also be helpful. Contact Mark at
[email protected] or 510-825-4789, 2905 Cowley Way, Unit F, San
Diego, CA 92117.
Holly Wilson is an Assistant Professor in the Graduate School of Education at
Alliant International University in San Diego.
...computers
(continued from page 1)
I have found that a Basic
Computer Skills class gives students a
profound new motivation to practice
their English. Not only that, but it also
teaches cultural awareness, resource
utilization, problem solving, and written
communication, and is an important
step at leveling the playing field and
setting our students up for academic
and career success. We know our job
goes beyond teaching students English.
We teach them how to be students
in the broader sense as well, and the
computer classes I taught brought that
home for me.
“Teacher! Look! I did it!”
“I never used computer. Now I
can!”
“I never touched a computer.”
Many of my student simply haven’t
had the kind of exposure that most
native speakers have had. It can be
agreed that our main goal is to raise the
Community College Level
English skills of our students to a level
that compares favorably with the skills
of native English-speaking students so
they can compete (or at least participate
with confidence) academically. We
recognize right away that many of our
students lack study skills (note-taking,
time management) as well as English
skills. What we might not realize is that
they often also lack computer skills.
Even if we do realize it, many of us
do not have courses set up to meet this
need.
Now I’m not suggesting that we
switch our focus away from English.
Language skills are the single most
important bridge between where our
students are in their jobs, careers and
communications and where they want
to be. However, computers can help
make these skills easier to achieve.
Having computer skills can inspire
students to practice English more
(Internet games, e-mailing friends) and
also give them practical skills they will
need in many classes (word processing,
PowerPoint) and in the job world.
The course I’m teaching at Chaffey
College is unique. My college does
offer a variety of computer classes, but
they are aimed
at non-ESL
students with a
basic knowledge
of computers
who are trying
to develop a
specific skill. For
example, we offer
Charmaine Phipps
Keyboarding,
MSWord Expert,
MSExcel Expert, et cetera. However,
we don’t offer a class that teaches how
to turn on a computer, click, scroll, and
access the Internet. In a nation where the majority of the population
has a home computer – about 65% of
Americans had on-line access at home
in 2005, such basic”
(continued on page 8)
7
Interest Groups
Front and Center for IGs in San Diego
By Robert Wachman
Interest Group Facilitator
C
ATESOL’s interest groups will have major presence at the State Conference in San
Diego next month. Each year, the four IGs – Intercultural Communication (IC), NonNative Language Educators’ Issues (NNLEI), Teaching English in the Workplace (TEW),
and Technology Enhanced Language Learning (TELL) – conduct panel discussions, sponsor
speakers, hold annual business meetings, and sponsor increasing numbers of interest grouprelated presentations and workshops.
Robert Wachman
The technology interest group organizes and operates two computer labs, known as
the Electronic Village: one for trying software, browsing Web sites and hosting the popular
“fairs” (Software Fair, Internet Fair, and Distance Learning Fair); and the second room for very popular hands-on
computer application workshops. Each of the four interest groups also holds its annual business meeting at which
group leaders review the year’s activities, issues are discussed, new leadership is elected, and plans are made for the
coming year.
To learn more about IGs, their members and activities, visit the interest group table in the Exhibit Hall. Last year
the table was located at the rear of the hall and probably went unnoticed by many. This year, we’ve put the table in a
hard-to-miss location near the front of the hall. It will be staffed by IG leaders and members and will offer takeaway
handouts on each group, including lists of IG-related conference presentations.
A new event will be tried this year: combining an Interest Group Rap Session with the Saturday morning
Newcomers’ Orientation and Breakfast. This will be a chance to network, learn what others are doing, and share
experience and challenges. Each IG will have a rap facilitator. CATESOL newcomers will be invited to join raps and
participate in IG-related activities throughout the conference as well as afterward. Whether you are just curious about
interest groups or already an active member, you will have ample opportunity in San Diego to expand your knowledge.
Robert Wachman is a professor of ESL at Yuba College in Marysville, California. [email protected]
...computer classes
(continued from page 7)
skills are assumed to already be a part
of general knowledge when students
arrive at a community college. Many of
my students, however, did not have this
knowledge, and I suspect that is true of
a large percentage of ESL students. Many ESL teachers may get a
chance to teach one or two computer
skills as they teach English skills, but I
would be interested in finding out how
many colleges have a “computer skills”
class that was developed specifically
for ESL students. In our class, teachers
emphasize e-mail, Internet research and
resources, MSWord and PowerPoint.
There are some challenges
involved in implementing an ESL
“computer-skills” class. The first is
developing course objectives and
8
beginning the curriculum process.
Depending on the college, this may
be a significant obstacle. It may be
necessary to prove that the class is
best taught in the ESL department
and not in the Computer Information
Services or Business Office Technology
departments.
Once past that hurdle, it is
necessary to determine what the dayto-day activities will best help students
master the skill objectives that have
been set for the course. After several
months, I finally abandoned my
search for a textbook. (If you have
any suggestions, please send them my
way.) I resigned myself to creating
my own book of activities. I created
and assembled some 40 lessons (110
pages) with screenshots and detailed
instructions and sent them to the
bookstore to reproduce and punch
holes in. (The packet costs students
$6.) Lessons include: Basic Classroom
Procedures (turning the computer
on and off, logging in, lab rules, etc.),
Typing Overview, Email, MSWord,
PowerPoint, Internet Activities and
Internet Games. The specifics of this
course are available to anyone who
contacts me. I am happy to share the
work I’ve done.
ESL teachers know the impact
they have on the lives of their students.
We hear it from them every day. We
also see it in their work and in their
faces. What I see in my computer skills
classes is a whole new level of student
satisfaction. Students are entering a
world they have heard about but haven’t
yet been able to touch. The amazement
and gratitude shines in their eyes and
reminds me of just how privileged I am
to be a part of it.
Charmaine Phipps teaches ESL at
Chaffey College in Rancho Cucamonga,
Regional Conferences
San Diego Regional Participants Get
Online Access to Conference Handouts
By Jim Brice
A
s San Diego prepares to host
CATESOL’s State Conference
next month, we look back at our fall
regional and hope that the past is
prologue. More than 400 participants
and 35 exhibitors attended the
October 21 conference at Mesa
College. Not an extra swag bag could
be found at the late registration booth,
at least partly because of the rockstar appeal of the conference plenary
speaker, Dr. Kate Kinsella, who stuck
around after her main set to perform
a two-hour encore. Both her keynote
speech and follow-up presentation
complemented the conference theme
of “raising the bar” on student
learning and teacher expectations.
