Katie Williams

INTR 573
Fall 2017

ESL Needs Analysis at

Wheaton Square
Apartments
An Initial Investigation

This study was conducted under the guidance of World Relief DuPage Aurora in order to give
their organization insight into the particular ESL needs of the Burmese refugee community living
in Wheaton Square Apartments in Wheaton, Illinois. The purpose of the study was to identity
what their needs are and what obstacles they face in gaining access to ESL instruction in order
for a potential solution to be proposed or enacted by the adult education department of World
Relief.

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 Table of Contents
1. The Report

a) Introduction..3

b) Methodology4

c) Discussion of the Context6

d) Significant Features of the Context..8

e) Conclusion..14

2. Appendix

a) Consent forms..15

b) Coding the data16

c) Timeline..16

d) Interviews procedure & questions..17

e) Lay summary..20

3. Additional Materials

a) Meeting notes..21

b) Methodological logs23

c) Interview transcripts25

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Introduction

For this study, I had the privilege of partnering with World Relief DuPage/Aurora

(WRDA) in conducting a needs analysis of the Burmese refugee community in Wheaton Square

apartments, located very close to Wheaton College on Main Street. I did not choose this topic;

rather it chose me, for which I am very grateful. I was pleased for two reasons. First of all, this

project falls in line with my desire to be involved in the community development aspect of ESL,

something that I have not had as much opportunity to do as I would have liked during my time at

Wheaton. Second of all, this project has real life applications and has given me the unique

opportunity to work alongside people who are doing some very important ground-level work in

ESL and in this area. The still very widespread need for English language instruction in this

community is just part of the larger task of helping the immigrant and refugee communities of

DuPage county settle and flourish in this country, a task that World Relief has taken on with great

dedication and compassion for over 35 years.

According to the WRDA website, they offer on-site ESL classes that center around life

skills, job readiness, citizenship, and what they call gateway classes, which are for students with

little to no formal education or native literacy. The more specific purpose of the study is twofold:

1) to find out what the particular ESL needs are for the Burmese community at Wheaton Square,

and 2) what kinds of obstacles the community members face in gaining access to ESL classes.

Specifically, World Relief wants to know what would make it easier to come to ESL classes for

people like stay-at-home parents, those who work a lot, etc. Overall, the goal of the study is to

determine what kind of solution could be reached to help this community gain better access to

English language education. My role in this study was to assist Emily, a WR staff member, in the

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initial investigation. Under her direction, World Relief will continue the research and

investigation beyond the scope of this research paper.

Methodology

For this study, my first step was to meet with Emily, World Reliefs Adult Education

Enrollment Coordinator. These first two meetings with Emily, each only lasting about 20

minutes, served as a way for me to gain valuable insight into the context. She was able to brief

me on the problem that World Relief was facing as well as their desired outcomes. Aside from

providing initial data for me, these initial meetings gave Emily and I the opportunity to

collaborate and make a plan of action, as we would be undertaking this initial phase of the

research together. In these meetings, I conducted a very informal type of interview at first

asking what their goals were, what kind of access they have to the community, etc.which then

gradually grew into a dialogue as we discussed how to move forward.

One obvious next step was to identify gatekeepers to the context. How can we gain

access to the community of Burmese refugees in Wheaton Square Apartments? Because we had

decided that our primary method of collecting data would be interviews with the actual

community members (more detail on that part of the data collection later), we needed to gain

cultural insight on how to best conduct interviews. This was particularly important for Emily and

her supervisors, as they had experienced some difficulty getting participants to feel comfortable,

open up, and be honest. They believe that one possible reason for this was a lack of a culturally

appropriate approach on their part. So, in order to avoid making that mistake again, it was

absolutely imperative so gain some cultural insight and guidance on how to make the Burmese

community feel the most comfortable and willing to share with us. The first insider we consulted

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was not a member of Wheaton Square, but is a Burmese World Relief staff member who works

in legal services. We brought to our idea of conducting group interviews in a focus group style to

him. Our thought was that one-on-one interviews might be too direct and intimidating and that

giving them a communal setting to share would be more culturally appropriate. However, our

Burmese informant at World Relief shared that due to culture, we would probably face a lot of

difficulty getting them to talk in that kind of setting. Taking this information to our next cultural

informant, the pastor of a local Burmese congregation. When we mentioned our idea of doing a

focus group style interview, he seemed to think it would be quite challenging logistically to

organize. The pastor confirmed our suspicion that the best point of access into the community in

order to organize a group interview session would be though the local Burmese churches.

However, he still gave us the feeling that this would be very difficult to organize in such a short

amount of time.

With the input from both of our cultural informants, we decided that the best approach

would be one-on-one interviews, and for the sake of logistics and time, these would be

conducted door-to-door in Wheaton Square Apartments. Of course, because we lack both the

language and the cultural knowledge, we took an interpreter. Our interpreter spoke Burmese and

several dialects of the Chin language (I will describe the different language/ethnic groups in the

next section). Peter was absolutely essential in opening the doors to talk with the community

members in their homes. He not only translated, but gave them a familiarity that Emily and I

would never be able to give. He was even able to help them understand some of the more

confusing aspects of our interview, like our research process and purposes. Some of these

concepts were difficult to understand as many of the refugees have very limited educational

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experience. Over the course of two days, we spent about 5 hours going door-to-door talking with

different community members, sometimes individually, sometimes as a family. We conducted

our interviews in the mid-morning, since this is the time that World Relief conducts their life-

skills English class at College Church, and the people we would talk to at this time are the ones

who apparently cannot make it to the classes for whatever reason. Each and every person that

opened their door to us invited us in without hesitation and with all hospitality, allowing us to

interview them for up to half an hour each. In the next section I will describe their world, which

we were graciously allowed to enter.

Discussion of the Context

Walking into each home at Wheaton Square Apartments, it was like walking stepping out

of the United States for a moment and into Myanmar. Several of the people we interviewed were

women who stay home to take care of their kids or the house, and in one home in particular, we

the smell of cooking added to the sense that we had really stepped into a different culture, right

off of Main Street in Wheaton. The Burmese refugees that live in Wheaton Square represent

several different ethnic groups of Myanmar. We spoke to Chin, Karen, and Karenni people. This

means that the community has a sense of commonality, yet they also experience diversity. Each

of those three people groups has a different language. As we learned from our interpreter, most of

them can also speak their countrys lingua franca, Burmese, but not all. The Karenni people in

particular had limited language beyond their native tongue. In both interactions with Karenni

people, a member of the family had to translate, as our interpreter could not speak their language.

In one of those interviews, the elderly Karenni womans son was able to translate directly into

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English. Another interview with some Karenni people was one that I did not record. It was a

conversation with 6 family in which the youngest woman among them had to translate from

Karenni into Burmese, and then our interpreter had to translate from Burmese to English. In this

conversation, we learned more about the experiences and history of the Karenni people. They

explained to us that besides not having the time for English class, it is extremely hard for them to

participate in an educational setting. Their people group was severely persecuted up in the

mountains of Myanmar, and their language was banned from being taught in schools.

