Help to Haiti
Harris County Adult Ed Students Use Acquired English Skills for Greater Good
English language learners like Miriam Ramos made the conscious decision to draw from their language lessons and
their hearts to seek help for
Haitian earthquake victims.
Harris County Department
of Education (HCDE) students
from an English language
learner civics class chose to
help the Haitians as part of a
required community service
project.
“We know that people are
poor in many countries, but
when we heard about what
happened to the people in
Haiti, we asked our teacher
what we could do to help,”
Ramos said. “We came up with
the Haiti Relief Project.”
The international call to
action was no small task for
beginning and intermediate
level English language learners.
Initially, the students
researched the topic under the
tutelage of teacher Lynn Forest.
Oral presentations, posters, and
research on the plight of the
Haitians helped develop the
campaign to raise the money.
Next, students went class to
class telling the story about the
needy Haitians. Many reached
out into the nearby community
for donations.
The English Language
Learners Civics class prepares
students for the citizenship
exam, which has oral and
written components. Forest
says that students are required
to spearhead a “cause-oriented”
community service project to
meet course requirements. The
Photo courtesy of the Harris County Department of Education
Students and staff from Harris County Department of Education’s Adult Education gather to deliver
the $1,163.50 “Help to Haiti” check to the Greater Houston Area American Red Cross. As part of
an English language learner civics class, students researched the Haitian disaster and designed and
delivered a presentation in English to gather the donations.
big challenge for the students
was to complete the research
required to gain facts to
persuade other adult students
to donate to the cause.
“This is a way for our
students to give back to the
community,” said Martin Loa,
manager of the HCDE Irvington Adult Education Learning
Center.
Student Robinson Rios said
his big challenge was giving the
presentation in English. “I’m a
beginning ESL student,” he
said.
A $1,163.50 check was
formally handed over to the
Greater Houston Area Ameri-
can Red Cross in late February
at the HCDE Irvington Adult
Learning Center in Northeast
Houston. Red Cross Associate
Director Jean Henceroth said
the donations to Haiti are
being used in part to buy
sanitary cooking kits for
Haitian families.
Source: Harris County Department of Education
