California Immigrants are Learning English – and Want to Learn More!
Do American immigrants want to learn English? Are the children of Spanish-speaking adult immigrants learning English? What are the recent trends in California and Los Angeles? A recently released Census Bureau report, based on the 2007 Census information, shows that – shock, shock – immigrants overwhelmingly want to improve their English skills. It also shows that a slight majority (51%) of...
Read MoreHow can they say that? Why is that junk on television?
ESL students, international visitors, and many American citizens often express shock, dismay, and outrage over television programs. How can the news show people struggling on a rooftop, a criminal cursing the police, or a comedian mocking a vice-presidential candidate – or the sitting United States president? What about those pseudo-pornographic junk shows and awful words that children...
Read MorePBS Provides More Resources for ESL, EL/Civics Adult Educators
ESL/Civics tip Public Broadcasting System (PBS) continues to expand their valuable non-commercial services for listeners, including English teachers and ESL instructors. Take the free online tour of PBS ESL/CivicsLink, an online professional development service for ESL teachers. The online system “helps instructors teach speakers of other languages effectively, strengthens cross-cultural...
Read MoreWhat is the electoral college? Why does it matter?
How did George W. Bush actually become President of the United States? After all, he received fewer popular votes for President than Al Gore, didn’t he? How could Al Gore win the popular vote and still lose the 2000 U.S. Presidential election? The short, unpleasant answer is that the popular vote doesn’t count – and the only vote that matters in electing presidents in the United States is...
Read MoreWhy Teach About Solzhenitsyn in English Classrooms?
“Own only what you can always carry with you; know languages, know countries, know people. Let your memory be your travel bag.” Alexander Solzhenitsyn (1918-2008), Russian writer and Nobel Prize winner Alexander Solzhenitsyn, an exceptional writer of rare courage, died today. English teachers, lovers of literature, and people of conscience will find his long obituary in the International...
Read MoreDoes Uncle Sam want immigrants to learn English?
Learning to read, write, and speak English remains a legal requirement for legal immigrants to become citizens in the United States. National polls also consistently show that over 80% of American voters favor making English the official national language. Immigrants to English speaking countries like the United States, Great Britain, Canada, and Australia also want to learn more English to gain...
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