Different Interests, One Goal: Mobilizing Support for World Language Education by Angela Jackson, Founder and Executive Director, Global Language Project

GLP Executive Director Angela Jackson (second from left) and
GLP Board Chair Justyn Makarewycz (far right) with event attendees
at My Dream Speaks

On April 11^th, 2013, Global Language Project hosted its 2^nd annual benefit, My Dream Speaks, to a host of positive feedback and support. What struck me about this year’s benefit was the sheer diversity of professional backgrounds that constituted our audience. I was amazed, after conversing with many, to learn about the different interests that have driven each individual to become invested in world language education. I realized then that what has been so key to GLP’s efforts to mobilize support is the idea that world language education holds different stakes for different people.

GLP Students:

Our students, whose voices are the most important here, experience learning a second language as a way to excel in their current academic subjects, to interact in new ways with their peers, and to realize their capacities for affecting change in their own communities.

GLP Parents and Educators:

The parents of our students and their teachers situate the importance of foreign language learning with other stakes in mind. Knowing a second language is a way for students to empower their local communities in the short and long term. Because teachers and parents have a more intimate knowledge of the kinds of struggles with self-conception and self-confidence that some of our students who live in neighborhoods plagued by systemic inequities confront, what knowing a second language means carries a different but no less important kind of weight for them.

GLP Students at the My Dream Speaks Benefit

Corporate Sector:

I have found that those who work in the corporate sector tend to view the importance of world language programs as a means for students to become competitive in an increasingly globalized workforce. 

Social Entrepreneurs:

Social entrepreneurs situate the importance of language on multiple registers—students who know another language can help to create and lead business practices that are more socially responsible and oriented towards a more multicultural audience.

So what does this mean for initiatives that seek to expand foreign language opportunities to young people?  A guiding question for me has always been, how do we get people with such different backgrounds, priorities, and interests to coalesce around something like world language education? What I have found in my experience, whether it be in organizing a major fundraiser, a small luncheon of business executives, or a day of celebrating the Chinese New Year in the classroom, is that these different interests do not have to be antithetical to one another. In fact, the differences are productive—they enable new kinds of relationships between people you would hardly see interacting with one another—hedge fund managers with the local school principal, media executives with NGO program directors, parents with leaders of government initiatives on language.  What they all have in common is that they value a second language. The relationships they produce have only helped GLP to continue to make the case that language is indeed a means towards multiple kinds of ends.

To see more photos of GLP's My Dream Speaks Benefit Reception, click here!

Language as a Means: The Multiple Ends of Language Learning

At Global Language Project, our approach is to think about language proficiency not only as an end in itself, but as a means for students to achieve success in a multitude of areas.  Our curriculum is designed to make direct links between learning the structure of a new language and the core subjects that students are learning in their daily classes and core subjects. Students need to engage on a deep level with another language not only to gain more opportunities in the workforce, but to also develop the skills they already are cultivating in the classroom. These skills are also critical ones for students in higher education and in the workforce.

Often in public schools, we see world language learning siphoned off into its own category, which leaves students and educators perplexed as to why achieving language proficiency becomes such a challenging process. As foreign as a new language might seem, we believe that there is a way to make learning a new language a process that students can identify with and in which they can find familiarity.  At GLP, our language classes are structured so that students reinforce the multiple skill sets, including social habits, they are learning in the classroom, but through the eyes of another language and culture.  Doing math exercises, for example, in Spanish not only enhances student comprehension of new Spanish vocabulary but also reinforces basic mathematical skills. Looking at the lives of important figures in the history of Spanish-speaking countries not only provides students with important cultural knowledge of a region, but also enables an appreciation of history as a way of looking at the world.

While language is our starting point, in many ways, the ends we hope to achieve are bigger, and the stakes higher. Many of GLP’s students come from communities that have limited educational resources and that suffer from poverty and its social consequences. We have found that our language programs have given students a safe space to channel their energies into something productive, and to see the value in developing teamwork, leadership skills, and productive relationships with their peers. In other words, language learning becomes common ground for giving students in under-served communities the chance to work towards broader goals for themselves and even for their local neighborhoods. 

 Whether our students are saying Hola!, Ni Hao!, Bonjour!, or Marhaba!, the value of learning another language remains constant. For us, it is about enabling students to become a better version of themselves as students, as potential members of the workforce, as global citizens, and as members of their communities. 

Giving the Gift of Language This Holiday

As we enter the holiday season and you make your many lists, consider giving the gift of language this year by clicking here.  It is the gift that truly keeps on giving.  At GLP, we do not look at learning language as an end to itself but as a means that unlocks communication and culture.  At GLP, we often say a “second language is a second life.”  Yes it may sound catchy, but after traveling the world twice over and meeting countless people who have recounted how either speaking or not speaking the language of a country has positively impacted their travels or how speaking a language has opened doors in their careers and personal lives.