Kinsella addressed ways to
structure lessons that increase
students’ academic vocabulary so they
can become more literate, participate
more meaningfully in class, and
continue their education beyond
ESL. She showed video clips from
ESL secondary classrooms, providing
examples of how her method works
and how she has trained other teachers
to use it successfully. According to
Kinsella, far too often ESL reading
texts focus on unimportant vocabulary,
and the only one using any academic
language in the classroom is the
teacher.
Among the techniques she
demonstrated to remedy those
deficits were more pre-teaching, or
“frontloading,” of prioritized word
lists that teachers select from readings,
as opposed to teaching words as
they come up in context. Part of this
pre-teaching involves giving students
practical, teacher-made definitions,
not esoteric (and often confusing)
dictionary definitions. Kinsella also
advocated direct teaching of parts of
speech and practicing pronunciation
with students before they read the new
words in the text.
Kinsella led participants through
specific ways for presenting new
vocabulary and checking student
comprehension, while simultaneously
teaching students to use “academic”
language. Her reference in this
regard was to the kind of class talk
that enables them to become better
students and co-workers. In her own
classes, she pre-teaches the proper use
of expressions like, “I’d like to add
something here.” Or, “I am not sure
I understood that. Could you give
having a handout from that great
presentation that your lunch
partner saw, San Diego Community
College District teachers had
online access to handouts. More
than 130 participants used a
new online feature called Survey
Monkey to evaluate presenters.
One option for raising the
bar and increasing professional
development at all future
CATESOL conferences would be
to replicate the San Diego regional’s
access to handouts and/or
CATESOL could raise the bar by replicating the
San Diego experience and providing online access to
handouts and presentations at future conferences.
another example?” Students practice
these and other expressions based
on sentence-starter activities. For
example, the activity might require
each student to begin a sentence with
the expression, “Could you give me
another example of what you mean by
X,” X being a different word for each
student called on.
It is important, Kinsella stressed,
not to cut corners, but rather to go
through each stage of a lesson, giving
students time to practice and rehearse
their responses. Her examples clearly
showed how to present and practice
new vocabulary, as well as how to hold
students accountable for learning fresh
material.
Attendees also profited from many
other stellar presenters, which may
help inform your own choices for the
State Conference, where there may be
some encores.
Conference co-chairs Gretchen
Bitterlin and Donna Price raised the
bar on the quality of the conference
in big and small ways. For instance,
to remedy the problem of not
presentations online. A few regional
conferences have formed Yahoo
User Groups, which allow members
to download handouts. For
example, thanks to Branka Marceta
of the Outreach and Technical
Assistance Network (OTAN), some
handouts from technically related
presentations at the San Diego
conference are available at http://
tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/tellig/
We are getting closer to being
able to click from the comfort of
our own homes to get material or
see presentations made hundreds of
miles away yesterday or months ago,
albeit without the satisfaction that
accompanies personal attendance
at dynamic sessions like those we in
San Diego enjoyed.
Jim Brice teaches ESL for the San
Diego Community College District at
the West City Center, where he is the
ESL computer lab teacher and ESL
Department Chair.
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10
Chapter News
Bay Area CATESOL Chapter in the Works
By Belinda Braunstein
Chapter Council Chair
A
new chapter is forming to serve CATESOL members
who live in the San Francisco Bay area but are not
already a part of the Steinbeck, Capital Area or Yosemite
chapters. (Take a look at the map on this page to see where
the chapters are. Shaded areas have chapters.) Those who
live in areas without their own chapter to brag about can
attend the Northern, Los Angeles. and San Diego regional
conferences in the fall, the yearly state conference in the
spring, and, of course, events hosted by any chapter in
California or Nevada.
Why create another chapter? Chapters are more
intimate and are a very easy way to get involved in the
organization. It’s chapter members – not the organization
– that decide what these local organizations do, whether
co-sponsoring teaching workshops with CALPRO, raising
money to help members attend the state conference, hosting
publisher exhibits, or having terrific social events. (My
own chapter seems partial to wine and cheese socials.) All
are open to suggestions and invite member involvement
in decision-making, whether you’ve been in CATESOL 20
years or two weeks.
How can you get involved? Once the new chapter is
created, you will automatically be a part of it if you live in
the counties covered. As Chapter Council Chair, I have been
approached by several members living in the Bay area who
would like
to have a
chapter
Bay Area Chapter Will Be
closer than
Monterey or
CATESOL’s 9th
Sacramento.
What we
don’t know yet is whether to limit the chapter area to Santa
Clara County – where most of the requests came from – or
to include Alameda and Contra Costa folks.
If you live in any of these counties, please e-mail me at
[email protected] to let me know your opinion on this.
Will the new chapter be South Bay, East Bay… or Greater
Bay? We also need individuals who have a little time and
enthusiasm to be founding board members of the chapter.
If you’ve got the interest, we’ve got the support – as well as
a little seed money – to get you started. I can’t wait to hear
from you.
Belinda Braunstein is lead teacher in the English Language
Program at UC Santa Barbara Extension.
Annual Cloudburst Fundraiser Spurs Benevolence
By Casandra Issaka
Capital Area Chapter Coordinator
O
n Friday, December 8, 2006,
Capital Area held its annual
Cloudburst wine-tasting fundraiser
to assist non-benefited part-time
teachers in need. Hosted at a beautifully
decorated home in Sacramento, the
event drew teachers and administrators
from various schools and levels. The house was filled with colleagues
and family mingling to a backdrop
of live piano music while sampling
delicious homemade appetizers,
delectable desserts, and, of course, a
generous array of fine wine. Several
attendees were lucky enough not to
leave empty-handed thanks to the many
raffle prizes.
Los Padres Plans Double
Handful of Spring Events
By Marit ter Mate-Martinsen
Los Padres Chapter Coordinator
The Los Padres CATESOL Chapter has a number of
exciting events planned for the coming months:
Santa Barbara - Wake Center Room 13, 300 N. Turnpike
April 27: Organizing and Monitoring Instruction (4-7 p.m.)
May 10: ESL Publishers Book Fair (3:30-5:30 p.m., Schott
Center Auditorium, 310 W. Padre, Santa Barbara).
Just before the event, an extremely
deserving recipient had been identified,
which made the fundraiser all the more
meaningful. Thank you to everyone
who generously donated time, talent,
and personal funds to make this a
success! Stay up-to-date with our
chapter’s activities by visiting www.
capitalcatesol.org.