Discouraged by their lack of knowledge of Burmese, many of them simply never attended

school, so they described how they did not know read, write, or even hold a pencil correctly. One

of the women shared with pain in her voice how because she has limited English, she is afraid

people think she is unfriendly. She said she loves people and desperately wants to make friends

here, but without being able to speak to Americans or classmates in ESL classes, it is impossible.

All of the Burmese ethnic groups in Wheaton Square have been affected by the civil war

in Myanmar in some way, and many of them have been living here as refugees for almost a

decade. Yet, their integration into U.S. society has been slow and limited, especially as it relates

to language acquisition. However, they have formed their own enclaves of community here. For

many of them, this takes the form of church. The Chin people are overwhelmingly Christian, as

our interpreter shared with us, and there are several Chin congregations in the area that many of

the Wheaton Square residents attend. But for some, the ESL classes at World Relief has been the

only source for much of their interaction with the U.S. culture and community. Besides church

and English classes, the Burmese people in Wheaton Square spend much of their time working

long hours to make ends meet for their families. The sheer time spent working night shifts,

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Saturday shifts, etc. leaves no time or energy for them to attend ESL classes. I will elaborate on

these obstacles of time and energy as well as those that pertain to limited literacy in the next

section in which we take a deeper look into the ESL needs and barriers of the Burmese

community at Wheaton Square Apartments.

Significant Features of the Context

Because of the tightness of time, Emily and I asked very direct questions to each of our

participants which fell into two major categories: their ESL needs and the obstacles that they face

in gaining access to ESL classes. Other areas of questioning involved specific ways that World

Relief can alleviate those obstacles, which I will describe briefly towards the end of this section.

However, the majority of the section will be describing the findings pertaining to ESL needs and

obstacles. However, before we discuss those two most relevant factors, I also want to talk about

factors pertaining to previous experience and motivation. Briefly regarding previous experience,

only one person that we talked to had never been to ESL classes before, and several of the ones

who had been to classes had been to World Relief specifically. This speaks to the great effort that

World Relief has put into this area and this community.

Regarding motivation, Emily and I did not talk to a single person who did not have the

desire to go to English classes. To some, that may not seem like a very important or even

surprising observationof course they want to learn English! They are in America! They should

want to learn English! However, many, many people pass judgement on immigrants who cannot

speak English after being in the country for a number of years and simply label them as either

lazy or unwilling to adapt. I bring up the point that every single resident that we interviewed

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desired to attend classes precisely to correct that presumptuous and ignorant judgement made by

many who only sit on the outside of these immigrants particular situations. Of course, I must

admit that it is very possible that their show of eagerness was influenced by the fact that we were

interviewing them on behalf of World Relief, the main provider of English classes for them. It is

possible that they only wanted to give an answer that pleased us, but personally, I do not find this

very plausible. I can only provide anecdotal and subjective evidence of thismainly the

sincerity in the voices and on their facesbut nevertheless, the overgeneralizing myth that

immigrants are lazy and unwilling to learn is just that: an overgeneralized myth. And these

Burmese refugees are an example to the contrary.

Now, moving onto the first of the two major categories: ESL needs or ESL purposes. This

could also be described as the specific, practical motivations of the participants to learn English.

On the right is a breakdown of the four purposes that Tests Appointments

Informal Job
were most commonly stated in our interviews. The

four most common responses fell into the categories

12%
of tests, appointments, informal use, and job. I will 35%
18%
describe and give examples of answers from each of

these four categories.

35%
Ill begin with the least given purpose of

learning English, the participants job. This surprised me, to be honest. I expected much more

interest in learning English for working purposes. However, when I examined the data, I noticed

that participants who listed their job as a purpose of learning English had either the least

experience with with English, like Sam* in our fifth interview. It seemed like those who have

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been in the United States for a longer amount of time were not in particular need of more English

for their job. The next lowest occurring answer also surprised me. Only 18% of the answers we

received regarding purposes of learning English related to what I have generalized as informal

use. By informal use, I mean conversation, making friends, shopping, etc. I already shared the

touching comments made by the older lady who just wants to make friends, but a few others had

similar motivations. Ian, who actually required no translator and could participate in the

interview in English, ironically was one of those who wanted to work on conversation. He had

taken ESL classes and had to stop because of his work. However, even when he was taking

classes, he longed for more practice in conversation. As he put it, he goes to class, works on

English, comes home, and puts it away. What he really desired was an in-home tutor to sit and

talk with him, just like we were doing. I admired his desire to take English outside the classroom,

and I suspect that what would really help his is more American friends and community, a

significant challenge its own right for an immigrant.

One of the two must commonly given purposes for learning English was for

appointments. Several of our participants named the food stamp office as a place where they

need more English skills. This was a very practical need that I had not thought much about

before. However, as I thought about it, government assistance programs such as SNAP, EBT, or

WIC can be really confusing thing to navigate for even native English speakers, so it is not

surprise that so many listed this as a need. I noticed that many of those who named the food

stamp office as a place they need more English had children. Some, like Wanda, have neighbors

or family friends who come with them to translate. Sarah, a young mother, mentioned needing

more English for the food stamp office, but also for the bank and for making doctors

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appointments for her children. Equally as common as appointments was the answer of needing

English for certain tests like citizenship and the drivers license test. This one is especially

crucial for two reasons. One, its a very important and pressing matter for them. Two, it requires

skills beyond just speaking and listening. These tests require them to have a certain level of

reading and writing, a task that is especially challenging for those who have limited educational

experience. I think its very telling that these two very practical needs, appointments and tests,

surpassed more enjoyable, daily life reasons to learn English. It shows the pressing need for

English for this community.

The second significant feature of the data was obstacles that the Burmese community

faces in getting access to ESL classes. Within this category, there were four common responses,

Transportation Childcare seen broken down by percentage in the chart on the left.
Time/energy Awareness
As is shown by the light yellow portion, the most

commonly given answer to what obstacles the residents

13%
33% face is transportation. Many of the people that we talked

to do not have a vehicle, or if they do, they only have

33%
one and have to share it with their spouses. It was
21%
amazing to hear so many of the participants say that if it

were not for the problem of transportation, they would be going to English class. The problem of

transportation does not only entail ownership of a vehicle, however. The lack of drivers licenses

due to an inability to pass the test is another factor that plays into transportation barriers. Another

is money. After being asked if she would be willing to contribute to a community carpool as a

potential solution, Martha shared that she has no money to contribute to a carpool.

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Transportation is a huge obstacle for the residents of Wheaton Square to get to ESL classes.

Nevertheless, this community is determined and willing to sacrifice. In one of our interviews,

Sarah said, I will walk if I have to. Whats important is that I study.

Equally as common an answer as transportation, another obstacle was time and energy.