Most of us know all too well the utility of language skills when you find yourself in a place where your mother tongue is not spoken.  But more than that, when you understand a language, you can begin to understand a culture.  And at GLP, our holiday wish is for more understanding and tolerance around the world.

We want to thank all of our supporters for making our work possible this year, and look forward to bringing more language programs to students across the country!

All the best!

Angela

P.S Check out a recent feature on New York 1 on GLP’s programs!

GLP Arabic Instructors attend QFI Institute 2012

From August 13 through 17, four Global Language Project teachers and assistants attended the Qatar Foundation International (QFI) Institute 2012 Teaching Arabic as a Foreign Language.

 This year GLP will be moving ahead full force with its Arabic language instruction program and will be offering daily classes at PS 368 Hamilton Heights Elementary School in Harlem. Previously, GLP offered only after-school and lunchtime Arabic classes. The QFI Institute acted as a way for GLP's instructors and curriculum development team to learn more about common and effective practices for Arabic instruction.

Above, Elisabeth Shovers, Anna Serio and Katie Rein at the QFI Institute 2012.

"Most of the Arabic instructors present were from high schools and middle schools," Anna Serio, GLP's resource coordinator, said. "We were the only elementary school focused people there."

Serio works to find materials to use in GLP's classrooms, determines that pictures used are copyright free and also acts as an assistant teacher is some classrooms.  Besides the networking at the institute, Serio valued learning about all the different classroom tools available for Arabic language instruction across many different mediums.

The most valuable resource she discovered at the QFI Institute?
Al-Jazeera's  Childrens' Channel website - http://www.jcctv.net/


Elisabeth Shovers, GLP's program coordinator, found information about including standards and assessments to be very valuable and something she wants to incorporate into GLP's programs.

"Also, in terms of teaching, there was great information on including authentic materials and using differentiation with students," Shovers said.

The QFI Institute lasted four days with different topics of discussion each day, including curriculum; teaching the target language; culture, language and content; assessing students performance and using authentic materials and technology.

 Below, a photo of the entire QFI Institute 2012.

 Feel free to ask Elisabeth and Anna questions about the Institute in the comments!

Addressing the Creativity Gap

I was invited by the Partnership for After School Education (PASE) to present as part of their annual conference.  It was an inspiring experience for me to see after school providers across the city doing such great work with the most at risk students.

In a public school climate based on high stakes testing, after school programs provide a much needed space for students to explore interests that can’t be measured by a standardized test.

I am a proud product of public schools…I studied Spanish, art, music, band, newspaper and dance.  I had the opportunity to explore skills that socially, have made me a more well-rounded and culturally competent individual.  I excelled at the arts…I am not sure if it impacted my standardized test scores….but in the game of life it has made me an A+ student.

I am concerned that the arts and creativity are being drained from education.  At the PASE conference one of the featured speakers, Sheldon Gilbert, talked about working in technology and how his and many firms look for multi-lingual employees or those who play an instrument because they make for better programmers because of their ability to problem solve.  Unfortunately, steep budget cuts in our public schools and after school programs are producing kids who can’t do either of these.  This is especially true for students in underserved areas, where parents don't have the resources or finances to supplement the arts and extracurricular activities that children in more affluent homes participate.

I think of the extraordinary accomplishments that have recently been made in technology by relatively young people….think Zukerberg and Facebook, think Instagram Founders and photos.  These ideas take creativity.   Steve Jobs has famously attributed the beautiful typography of the first Mac to a calligraphy class that he took.  A majority of  children from underserved homes will not have the opportunity to receive this creative inspiration.

I have to ask what steps are we taking as a country, education system, and community to ensure that we are preparing the next generation of creative thinkers who will look for solutions not only locally but also globally---making this a better and more beautiful world for all.

The Aspen Ideas Festival….final thoughts

I returned to the East Coast after a week in Colorado at the Aspen Ideas Festival.  The festival brought together philanthropists and leading voices on the problems that we face not only in this country, but worldwide.

During and after the conference, I wondered how the information presented and the perspectives of the people I met are applicable to the work that I do with Global Language Project, which aims to bring world language learning opportunities to underserved students.

At GLP we view language education as a means for students to achieve multiple ends—from academic success to broader professional opportunities by developing new social and leadership skills to helping them to understand their unique positions within an increasingly globalized and culturally connected world.

GLP is ultimately about facilitating interaction between people in current public education settings who would not typically interact in close and productive ways (top level administrators with on-the-ground instructors, parents and students). I walked away from the Aspen Ideas Festival (AIF) realizing that this convention connected to GLP’s work in the way that it too enabled multiple levels of interaction and exchange.

AIF brings together people and worlds that may never have the chance to meet in their typical professional circles.  You take a multi-million dollar philanthropist and tell them the realities of the children in Harlem that we serve—one, they are shocked but more importantly, interested in playing a role in the solution. The connection goes both ways—those attendees like myself who are constantly involved in grassroots work also came to see the value of getting people at the top of the socioeconomic latter to understand the relationship between education and local community empowerment.

