Observation Notes and Synthesis Memo

The observations notes are made up of two notes from Fargo South High School, two notes from English Club, one note from We Need New Names, and one note from I Learn America. My synthesis memo is drawn form these six observations. I have not revised any one of these articles, except for the addition of information made to made to my English Club observations, I have not revised any of these papers.

South High Observation Note 1

On my first visit to South High, Wednesday October 19th, Isaac Sullivan and I took an Uber and arrived about 15 minutes early to an 8:30am to 9:15am class. As there was no one in Mrs. Juelke’s classroom, room C11, we waited outside for her to arrive. Some of the students arrived early a took seats that appeared to be their regular seats inside of the classroom. There seemed to be a fair mix of males and females from many different countries. Although, it did appear that most of the students were from Nepal. There were around twenty students. When Mrs. Juelke arrived we introduced ourselves to her and sat down in some seats next to her desk. While waiting for class to start, several girls pulled out smart phones and earbuds and started listening to music. Some other students were talking to each other in their native languages which I later learned were Swahili and Nepalese. Still others pulled out laptops and started working. It wasn’t long before Amy showed up. There were two student teachers, one from Concordia and one from NDSU. It was apparent that they were more familiar with the students and the project that the class was working on. When it was time for class to start Mrs. Juelke asked one of the students, Desire, to come to the front of the classroom and read what needed to be done that day and what they had done the previous day in that class. Mrs. Juelke then reminded them of the upcoming Parent’s Night that the school would be hosting for the ELL students and their families. She explained that Indian food would be served, but that the students
would have to bring their parents if they wanted any. She told them that this was a good time for their parents to see what they were doing in school and what extracurricular opportunities were available to their children. She said that she knew many students were involved in soccer, but that she wanted them to know about other school clubs such as Student Council and FCCLA. After that was done, Mrs. Juelke split the students up into groups and paired each of us with students who needed the most help. I was paired with Desire, a student from the Congo, and Deo, a student from Nepal. Both of them had finished writing their stories so I helped them make any corrections that needed made regarding spelling, grammar, and word choice. They both had questions on punctuations. Desire seemed to struggle with using plural forms of words. He speaks many languages including Swahili and English. He has lived in many countries in Africa, but he is originally from the Congo. Deo mainly struggled with his spelling. He seemed to have learned to call a “period” a “dot”. Perhaps remembering the word “dot” is easier for him than remembering the word “period” due to its simplicity. Deo is from Nepal. He lived in a refugee camp for several years before him family immigrated to the United States. He also speaks several languages. Both students seemed to be relatively well adjusted to life in Fargo and had high hopes for their futures. At the end of class, they both thanked me, and all of the students were quick to pack their bags and leave.

South High Observation Note 2

On my third and final trip to Mrs. Juelke’s class at South High on Monday, October 24th, Isaac and I arrived at class just as class was about to begin at 7:45am. There were some students who I hadn’t seen on my previous visits, and there was a student teacher from Concordia and a student teacher from NDSU there as well. Some students were conversing with each other in English and others were keeping to themselves by focusing their attention on their phones. This time there seemed to be more females than males and around the same number of students. Two girls, whose name I did not catch, but who I suspect were both from a similar background, wore matching multi-colored shirts. They seemed to be very close. This time, all of the students had finished with their stories and were in the final stages of editing and were working on their “About the Author” pages, and titles for their stories. When Mrs. Juelke called the class to order she had a female student from an African country, whose name now escapes me, read the agenda for the that day, and then another student read what they had accomplished in the previous class. Mrs. Juelke then split the students into groups of two or one depending on their needs. She put me with Deo, a student who I had worked with on my past two visits, and a girl from Nepal whose name was difficult for me to remember and to pronounce. They were told that their “About the Author” pages needed to be in third person. From the murmurs I heard around the classroom, Deo and the girl were not the only students who struggled with that. After I reminded them what third person was they had no trouble writing about themselves in that fashion. Since they are both from Nepal, they were more willing to help each in Nepalese than they were to ask for my help in English. The girl seemed kind of shy toward me, but I think that that was maybe due to a lack of confidence in her English language abilities. I offered her assistance, but she seemed to want to figure it out on her own and talk to her other friends in the class than she was to work a lot on her “About the Author” page. Deo, as usual, was not afraid to ask for my help in forming some sentences that proved challenging grammatically and spelling wise. Deo asked for some help to come up with a creative title for his story. Since his journey to America took place of many years I suggested that he title it The Long Journey. He didn’t like that, and, in fact, he told me that that was the title that Mrs. Juelke had suggested to him. He seemed frustrated that he couldn’t find better words in English for a good title. After class, Isaac and I offered our virtual assistance through email to Mrs. Juelke as we couldn’t make it to any of her afternoon classes. She thanked us and told us a little bit about why she was so hard on some of her students. She explained that some of them were getting by on a minimal and survivalist method for learning English, and they weren’t applying themselves as she knew that they could if they tried a little bit harder. She told us that that was why she had to run a strict classroom. After that conversation, Isaac and I left so that she could prepare for her next class.

