Since beginning my journey to learn English I have noticed significant growth in my ability to communicate and understand this language. This is the result of the ESL classes I participated in at East Hartford Adult Education with Ms. Amy Pearsall. She is an amazing person and teacher. She gives everything to her class and always makes an effort to form strong personal connections with her students. I feel this is the reason that students learn so easily with her. She makes learning English fun and I am always using what I’ve learned in her class in my daily life.
After a year of taking ESL classes and with Ms. Pearsall's encouragement, I applied for and accepted a position as an ESL/Bilingual tutor at East Hartford High School at the beginning of this school year. Now, as an ESL/Bilingual tutor my major responsibility is to support the ESL students who arrive from other countries who need help learning the English language. I also help the teachers to communicate with the students and support the students in their academic core classes such as math, science, history and some ESL classes.
Thanks to my prior training as a biomedical engineer in Colombia and my experience as an ESL student, I am able to relate to the current ESL students at EHHS and continue to improve my English everyday at work. I now understand the pride a person feels when they learn a new language. Because of my new found love for helping students develop their grasp of new languages, I am now contemplating pursuing a career as a Bilingual teacher.
I want to say thank you to Ms. Pearsall and all the staff at East Hartford Adult Education for helping me find this new career path and the important services they provide for the East Hartford community!
“I think Claudia’s story is an amazing example of how our ESL program can benefit East Hartford. Our students have the opportunity to improve their English skills so that they can serve an impactful role in their community, and in this case, Claudia has been able to give back to her community with her new position in the school district.” - Mike Craig, Director of East Hartford Adult and Continuing Education