I thought of the value that people like myself, who are effecting change at the grassroots level, bring to the 1  percent of the population that holds virtually all of the wealth in the world....or as Gwen Ifill told me, most of the attendees at the Aspen Ideas Festival are more like the .5%. The .5 or 1-percenters may not be as close to the issue as many other grassroots leaders…although many are quietly not only donating dollars but also volunteer hours. For example, while at the conference, I met the Head of Education for Apple, Steve Wilson, who was interested in chatting with me about how we will integrate Apple iPads this fall into our classrooms to help teach languages.

I found that the AIF was about leaving pre-conceived notions at the door and coming with an open mind and heart.  Anyone can talk about the myriad of issues that are impacting our world, our country and our neighborhoods. But I found that honest and heartfelt dialogue is needed to bring people closer and to facilitate the beginnings of collaborative projects and working relationships that can actually initiate on- the-ground changes.

This philosophy, in an interesting way, also constitutes the fabric of GLP’s mission; our programs are teaching students, their parents, and our supporters about the importance of engaging with one another, globally and cross–culturally.

Not only does the festival’s cross-cultural and cross-professional interaction have the potential to impact the bottom line in terms of dollars, but it inevitably makes participants more conscious and responsible citizens of the world.

In many ways, the Aspen Ideas Festival showed me the value of mutual understanding, of not isolating ourselves in our own professional bubbles. If we can create more open forums like these, I think many will see the fruitful ways educators and community activists can vocalize the complexity of their causes to those who on the surface may seem detached from the realities of the rest of this world, but whom I learned this week, are ready and willing to listen.

Unequal Access to Opportunities

There are two tracks at Apsen this year focusing on the Child and Education.  It is fascinating to hear leading thinkers talk about how to address the imbalances in educational opportunities and overall support for the neediest children.

When I founded Global Language Project, it was to help level the playing field through opening opportunities to underserved students traditionally reserved for the elite

The word “elite” has always been code word for White. However, in a values-based panel, Harvard Professor Robert Putman and author Charles Murray have framed the conversation about unequal opportunities and access to a good education as is fast becoming more about class than race.

I wholeheartedly agree. As an African-American women working with some of the neediest schools and children in Harlem and also living as a resident in Harlem, I sometimes I feel I am intertwined in a double reality.

As many of you know, I come from a corporate background.  I am fortunate to have a circle of friends who are diverse and do include African-Americans.  The overwhelming majority of these friends and associates, while living in Harlem, send their children to private schools in New York—schools that cost $40,000 a year.  These parents are in many ways following the best practices for raising children: they read to them; they involve them in the arts, theater and dance; and, yes, their children are learning a second language.

By contrast, when I work in schools like P.S. 368 in Hamilton Heights Harlem, I see that these students from similarly diverse backgrounds and even the same neighborhoods do not have the same access to opportunities and experiences.  It is not shocking that we don’t see the same outcomes.

How do we level the playing field?  Puttnam suggest that it will be expensive.  I would argue that expensive is relative especially in the days of New York City parents paying upwards of $35,000 a year for preschool and while the State of New York pays $36,000 to incarcerate an inmate.

Wouldn’t it be cheaper and more effective for the state to increase its investments in early childhood education, afterschool enrichment programs like the arts, and languages that have all been proven to be indicators for a successful child?

These are ideas worth considering as the discussion continues in Aspen.

Apsen Ideas Festival--Using Language to Kick Start a Jobs Movement

This week I'm excited to share with you what I learn at the Aspen Ideas Festival.  Wherever I go, I welcome opportunities to see how world language and culture is integrated in the very fabric of our society.

In my first session at the festival I had the good fortune of catching Arianna Huffington of the Huffington Post’s “Starting a Movement to Kick Start Jobs”.

Arianna shared recent research by LinkedIn that there are 3.7 million jobs here in America that are going unfilled because we don’t have enough people with the right skills to fill the positions.  3.7 Million Jobs?

In New York state we have an 8.5% unemployment rate. Could you image what it would mean to the state, local communities and families to put even a small percentage of these people back to work?

Hearing the statistic about the unfilled jobs made me think about language and wonder how many of these jobs that are unfilled are related to language or lack thereof.

A report by the Defense Language and National Security Education Office said that there is a critical deficit of multilingual employees within government that impacts national security and foreign relations; this sector has 3.1 million employees but less than 8% of them have the ability to speak a second language. 

Locally, there are jobs in healthcare that require multilingual skills to serve a growing diverse population…not to mention, travel and tourism and trade.  These are all 21^st century jobs that will need to be eventually filled by students…our future workforce if our country is to be successful.

Back to Arianna Huffington, who was born in Greece and has had considerable success with Huffington Post. Her command of English allowed this.  Would the Huffington Post have the same impact if it were only in Greek?  Media’s ability to transact across borders is priceless in today’s global society.