CEC Note 1

I attended the English Club meeting on September 15, 2016. There were students from the U.S. as well as students from places like China and South Korea. I got there early and noticed that students who were members of English Club or had attended more regularly made up the majority of those in attendance. There were a few students from the 167 class, but not many. Kevin Brooks, a.k.a you, presented to the club about National Welcome Week and his organization Giving + Learning: In-Home Tutoring. Through his presentation we learned about the many activities going on in the Fargo area during welcome week such as the Community Table and the Soccer Tournament. We also learned about the opportunities that G+L provide for immigrants in the Fargo area. People are welcome to volunteer to teach English or to request a tutor for English learning. As someone who had to learn about America himself, Professor Brooks is very passionate about this subject. After his presentation, Professor Brooks gave out several cards to each table. They had questions written in Spanish and in English on them. At my table, we went around asking our questions and answering them. There were several Chinese students so they all helped each other find the English words that they were looking for. I found that the best way to get the International students to speak was to let conversation naturally develop from the question cards rather than to stick solely to the asking and answering each and every question. Toward the end of the meeting one of the members of English Club came around and passed out funny money to everyone. Then, Jesse, the president of English Club went to each table with a sheet so that international students could write down their names if they were attending for scholarship hours. The meeting was promptly ended at 9:00pm. Some people were quick to leave, while others hung back and chatted with one another. All in all, the atmosphere was very relaxed and inviting.

CEC Note 2

I attended an English Club meeting on October 27, 2016. The Mandan room was packed with about 20 women and about 10 men. A lot of the people who attended were people from the 167 class, but there were also quite a few international students and regular English Club members. The international students were from South Korea, Iran, Germany, China, and possibly more countries that I didn’t know about. A group from our class (Emma, Sara, Kyle, and Grace) presented about the origin and traditions of Halloween. Halloween is a traditionally Celtic practice that was brought to the United States by Irish immigrants. We watched clips from traditional Halloween movies (such as Halloween and Hocus Pocus) and learned that American consumers spend money on Halloween second only to how much that they spend to Christmas. Most of their PowerPoint was made up of videos from the internet, but they periodically broke them up by stopping the presentations to ask questions so that people could break in discussion at their tables for five minutes or so. They even provided Halloween candy for everybody. It was a very enjoyable evening. They broke up their presentation by stopping at intervals to pose questions for each table to talk about. I sat at a table with only 167 students, but Katie Paul, from Germany, was among us so we got an outsider’s perspective. She tried a lot of new candy that she had never heard of. For example, she tried pixie stix, butterfingers, and candy corn. We all talked about what we were going to dress as for Halloween and our Halloween plans. We asked Katie what Halloween traditions that they have in Germany and what she finds odd about Halloween traditions here. She found it amazing what a big deal Americans make out of this holiday because in Germany Halloween is only celebrated by college aged adults who want to party. They don’t have trick-or-treating for small children. Although she was slightly shocked at some of the American Halloween practices she said that she was looking forward to celebrating her first real Halloween. About ten minutes before the meeting was adjourned, a member of English club came to every table and distributed funny money. She was followed by another member who asked if we needed to sign the sheet for scholarship hours. At 9:00pm the meeting was adjourned, and many people took a handful of candy with them out the door. It was a fun evening and everyone enjoyed themselves and the candy.

I Learn America Note

As the documentary, I Learn America, begins the audience is given a statistic – one in four children in the United States are immigrants or children of immigrants. The film focuses on the lives, at home and in school, of five students at The International High School in New York City. This school is for English Language Learners who have travelled from all over the world to find a better life in America. The teachers focus on providing a safe environment where students can express themselves and keep their cultural identity while learning English and getting the “American High School Experience”. There are staff members that students can talk to about their transitions and past experiences if needed. It is well equipped to handle the difficulties that international students may experience.

One of the students that is followed is Sing, a nineteen-year-old from the Chin region of Myanmar. When we initially meet Sing it is apparent that he is frustrated about his English. When the counselor is questioning him, he gives only short sentences and one word responses. He says that he can speak Burmese, Chin, Malaysian, and no English (although he says all of this in English). This demonstrates that, though he is able to speak English, it is extremely limited. The interview with the counselor doesn’t take very long as she cannot get Sing to open up about how he feels that school is, and as Sing asks to leave shortly after it started. It was apparent to see that he did not want to be questioned like this. His body language suggested that he was ready to flee the situation. He wouldn’t stop messing with his hair, slouching, and squirming in his chair.