Ventura - Ventura Adult Continuing Education Room 201,
5200 Valentine
May 4: Differentiating Instruction, Session 1 (4-7 p.m.)
San Luis Obispo – Cuesta College, Hwy. 1
March 17: Enhancing Learner Persistence (9 a.m.- 1 p.m.)
April 21: Differentiating Instruction, #1 (9 a.m. -1 p.m.)
May 12: Differentiating Instruction, #2 (9 a.m.- 1 p.m.)
Come one, come all! Take advantage of these
wonderfully inspiring local opportunities and connect
with ESL professionals. All events are free to CATESOL
members. Please RSVP Jack Bailey at [email protected]
or Marit ter Mate-Martinsen at [email protected].
You may also wish to see chapter doings at http://www.
lospadrescatesol.org
11
Join us April 12-15 for
CATESOL’s 38th Annual
State Conference
in San Diego
With three days of more than 300 concurrent sessions,
participants are sure to find papers, demonstrations,
workshops, rap sessions, interest group meetings and
colloquia that match their interests at “Transcending
Borders,” the 38th Annual State Conference of CATESOL.
In addition to these – plus networking, meeting old friends
and squeezing in a bit of sight-seeing in beautiful San
Diego – attendees will be treated to the ideas of our three
eminent plenary speakers, each of them hailing from
outside the United States.
“TRA
for our
DIEG
and C
the he
confer
California
Public
Featured
and have fun,
butSchools.”
everything
will be on this o
panelists will be Carmen
minutes away
at Scarcella
the Fashion
Quintana,
Robin
andValley
Lily shopping
Wong
Fillmore.
beaches
and bays, SeaWorld, the San Diego
To get the most from CATESOL
If you would like to volunt
2007, start off by attending one or
conference,
please contact
more of the intensive
Pre-Conference
Mark
manasse1
Institutes, learning
andManasse
working at
with
Please
join
us into 2007!
experts in the field.
Don’t
forget
visit the Electronic Village, where you
On Friday, Dr. Margarita Luna Delgado will discuss
can see the latest innovations and get
multiculturalism and social justice on both sides of the
expert advice. If you’re a conference
U.S.-Mexican border. On Friday at the President’s Lunch,
rookie, don’t miss one of the
Dr. Francis Njubi Nesbitt will speak about the political and
Newcomers’ Orientations on Friday
cultural identities of northeast African refugees in Southern
or Saturday morning at 7 a.m.
California. And, on Saturday, Dr. Jim Cummins, renowned
expert on the nature of language proficiency, will talk
about how teachers can better use students’ first languages
and cultural understanding to acquire second languages.
Soaking up the energy created by
the thousands of inspired teachers
you are sure to encounter at the 2007
Statewide Conference. Please join us
in San Diego.
Cummins’s presentation will be followed by a panel
discussion on “Perspectives on Developing and
Implementing Quality Curricula for Academic Literacy in
Looking for a good restaurant, a place to shop,o
some memorable sights to see while you’re in tow
You might like to check out our story “San Diego
Places to Visit Between Workshops” on Page 4
On-Line Registration NOW Available On-Line at: http://www.
12
or
wn?
o
State Conference
CATESOL 2007 Plenary Sessions
Margarita Luna Delgado - Thursday, April 12
“Beyond Politics, Beyond Racism, Beyond Borders: Si Se Puede”
Margarita Luna Delgado
Dr. Margarita Luna Delgado is a professor in the Departamento de Humanidades y
Ciencias de la Educacion at the Universidad Iberoamericana in Tijuana, where she
coordinates Graduate Programs in Education. Student, teacher, psychologist and
agent of change on both sides of the U.S.-Mexican border, her work seeks to
promote cultural sensitivity, understanding, social justice, and equity. Delgado was
one of the founding members of the Border Pedagogy Initiative, whose primary
mission is to promote cultural understanding that leads to enhanced instructional
practices. Delgado believes that one cannot ignore the politics and the inherent racism that permeates “good intentions.”
Francis Njubi Nesbitt - Friday, April 13, President’s Lunch
“Africans in California: New Identities in the Diaspora”
Francis Njubi Nesbitt
Dr. Francis Njubi Nesbitt is a Kenyan-born associate professor of Africana Studies
at San Diego State University. His 2004 book, Race for Sanctions: African Americans
against Apartheid, 1946–1994, is the first comprehensive account of the successful
effort by African Americans to take an anti-apartheid agenda from the margins of
U.S. foreign policy in the 1940s to its very center by the mid-1980s. It examines the
role of the African Diaspora in the first successful transnational movement in the era
of globalization. His latest paper, and the topic of his CATESOL lecture, examines
the political identities of Somali, Sudanese and Ethiopian refugees in California.
The focus on diaspora and transnational identities highlights the social, cultural and
business ties that continue to bind these refugees to their countries of origin. This
perspective takes us beyond the traditional focus on pathology, post-traumatic stress
and maladjustment in refugee studies.
Jim Cummins - Saturday, April 14
“I’m Not Just a Coloring Person: Cognitive Engagement
and Identity Investment in Multilingual Classrooms”
Jim Cummins
.catesol.org
Dr. Jim Cummins is Canada Research Chair in Language and Literacy Development
in Multilingual Contexts at the University of Toronto and a prolific author of books
on second language learning and literacy development. His research has focused on
the nature of language proficiency and second language acquisition with particular emphasis on the social and educational barriers that limit academic success for
culturally diverse students. Recent books include Literacy, Technology, and Diversity:
Teaching for Success in Changing Times (with K. Brown and D. Sayers), Language,
Power and Pedagogy and Negotiating Identities: Education for Empowerment in a Diverse
Society, “I’m Not Just a Coloring Person …” deals with ways in which students’ cultural knowledge and first language abilities can be used within “mainstream,” ESL,
and bilingual classrooms as cognitive tools and as resources for learning.
13
Working towards international peace Chapter News
and bridging communities... Anderson to
Headline
OC Spring Workshop
By Carol Bander
Publicity Co-chair, Orange County Chapter
O
BRING THE WORLD
INTO YOUR HOME!
