Five participants in our Destination Workforce® Intensive English program attained the Certified Guest Service Professional credential this fall. They completed our Integrated Education and Training (IET) Guest Service Gold® training, learning key language skills, soft skills, and workforce readiness skills and passing the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute exam. This industry-recognized credential recognizes their readiness to provide high-quality customer service. Congratulations!
Former EEC teacher Cassie Kramer led an interactive session on family literacy mini-projects for the National Center for Families Learning’s professional learning community meeting in November.
This fall, parents and caregivers in our Family Learning Program, led by teachers Lina Jae Kim and Azmat, took a special field trip to their local Alexandria public library for a tour and to get library cards for their families. We’re also proud of the two classes that meet at Fairfax Regional Library, taught by teachers Joan and Marcia, that also enjoyed a library tour and received library cards. These field trips allow learners to gain an understanding of the many services our libraries have to offer.
EEC released two new sets of lesson plans developed by Cassie Kramer and our instructional team – a three-part series on Teaching AI in Adult ESOL and three stand-alone lessons on Digital Literacy for Families with Kids and Teens. The AI literacy lesson topics are AI 101, Benefits and Risks, and Using AI to Support English Learning. The family literacy topics are Screen Time Habits, Distracted Driving, and Keeping Kids Safe on YouTube. Several EEC teachers tested out the lesson plans this fall, providing feedback to refine the materials for future use. Programs across the country can access and use the lesson plans via the links.
Program staff Melissa, Kasia, Soo, and Ashley developed and facilitated a training for EEC instructors on Developing Reading Skills: Bring Learner Stories to Life Using the Language Experience Approach (LEA). The training was recorded and is available to EEC instructors.
A level 2 class led by Carole Sebenick created a special project for Thanksgiving, sharing why they are thankful for their English classes with EEC!