As I said before, this group of people works very hard, and their work schedule makes it difficult

to make it to English classes. In the group interview that was not recorded, all five of the

participants told us that we caught them on their day off, but normally they would be working

right now. The morning English classes held at College Church conflict with almost any of the

working men and women. Many of the residents work Saturdays as well. Even if they can attend

the evening class held at First Baptist Church, which is right next door to the apartment complex,

finding the energy to go to class and study after working all day is a challenge, especially

because many of them have families to attend to. I would imagine that this is a common problem

faced by many immigrant communities, and World Relief has done what they can to by

providing English classes in the mid-morning for those who stay home during the week and an

evening class for those who work during the day. However, ultimate goal of this study, after

figuring out why students are unable to come to classes, is to see what kind of arrangements or

adjustments World Relief could possibly make to their program. This could be something as

simple as organizing more transportation and carpooling among the residents, or it could even

mean an additional class that better suits the logistical needs of this particular community.

Another obstacle, which was mentioned in about 20% of the responses, was pertaining to

childcare. World Relief does offer childcare for the morning classes, which is a huge help in

overcoming this particular obstacle, especially for the mothers who otherwise would not be able

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to attend classes due to childcare responsibilities at home. Emily did mention several times that it

is sometimes difficult because the childcare services run out of room and cannot accept any more

children. However, I am not sure that the mothers we spoke to were even aware of this, as they

had never used the childcare services anyway. However, the specific problem regarding

childcare, in some cases, had less to do with babysitting and more to do with things like getting

kids ready for school, making lunches, taking them to school, etc. These are issues that a

childcare service at the classes is not necessary and does not really help with this particular

childcare obstacle. One of the women we talked to has kids in both elementary school and

middle school, so her kids start and end school at different times during the day, which would

give her an even smaller window in the late morning or early afternoon to go to class. However,

because there is no World Relief class at this time, she is unable to go. World Relief has done an

amazing job making their programs available to as many people as possible, but unfortunately

they cannot meet everyones needs. However, this study is a way to find out how they could

possible meet more needs in different ways.

Not only has World Relief done an amazing job at making their classes available and

accessible, but they also have done a fantastic job of making people aware of their classes and

services. The last area of obstacles is awareness. As I said, this is actually not a significant

obstacle and many more people were aware of the classes than were not, but nevertheless a

couple participants did mention they faced some obstacles in finding out about the classes. For

example, when Emily asked one of the participants if he had seen the fliers about ESL

registration, he mentioned said even if he did, he cannot read. Many other people had heard

about ESL registration simply through word of mouth. We took advantage of asking the

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participants where the best place would be to disseminate information about class registration,

and many of them said that through the church would be the best way.

Conclusion

As far as solutions to these obstacles and answers to the ESL needs of the Burmese

community of Wheaton Square, the scope of this needs analysis does not lead to concrete

solutions quite yet, since this was just an initial investigation. The purpose was for World Relief

to get into the community and really see what kinds of obstacles they are facingto confirm the

ones they already knew and to shed some more light on the complexities of the obstacles. The

study also served the purpose of either confirming or finding out what the purposes and

motivations for learning English are in this particular community. With that said, I do believe

that World Relief has the classes and services necessary for the interests of the Burmese

community at Wheaton Square (according to the sample we drew), whether it is citizenship ESL

classes, life skills, or in-home tutoring for more practice.

As far as going towards a solution, the biggest factors to consider for this community are

the obstacles, particularly the obstacle of time and transportation. To a certain extent, there is not

much than can be done about time. However, it may be worth considering the timing of future

additional classes in the program. As far as transportation, a possible solution may be to utilize

the community-mindedness and encourage/facilitate carpooling. Regardless, both of these

potential solutions would require further research and sampling of the population.

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Appendix A: Consent Forms
(see next 6 pages, physical copies attached)

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 Appendix B: Coding the Data
I used QDA Miner and coded my data into four major categories, with several
subcategories in each.
1. Insight into the Community 3. Obstacles
Time in U.S. Transportation
Ethnic/language group Childcare
Educational background Time/energy
Previous ESL experience/general Awareness
motivation
2. ESL Purposes 4. World Relief
Tests Class times
Appointments Advertising
Informal use
Job

Appendix C: Timeline
9/28 Meeting with Emily
10/6 Meeting with pastor of Chin congregation
10/27 Interviews at Wheaton Square Apartments
11/6 Interviews at Wheaton Square Apartments

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 Appendix D: Interviews
Interview Procedure
1. Introduce ourselves as working with World Relief (you as staff, me as student research
helper?)
a) Have you heard of World Relief? To make them feel more comfortable and
establish some familiarity
b) If they dont know, talk about our ESL services and how some of their community
members have taken classes with us.

2. Explain that we are asking questions to members of the community in order to find out
how we can help them gain better ESL access/opportunities.
a) Would they be interested in helping us better understand the needs of their
community?
b) Tell them about how long it will take

3. If they agree to be interviewed...

a) Explain that in order to remember everything we hear from community members,
we need to record them.
b) Show them the permission form. Explain that it simply gives us permission to
record the interview. Ask them if they would they be comfortable with that.

4. Conduct interview (questions below)

5. Thank them for their time. Ask them to let their neighbors know how we are trying to
help :)

Interview Questions
1. How long have you been living in the United States? In Wheaton Square?

2. Do you know about the CC morning classes World Relief offers?

3. Is there any reason you havent come before?

4. If transportation and childcare were available, would you come?

5. Have you ever taken English classes before?

Yes No

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4. Was that a positive experience or a 4. Would you like to take classes anytime
negative experience? Why? in the future?

5. What did you find helpful about the 5. What would be an ideal location and/or
way the classes were set up? set-up for English classes for you?

6. How long did you attend classes? 6. What would be your primary motivation
for learning English?

7. What has been the greatest benefit of 7. What benefits would you hope to gain
taking English classes? from taking English classes?

8. Did you face any obstacles in 8. What kind of obstacles would you face
attending English classes? in attending English classes?
Timing/length? Timing/length?
Work? Work?
Childcare? Childcare?

9. Do you have a car? Do you plan to get one?

10. Do you have a license? Do you plan to get one?

11. Do you have children? What are their ages?

12. Do you think those obstacles are common in your community? What other
obstacles could people in your community face in attending English classes?

13. What practical things could help your community gain access to English
instruction?

14. In what ways have English classes benefitted your community?

15. What is your communitys main motivation for learning English?

16. What could motivate people in your community more to learn English?

17. What would motivate you individually more to learn English?

18. What topics would you like to learn in English classes?

19. Where and for what do you most use English?

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20. Do different members of your community need English for different purposes?
How do younger members use English? How do older members use English?

21. How would improving the level of English help your community reach its goals?

Interview Transcripts
(see Additional Materials C)

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 Appendix E: Lay Summary
As I mentioned before, this topic was not my first choice, but the Lord has his hand in all

things, and it ended up being perfect for me. Since coming to Wheaton and hearing about all the

work that World Relief does in the area for immigrant populations, I have wanted to get involved

in some way, but school and working part time has gotten in the way of that. So, for that reason,

this project ended up being a dream come true right at the end of my time here in grad school.