Host a foreign exchange student
www.cci-exchange.com
● Teach your children firsthand
about diversity
● Learn about different cultures
● Create lasting friendship and
travel networks throughout the
world
● Educate student ambassadors
from interesting countries about
American life and culture
Call toll free (877) 796-0009
Work opportunities available for California
residents, part-time from home!
range County CATESOL and the California State
University Fullerton TESOL Club are exceedingly
proud to feature Dr. Neil J Anderson, former TESOL
president and expert in reading, at their spring workshop at
CSUF’s Titan Student Union on Saturday, March 31, 2007.
He will speak about “Building Reading Fluency.”
A professor in the Department of Linguistics and
English Language at Brigham Young University in Provo,
Utah, Anderson previously taught in the TESL master’s
degree program at Ohio University. He received his
bachelor’s degree in Spanish from BYU in 1979 and his
TESL master’s in 1981. He received his doctorate in TESL
from the University of Texas at Austin in 1989. He was a
Fulbright Research Teaching Fellow in Costa Rica. Among
his many awards, he was granted the outstanding graduate
faculty award at Ohio State.
Anderson has traveled and lectured in Brazil, Costa
Rica, Honduras, Indonesia, Morocco, Namibia, Panama, the
Philippines, South Africa, Thailand,
and the United States. Some may
remember him as a featured keynote
speaker at a recent CATESOL State
Conference. Subsequent to his term
as president of TESOL in 2001-2,
he chaired the Board of Trustees
TESOL International Research
Foundation from 2002-2004. He has
authored numerous scholarly books,
chapters in books, articles and the
popular reading skills classroom
textbook series: Active Skills in
Reading. Among his research
Neil Anderson
interests is applying metacognitive
skills to reading and writing.
He says one great difficulty in the second language
reading classroom is that even when students are
literate, much of their reading is not fluent and they read
significantly more slowly in their second language than in
their first. He will show how to strike a balance between
assisting students in increasing their reading rate and not
over-emphasizing accuracy at the expense of fluency. He
argues that it is very important to focus more on developing
fluency, not speed. Fluency is a vital key to success
in reading. Fluent readers, he notes, recognize words
automatically, read aloud effortlessly and with expression,
do not have to concentrate on decoding, and can focus on
comprehension.
(continued on page 15)
14
Chapter News
South Nevada Conference
Draws Biggest Turnout Ever
By Regina Marshall
Southern Nevada Chapter Coordinator
T
he Southern Nevada Chapter is
still reeling from the wonderful
conference we held October 13-14. It
was off the charts (a complete success),
with some 200 participants, including
publishers and presenters.
The conference hosted our
president, Karen Kaplan-Cadiero,
who shared afew words about the
importance of membership and her
book, The Literacy Curriculum & Bilingual
Education: A Critical Examination.
The largest group of publishers
that we have ever had joined us at West
Charleston Campus of Community
College of Southern Nevada. Attendees
raved about the generosity of the
publishers – including Harcourt, Scott
Foresman, Rosetta Stone, Thomson,
and Rigby – who provided them with
goodie bags loaded with materials,
including professional publications.
The plenary speaker was Hector
Ramirez, a native of Colombia. A
consultant with Harcourt publishers,
he spoke on “The ELL Experience
Through the Eyes of an Educator.”
Dr. Sam Sebesta, from the University of
Washington, Seattle, gave the keynote,
“You Must Remember This – Teaching
the Oracy-Literacy.” He frequently drew
laughter as he addressed the issue of
vocabulary in language acquisition via
Reader’s Theater. Sebesta hilariously
clarified the importance of making
concrete connections. Teachers
hammed it up as he pulled props out
of his costume truck ... the feather boa
on one man had the audience wildly
guffawing.
Four cultural performances iced
...oc spring workshop
(continued from page 14)
Using skills such as scanning, skimming, predicting, and
identifying main ideas gets students to approach reading in
different ways. Readers should spend more time analyzing
and synthesizing the content of the reading, and not on
moving through the passage one word at a time or constantly
using a dictionary. Anderson defines a fluent reader as one who reads at a rate of 200 words-per-minute
with at least 70 percent comprehension. The workshop will
demonstrate 11 pedagogical activities to improve reading
fluency: Shape Recognition, Number Recognition, Letter
Recognition, Word Recognition, Phrase Recognition, Shadow
Reading, Rate Buildup Reading, Repeated Reading, ClassPaced Reading, Self-Paced Reading, and Computer as a
Pacing Tool.
The $35 registration fee for CATESOL members
(according to one past evaluation “the biggest bargain in
CATESOL”) includes a continental breakfast, a hearty
luncheon, and a vast array of publishers’ exhibits. The
fee for non-members is $50, $15 of which applies to
CATESOL membership if the participant joins at the time
of registration. The fee is $25 for student members of
CATESOL, $35 for student non-members with a photo ID.
The continental breakfast and publishers’ exhibits start at 8
a.m. The general session runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
the cake as we ate a wonderful, al fresco
catered dinner until the rain chased
us indoors. Performers included Salsa
Negra, a spicy Latin group, and a Thai
Cultural Arts Association dance troupe
wearing authentic Thai costumes,
including the ornate gold headdresses
and finger extensions of their heritage.
Hawaii’s traditions of dance and
costume were represented by Rancho
High School Hula Troupe and the
night’s entertainment was topped off
with the Mountaintop Gospel singers
who had us all clapping and tapping to
their uplifting rhythms.
After discussing the matter with
Cadiero-Kaplan, we decided to present
our proposal to the CATESOL board
in January seeking to confirm Las
Vegas as the host city for the 44th State
Conference in 2013. We presented the
board with a Convention and Visitors
Authority video of the options Las
Vegas has to offer in terms of hotel
and convention space. The next step is
seeking bids from various hotels and
other venues.
Ample opportunity will be provided to mingle and
socialize with former and future friends and colleagues
as well as visit the publishers’ exhibits during a 45-minute
morning break. A number of lucky attendees will return
home with prizes and free books, thanks to our publishers’
generosity. So mark your calendars now! Pre-registration
is necessary for breakfast and lunch, so be sure to sign up
ahead of time.
For registration information, contact Catherine Whitsett
at email: [email protected]. Registration forms and fees
should be sent to OC CATESOL at 5230 Fox Hills Avenue,
Buena Park, CA 90621. For further information, contact
Coordinator Barbara Luther at [email protected] or
Coordinator-elect Victoria Workman at vmw52@earthlink.
net
A former CATESOL president, Carol Bander is a professor
of ESL and German at Saddleback College in Mission Viejo,
California.
CATESOL members are encouraged to
submit articles (and ideas for articles)
to the CATESOL News. Articles of
about 600-700 words are preferred.
