TheLittleHawk Iowa City High School - Iowa City, Iowa - Volume 71, Issue 1 - September 27, 2013 - www.thelittlehawk.com
Students from across the globe enroll in new ELL program By Ellen Carman
ellencarman@thelittlehawk.com
While many teachers can say that their job is a learning process, being an English Language Learners (ELL) teacher takes that concept to a new level. In its first year at City High, the ELL program is proving to educate both students and teachers. ELL serves students who are not ready for an English-only classroom, and the over 60 participants come from a wide range of countries. Leah Tweedy and Jacqueline Ceurvorst, the teachers who run the program, find themselves constantly learning new information about students’ countries of origin. “That’s one thing I love about this job, it’s such an education,” Tweedy said. “Different students come in from different countries and all of a sudden I’m like ‘Oo, I need to learn more about Guinea now.’” Tweedy previously taught in the ELL program at Prairie High School and Ceurvorst taught ELL at West High. Their job is to help students improve their English skills on top of meeting the regular graduation requirements. “An entire day in English can be really, really tiring,” Ceurvorst said. “By the end of the day I’m sure most of those kids go home and take a nap. It’s pretty overwhelming.” School is not the only challenge that some ELL students face. Tweedy remembers a student she had from Berundi who worked full time, trying to move his older siblings, still in Berundi, to a safer place. “He was just a high school student, but his parents had this huge barrier with language,” Tweedy said. “How can I really give him a lecture about getting his homework done?” Approximately 35 students who previously went to West High were moved to City this fall because they live on the east side of town. The remaining students are either new to the country or from a different school district in the U.S. “We are trying to provide equal programs,” Ceurvorst said in reference to West High’s ELL program. “We have pretty much the same number of levels, sheltered classes, and teachers.” There are three levels a student in the ELL program can be in: beginner, intermediate or advanced. Usually a beginner student has little to no English and takes very few regular classes. An advanced student works on fine tuning his or her English skills while taking an almost normal class schedule. A sheltered class is one that is co-taught with
ELL teacher Leah Tweedy gives directions to her class. Photo by Ellen Carman
an ELL teacher. For example, an ELL student may take American Studies and learn the same material as every other student in the class, but the ELL teacher will incorporate additional vocabulary and grammar practice into the subject they are studying. Part of the ELL teacher’s job is to educate their students about the local community, the school, and opportunities that are available to them. Ceurvorst has brought community members into her class to speak, and the students attended the club fair in August. “Without the English skills, it’s hard to advocate for yourself. Its hard to ask ‘Hey, is there anything I can do here?’” Ceurvorst said. “We want to get them connected with friends, sports and clubs. It helps with their English and knowing how things work around here, so they can integrate themselves and have a better life.” This cultural education can also be replicated for students and educators at City. Tweedy plans to focus on a different country that an ELL student is from each month. “I’ve heard people say that it’s interesting to work with ELL students because we don’t have a culture,” Tweedy said. “That’s so crazy, because once you start working with ELL students you realize what a strong culture you do have, and you become aware of how different other cultures
are.”
Administrators also believe that the increased diversity the ELL program brings to the school can enhance all students’ educational experience. “It’s good to integrate those kids into the school, because its a more accurate reflection of our society,” Freshman Dean Wendy Jacobsen said. “You know, we have those folks in our community, so if we learn to work with them I think
it helps everybody.” However, Ceurvorst emphasizes that in order for this cultural exchange to take place, ELL students need to be accepted into the school community. “Make a new friend,” Ceurvost said. “If you are in French or Spanish class and run into one of our ELL students in the halls that speaks French or Spanish, there is a way to make use of your newfound skills.”
Fate of Hoover Elementary under consideration By Hailey Verdick & Claire Noack haileyverdick@thelittlehawk.com clairenoack@thelittlehawk.com
Hoover Elementary opened its doors in August 1954. Since then several thousand students have attended the school. Fast forward to the 2017-2018 school year and Hoover Elementary could be closing. “I was sad when I heard they wanted to close Hoover,” Ellie Benson ‘14 said. “I loved elementary school and I think Hoover is a great place to be.” The Iowa City Community School District board has made a decision to close Hoover no sooner than the 2017-2018 school year as part of a larger 10-year plan for the district. “I think there was a lot of effort and time put into it and I believe it’s a good plan,” ICCSD
board member Sally would be a good thing,” Hoelscher said. “I think Hoelscher said. it’s going to move our The school board [school] district forhas been developing ward.” the plan since the fall The long-range faof 2012. Different concilities plan referenced sultants were brought by Hoelscher calls for in, and the recommena third high school, addation to the board was ditions and renovations to close Hoover. to nearly all current elCity High will reementary schools and quire more additions -Ellie Benson ‘14 juniors highs, as well and renovations in the as the construction of future. The idea is to three new elementary use the land Hoover schools in the district. sits on for City High, It marks the first long-range plan for the dis- but a more detailed plan has not yet been estrict in over twenty years. tablished. Hoover is an older building and for “It seems like for a district our size that it to remain open would require many costly
“I loved elementary school and I think Hoover is a great place to be.”
renovations. Hoelscher says that if Hoover were not as old of a building, or if it were the only elementary school in the area, Hoover probably would not be closing. However, the combination of the two makes closing the school the most logical step. Current Hoover Elementary fourth grader Aaron Rutherford claims that he does not care much because he will graduate Hoover in the next few years. However, some members of the community have opinions against the schools’ closing. “I did not think there was a well-laid out justification to close Hoover,” board member Tuyet Dorau said. “If City High needs an addition I think we could have looked at ways to add that addition without closing Hoover, but we never explored that.” continued on A3