by Kelly Rogge
Enrollment is starting for the Kansas City Kansas Community College’s English for Speakers of Other Languages Program and changes are coming for the fall semester.
The goal of the program is to help those who need to improve their English skills.
Students can choose academic ESOL or adult basic education ESL classes, depending on their current fluency and personal goals.
After being admitted to KCKCC, students are tested using the COMPASS ESL placement test.
Test scores are then used to help students with selecting classes.
Any student whose first language is not English or has not developed adequate academic English skills should meet with the ESOL department for assistance.
There will, however, be an exciting change to the program beginning in fall 2014.
The program will change from six levels to four, allowing students to complete ESOL in two years instead of three.
Liz Holloway, ESOL coordinator at KCKCC, said the curriculum change will be more compatible with the COMPASS testing and will allow students to make it through the program in less time.
“With the change, students will be able to move onto their content classes much faster,” she said. “We are excited about the new curriculum. It has been a work in process, but we are now ready to roll it out.”
The ESOL program is broken into several parts – reading, listening and speaking, writing and grammar and vocabulary.
During the first two semesters, students are solely in ESOL classes. Then, beginning in the third semester, schedules can become more individualized, depending on the student’s fluency.
Grammar is also separated from writing during the last two semesters, and students have the option of taking classes outside the ESOL program.
Other classes such as Improving Pronunciation are offered on an as-needed basis.
Holloway said the new curriculum allows for more accurate placement within the course sequence.
Currently, not all classes are offered during the fall and spring semesters.
So if students were to need a specific class in the fall, they might have to wait before being able to take it.
In the new course sequence, all classes will be offered in both the fall and spring semesters.
The new restructuring will also give students the opportunity to be better prepared as they transition into mainstream classes.
“This change will provide more intense foundation work at Levels 1 and 2,” Holloway said. “In Levels 3 and 4, the curriculum has been redesigned to present more English for academic purposes.”
For more information on the ESOL program, to enroll or to make an appointment, call 913-288-7625 or 913-288-7380. Students can also stop by the ESOL Office, Room 3415, during normal office hours. Information is also available by emailing Holloway at [email protected].