In the future, I want to be involved in community-building specifically in immigrant and

refugee populations. Seeing the experiences of my boyfriends family, who came from Peru 12

years ago and still struggle to adapt to the U.S. culture, my heart has been burdened for

immigrant communities here. I see teaching ESL as my way of taking action to help them. In the

future, I actually have a dream of opening up a caf in an area of Central Florida where

immigrant and native populations coexist but do not necessarily mingle or share experiences. My

dream would be to create a space to exchange culture, language, and experiences. It would be

like a real-life Daves ESL Caf for the betterment and strengthening of the community. It would

blend all aspects of Latin American and U.S. cultures, including food, beverages, music,

literature, etc., and it would be a place where Latin American immigrants can learn English and

American culture while also sharing their own with their American neighbors.

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 Additional Materials A: Meeting
Notes
9/28/17 Meeting with Emily
Procedures
1. Katie & Emily establish research plan/timeline.
2. Initial Interviews
o Identify community leaders to contact
o Ask community leaders about best way to conduct interview
o Draft Interview questions & plan
o Submit interview questions & plan to community leaders for review
o Conduct interviews
3. Process data from Interviews
o Conduct one round of initial internal data review (Katie & Emily)
Identify findings
o Meet with community leaders
Request their observations
Present findings and request input
4. Consider conducting a second round of interview focused on English Language acquisition
within the community
o Request input from the community for ideas of how to meet needs
o Gather response to ideas of solutions to ELA needs identified after the first round
of interviews.
Goal of the Research
1. Gain greater understanding of the characterassets, needs, structureof the Burmese
community/ies located at Wheaton Square Apartments.
Both generally & specifically related to ELA needs.
For the purpose of collaboratively & creatively addressing English language acquisition
needs within the community.

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2. Build foundations of relationship and trust with community members and leaders for future
collaboration.

3. Begin discussion about potential partnerships & collaboration on how to meet the
communitys English Language Acquisition needs.

We want to learn about broadly

Burmese community in Wheaton & at Wheaton Square Apartments (WSA)
- Assets
- Strengths
- Existing structures (churches, fellowships, etc.)
- Needs
- Trends in work schedules
Burmese culture
- Social structures

What we want to learn about narrowly

Motivations to learn English
Time/scheduling details
Childcare needs
ESL needs

Update
Burmese Churchesnot a lot of WSA attendees, will use churches for cultural insight
Pastor Chan (United Chin Christian Church) of other church with WSA members willing to
meet Friday 10/6
Points of access: Burmese churches (pastors are main community leaders),
7 different ethnic groups, two of them are not Christian (in those two, not many refugees)
Maybe just one round of interviews (because)
- Maybe different focus groups (age)
Meetings with pastors be similar to interviews with members of community (questions about
future goals/dreams in order to gain cultural insights from these community leaders)

10/6/17 Meeting with Pastor Chan

Children and transportation have been issues

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 Time people work in 1st _____ only available
Difficulties with translating interview
- Confidentiality
- People will be afraid to share in an interview, dont want to talk to outside people
- Will talk with friends & family
- People might not understand the importance/purpose of research
Some women dont work during the day, we could go door to door
Using an interpreter could be a challenge because they would probably all know each other

Additional Materials B:
Methodological Log
9/28 Meeting with Emily
After my first meeting with Emily, I feel very honored to help with this project. To be
able to learn about the qualitative research process while at the same time make a difference in
the community is a real privilege. I have to admit that it is a little intimidating to be assisting
with a real community-development task when I am just a grad student taking a research course.
I told Emily that Im no expert, but Im excited to help however I can and learn in the process.
During this weekend between our first and second meeting, Emily has given me some literature
to read about Appreciative Inquiry which has been very interesting. We are meeting again on
Tuesday, October 3rd to compile some interview questions for the leaders of the Burmese
community using the appreciative inquiry principles.

10/6 Meeting with Pastor Chan

This meeting with Pastor Chan was a lot shorter than expected, just around 20 minutes
long. We were mostly interested in asking him about access to the community, both practically
and as it relates to our overall approach. He did confirm a couple of things we already knew
about the obstacles facing the community like childcare, transportation, etc. We mentioned that
as far as our approach, we wanted to know whether a focus group or one-on-one setting would be
better for interviews. One of our Burmese informants at World Relief suggested that if we DID
decide to do a focus group, we would have to make sure to ask direct questions to individuals, as
a question would most likely not be answered if it were simply thrown out to the group. Another

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obstacle we faced in getting focus group-style interviews planned is that we dont have much
access to organizing one. We mentioned this to Pastor Chan, asking if there was any access point
or platform that we could use to get the word out about this and organize some interview times.
He mentioned that going through the churches and Burmese pastors would be the best way, but
he didnt seem willing to help much himself. Seeing that the task of organizing a group interview
would just be too much for us, as outsiders, to accomplish, we decided at the end of that meeting
to go in the direction of one-on-one interviews in which we would go door to door in Wheaton
Square Apartments with an interpreter.

10/27/17 Interviews Round 1

In this round of interviews, we had a 4/4 success rate regarding peoples willingness to
talk to us! This was my biggest concernthat we would show up to Wheaton Square with an
interpreter ready interview and then that no one would invite us inside to talk with them. But
every single person we interviewed4 in totaldid not even hesitate to invite us in. Also, every
person allowed us to be in their home and interview them for at least 20 minutes! This was so
helpful for us in this stage of our research. I think the presence of Peter, our interpreter really
helped them trust us (the last family even knew him from church), but I also think this speaks to
their hospitable culture. Three out of the four people did not have much furniture in their living
room, if any, but if they had a chair or two, they made sure to give us, their guests, the chairs and
they themselves sat on the floor. They were very generous with the little that they had.
As far as the questioning, Peter was absolutely essential not only to translate for us, but
also to help frame the questions in a cultural way that they would understand. He even had to
frame the purpose of our being there for one of the participants. She did not really understand
what we meant by research and she was a little hesitant to be recorded until Peter just explained
that recording is a way for us to remember her answers, in order to ultimately help the
community get more ESL access. It was a very touching, humbling, and motivating experience to
hear these four Burmese refugees each echo some of the same obstacles they face in learning
English and participating in ESL classes. Im very grateful to be working on this project!

11/6/17 Interviews Round 2

During this second round of interviews, we were able to refine our questions in a number
of ways. First of all, we were able to re-word or even completely throw out questions that didnt
really relate to the information we wanted. We were also able to re-word some of our questions
that ended up being more leading than we wanted them to be. In the first round, we were able to
conduct four interviews, lasting about 20-30 minutes each, and I was able to record all four of
them. In this second round, we were only able to get three interviews, and I was only able to
record two of them. However, even though this round of interviews was shorter than the first
round, it still gleaned some valuable insights into the Burmese community and their ESL needs.
In particular, the one interview I was unable to record gave us some very valuable insight
into the cultural context of these refugees. Not only did we learn about the cultural context, but
we specifically gained insight into how their experiences have affected their educational

!24
opportunities. In this particular interview, we were invited into a home where we had a
conversation with 5 Karenni refugees, who did not speak their official national language o
fBurmese. So, the young woman, who was daughter to two of the others in the group and
daughter-in-law to another, had to translate from Karenni to Burmese, and then Peter had to
translate from Burmese to English. They told us how hard it is to learn English because they
never received formal education in Myanmar. They do not even know how to read or write in
Karenni, much less Burmese, much less English! They told us how the schools Myanmar banned
the teaching of Karenni and because of the war many of them never even attended school. One of
the ladies shared a really heartfelt desire of hers. She expressed that due to her lack of English,
people think shes rude and standoffish. But she told us that she is really a friendly person, and
she wishes that she could show people that and make friends, but it feels impossible with the
level of English she currently has. I am kind of glad that we didnt have to record this session. It
was nice to just have a normal, informal conversation with these sweet people and to get a little
more background into their stories.

