Giant Strides in English

Photo by Gayatri Malhotra on Unsplash.

2019 n18
Sherry moved to Knoxville in time to attend two sessions of an English class before Christmas a couple of years ago. She spoke English at what our lead ESL teacher calls “the blink-blink stage,” meaning she could say little beyond “hello.” But she persevered.

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After the Christmas break, Sherry got involved with one of KIN’s adult English (formerly ESL) and culture classes. Besides KIN’s twice-per-week classes, she also joined the Center for English, where she takes English classes another two days each week. Even four classes a week weren’t enough! Recently, she asked for a pronunciation tutor who will meet with her weekly. Sherry is making giant strides in her English skills!

Sherry came from southern Asia with her husband and child. These days, her husband goes to work; her child goes to school, and Sherry studies English. “Everyone needs conversation,” she says. “I work hard on my English. I listen. I watch movies. I talk to my teenager.”

When her mother got sick last year, Sherry returned to her home country for three months. With no one available to practice her new language skills, Sherry took some steps backwards in her English skills. Even with this setback, Sherry’s English has improved so much that she now regularly joins our Intercultural Connections Discussion Group. 

Sherry’s mother is sick again, but Sherry has opted to stay in Knoxville. She talks to her mother daily and tries to give her good advice, but she doesn’t want to forfeit the strides she has made in her English communication skills. 

READY TO BE INVOLVED?
The InterCultural Connections Discussion Group is “a place to ask questions, share experiences, and hear from others as we seek to better understand our cultural differences.” They meet on the third Monday of each month, 6:30pm-8:30pm, at the KIN office. there are always hot beverages and snacks. For more information, call/text 865-471-8503.

Editor's note: This group is no longer active. If you would like to have conversations with people from other nations, let us know, and we'll connect you with some friends.