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Students Present with Professor at Illinois TESOL-BE 2020

Professor Kristin Lems, ESL/Bilingual Education, presented with six of her current NLU students in three different workshops at the Illinois Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages - Bilingual Education (TESOL-BE) Annual Convention in Lisle, IL held February 28-29, 2020.  The three workshops were on the theme of bringing sustainability projects into the multilingual and multicultural classroom. 

The students, all practicing public school teachers earning their ESL/bilingual endorsements, were part of two cohorts that had had a previous class, Methods and Materials for ESL Learners, with Dr. Lems the previous quarter.  In that class, the key assessment is creating a lesson plan using a particular sheltered instructional format, and Dr. Lems asked each student to create their lesson plan on a sustainability theme if possible.  After seeing the remarkable lessons created by her students, Dr. Lems got the idea of presenting them at the state conference of professional teachers of English language learners and invited the students to participate.

Dr. Lems submitted three different conference proposals to reflect the three rough divisions of teachers: early childhood/early elementary, elementary/middle school, and secondary school.  The proposals were all accepted and the six teachers, representing the Wells High School Chicago Public Schools ESL endorsement cohort and the Dawes School District 65 ESL cohort, presented that day.  Following are the workshop titles and student presenter names and bios.

   Sustainability-centered Projects for Multilingual Learners:  Early Childhood Focus

  • Mandy Kal, a Chicago Public School preschool teacher, explores wriggler worm classroom composting.  This project helps initiate environmental discussions with diverse students and families.
  • Kim Edwards-Anderson is a National Board Certified EC/Gen Pre-K teacher at Sabin Dual Language Magnet School.  Her sustainable activity is based around Peter's Chair, the children's picture book.

   Sustainability-centered Projects for Multilingual Learners:  Elementary Focus

  • Sarah Zelonis teaches 3rd grade in Evanston School District 65.  She is starting to learn Korean alongside her daughter, age 4.
  • Elizabeth Morales is a 4th-8th special educator in the Little Village neighborhood of Chicago.  She draws from her experiences with two siblings with autism, and as a former ELL.

   Sustainability-centered Projects for Multilingual Learners:  Secondary Focus

  • Lynn Bailey is a National Board Certified Art teacher who has been teaching grades 9-12 in the Chicago Public Schools for 19 years.  She is currently in coursework to obtain an ESL endorsement.  
  • Nicole Gamboa has been a science teacher at Peace and Education Coalition High School for 10 years working with 16-21 year old youth in Chicago.  

Illinois Teachers of English to Speaker of Other Languages - Bilingual Education logo

Locations

  • CHICAGO DOWNTOWN CAMPUS

    NLU’s Chicago campus on South Michigan Avenue occupies five floors of the historic Peoples Gas Building. This landmark building, across the street from the Art Institute of Chicago and Grant Park, is easily accessible by train, bus and car and is surrounded by restaurants, parking lots/garages and shops.

    122 S. Michigan Avenue
    Chicago, IL 60603
    (888) 658.8632
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  • ELGIN

    Conveniently located in a fast-growing business district off I-90 and Route 31, NLU Elgin features 10 classrooms with high-tech media equipment; a computer lab with high-speed Internet access; two conference rooms; and comfortable student lounges. Parking is free at this recently remodeled and upgraded teaching site, which now includes wireless Internet access.

    620 Tollgate Road
    Elgin, IL 60123
    (888) 658.8632
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  • NORTH SHORE

    Opened in the summer of 2006, NLU North Shore at Skokie is a state-of-the-art modern campus located just off the Edens Expressway near the Old Orchard Shopping Center. The campus includes 44 wireless classrooms equipped with high-tech media equipment; four computer labs with high-speed Internet access, including a walk-in lab in the library; six conference rooms; a public café for beverages and snacks; a student welcome center; a library for research and study; and multiple, comfortable student lounge areas.

    5202 Old Orchard Road
    Skokie, IL 60077
    (888) 658.8632
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  • LISLE

    Located just minutes from the East-West Tollway (I-88), NLU Lisle features 42 wireless classrooms equipped with high-tech media equipment; four computer labs with high-speed Internet access, including a separate walk-in lab in the library; a café for beverages and snacks; a student welcome center; a library for research and study; conference rooms; and six comfortable student lounge areas with wireless access.

    850 Warrenville Road
    Lisle, IL 60532
    (888) 658.8632
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  • WHEELING

    Located in one of Chicago's major northwest suburbs, the newly renovated NLU Wheeling includes 20 classrooms with high-tech media equipment, four conference rooms, four computer labs with high-speed Internet access, large student lounge areas with wireless capabilities and interactive video capabilities, and an extensive research library. The site also houses the university library research collection.

    1000 Capitol Drive
    Wheeling, IL 60090
    (888) 658.8632
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  • FLORIDA (TAMPA)

    Established in 1988 and located in one of Tampa's major business districts, NLU's Florida Regional Center serves students in 13 counties in central Florida. In addition to its classrooms, the National Louis University Tampa Regional Center features a computer lab, student lounges, and conference room.

    5110 Sunforest Drive, Suite 102
    Tampa, FL 33634
    (800) 366.6581
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