Additional Materials C: Interview

Transcripts
Interview 1Paula* (22 minutes)
People group/first language: Karen
Language interview conducted in: Burmese
Interpreter: Peter

Katie: How long have you lived in the United States?

Paula: 10 years

Katie: Wow, and in Wheaton Square?

Interpreter: She lived in Glen Ellyn, then in Parkside, and then she moved here.

Emily: Do you know about the WR morning classes at College Church?

Paula: Yes I know

Emily: Have you come to the classes before?

Paula: I attended there for over a year

Emily: Is that the only class youve been to, or have you taken more classes?

!25
Paula: I just attended there in the morning, no other place, just there.

Interpreter: Firstly, in the first year she got in America, she attend there in ESL in the Wheaton
College Church, and she was pregnant at that time and when she gave birth, she stopped going.
After she gave birth, she went there again for a couple months and she quite (sic)

Paula: The reason is, I have no car. I have no transportation. I dont drive, so Actually my
husband is driving, but he came home late so he was very tired so he cant give me drive so I
cant go myself to class. In the morning, it is very important to drop the kids to school off. And
for me, he cant give the time we are so busy with the kids and with his work.

Emily: And so theres not time in the morning to take the kids to school and then get to English
class on time?

Paula: Yeah that is the problem

Katie: What time are the World Relief morning classes?

Emily: 9:30

Katie: So its been many years since youve been able to go to class?

Paula: Yeah it was a long time, it was a lot of years. Im planning to go ESL class again from the
next month with my friend who is staying the next apartment. Im planning to go with her. Shes
driving.

Katie: Oh, how wonderful.

Emily: Yeah, thats wonderful.

Katie: Have you had a good experience with English classes in the past? Did you enjoy them?

Paula: Everything is perfect. All the teachers and students are good. I enjoy the class. The reason
is just the transportation.

Katie: So what ages are your children now? Do you still need childcare?

Paula: The two older daughters is in the middle school, one is in 8th grade and the younger one is
6th grade. The youngest one is 4th grade. Yeah, we dont need babysitter but in the morning, I
need to prepare for them everything, breakfast, everything ever the school needs sometimes.

!26
Emily: So is 9:30, because the classes right now are from 9:30 to 11:30 in the morning, is that a
good time for you, or is that a difficult time for you?

Paula: Yeah this good time for me.

Katie: Is the problem of transportation common among you friends and community here in
Wheaton square?

Paula: I dont know really, but it depends on their family.

Katie: Do some of your friends want to go to English class but cant for another reason?

Paula: I dont really know other reason but mostly its transportation the reason why other people
cant go to school. My opinion, peoples, most of the people want to attend the class because
everybody need English. Especially for me, Ive been here 10 years so I need to do my
citizenship application so for that I need more English. For that, I really need English, more
English, so that I can apply and I can get my citizen. So this is a big challenge for me, the ESL
class, to attend the future. My kids, my three kids green card will expire 2019, and my green card
will expire 2020. So, she (Paula) planning to be citizen, try to be citizen, before that expired.

Emily: So do you feel that the English classes, when you went to them, do you think they helped
you gain the kind of English you need for citizenship, or would you like a class focused on
citizenship or something that would be helpful for that reason?

Paula: Not, theres a lot of reason, but right now I can say two, three important things. Number
one is, this is America, so I need to know English number one, so this is very need in my life.
The second thing is I already fold (sic) my reading text for the driving because my English very
limited so if I know English better, that will help me a lot, driving and everything.

Katie: So also life skills, being able to communicate at the grocery store, and also written for
tests and things like that?

Emily: Thank you for sharing that. And it sounds like you are very motivated to learn English,
everything you are telling us. Has is it been more difficult since you came to America to learn
English, to learn enough English for the driving test and for the citizenship, than you expected?

Paula: Yeah, everywhere, for everything, to every small thing I need English.

Emily: So, I have a question about Does she, because when we are starting a new class or have
a registration, we try to get that information to everybody. Has she received World Relief flyers
and has she received information about registrations when we are having one, does she usually
get that information?

!27
Paula: Yes, I heard.

Emily: Oh good. Do you hear through church or flyers, sometimes we bring the flyers to the
apartments. How do you usually hear?

Paula: Sometimes if I cant participate sometimes meeting, but I just hear from my friends most
of time.

Emily: I think thats all the questions we have. I wanted to mention because you said you maybe
wanted to come to English class soon. The next season is starting soon, and next week is the
registration, so the next session is from November to February so if you want to come to English
classes during that time I can give you information about how to register.

Paula: Couple weeks ago I went there and I register at the College Church, and they say we will
call you when we start and in what class you will be in.

Emily: Oh great, Im so sorry I probably saw you and i dont remember!

Katie: Is that the class that your friend is taking you to?

Paula: Yeah the same class.

Emily: Good, wonderful. Yes, we will call you soon! I have the list of students. Well I think those
are all the questions we have. Thank you so much.

Katie: Yes, thank you.

Interview 2Martha* (16 minutes)

People group/first language: Karen
Language interview conducted in: Karen
Interpreter: Marthas son

(The recording did not start right awaythe conversation began before I could get permission,
so I had to interrupt briefly to get permission to record.)

Katie: So you said youve come to ESL classes before?

Interpreter (son): She did, but she dont know what class she take.

Katie: But it was at World Relief?

Interpreter (son): Yeah, yeah

!28
Katie: Ok, was that, did you enjoy it, was it a good experience for you?

Martha: Yeah

Katie: Did you go with friends or did you go alone?

Martha: With a friend

Emily: And you said that your teacher was Teacher Sue?

Martha: Yes

Emily: And you said that now its been difficult for you to come because youve been moving a
lot, is that right?

Martha: Yes

Emily: Ok, and do you, because when we, we start new classes at different times and there are
times for students to register and join the classes, and so when you have been moving a lot and
changing your schedule, have you heard the information about when the chances are to join a
class? Like have you heard from people, Oh theres a World Relief registration, you can
come.?

Martha: No

Emily: Ok, because we want to find good ways to let everybody know about the classes so that if
they want to come they can. So what would be a good way for you to find out about the classes?
Is there any community group that you are connected to, like a church, that you could hear about
it from?

Interpreter (son): I dont know because she went to Glen Ellyn Bible Church.

Emily: Ok so Glen Ellyn Bible Church? Great.

