About

GivePulse Stats

Groups

  • Gustavus Adolphus College

  • Language Buddies

  • Academic Departmental Clubs & Organizations

  • Community-Based Service and Learning

  • Classes

    Impacts

    Spring19-SPA-200-001 Crossing Borders

    Last Impact
    Nyombia Smith
    Mayra Taylor
    SPA-200
    05/23/19
    I have learned many things from language buddies. First of all, that it is important to allow for equal access and help to all minorities if that means special classes then that should be required for all schools. I think it is so important as someone who is native in English to help someone with theirs so that they can have better opportunities working with people and around people that speak the same language. I also think it is very effective to be immersed in different cultures because you learn how they interact with each other and you are able to compare that to how you were as a younger student and with your friends. I think by me helping them, they also have helped me become a better person because it is very nice to help people. I have been able to look at my own culture and how that differs from their interacting with their friends and family. I think it is very important to have an understanding of other cultures enrich yourself on the knowledge of the world but for also personal growth. You become more evolved as a person and are better off for it. I have taken a step back and can now see my own culture through the eyes of someone who grew up differently. Although it is tough to have to learn a new language but it is also effective in the work field to be fluent and bilingual. I think the most influential experience was being physically next to these students and watching the process as they learned new material as well. I have never been the helper of another student and it taught me as much as it taught them.

    Gave 1.00 hour on 05/23/2019 with Gustavus Adolphus College, Language Buddies
    Spring19-SPA-200-001 Crossing Borders

    5/9/19
    I arrived at the High School at about 1:24. Mr. Bollum gave each student a copy of the same Scholastic Magazine. The students read first Obama's administration laws about immigration and what he proposes that we should do. Then the students had to compare this to Trump's plans for immigration in the next article. Then he had a few people raise their hands to describe how this directly affects us and what we can do better for the future. The kids had some pretty good ideas! Mr. Bollum let us go at 2:08.

    Gave 1.00 hour on 05/09/2019 with Gustavus Adolphus College, Language Buddies
    Spring19-SPA-200-001 Crossing Borders

    5/2/19
    I arrived at the classroom around 1:24. Mr. Bollum asked a student to distribute the Jane Eyre book to each student. He then read aloud from chapters eleven to sixteen. I sat next to a few students and was there and available if they didn’t know what a word meant and how to say it. After he finished the book, he asked his students what the point of the whole book was. The students concluded that Jane Eyre started young and poor but made her way to success and her partner Mr. Rochester was born with money but grew old to be poor. The summary was that it did not matter the amount of money because love was too strong. He then released the Language Buddies at 2:08

    Gave 1.00 hour on 05/02/2019 with Gustavus Adolphus College, Language Buddies
    Spring19-SPA-200-001 Crossing Borders

    4/25/19
    I arrived at the High School and classroom at 1:24. Mr. Bollum asked each student to fill a worksheet and summary sheet about all of the characters from the Jane Eyre book. I sat next to about six students as they filled this out. They also had to write the significance of the character and how they pertain to the class right along their names. Mr. Bollum then asked them to say outloud what they thought was going to happen next in the coming chapters and if Jane Eyre and Mr. Rochester were in love. He then released us around 2:08.

    Gave 1.00 hour on 04/25/2019 with Gustavus Adolphus College, Language Buddies
    Spring19-SPA-200-001 Crossing Borders

    4/18/19
    I arrived at the High School and classroom around 1:24. The entire class time, each student was given a hard copy of the book Jane Eyre. They were about 6 chapters in so we started on Chapter 7. I sat down next to a few students and looked and helped them if they had any questions. Mr. Bollum read aloud the entire class time till we go to chapter 11. He then released the Language Buddies at 2:07.

    Gave 1.00 hour on 04/18/2019 with Gustavus Adolphus College, Language Buddies
    Spring19-SPA-200-001 Crossing Borders

    IMPACT MID-TERM

    How have your expectations regarding your service-learning component changed since you began the semester?

