Minnesota Adult Students Present Before Audience

CSD of Minnesotas Deaf Adult Education program hosted the first annual Student Profile night on June 9. A group of eight adult students delivered presentations for the first time in their lives before an audience of 50 people — a friendly mix of students, teachers, administrators, family and friends.

The Student Profile project was initiated this year to allow students to apply their skills in English, writing, ASL and technology in an innovative way, presenting their personal life stories. Students honed their Internet skills by researching facts, their English skills by writing and re-writing their stories, and their technology skills by using Publisher to print an announcement, and also Powerpoint and video equipment for their presentations.

Enrollment in the class includes adults from countries like Zimbabwe, Romania and China, and the U.S. All come from various educational backgrounds. While enrolling in Adult Basic Education (ABE) classes can be daunting, the one characteristic shared by each student is their fearless pursuit in learning the English language. Their success was evident to those attending on June 9. Their presentations educated, entertained and inspired the audience.

Technology in the classroom attracts learners to classes to build skills in reading, writing, and ASL, said ABE Lead Teacher Jessalyn Frank. Students are engaged and are succeeding in meeting their educational goals. The skills obtained provide them skills they can immediately apply in their lives.

Peggy Camp, herself a former ABE student, retold her success story in finding a job with CSD, along with new ABE students studying to pass college entrance exams or enroll in the GED program. Many learned to read so they could read to their grandchildren. The ABE program, funded by the Minnesota Department of Education, is crucial in the community. As the audience learned about the diversity of students, they realized how ABE offers a second chance at learning English and how to read for deaf adults.

If it was not for the ABE program, I would still be lost. ABE teachers and the program believed in me when everyone else walked away, commented one student.

The ABE program is gearing up for a great fall semester with opportunities in distance learning, technology, civics for the workplace, citizenship, and many other classes for diverse students. Check our Face Book (got to www.facebook.com and search CSD of Minnesota Deaf Adult Education Program) page to keep tabs on the various things we are doing. For more information contact: jfrank@c-s-d.org

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• ABE
• Adult Basic Education
• Deaf
• Minnesota

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