Accompanying digital photos in jpeg format
are appreciated. If you have an article or
an idea for one, e-mail the editor, Timothy
Lange, at [email protected]
15
Out and About
Good Dialog, Good
People, Good Food
Highlight TESOL Italy
By Karen Dennis
Past President
O
ne of the fun tasks as past president is to be responsible
for TESOL Affiliate matters. You have received
messages from me during the year about the advantages of
belonging to TESOL as well as CATESOL. Since I have a
fondness for Italy, I thought it would be a delight to attend
the “Inviting Views: Meaning and Meaningfulness in the
Classroom” TESOL-Italy conference November 3-4 at the
University of Naples in Naples, Italy, and see how another
affiliate was run.
Mary Ann Christison and Julian Edge were the keynote
speakers. Mary Ann’s presentation “A Brain-based View
of Language Teaching and Learning” was fascinating. She
had an overview of the most relevant results of research
using functional neuron-imaging related to learning another
language, as well as information about the cerebral basis for
bilingualism.
Mary Beth Flynn, pictured with me below, is the president
of TESOL-Italy. She graciously included me in many activities
including a wonderful
Italian dinner with the
conference committee. I
am unsure of the exact
numbers of attendees,
but I think it was 400.
Next year the conference
will be in Rome, and the
organization expects
more than 600 to attend.
The successes and
challenges of running a
conference are just like
ours. You find dedicated
Mary Beth Flynn, president of
people and try not to
TESOL-Italy, and Karen Dennis
work them to death.
In the TESOL
Calendar there are notices
of all types of affiliate conferences. For example, there is
TESOL-France, and JALT (Japan Association for Language
Teaching) has a conference in Tokyo, November 22-25 in
2007. This year four new affiliates have joined TESOL: Hong
Kong Association for Applied Linguistics (HAAL), TESOL
Macedonia-Thrace, The Australian Council of TESOL
Associations, (ACTA) Penang English Language Learning and
Teaching Association (PELLTA) from Malaysia. Karen Dennis is past president of CATESOL. She served as
president of the organization in 2005-2006.
Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts Add Spice to ESL Classroom
By Branka Marceta
Assistant Secretary
B
logging, podcasting, online
collaboration, and social
bookmarking are some new concepts
and tools gaining more presence on
the Internet. As I pointed out in my
presentation of “Web 2.O for Adult
Ed ESL” at the Los Angeles/Orange
Country Regional Chapter Conference
in October, educational technology
leaders and educators are directing their
attention to
these new
ways of
creating and
accessing
content as
potential
new learning
formats.
Blogs,
or Web
Branka Marceta
16
logs, can offer an exciting new way for
students to do writing assignments with
interesting photo or video prompts.
Major motivators for better writing
are a sense of wider audience and the
gratification of being published. See an
example of using video as a prompt for
assignments at Cristina Costa’s teaching
English to sailors in Portugal – http://
www.fromstemtostern.blogspot.com/
“Wikis,” or editable Web pages, are
great for collaborating over distance.
The adult education Technology
Mentor Network at the Outreach and
Technical Assistance Network has
a wiki to collect stories of ways our
learners have benefited from learning
technology skills along with language
skills. The idea is that any teacher can
go to the site and add her student’s
story, or even have the student add it. It
is at http://studenttechstories.pbwiki.
com/
Podcasting, or publishing audio
files on the Internet, has spurred a
flurry of services by numerous Web
sites offering many more opportunities
for listening practice, to the great joy
of ESL learners who have Internet
access anywhere in the world. The
Internet TESL Journal-sponsored Web
site familiar to many ESL teachers and
students, http://a4esl.org/podcast/,
offers a great starting point for those
new to podcasting.
Some other technology-related
workshops offered at LA/OC Regional
were:
Podcasting - by your ESL
students: Elissa Ikeda - Ted Liu
Online assessment for online
and Web-enhanced classes: Marsha
Chan
Explore Free Listening and
Speaking Software and Tools: Peggy
Marcy
Online language teaching: The (continued on page 17)
Lesson Plans
Building Vocabulary Requires More than Word List
By Dan Fichtner
President-Elect
R
ecently there has been much talk about vocabulary. It is
becoming an extremely important part of all language
development activities because students need to know the
relevant words to explain ideas and concepts in their classes.
All language skills should be involved in the learning of new
vocabulary.
Students need to:
1. listen to the word being used in meaningful discourse,
2. say the word with proper pronunciation and in a context that conveys its meaning,
3. read the word in various contexts with a variety of collocations,
4. write the word correctly in relevant situations in which
it could occur,
5. study the word to see if any roots, prefixes or suffixes
can help understand its meaning, and
6. visualize what feelings or ideas the word might evoke
in speakers and listeners.
These “steps” in building vocabulary imply that if we wish
our students to truly learn new vocabulary terms there needs to
be vocabulary study, not just a haphazard listing and perusal of
words and phrases. Teachers must discuss the significance of
multiple-meaning words and give students a chance to experiment with their various connotations and denotations. Students
need time to “digest” the words and make them their own.
Zimmermann and Kinsella have been particularly helpful in
my musings on vocabulary development. I have created a
chart that attempts to help organize the elements needed for
vocabulary “study.” Discussion with a teacher and cooperative
work using a good dictionary with basic
sentences, a thesaurus and collocations
will bring about new knowledge about
target vocabulary that plain vocabulary
study will not.
“Abolish” will come out as a vocabulary item in history class and should
be studied. My chart is filled out with
terms that will help students get a “feel
for” the word. “Abolitionist” offers
the chance to highlight the suffix “ist”
meaning “person.” Working with the
Dan Fichtnerteacher and others will guarantee that
many nuances of the word will be discussed and, we hope,
internalized. It’s the participatory aspect of this study that will
bring about the resulting vocabulary knowledge.
Simply handing the worksheets to the students and requiring them to fill them out will not bring about the desired
result – systematic vocabulary development. Teachers must be
involved with students in this learning process.
Let’s help our students learn vocabulary that is important
to their social and academic success. We are important in the
learning equation. Work with your students and enjoy the
fruits of your labor – that’s the joy of teaching!
Dan Fichtner, CATESOL president-elect, works in the UCLA
Education Extension’s TESOL program.
IEPers to Learn the How’s and Why’s of Listening Lessons
have the opportunity to create and
Baker of UCLA Extension, American
present a listening lesson.