Katie: Do you want to go again to English classes?

Interpreter (son): She said she has no ride.

Katie: No ride, no transportation, no car?

Emily: Have you considered, or are you planning to get a license and a car and drive yourself or
is that not

!29
Interpreter (son): She said she cannot remember the road. And at night she is probably not able to
see.

Katie: Do many of your friends have the same problem with transportation?

Martha: I dont know. Where my aunt live in (unintelligible) she dont have transportation.

Emily: If there was some transportation like a van that picked people up, would you be interested
in coming to ESL classes if there was a solution to that problem?

Martha: Yes if they pick me up I will go.

Emily: If we didnt have just a free van but if there was some sort of group where a couple
people drove together in a car and each person pays a little bit for gas, would she be interested in
that kind of option for solving the transportation problem?

Interpreter (son): She said she dont know she have no money.

Emily: Yeah no, thats ok. Thats a valid obstacle.

Katie: Where would you like to use your English most, with friends or in the stores, or where
would you like to use English most?

Martha: Everywhere!

Katie: What motivates you the most?

Martha: Shopping

Emily: So shopping is difficult when you dont speak a lot of English?

Martha: Yes

Emily: Has learning English in America been more difficult or less difficult than you thought
when you first came here?

Martha: Harder

Emily: What has made it difficult?

Martha: I never went to school before coming to America because of the war

!30
Emily: Have you seen for other people in the community, who have maybe had more
opportunities to learn English, how has it helped them? How has English helped people that you
know? What opportunities has it opened for people?

Martha: Most of the refugees go, the food stamps, the Department of Human Resources,
sometimes in driving state of Illinois, most of the time we have problem is in the office. So the
English will be very helpful for those appointments.

Katie: How long have you been here in the United States?

Interpreter (son): Weve been here since 2008.

Martha: May 28

Emily: May 28, you remember the date! (laughter)

Emily: So the World Relief English classes are right now in the morning from 9:30 to 11:30. If
you had transportation, would that be a good time for you to go to class?

Martha: Yes

Emily: Are there any other times that are good for you? Sometimes we have done evening
classes. What, in your mind, what would be the best time?

Martha: Anytime

Emily: Are there specific topics that you, if you went to English class, that you hope the teacher
would teach you about?

Martha: Citizenship

Katie: Is that test going to be coming soon for you?

Interpreter (son): She said she want to learn that so she can take it

Emily: I think those are all the questions we have for her now. Thank you for talking to us. We
hope that soon you are able to come to English class and that we are able to solve some of the
issues that make it difficult to come.

Martha: Hope to see you soon.

Katie: Thank you!

!31
Interview 3Wanda* (28 minutes)
People group/first language: Karen
Language interview conducted in: Burmese
Interpreter: Peter

Katie: So you said youve never had English class before, but you would like to?

Wanda: I have 6 kids so Im busy with my kids so I cant go to school.

Katie: Yes, very busy! So childcare is one reason that cant come to ESL class?

Wanda: Yes

Katie: Do some of your friends have the same problem?

Wanda: Yes, I know some of the Burmese people.

Katie: What other problems do you have getting to ESL classes? Are there any other things in
your way?

Wanda: Some, the people I say who facing the problem, most of them are because of the
transportation.

Katie: Is that a problem for you too?

Wanda: We have transportation, just the time and the children

Emily: And with the children, is it just that you are very busy at home preparing?

Wanda: Right now I am pregnant, but I still cant go because all my kids go to school in the
morning and they come back 3:00 so I have time between that

Emily (to interpreter): Sorry, so right now she cant go because thats when she has to do the
things at home, or shes saying she could go because theyre at school? Which one?

Wanda: I could come, I can come, Im planning to come to school.

Emily: So, you do have transportation. Do you drive yourself and do you have a car? Do you
have a license and a car?

Wanda: Yes I have a drivers license.

!32
Emily: And when you first came to the U.S., when you first arrived, what made it difficult for
you to come to English class within your first year?

Wanda: That first year was the kids school schedule was very, was very confuse for me to adjust
the time. But now they start in the morning and they come in the afternoon is a lot better now
comparing the first year.

Emily: And, sorry for so many questions about the same thing, but now all of her children are in
school, right? She doesnt have any small children at home?

Wanda: Oh, yeah I just have a two-year-old sleeping (points behind her to a bedroom).

Peter (to Emily): If you have kid cares there, children care

Emily (to Peter): Yeah we do. That is something also that can be difficult for people though
because the kid care is always full because many people bring their children, so sometimes we
do run out of space for children.
(Peter tells this to Wanda in Burmese)

Emily: And when it was difficult with your children, was the most difficult part the schedule
that the time for the school and the time for the English class didnt workor was it just that you
had so much to do during the day with taking care of the children that it was too tiring to go to
class, or was the problem to take all the children and walk to class its too far? What specifically
was difficult?

Wanda: The reason is that that time, my first year, my one child, her out time was 12:00, so I
have very tight time to give to ESL class.

Katie: Where do you want to use English most? For what purposes?

Wanda: Food stamp office! Whenever I go there, I need to take the interpreter with me.

Katie: Is there someone close to you who goes with you, a friend?

Wanda: I have one family girl when shes not really busy I can call her, but sometimes shes very
busy.

Katie: So would you feel more independent if you didnt have to take a translator to the food
stamp office?

Wanda: It is not like monthly, so whenever I need she just come with me because she understand
my family problem.

!33
Katie: Are the any other areas where you would want to use English?

Wanda: Hospital

Katie: If you went to ESL class, what kind of topics would you want to learn, do you
know?

Wanda: Mostly English

Katie: More speaking or more writing?

Wanda: Both of them. No speaking, no writing, so I need both.

Emily: So when we start a new class or have a registration for English class, we try to let every
body know and give everybody the information, so I want to ask, have you heard about the WR
English registration, have you seen any flyers, have you heard this information?

Wanda: Maybe we get, but I dont read, I cant read, so I dont know from where I get
(Peter turns to speak to her again in Burmese)
Wanda: Oh, I ask my friend. Whenever something I need, I speak someone who speak English
better and I get the information from them.

Katie: Do you have any other places that you go with your Burmese community like church or a
grocery store or the same shopping centers?

Emily: So if we took flyers there, she would get that information.

Katie: or somewhere with a vocal announcement

Emily: in a church or something.

Wanda: The church is the best thing I think.

Emily: And what church does she attend?

Wanda: Glen Ellyn Bible Church.

Peter: It is Glen Ellyn Bible Church, but it is their rent.

Katie: Oh they rent the space?

Peter: Yes it is American church, but after the church service finish, they start church.

!34
Emily: Is there a name for the Burmese congregation that meets there?

Wanda: There is only one Karen church in this area. There is one other Karen church in Aurora
so it is easy to remember.

Emily: Oh, ok so its the Karen Church that meets at Glen Ellyn Bible

Emily: And if you decided, Oh now I want to take English classes, I want to sign up, would you
know who to talk to, how to do that? What would you do?