After he leaves, the counselor explains that she thinks that part of his frustration stems from the fact that there is no one else in the school who speaks his native languages. There are many other students who have friends in the school from their home countries who speak their native languages, but Sing has no such person or friend group. She says that he’s a difficult student and often gets in fights. However, he is a good student and works hard in class.

He says that he came here for a better education, but it is later discovered that he and his father fled Myanmar in 2007 when the government started killing Chin people. They left his mother and sister behind, and travelled for seven years until they finally ended up in Malasyia. His father was killed, but Sing managed to secure safe passage to live with his uncle in New York City. When the documentary visits Sing in his home it is seen the kind of struggles that he faces in his day to day life. He tells the camera that he is worried about everything. Part of his anxiety stems from his homesickness and an inability to contact home of a regular basis. He admits that he misses everything and everyone back in Myanmar. In his home setting, Sing seems more relaxed; he even plays the guitar for the camera.

We see Sing again at the high school’s Café Night. This night was a chance for students to show off their talents and share their migration stories with their school mates. When it’s Sing’s turn to read his migration story he gets up on the stage. It is apparent that he has become much more comfortable with his surroundings. He seems more relaxed and happier. His English has improved, and he even seems to have made some friends. He reads his story about why he had to leave Myanmar and how he came to America. He admits that he was able to use a dictionary to learn Malaysian, but that he could not read or speak a word of English when he arrived in America.

At the end of the documentary it is learned that Sing was able to graduate from The International High School, and that he was able to get a green card. Sing’s success learning English and learning how to survive in America is a testimony to the good work being done by the teachers and caring staff at The International High School. There are many people who come to the United States for a better opportunity or to escape conflicts in their home countries. Many are as successful as Sing in transitioning and learning English, but there are also many who struggle with these things. The United States is known as a mixing pot, and if it wants to maintain that kind of hope and promise to the world it needs to be more accepting and helpful to the many immigrants living here today.

We Need New Names Note

There are many example of learning English and learning America in NoViolet Bulawayo’s We Need New Names. Some instances of this are very obvious and some are very subtle. However, there I no doubt that learning English and learning America are two prominent themes of the novel. Through the eyes of children, Bulawayo illustrates the struggles of transitioning to life in a new country through language skills and culture changes. One can see Darlings’ English skills improve over time, and see her struggle with her identity as she tries to hold on to her Zimbabwean identity while integrating into American society. While most chapters show these points in one way or another, there are several that stand out more than others.

A major example of learning English can be seen as, Angel, Aunt Fostalina runs into trouble with her English while trying to order a bra over the phone. She has a strong accent, and the sales associate cannot understand her. Darling reflects on the difficulty of speaking English.

“The problem with English is this: you usually can’t open your mouth and it comes out just like that – first you have to think about what you want to say. Then you have to find the words. Then you have to carefully arrange those words in your head. Then you have to say the words quietly to yourself, to make sure you got them okay. And finally, the last step, which is to say the words out loud and have them sound just right” (Bulawayo 195).

Darling also doesn’t understand why her Aunt wouldn’t just learn to speak English better because she has been speaking English for a very long time and doesn’t understand that picking up an accent is difficult for older language learners. “I don’t understand why Aunt Fostalina doesn’t learn speech like this, seeing how it would make her life easier so she wouldn’t have to have a hard time like she is right now” (Bulawayo 196). Aunt Fostalina’s struggle is one that isn’t so uncommon among real-life immigrants in the United States.

When Kristal, Marina, and Darling steal Marina’s mother’s car to go to Crossroads Mall learning English is the central topic of conversation for them. It all starts with Darling singing the Vasco de Gama song loudly and Kristal telling her to shut up and speak English.

“No, you ain’t, Kristal says, and Marina giggles…How would you know? You can’t even speak English, I say…Well, it’s true, everybody knows you can’t speak proper English. Like right now: Say what? What on earth is that? I say…And what is naamean? Naamsayin? I’m finna go? All that nonsense you speak…First of all, it’s called ebonics and it be a language system, but it be our own, naamean, ‘cos we ain’t trynna front” (Bulawayo 222, 223).