Language Center, and authors of the
popular Interactions series of listening
The workshop immediately follows
isten Up! CATESOL members who textbooks.
the
IEP
Rap Session where, during
The hands-on workshop will help
work in Intensive English Programs
lunch,
IEP
teachers and administrators
IEP teachers understand essential
can look forward to an informative
can
discuss
the challenges they face
components of a successful listening
IEP Workshop at the upcoming
while
teaching
listening and other
lesson and the characteristics that make
CATESOL State Conference in San
topics
of
interest.
See you there!
listening difficult. Other discussion
Diego, Saturday, April 14, 2007, at 1:30
Sarah MacGregor is Assistant Director
topics include the role of the teacher
-3:15 p.m. The IEP workshop, “The
of the American Language Program at
in the listening class and how to test
How’s and Why’s of Listening,” will
California State University, East Bay.
listening. Workshop participants will
be presented by Judith Tanka and Lida
conferences:
1. go to www.catesol.org,
(continued from page 16)
2. click on Interest Groups link,
3. click on the link to TELL-IG’s Web site,
next hot trend? Rhonda Cisneros
4. click on the Conferences link.
Creating Interactive PowerPoint Lessons for ESL
Classrooms: Rocio Silva -Sarah Kim
Branka Marceta is Technology Projects Coordinator, Adult
By Sarah McGregor
Assistant IEP Level Chair
L
...blogs, wikis, podcasts
For the more comprehensive lists of technology-related
workshops offered at both Regional and State CATESOL
Education, with the Outreach Technical Assistance Network
(OTAN).
17
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18
Transcending the
Borders of Language
and Learning
By Lynne Nicodemus
Sociopolitical Coordinator
L
anguage acquisition from the neurobiological perspective
was the subject of Dr. John H. Schumann’s keynote
address at CATESOL’s Northern Regional Conference in
November at Las Positas Community College in Livermore,
California. A professor in the Department of Applied
Linguistics and TESL at UCLA, Schumann has written
several books on the neurobiology of language learning.
In his view, all children are born with “integrative
motivation,” which he calls the interactive instinct. Children are
thus born hard-wired with a drive to bond, affiliate with
and become like
their caregivers.
This intense
motivational
drive focuses
children’s
attention
on their
caregivers and
fuels their
acquisition of
Dr. John H. Schumann speaks at
language, among Los Positas Community College to
other things.
CATESOL Northern Regional crowd.
Schumann
elaborated on a number of interactive responses that he said
underlie a child’s brain development through this interactive
instinct and which give insight into language development in
a person’s earliest years. Part of this drive pushes children to
imitate the intentions their caregivers and try to achieve the
same result. Children, he said, are hard-wired to pay attention
not only to the result (the final meaning of the interaction),
but also to how to get there (development of language
structure).
A
nother developmental dimension involves the limbic
drive, which is highly noticeable to anyone interacting
with young children. Children vocalize (as in babbling or
crying) and caregivers vocalize back (Oh, you must be
hungry…) Therefore, children and caregivers understand
each other’s communicative intentions at an intuitive level,
which deepens bonding between them.
Statistical tracking is another aspect. When a child notices
something new, her brain becomes very active. The more
familiar this new thing becomes, the less active her brain
Regional Conferences
becomes – the less it responds to the stimulus because the
reaction has become automatic.
Schumann said chemical produced naturally in the
body are critical in the development of affiliation brought on
through the interactive instinct. Oxitosin – also known as the
pleasure hormone – is a neuro-modulator. It affects bonding,
affiliation, love, and passionate relationships. Vasopressin
enhances and builds bonding relationships. A chemical similar
to cocaine, dopamine, plays a role in turning intentions into
actions. Dopamine spurs you to go toward the target.
So, as the child develops through interaction with
caregivers, oxitosin and vasopressin are stimulated, then
dopamine kicks in and gives pleasurable “hits” as the child
associates feeling good with getting friendly smiles, a caring
face, warm verbal sounds, et cetera. Ultimately, the release
of opioids give feelings of satisfaction and quiescence
over achieving a goal. These chemical reactions involved
in affiliative relationships provide a context in bringing
caregivers and babies into a strong relationship from which
language learning develops, according to Schumann.
O
ver time, the density of brain receptors involved
with neurochemical responses decreases. The brain’s
capacity for forming new connections decreases over time.
For instance, as we know, adult language learners find it
very difficult to fully imitate the accent of native speakers.
Schumann speculated that perhaps this difficulty may have
been one of evolution’s means of helping humans maintain
group identity – a neuro-linguistic way of ensuring that
newcomers always remain at least partially outsiders.
Individual adults also retain varying levels of chemical
capacity and receptors in their brains. As adults, we need
to affiliate to learn a new language; one looks for signals
that seem friendly to determine with whom to associate.
These interactions are all being played out chemically – and
subconsciously – in a person’s head. Adults who retain
capacity for getting larger affiliative stimuli may be more
successful in building connections and, therefore, learn a
new language more easily. Those who don’t may find it more
difficult.
Schumann suggested that understanding the part the
brain plays in learning a language may help students to
understand and be more patient with themselves in the
learning process. It also seems that understanding this
process demonstrates the importance of congenial classroom
environments and the positive, sympathetic interactions of
teachers with students.
(You can listen to an archived podcast of the entire
keynote address at http://www.radiolaspositas.com/Archive.
htm.)
Lynne Nicodemus is Vice Principal at Pittsburg Adult Education
Center in Pittsburg, California, and chair of the Northern Regional
Conference.
19
Secondary Level
CELDT Alone Inadequate for Student Placement
By Barbara Bilderback
Secondary Chair
W
hile all schools use multiple criteria to exit students
from an English Language Development program,
placement into ELD is often not thoughtfully done, and
often relies too heavily on the CELDT (California English Language Development test) score. While the CELDT
paints, with a broad brush, an approximation of a student’s English
level proficiency, it should not be
the only factor used for new student
placement. Indeed, the CELDT
was designed more as a tool for the
state and the federal bureaucracies
to measure student language growth
globally than as an individual measurement of language level.
Let me share what has happened
to me and some of my colleagues
when CELDT is the sole criterion
Barbara Bilderback
for placing students.
One of my new freshmen was very quiet. Thalia had missed
the first day of class when we talk about ourselves, how long
we’ve lived here, and so on. She had an overall CELDT of
2 and hadn’t turned in much homework. At Back to School
Night, I asked her father how long Thalia had been in American schools. He seemed surprised, and I repeated the question, assuming it was my poor Spanish that was the problem.