Wanda: I am free, I am planning to go, but I dont know where to get the information. I have to
go to my friend, shes the only one I know. Sometimes she as very tight time.

Emily: And you can always just come to College Church or to the DuPage office to ask about
English class, or if you have any friends in English class, you can talk to them and they can give
you the information. But I can tell you now, next week is the last registration for the next session.
So if you want to come to classes, next week on Tuesday morning at College Church you can
come to register.

Emily (to Peter): If she wants me to write the information for her, I can.

Wanda: To contact her, or to?

Emily: Oh, the time and location for her to come and register at College Church.

Wanda: Im free from 9:00 up to 1:00.

Emily (to Peter): Ok, thats great, Ill just give her this paper. The registration, she can come
anytime between 9:00 and 10:00.

Emily: And what would the best time for English classes be for you? If you could just choose the
days and times, what would be the best for you?

Wanda: Monday to Friday is ok, and the time is as she said, during the school day.

Emily: Ok great. I think thats all the questions we have for you. Do you have any questions for
us about the English program?

Wanda: I dont have too much, but it is perfect whatever you do.

Katie and Emily: Thank you!

!35
Interview 4Ian* (12 minutes)
People group/first language: Falam Chin
Language interview conducted in: English (Falam Chin when necessary)
Interpreter: N/A (Peter when necessary)

Katie: So you said that you took classes at COD?

Ian: Yeah

Katie: Two years ago, or for two years?

Ian: 2015

Katie: And have you ever taken classes with WR or has your wife ever taken classes with WR?

Ian: Yes, she took College Church. The College Church. I dont know what class. She did two
years maybe three years something.

Katie: So neither of you are taking any right now?

Ian: No

Katie: Why is that?

Emily: Because your wife was taking classes at College Church, and was there a reason that she
stopped taking classes? Did it become difficult to go?

Ian: Oh yeah. Yeah at that time I worked, so she was sometimes difficult with the baby with the
children. And sometimes difficult, and sometimes she worked with the baby.

Katie: How many children do you have?

Ian: At that time one.

Katie: At that time one, and how many do you have now.

Ian: Three. And also the elder, the (unintelligible), the baby is at school, so no time school
because (unintelligible)

Katie: If theres childcare, would you consider going back to English class, or not?

Ian: I dont know. She has to go to COD, College Church is done.

!36
Emily: She is too high for the classes now?

Ian: Yes. There are no more classes for her. If she went, she go to COD.

Emily: And when she was going to College Church classes, did she drive herself, or did she ride
in the van or ride with a friend? How did she get there?

Ian: No, she (unintelligible) Even if she can drive (unintelligible)

Emily: So transportation has been a problem for getting to English classes?

Ian: Yeah, cause it take like 20 minutes or something

Emily: to walk to College Church? And with the small children its difficult?

Ian: Yeah

Katie (to Emily): So, just so Im understanding, are they too high of a level to be in the World
Relief classes?

Emily (to Katie): Yeah sounds like it. Right now we only have until C-class. Its only for the
beginning levels, so yeah definitely.

Ian: She already passed D something.

Emily: So so you feel satisfied with the amount of English that you both have in order to live
here and function here, or do you feel like either your wife or yourself would like to learn more
English.

Ian: If possible, yeah.

Emily: Do you feel able to do most of the daily life things like shopping and going to the offices
and, are all of those things easy enough with the level of English that you and your wife have?

Ian: I dont know (laughs)

Emily: Are there any places or times when you find its difficult to do something because you
feel that you need English?

Ian: Actually I need more English but now I work second shift again and I dont know morning
is many many time I go working Or doctor for baby Its every week maybe two times,

!37
three times, like that. So even then I want to learn, I dont have time. Some volunteer, some
people can..

Emily: You mean like the in-home tutor that comes to your home and teaches you English?

Ian: Yeah, that. More (unintelligible)

Katie: More practice with conversation and stuff like that?

Ian: Yeah, I just go to school and then I come back and I put everything aside, then tomorrow I
have class and I bring that to school

Emily: (laughs) But you dont look at it outside of school?

Ian: (laughs) Yeah, no practice time.

Emily: So you feel that practice would be the most helpful thing for you right now?

Emily: If you wanted to go to a class again, what would the best time be for you? Like what time
during the day, and how many days a week, what would work best for your schedule?

Ian: Right now its morning

Emily: But going four days a week is difficult because of appointments and things, right?

Ian: Yeah, maybe I cannot go more than that

Katie: So if you could go to an English class, what kind of topics would you like to learn?

Ian: Just speaking things

Katie: Conversation?

Ian: Conversation, yeah that one is important.

Peter: He want home education. He want to talk one on one.

Katie and Emily: Right, right.

Emily: Are there any other specific things that motivate you, like citizenship, that motivate you
to learn more English?

!38
Ian: The citizenship class that I have to take. Yeah maybe now I am, I have been here 5 years, so
I will start the class. Before at COD I am doing to take the citizenship class. I already signed
there, but I never go there.

Emily: So they have a citizenship class at COD?

Ian: Yeah they have one

Emily: Oh ok good. So it was just too difficult to find the time to go?

Ian: Yeah at World Relief or (unintelligible)

Emily: So for you, you feel like things here, like people coming to your home, or things, if you
could practice English in your community, that would be the most, that would work best for you
right now?

Ian: Yeah, I think that. Because if we go at work, not sometime only just only we go and we just
work, not a lot of practice to talk to someone. And we come back with family so

Emily: Right, you and you dont use English. (laughter) If we were to do something, like a
conversation group, in the apartment complex, like at Wheaton Square at different apartments,
that was a more informal class, not so much teaching, more conversation, is that something that
you would be interested in?

Ian: Yeah, yeah.

Emily: Alright, I think thats all the questions we have.

Katie: Do you have any questions for us?

Ian: Uh, no.

Katie: Thank you for letting us ask you all those questions!

Interview 5Betsy* and Sam* (15 minutes)

People group/first language: Karenni
Language interview conducted in: Karenni & English
Interpreter: Betsy

Katie: So have either of you taken classes at World Relief before?

!39
Betsy: I have never taken because since I came here I started high school, so, but my husband
did.

Emily: And how long did he take classes?

Sam: About three months.

Emily: Did he do the job class?

Sam: No, he didnt attend the job class.

Emily: Ok, just the ESL class?

Betsy: Just the ESL.

Emily: And what was his experience like with the ESL class?

Sam: Its like, better than before, when he started ESL class, because before, the English is not
enough, but now he started and its getting better.

Emily: And why did you stop taking the ESL classes, what changed?

Sam: Because my job schedule is very hard for me so then I stopped my ESL classes.

Emily: Yeah, that makes sense. What, when you were taking the ESL classes, what was the most
helpful part of them for you in learning English? Maybe a topic the teacher taught, or a way that
the teacher taught? What was the most helpful part?

Sam: Because if I stay home, I dont hear people talking, right? So then I dont get to learn more
English, but when I went to the ESL class, then I heard my friends taking and teachers and I get
to learn more, not only from the teachers, also from my friends.