In the chapter How They Lived, Bulawayo takes a step back from Darlings’ narrative to talk about the adjustment that African immigrants go through to give their children the best chance for a successful life in America. “How hard it was to get to America – harder than crawling through the anus of a needle. For the visas, for the passports, we begged, despaired, lied, groveled, promised, charmed, bribed – anything to get us out of the country” (Bulawayo 242). “We did not go back home to visit because we did not have the papers for our return, and so we just stayed, knowing that if we went we would not be able to reenter America. We stayed like prisoners, only we chose to be prisoners and we loved our prison; it was not a bad prison” (Bulawayo 249). “And with our parents gone, we told ourselves, we have no home anymore, who would we go to see in that land we left behind? We convinced ourselves that we now belonged only with our children. And those children – they grew and we had to squint to see ourselves in them. They did not speak our language, they did not sound like us” (Bulawayo 250). These are just a few examples of the struggle that these people faced.

Throughout the entirety of Bulawayo’s novel there are themes of learning English and learning America. It is hard to pinpoint one example that outweighs the others, though it is more prominent in some chapters than in others. These themes help to express the struggles that Darling had as an adolescent growing up and having to change to conform to her new home while still clinging on to her roots.

Synthesis Memo

This synthesis memo draws on my six observation notes that were taken separately from two English Club meetings, two visits to South High School, one narrative from the documentary I Learn America, and one from reading NoViolet Bulawayo’s We Need New Names. From all of these sources there are two main motifs that can be clearly seen – learning English and learning America.

Learning America

Across all of the various sources there seemed to be a common determination. Whether it was international students at English Club or the fictional character Aunt Fostalina, there was a determination to succeed. In We Need New Names, Aunt Fostalina, and other immigrants that were mentioned in How They Lived, endure back-breaking labor that they put themselves through to support their families back home as best they can. “We took scalding irons and ironed our pride out. We cleaned toilets… We worked with dangerous machines, holding our breath like crocodiles underwater, our minds on the money and never on our lives” (Bulawayo 246). The students that I helped at South High had dreams of attending college. Some said that they would like to attend NDSU, while still others said MSUM. Deo told me that he wanted to be an engineer one day. Just like the South High students, Darling wants to go to college, however, Aunt Fostalina wants her to get a job in the medical field so that she can make good money. In I Learn America, Sing never mentions what a better education is, but he does say that that is part of the reason that he came to America. Perhaps that is a part of the American appeal – to come over and get a good education so that they can make good money. Every international student that I talked to at English Club has had a major in a STEM field. Careers in these fields are in growing demand around the world. The students at South High seemed to understand this.

Another major issue with learning America is being able to understand the culture and its people. Darling had a very had time adjusting to the way that children were reared in America versus how she was used to back in Zimbabwe. She mentions several times about teaching young children respect, and it is a topic that is touched on in How They Lived. The CEC presentations at English Club sparked conversations on differences in culture among the international students. Katie was so amazed and perplexed at American Halloween traditions, as were other international students around the room. In I Learn America, Sing is seen struggling a lot adjusting to his new home where nobody shares or understands his culture. However, toward the end of the documentary he seems to be well adjusted to his school routine. For some of the students at South High coming to America was a life or death situation so learning America is vital to their survival. Desire fled from war torn Congo and Deo managed to get out from a refugee camp. Of course, there was homesickness for the old and familiarity of home for those in the film, the book, and those in real life.

Learning English

While many of the students have travelled with their families in the hopes of achieving “the American Dream”, none will be able to do so without English language skills. Though America is a nation that was built upon immigrants, it has maintained a strict English policy over everyone. Americans don’t like it when they cannot understand someone. When Aunt Fostalina tries to order a bra over the phone she and the sales associate get very frustrated because the sales associate cannot understand Fostalina’s English, and Fostalina does not know how to make herself any clearer. “What do you mean, you don’t know what I mean? You don’t understand what I’m saying? Such a simple word! Aunt Fostalina says” (Bulawayo 197). In fact, this idea is so deeply rooted that the Conversational English Circles that are a part of every English Club meeting are for the purpose of getting international students to speak more English so that their language skills improve. Some students mostly associate with people who speak their native languages, and this can hinder their language abilities because they do not practice and use English on a regular basis.

On my visits to South High I observed that students who shared a common language preferred to talk to each other in that language rather than English. They worked hard to write their stories as properly as was possible in English. Deo often asked for help to make sure that he was using the proper tenses for verbs in his sentence, and he wanted to write a good story. There was evidence that all of these people were trying to learn how to speak English to the best of their abilities so that they could succeed in their academics. I saw similar behavior with international students from China at English Club. When one of them was struggling to find an English word, they would ask for assistance in Chinese from their fellow student. They even started whole discussions in Chinese after a question was asked to them. It was seen that Sing expressed extreme frustration with his language abilities at The International High School because he came to the United States without knowing any English, and there was no one that he could connect with at school because of his restrictions.