Chastis George

I am an ESL teacher and translator/interpreter for the Kewaskum School District. I am proficient in vocabulary development and student assessment. I have lots of experience fostering cultural competency and building relationships. I effectively adapt teaching methods to diverse learning styles, ensuring all students thrive in real-life language applications. I am passionate about empowering learners through engaging instruction and getting them connected here in the schools but also in the community. Living in Mexico for five years and working in a school there helped me become a well-rounded Spanish speaker and gave me a great understanding of the culture. I am constantly translating documents for the school and interpreting for parent-teacher conferences ect.

• Volunteer for Casa Guadalupe Multicultural Center, West Bend
• Teacher for after school program 'Kings Kids'
• Youth leader at Discover Church, Oak Creek

I was speaking socially with a teacher friend in a different Wisconsin school district when they mentioned how incredible their EL support staff was. This nonchalant comment bore a lot of weight as I value their opinion considerably, and it was through them that I was able to arrange this interview for our learning benefit. You know someone is doing good work when others are passing compliments on gratuitously. Here is the interview as follows.

What is your name, title within the district, role, and how long you've been there?

My name is Chastis George and I am an ESL Paraprofessional for Kewaskum School District. This is my second year working for Kewaskum. I am a bit of a trailblazer over here right now, working on getting this EL program off the ground and still doing what I love best, working with the kids. Prior to working for KSD I worked for 2 years at a private school in Mexico as an English teacher.

How is this position similar or different to ones you've had in the past?

While the role I play in Kewaskum looks very different than my job as a classroom teacher in Mexico did (go figure), I still use a lot of the same skills and strategies.

What sort of model do you use to work with ELs? (push-in, pull-out, coaching teachers...)

I teach an English Development class at the high school and spend the rest of the day pushing in to classes and pulling students out to work with them on core subjects. It is a fine balance of choosing when the EL students will benefit more from being in the classroom to hear the lesson and work with their English-speaking classmates, and when it is better to pull them out and make sure they are understanding the material. When I can see that a student is overwhelmed with the information being taught in a class and they are falling far behind, I have found it to be much more efficient to pull them out, have a conversation to clear up their questions, and have them work at their own pace.

I also work closely with teachers, coaching them on how to best plan their lessons and make accommodations for our ELs. I often will meet with teachers and ask important questions such as, “In this lesson, what information do you need the students to walk away with knowing?” and we move forward to condense the lesson plan and make the appropriate accommodations. For example, making a list of important vocabulary words and definitions for the students to work on memorizing instead of trying to read long English texts that are just words on a page to them.

What are your top tips for classroom teachers?What do you wish every classroom teacher knew about students learning English?One mistake I see almost every teacher make, is translating almost all material for the EL students. While I know that these teachers mean well, by translating 80% of the class material and homework, they are actually doing a disservice to these English Learning students. Because they are just that: English Learning. They are learning English. With every struggled interaction and each stumbling conversation, they are learning more than anyone could imagine. That is why I select carefully which classes I will push into and when I will pull students. I am there to equip students and teachers, not enable them.

When I could see that students and teachers began to use me (or google translate/iPads, translating earbuds) all the time as a crutch in class or a “short cut” to translate, I saw we needed to make some adjustments.

No one likes to struggle and we don’t usually like to see others struggle either. But what I have begun to show my students and these awesome teachers, is that there is beauty in the struggle. Creating new pathways in your brain as you exercise it by finding a creative way to communicate, is a good thing.

What are the most effective strategies you use when working with students?

I went to Mexico without being able to speak a word of Spanish at all other than: I could count to 10 and say, “Hola”.

I did not have anyone to translate for me. No one I was with spoke English. And I struggled. A lot. But I learned.

I learned how to communicate using hand signals, objects, drawing pictures...you name it. I was forced to get creative. Two years later I was 100% fluent.

While mine was an extreme case, I am definitely a believer in immersion learning.

Sadly I see that many teachers with EL students tend to avoid having conversations with the kids, not because they don’t care, but because it’s uncomfortable.

I encourage every teacher to get out of their comfort zones to try new things because for these ELs, EVERYTHING is uncomfortable.

Students need to hear it, see it, write it and do activities where they must use their hands or move their bodies in some way for it to really stick.

Any final thoughts to share?

I love my role in the district, because while it is not the same as being a classroom teacher, I get to work with all our ELs and their amazing teachers. Helping to equip teachers to provide the best learning methods/appropriate accommodations for the students, and help to support the ELs through the intimidating process of learning not only English, but every subject - in a language that is not their own.

Thank you so much to Chastis for taking the time to share with us a bit of her story and what works for supporting her students. Share this with someone, and work together to provide students with the scaffolding they need. Push yourself out of your comfort zone and have those conversations - both with teachers, and with ELs as they are exactly what they need to grow their language skills. ~ Patricia Eckerman Ambas