Mennonite Central Committee

SOOP volunteer uses musical background to teach English

The educational benefits of children's music are not limited to just young people, according to MCC Service Opportunities for Older People (SOOP) volunteer Shirley Bestvater.

My adult students loved the kids' songs, said Bestvater, a retired school instructor who spends a part of her winters teaching English at the Gary Tang Adult Education Centre in Phoenix, Arizona. The rhythm and simple use of words found in children's music encourages the flow of language, she said.

For the past five years, Bestvater, who is also the conductor of the Faith and Life Women's Chorus, and her husband, John, a retired school administrator, have been working as teacher's assistants at the school. For seven weeks, from mid-January to early March, they spend their mornings working with students. The adult education centre is an initiative of a local school district in Phoenix, offering free English classes to people in the community.

Most of the school's students are new U.S. immigrants from Mexico, Peru and Venezuela, but new residents from other countries such as India take part in the program as well. They range in age from 18 to 65.

One 60-year-old student wanted to learn English so that he could get to know his grandchildren. A young businessman in his 30s wanted to improve his ability to write in English. And a Venezuelan teacher wanted to better her communication skills before immigrating to the U.S.

We had no idea what we would be doing when we first signed up for the program, said Bestvater.

As a teacher's assistant, Bestvater spent much of her time working one-on-one with students. Music wasn't a part of the original program. By working through a series of workbooks, students learn entry-level vocabulary and grammar skills. But during a break, Bestvater had started singing and playing piano to release tension. Before long, she found herself singing with students, and teaching them the words to a few simple tunes.

Children's songs were a good way of familiarizing pupils with the correct pronunciation and use of language. Soon, she was teaching them the lyrics to "You are my sunshine" and "Angels watching over me."

"It was a good release," said Bestvater. It's easier to practice in a bigger crowd because mistakes aren't as noticeable, she said.

The approach became so popular that this past year school administrators asked Bestvater to make half-hour singing a part of the English program.

"I made some songbooks and students would be busy copying the words into their notebooks to sing at home," said Bestvater. "[One of them even] brought his mini-recorder and asked me to sing all the songs so that he could sing them to his grandson."

Bestvater and her husband returned to their permanent home after their SOOP experience, but they expect to go back to teaching English again next winter.

"It's very rewarding," said Bestvater. My husband and I both love to teach, and we enjoy working with people who want to learn, she said.

 

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