ESL Teaching: Embrace Diversity

Math Teacher. School Administrator. Professional Development Teacher. Department Chair. All these titles has shaped me into the educator I am today. But the title “ESL Teacher” has opened a door that I did not realize was still closed.

This past year gave me the opportunity to explore teaching with non-native speakers. It gave me a glimpse into the world of immigrants and foreigners – alike. I learned about immigration procedures and foreign policy (in the US and abroad). Students shared cultural and historical situations that not only shaped their native society but themselves as well. I learned about the differences in educational systems, cuisine and social structures.

Countries my students are from: South Korea, Poland, India, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Vietnam, Mexico, Peru, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Ukraine, France, Panama, Japan and Romania. And I have met a host of others from countries not listed above. About half of my students live in the US and the others live all around the world – but necessarily in their home country. ESL students move around; unlike many Americans, who have not traveled abroad, ESL students are travelers. We often talked about the international places we have been, and they give me advice about places I need to visit.

My students ages range from 4 years old to as seasoned as a 67 years old. I have taught men and women, single and married, with/ without children — all stages of relationships and family life. Some students have stayed with me for as long as 7 months as others as few as a few weeks. There occupations and schooling are vast as well as their knowledge about the world around them.

I have learned that the English language is “crazy.” We break our own rules. We make up rules that don’t have any patterns. We borrow from many languages and pronounce some of these words different than what they are supposed to sound like. We can say the same thing in more than three ways. And we can ask a question with one word and a “?”. And this makes me so proud of my students – tackling the craziness of this language.

They inspire me to learn another language. Learning languages helps you understand a different culture and share in that culture. They inspire me to get to know more local diverse community. You can choose to become an ESL teacher. You can learn a new language. You can also decide to travel the world. Regardless of your choice, you should embrace diversity now.