On April 20 and 21, the UW College of Education will be partnering up with Teton County School District to put on the third annual Wyoming ESL (English as a Second Language) Conference, which will include keynote speakers from Stanford University and NYU.
This conference falls in line with the college of education’s goal to engage in outreach networks across the state. Jenna Shim, associate professor from the literacy research center and clinic, has coordinated this conference for the past several years.
ESL at this conference, as well as at UW, is an incredible part of the introduction of English language learners into mainstream school systems. By putting this event together, Shim and her colleagues are making the practice of teaching English more inclusive cross-culturally.
“This conference is not just for teachers who work exclusively with English language learners, but it’s for all teachers who will end up having English language learners in their classroom one day,” Shim said.
In the American Melting Pot, Wyoming is not exempt from the growing populations of students who are learning to speak English as their second language. Teachers are bound to come across children that do not have the same basis of language as may be expected in the state.
“Too often, students who do not speak English are seen as a certain minority from certain southern regions of the U.S.,” Current masters student and Lander Spanish teacher Matthew Parsons said. “However, our students who are Native Americans may be ESLs; our foreign exchange students are ESLs. Their cultures are not understood and are not represented.”
By making this conference accessible to teachers across Wyoming, Shim and Parsons hope it will spread inclusion in schools so that English language learners feel as though they can relate to other students on the same playing field, even if they come from different backgrounds.
“It is important that teachers have the tools to teach children from where they are at,” Elementary Education major Mady Lundblad said. “This is the only way to ensure that a student can reach their full potential. This will break down the negative stigmas associated with other cultures through presenting a positive example of cross-cultural interaction, which is especially important in younger grades.”
There are almost 4,000 students across the state who are currently learning English as their second language according to Shim. With Wyoming being one of the least densely populated states, this is a significant amount that requires teachers to offer language tools in an educational setting.
However, because of the distances between school districts, Wyoming ESL teachers often find themselves feeling isolated and like they don’t have the same opportunities as other states do to let the teachers mingle and make connections so they can find support for their work.
“The objective [of the conference] is to bring educators who work with English language learners around the state together so they can form networks, they can learn from each other, they can share information, but they also have the chance to hear presentations from internationally renowned scholars,” Shim said.
Camaraderie, personal growth and acquisition of skills and styles will benefit all teachers and undergrad students in attendance at the conference. Also, by the promotion of this conference as well as UW’s ESL program, prejudices and stereotypes based on language will hopefully be stopped at the root.
“Students and faculty ought to care about [ESL], for when one stops to really think about it, aren’t we all English language learners?” Parsons said.
