New English Curriculum at the Learning Center
The Oaxaca Learning Center, with English-speaking friends and
tenants always around, is a natural place for young Oaxacans
to learn and practice their English. From its inception, the
Center has offered English tutoring, but it’s been a somewhat
catch-as-catch-can affair. Some time ago, Gary decided that
English teaching at the Center needed more structure to better
serve students’ needs.
In 2008 the Center’s need was answered in the form of
Vincent Meis. Vince has been teaching English as a second language
for 25 years—the last 17 at the City College of San Francisco,
and at a campus in a neighborhood 95% Latino. His specialties:
program and curriculum development.
With a sabbatical coming up, and, as he puts it, “looking
for something useful to do,” Vince happily took on the
mission of designing what Gary had in mind. He returned in the
early summer of 2008 to meet with the Learning Center group
and assess their needs.
“There’s lots of stuff available out there for
the teaching of English,” Vince says. “There’s
no need to reinvent the wheel. But every teaching site is unique
in character and range of students. What requires careful thought
is the selection of materials and how to tailor them to particular
people in a particular place. In that sense, each curriculum
has to be new—and, for a while, experimental.”
After his early-summer visit, Vince returned to San Francisco
to gather materials. He took the City College curriculum as
a template, and then set about adapting it to what he had learned
on site in Oaxaca. When he returned to the Learning Center in
August, he set to work testing what he’d come up with
on the Center’s students, modifying it as needed. The
result is a proven-in-action curriculum covering three skill
levels that will be an invaluable guide and reference for Center
tutors and their students as they go about their work.
English Instruction
Volunteer native speakers provide free English-language classes at both Learning Center locations for all interested students.
Whether you are in Oaxaca short- or long-term, the Center can always put you to work! There is a need for tutors in English and/or an intercambio - you can practice your Spanish, while our students practice their English. For long-term stays, we can often put together a small class for English instruction.