Emily: Yeah, is there anything when you think about the English class, any suggestion that you
would make to make it more helpful?

Sam: I dont know. (laughter)

Katie: Where do you most want to use English, with friends or at the store?

Sam: Not specific time, just any time, if I can.

Emily: Do you currently feel like you would like to improve your English more?

!40
Sam: Yes, I do.

Emily: Would you like to come to attend classes again?

Sam: Yes, I would like to come again when I have a good schedule.

Katie: Is schedule the only thing thats in the way of going back to classes, or are there other
obstacles?

Sam: The only thing is my schedule because thats too much overtime for me.

Emily: What would be the best time for an English class for you, if you could choose the time
and the day, what would be ideal for you to have an English class?

Sam: I dont really know about that but maybe Saturday, but also I do have work on Saturday
sometimes so, its hard.

Emily: What shift do you work?

Sam: Second shift

Emily: So its just difficult with overtime and then the morning is difficult?

Sam: Yes.

Katie: If you were to go back to English class, what kind of other topics would you want to learn
about?

Sam: I want to learn about job.

Emily: Are there specific things that you have needed or that you need English for? So for some
people citizenship is a big concern, or just for other people, gaining the drivers license and
doing the test. Are there specific things that you think, Oh, I need more English before I can do
that.

Sam: Yes, citizenship.

Emily: And would you have your own transportation to class if you were to come?

Sam: Yes, I do have a transportation.

Emily: Ok great. So whenever we are having a new registration for a new set of classes, we try to
communicate the information to everybody. We make flyers, we talk to pastors of local churches,

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so we want to ask have you, in the past year, have you heard about ESL registrations when they
are happening?

Sam: Yes, I do hear about that.

Emily: Ok, and where have you heard about that from?

Sam: I heard it from my friends, who is neighbor.

Emily: Wonderful. If you were to come back to English class, would you need childcare? I see
you have one child. Would that be something that you might want to bring your child to?

Sam: Yes, I do want to take him.

Emily: Ok, great. Do you know what are some of the things that keep people in your community
from coming to English class?

Sam: I dont know

Emily: Thats ok. So those are all the questions we have. Do you have any questions about the
ESL program, any questions for me?

Sam: For now I dont have a question, but I just plan on coming back, I just let you know that we
are coming back sometime sooner and I really appreciate the World Relief have ESL class like
this. Thats really helpful so thank yo so much.

Emily: Thank you for letting us talk. Its very helpful for us.

Katie: Yeah thank you.

Interview 6Sarah* (22 minutes)

People group/first language: Karenni
Language interview conducted in: Burmese
Interpreter: Peter

Katie: Have you ever taken ESL classes with World Relief before?

Sarah: Yeah, Im still taking my ESL class.

Katie: Oh ok, are you enjoying that experience?

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Sarah: I attend and now Im doing, I try to make the registration to COD, but they have full, they
dont have space. Thats why I just attend somewhere else right now. Not at College Church.

Emily: Does she know the name of the place she attends right now?

Sarah: Second Baptist Church.

Emily: Oh, good, ok.

Katie: When are your classes? Are they every week or

Sarah: Two days a week, Tuesday and Thursday.

Katie: And you drive yourself, or you have transportation there?

Peter (after some discussion with Sarah): Oh, FIRST Baptist! Not Second Baptist, First Baptist.
She is walking there.

Emily: Oh, that makes sense! So the evening classes?

Sarah: Yeah

Emily: And is the evening class better than the morning class for you?

Sarah: Im not driving, actually I want to attend as long as possible, like she need more time but
in the morning, the First Baptist just have evening. So if there was more she would go.

Emily: And so you dont drive?

Sarah: Yes, Im not driving.

Emily: Ok, and for the evening class, because there is not childcare, you have someone to help
you with taking care of the children in the evening?

Sarah: My sister is taking care of him

Emily: Do you think for other people in this apartment building, is childcare a difficult thing in
the evening for going to the evening class?

Sarah: I have some friends from Chin people, they attend with me in the First Baptist Church,
but I dont know where they keep their children. Maybe they have friends.

Katie: What do you most enjoy about English classes?

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Sarah: I have fun in conversation. I dont mean that I know, but it is good, it is very big challenge
for me to improve. This is very good for me to learn more, to improve.

Emily: So this evening class has just been going for a couple months. Before that did you attend
English class somewhere else?

Sarah: College Church in the morning.

Emily: Oh, ok good. So when you have been studying English how has it helped you in your life
here? Are there places that you can say, Oh I learned this in English class, and now this
shopping or something is easier?

Sarah: I dont really speak out yet, but I just saw some words and some sentence whenever I
went to the shop, I hear these words and I know some.

Emily: Oh good, ok.

Sarah: Most of time its in the clinic.

Emily: In the clinic? Oh ok. And what are the places where you wish that you knew more
English, so places that you go where you think, Oh, I need more English to be able to talk to
this person or do something.

Sarah: Bank. I need more to talk to, when I want to cash with someone who is helping the
customer. I dont know what to say I want to cash and to deposit I dont even know, so I need
more. And the apply the food stamps, I need to know to fill the forms.

Emily: So then, in the English class, some topics, it sounds like learning how to talk to people at
the bank, or at the food stamp office. Are there any other topics that you would like to study in
English class?

Sarah: I need to make the appointment when my childs emergency sometimes and sometimes
we have helpless I need to know how to call myself to make appointment.

Emily: Yeah! When you came to the morning classes at College Church, did you ride in the van
or did you walk, how did you get there?

Sarah: Yeah, we ride in the World Relief van.

Emily: And so if you were to come back to the morning classes, would you need help with
transportation?

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Sarah: Yes, I need.

Emily: So, one thing that we, because its an issue that many people have with the transportation,
but we cannot drive everybody, so we are trying to think of other ways to help. So, we want to
know: would you be interested in participating if there was some sort of like carpool system
where maybe many people who go to the same class can share if one person has a car and then
they can share paying the gas money. Would you be interested in something like that, where we
do not just pick you up, but we help to organize.
Sarah: I dont know the one you say, but everything is good for me. The most important thing is
just to get there and study. If theres no transportation, I can try to walk.

Emily: So whenever we have a new registration or a new class, we try to let everyone know by
sending flyers and telling the churches and things like that. Have you received information about
the ESL registrations? Have you seen the flyers?

Sarah: I just get from the College Church.

Emily: And do you have any suggestions of ways to communicate information int he future?
Whether through some community group or

Sarah: Maybe the church is the best one

Emily: And what church do you go to?

Sarah: She said the church she attend is a Catholic church, and they attend with the American
people, with some Chin people and American, they attend the same time. The church is in
Wheaton, close to the railroad. I think if we go to Roosevelt, from Main Street, to Warrenville. If
you go to Warrenville, you will see the railroad. Next to the railroad somewhere, maybe before
or after next. Yeah that is the church.

Emily: I think thats about all our questions. Thank you for letting us ask the questions. Do you
have any questions for us about the English program?

Sarah: Nothing right now, thank you.

Katie and Emily: Thank you!

*Name changed to protect confidentiality

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