No, the problem was that she had been in American schools
since kindergarten, and when transferring from one district
to another, placement was made “by the numbers.” Dad was
unaware that ELD was not a “regular” English class, and was
Adult Level
a bit put out with his daughter for not telling him what class
she was in. With parental request and Thalia’s reluctant cooperation, she was moved to the appropriate level.
I’ve had other students who have been enrolled in an
ELD class based on year-old (or older) CELDT scores without consultation with a parent or the previous teacher to ask
about proper placement. I have had students stuck in an early
intermediate level for three years before they come to me.
I’ll ask them, “What’s going on? Why are you still in such a
low level?” I’ll get various answers, such as, my middle school
ELD teacher was boring (or didn’t like me). Often students
don’t realize that the CELDT test is determining their placement.
I’ve had more than one student tell me that they are
asked to come in during early August to take the test, and
they do it as fast as they can, even just bubbling patterns, to
get done with it and go home! Of course, there are also serious issues regarding standardized testing, both cultural and
cognitive. Students with diagnosed (or undiagnosed) learning disabilities may well have a CELDT score that does not
reflect their abilities.
I wish we’d use as much care in student placement as
we do in exit and reclassification. At my high school, we
use student portfolios to measure academic growth. They
provide a much better picture of a student’s academic
abilities in English than a CELDT score does. I wish we
had a generalized portfolio that would follow students up
from middle school, or to a new school as they move. The
better we can place students in the appropriate English
or ELD class, the more growth we can expect them to
achieve.
Barbara Bilderback is an English Language Development teacher
at Montclair High School in Montclair, California.
Professional Growth - Let’s Make it a Mandate
By Kit Bell
Adult Level Chair
S
enate Bill 1209 was signed into law
September 28, 2006, and became
part of California’s Education Code.
The negative ramifications of this
piece of legislation on the quality
of ESL instruction should concern
us all. As an organization we should
consider sponsoring legislation that
voids the detrimental and myopic staff
development provision of the law.
Having taken effect on January
1, 2007, the law removes professional
growth as a renewal requirement for
any teacher holding a Professional
20
Clear credential. This means that once
a teacher has completed the Level 1
and Level 2 requirements, and received
her Professional Clear credential, she
can opt never again to participate in
another teacher-training workshop or
conference. Simply paying the fee once
every five years is all she needs to do to
renew her credential for the rest of her
teaching career, even if that should last
another 40 years.
Many ESL teachers with
Professional Clear credentials may
breathe a sigh of relief knowing that
they no longer need to accrue 100 clock
hours of professional growth every five
years to renew their credentials.
It’s certainly true that, in the past,
some teachers cobbled together 100
hours of irrelevant “development,”
often choosing workshops for their
convenience timing rather than
pertinence to their field. Moreover,
some workships were mediocre, illthought-out and poorly presented, a
waste of time for both teachers and
the students who supposedly would
ultimately benefit.
However, as professional educators
and CATESOL members, we ought to
be in forefront protesting and working
to counteract this unfortunate law.
Every ESL student deserves the best
(continued on page 21)
...mandate
(continued from page 20)
instruction possible. Lifelong
professional growth should be a
mandate for every ESL teacher. We
should do everything we can to keep
professional development front and
center.
At no time in the history of
California has professional development
for ESL teachers been more important.
According to 2000 U.S. Census data,
30 percent of all non-English speakers
in the United States live in California.
Without quality English-language
instruction, these Californians may face
minimal educational attainment and a
life of sub-standard wages.
We all know that many dedicated
instructors will participate in staff
development opportunities regardless
of the new law. They want to increase
their knowledge of the field and
improve their skills. They want to
become instructional leaders and stay
fresh and innovative. But, what about
those who do not?
When the state tied professional
growth to credential renewal in July of
1996, it required all ESL instructors to
attend teacher inservices and upgrade
their skills. It can be argued that a
reluctant participant does not learn. My
experience in my own district, however,
Professional
development is more
important now than at
any time in history.
has shown me that many teachers who
were not initially eager to participate
in training got hooked on staff
development and now attend regularly.
But with SB 1209 on the books,
how do we ensure that teachers new
to the field who have never gotten a
chance to understand the benefits of
staff development or veterans who are
burned out or lazy don’t take the easy
way out – avoiding workshops, sliding
into mediocrity and ceasing to meet
student needs?
First, of course, we need to
make sure that every training and
conference we offer is top notch.
We’ve all participated in some
that didn’t meet this standard. But
more than that, I believe we need
to advocate for staff development
to be part of the requirements that
our own local districts mandate
as a term of employment. The
CATESOL committee now
gathering information for a position
paper on professional development
should advocate for mandatory (and
paid) staff training that operates
under a set of state-recognized
standards. This would set the stage
for positive change.
Kit Bell supervises the Adult ESL,
CBET, Citizenship and Adult Basic
Education programs for the Los Angeles
Unified School District.
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21
...practicing English
...
(continued from the back page)
memorization is synonymous with “learning English.” Not
surprisingly, these students often “ace” entrance tests and are
placed in intermediate or advanced ESL classes, where they
are enrolling because they need, in their view, to learn “more
grammar and vocabulary”. They eagerly purchase whatever
textbook the class is using in the belief that an American
textbook will reveal the mysteries of communication.
It is at this point that I meet them. A quick show
of hands usually indicates that very few of them speak
English outside of class. Part of this is explainable by the
idea expressed by the student in my class: she is diligently
“studying English,” brushing up on grammar rules in her
textbook and memorizing vocabulary. However, I believe
there is also a significant cultural impediment to learning
English in
America for
More than one of these students
these students.
A couple of
has described to me their shock
anecdotes will
when they quickly realized that,
illustrate:
upon arrival in the United States,
I recently
they could neither effectively unbegan
an
derstand nor really speak English.
adult
school
Many laughingly told me that they
Chinese
discovered this before they ever
language class.
got out the airport.
The “culture
notes” section
of the textbook describes as “somewhat unlikely” the idea
that two people without either a business or institutional
relationship would simply introduce themselves to each
other. At least not without an intermediary. A teacher friend
found the lack of eye contact while looking into the faces
of thousands of Tokyoites so unnerving that she rushed
up to some Americans she saw just to get her requirement
of this basic of American “communication vitamin.” The
“Americans” turned out to be Europeans, by the way, but
they did make eye contact.
An educational administrator enjoyed his visit to Japan,
visiting schools and meeting teachers, students and other
Coming this May
in the
CATESOL News:
22
administrators.
