The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.”
Alvin Toffier
It’s my favorite time of year, tutors, so I’ll begin by waxing poetic about the panorama of changing colors outside my office window. The vibrant oranges and rose reds, heralding autumn’s arrival, have made for a meditative landscape this past rainy week. Nature reminds us that change is inevitable, and boy, are we in a time of change. Being able to make and remake yourself seems like it will be the hallmark of our uncertain times… and not necessarily in the name of personal development but maybe just for the sake of survival!
When we began in 1979, Carroll County was very much a farming community. While we remain a rural county with a solid agricultural base, we’ve grown exponentially over the decades- an expansion that changed not only our landscape but also our demographics. We used to primarily serve illiterate adults who left school early to work on the family farm; now our largest student base is ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages). Just as we’ve evolved to meet the changing needs of our students in the past, we will continue to look ahead, as best we can, as these new times unfold. To paraphrase Socrates, the key to positive change is to focus on building the new rather than fighting the old. And to quote some guy from northern New Jersey, “No problems, only solutions.”
Since we’re in the field of helping others, we’re always looking for new ways to reach more people. That was the goal behind starting the English conversation groups in different locations around the county. They haven’t taken off as we’d hoped, but there’s a lot going on right now that is keeping students at home. With that being said, we’re working on getting a second group started in Westminster. Our first group meets at the Multi-Service Center before the community college’s ESOL classes on Monday evenings. We’re hoping to offer this second conversation class at a location within walking distance for students on a different night at a more convenient time (later than the MSC start time of 5 p.m. so students will have a chance to get home from work). If you’re interested in helping us with teaching once we’ve secured a location, please let me know. We have wonderful tutors (Susan Butcher, Nancy Cross, Christine Elahi, Luke Gore) who have helped with the MSC conversation group, as well as a great group meeting at the Mt. Airy branch of CCPL with tutors Ronnie Bohn and Paige Clulow. We even have a popular Spanish conversation practice circle, run by Monica Luque, at Eldersburg library! Hopefully we can get this second Westminster location up and running.
This month’s tutor-recommended material cornes from Sarah Alouf, who recently told me about a few language-learning applications that she uses to study Spanish. I know that a few of you are learning Spanish- a skill that definitely cornes in handy if you’re an ESOL tutor- and I want to pass thèse on to you. The first one, Memrise, which can be recommended to students learning English too, is great fun. l’ve been using it to practice French over the past week and am thoroughly enjoying it. For practice with Spanish verb conjugations, as well as being a handy resource if you need to know the preterite third-person singular form of tener, there’s the cleverly-named app Conjugato. And for listening practice for beginning-intermediate learners, there are the podcasts “Chili Spanish” with Anthony Morey and “Mini Stories to Learn Spanish” with Joel Zàrate. Continuing to learn ourselves offers us a slice of what life is like for our students as adults with often very full plates.
And now I’m off to procure some chicken soup to cure my cold. Since you’re receiving the September newsletter on October 1st, you’ll be hearing from me again shortly. Stay healthy!
Erin
Literacy Council of Carroll County 255 Clifton Blvd, Suite 314
Westminster, MD 21157
(410) 857-0766
Office Hours: Mon – Thurs 9 AM – 1 PM