    Going into the class, I did not know what to expect as high schoolers and their reading and writing levels. I now understand that there are kids at different levels and they all need different kinds of assistance. I knew it would benefit me helping people of different cultures.

    Reflect upon the notion of reciprocity within Language Buddies. Do you feel you are giving more than you are receiving in return? Are you receiving more than what you are giving? Elaborate in detail.

    I think there is an equal balance of giving and receiving with helping the kids in language buddies. I a getting the experiences of helping students read and write a language that is native to me. I am also helping them to succeed in their education and future.

    Relate and/or contrast your own language learning process (with the acquisition of Spanish, for example) to that of the students you are working with this semester (children youth or adults).

    I would say that in college we are obviously learning the material at a faster rate. One thing that is similar was the fact that they were also learning through media of current events to learn the new language. We use spanish articles in class to help us better understand the culture and language just like the high schoolers.

    Gave 2.00 hours on 04/07/2019 with Gustavus Adolphus College, Language Buddies
    Spring19-SPA-200-001 Crossing Borders

    3/28/19
    I arrived at the High School at 1:24 and Mr. Bollum asked each Language Buddy to take 2 students and to work on them a packet about other countries and their differences in foster care systems. They also completed worksheet about Nafta, and facts about the other continents. They had to write about each region (Asia, Africa, South America) and their difference in trading systems. They were allowed to use their ipads or computers to gather the information and write it in a packet. They have a system similar to moodle where they submit their completed work. We helped them with all of these tasks and they had a big project that they needed to submit so I helped the kids who had not done it yet. Mr. Bollum released the language buddies at 2:08.

    Gave 1.00 hour on 03/28/2019 with Gustavus Adolphus College, Language Buddies
    Spring19-SPA-200-001 Crossing Borders

    3/21/19
    I arrived at the High school to Mr. Bollums classroom at 1:24. The class started at 1:35 and the teacher put an article on the projector. The students had to copy down certain notes and information highlighted in the article as important. Then they filled out another worksheet for chapter summary on a book they had read previous to Thursday. After they were done with the chapter summary, Mr. Bollum put another article on the board about black history and how it pertains to us. He had each student read a paragraph or a few lines out loud in front of the class. Then each of the students discussed the information in their small groups. Mr. Bollum let us go around 2:05 today.

    Gave 1.00 hour on 03/21/2019 with Gustavus Adolphus College, Language Buddies
    Spring19-SPA-200-001 Crossing Borders

    3/14/19
    I arrived at the High School and classroom at 1:24. The class began at 1:35 and Mr. Bollum distributed the Scholastic Magazines again. We read over together the chapter from before and each student was given a worksheet that covered context clues for how to read articles and gain the appropriate information. Each student had to look for headers, captions, and maps for the story. We sat alongside them and helped with any words they struggled with or if they needed help reading or writing something. Then they filled out the plot and purpose of the article. Then they discussed why this is important for Booker T. Washington to make this step in black history and how it relates to movements now for equal rights. They all had to write about what if they didn't have the opportunity to go to school and where they might end up. Mr. Bollum then released us around 2:08.

    Gave 1.00 hour on 03/14/2019 with Gustavus Adolphus College, Language Buddies
    Spring19-SPA-200-001 Crossing Borders

    03/07/19
    I arrived at the High School and went to the classroom at 1:24. The kids were in between classes so they come in sporadically. The class does not begin until about 1:35. The teacher Mr. Bollum is very kind and patient with the students. He pulls up an article about Booker T. Washington and a brief history about his influence in Black History. Then, the teacher distributed Scholastic magazines to each other kids and we read the story of Booker T. Washington. We sat next to them as they read to make sure if they had any questions about what they were reading or if they had a pronunciation check, they asked us. Once that was finished, the students had to write in their notebooks, the chapter summary for the story. Mr. Bollum then ended class around 2:08.

    Gave 1.00 hour on 03/07/2019 with Gustavus Adolphus College, Language Buddies