He conversed
with many people
during these visits
but, wanting to
stretch his legs and
wander around
Tokyo after dinner
one evening, he
found it impossible
to converse beyond
being helped with
directions. Why
Stephen Thacker
the difference?
Aside from reticence that might be considered normal in
such a situation, no one knew his affiliation, his rank or other
important determinants of how to begin talking to a stranger.
A “culture shock” book about Japan describes a person
without a business card as a “ship without a sail.” He was
alone in Tokyo without either a card or an intermediary.
When I began the conversation class mentioned at
the outset of this article, the first homework assignments
consisted of simple interactions with Americans: Making
eye contact and saying,”hi” to people passed on the street.
Looking into someone’s shopping cart and making a positive
comment. “Those strawberries look good” or “How do
you cook that?” are typical American interactions, as is
wandering up to a stranger’s child (with permission, of
course) and measuring a sweater that would seem to fit a
similarly sized son, daughter , nephew or niece. Asking a
stranger,” Do you think this color looks good on me?” is not
considered inappropriate in America. Another homework
project was to buy and return something to a store. Most
American stores feature a “no hassle” return policy. Not so
in many countries.
Students’ lack of interaction with native speakers outside
of the friendly and supportive environment of the ESL
class hinders learning and frustrates students. Discovering
that it is not only appropriate but fun to speak English with
just about anyone at anytime can be empowering for ESL
students.
Stephen Thacker teaches advanced ESL and conversation ESL
at Torrance Adult School in Torrance, California.
Katheryn Garlow – CATESOL’s historian
College University Chair Gregory Anderson
discusses why nontenure-track faculty should
stop being treated as outcasts.
Elementary Level Chair Magaly Lavadenz gives
us the lowdown on the newly established Center
for Equity and Excellence in English Learner
Education and Research (CE4R) in the School of
Education at Loyola Marymount University.
Contact Us/Join Us
CATESOL
2006-2007
BOARD OF
DIRECTORS
CATESOL Membership Application
Date ______________
Please check level(s) which
you work:
 Elementary
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 Adult
 Community College
 College/University
 Intensive English Program
Subscribe to Listserv for the
above level(s)?  Yes  No
Please check your
position(s):
 Teacher
 Student (min. 6 units)
 Aide
 Administrator/Supervisor
 Teacher/Trainer
 Other: (Specify)
________________
 Full Time  Part Time
President
KAREN CADIERO-KAPLAN
(619) 594-4994
Name ____________________________________________
[email protected]
Past President
KAREN DENNIS
Mailing Address ____________________________________
(714) 241-5742
[email protected]
President–Elect
City ________________________ State ______Zip _______
DAN FICHTNER
(310) 316-6092
[email protected]
County _______________________Country _____________
Secretary
KATHY HAMILTON
(916) 686-7717
Phone (H) _____________(W) ___________(Cell)________
[email protected]
Treasurer
Fax __________________________ E–mail _____________
MARY HERBERT
(530) 752-4136
[email protected]
Elementary Level Chair
MAGALY LAVADENZ
(310) 338-2924
[email protected]
Mark “1” next to your primary choice. If you have a second
Please answer.
Secondary Level Chair
choice,
No response implies consent.
BARBARA BILDERBACK
(909) 596-2990
mark it with a “2.
E–mail addresses are never sent
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KIT BELL
May CATESOL:
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Send you an occasional e-mail
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CHARMAINE PHIPPS
regarding CATESOL products or
(909) 477-8636
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________ Teaching English in the Workplace (TEW)
[email protected]
College/University Level Chair
conferences, award opportuniGREGORY ANDERSON
ties, etc. ?
________ Nonnative Language Educators’ Issues (NNLEI)
(408) 422-3073
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Coordinator
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REGINA MARSHALL
(702) 254-5777
Nonnative Language Educators’ Issues IG Tünde Csepelyi, Coordinator [email protected]
[email protected]
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and SYLVIA VILLALVA
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Members may chose up to two interest groups:
23
Students Need Lessons on Practicing English Out of Class
By Stephen Thacker
W
hile tidying up at the conclusion of an adult education
ESL conversation class recently, I overheard this rather
curious exchange between a class volunteer and a student:
“Do you have a chance to practice your English outside
of class?” asked the volunteer.
“Not really.” replied the student. “I’m very busy.”
The volunteer continued, “Oh, what are you doing?”
“Studying English.”
This brief conversation brought home to me the
different ways people interpret the idea of “learning a
language.” In this particular situation, the student was a
middle-aged (whatever that means these days) Japanese
woman.
The majority of students in the various ESL classes I
teach are Asian (Japanese, Korean and Chinese), and many
have had a minimum of five years of English instruction
in their home countries. Some continued their study of
English in college, and quite a few listed English as their
favorite subject in school. More than one of these students
has described to me their shock when they quickly realized
that, upon arrival in the United States, they could neither
effectively understand nor really speak English. Many
laughingly told me that they discovered this before they ever
got out the airport. Many of these people sooner or later find
their way to an ESL class.
How can a person spend half a decade or longer in
language classes and not be able to communicate? For ESL
teachers, this is not a mystery – students come from monoethnic, mono-cultural countries, so opportunities to speak
and listen to English with native speakers are limited. Further,
English is taught by non-native speakers in the language of
the home country. Grammar rules and vocabulary
(continued on page 22)
UPCOMING EVENTS
March 20-24: TESOL Conference in Seattle
March 31: Orange County Chapter - The Spring Workshop features former TESOL
President Dr. Neil J Anderson speaking about “Building Reading Fluency.”
April 12-15: “Transcending Borders” - 38th Annual CATESOL Conference in San Diego.
April 21: Los Padres Chapter -”Differentiating Instruction, Session 1” in San Luis Obispo.
April 27: Los Padres Chapter - “Organizing and Monitoring Instruction” in Santa Barbara.
May 4: Los Padres Chapter - “Differentiating Instruction, Session 1” in Ventura.
May 10: Los Padres Chapter - ESL Book Publishers Fair in Santa Barbara.
May 12: Los Padres Chapter - “Differentiating Instruction, Session 2” in San Luis Obispo.
September 29: Saroyan Chapter Conference
October 6: Orange County Chapter Conference and Capital Area Chapter Conference
October 12-13: Southern Nevada Chapter Conference
October 13: Los Padres Chapter Conference and Yosemite Chapter Conference
October 20: San Diego Regional Conference
October 27: Los Angeles Regional Conference
November 3: Northern Regional Conference
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