Today is Wednesday, and it is our final day in Birmingham. We began the day bright and early by checking out of our hotel at 7:15 am, and then headed to the hotel breakfast to get something to eat. We took taxis over to South & City College Birmingham for our final observation day. We had a bit of a wait outside of the college due to a taxi delay that held back some members of our group. While we were waiting, it was very cold and even began to rain, but despite the inclement weather, we still managed to entertain ourselves. When we finally got inside the school, we signed in as visitors. A lot of us noticed immediately that there was a Subway right inside the main entrance. 

We were brought to a room with tea, fruit, and wafers waiting for us. One of my favorite things about each of our visits, besides the experience of course, is seeing the different kinds of tea and snacks they want us to try. The people at all of the sites we have visited were so hospitable and really made us feel welcome. Compared to Joseph Chamberlain College, the sixth form we visited earlier this week, South & City College has a much more vocational approach to educating their students. We were given an introduction to the college by Ghulam, who is the head of school and director of ESOL classes here at South & City College. He told us about the different levels of classes here, which vary based on the amount of English the students are able to read, write, and understand. There are 3 pre-levels, and 3 levels. Once the students reach level 3, they are prepared to enter the workforce. There are many vocational programs available to these students, where they can learn to become plumbers, child carers, and many more professions. Ghulam told us that a lot of these students have previous work experience in countries that speak other languages, so once they become proficient in English, they can return to that field of work in the United Kingdom.

We also learned that South & City College has many different campuses, one which is a Women’s Center. The women’s campus is important for some South & City College students, because in their experiences, they were very uncomfortable being around men, and especially for students aged 16 to 18, whose parents may not be comfortable with them attending a school where they will have classes mixed with male students. This college also has students of many varying ages. There is no age limit to attending the school, and Ghulam even told us that last year, there was a student who was seventy four years old! The levels of English taught and learned at this school are below GCSE level, but they do learn enough to be able to successfully work in their desired field.

After our intro lesson with Ghulam, we split into groups of 3 and went to classrooms to observe. My group was placed in a class of ESOL and child care students. Their assignment for today was to produce an information leaflet for the Council which gives information on the role of adults in supporting play and leisure activities. All of their responses for this task were to be linked to areas such as disabilities (whether that be visual, hearing, or physical), behavior, medical conditions, EAL, or learning disabilities/difficulties. One of the most interesting things I have noticed from observing ESOL classes both here and at Joseph Chamberlain College is that the teachers only speak English during the class. In my school’s foreign language classes, the teachers did the majority of their lessons in English. I think speaking only in the desired language can be very beneficial for the students trying to learn, but it also requires the teacher to spend more one-on-one time assisting the students with their assignments. The extended one-on-one time can be viewed as a blessing or a curse. On one hand, it can be helpful for the students to be individually assisted with their work, but on the other hand, this method of teaching can also be harmful to the students. When the teacher is spending so much time with other students, those who are confused about the assignment may spend more time wondering what to do. I think there are pros and cons to this way of teaching, but it is very interesting to see the difference at this school compared to my high school. 

We then went into a class of plumbing students, who were working on writing formal and informal letters. The students in this class were all extremely friendly, and immediately introduced themselves with their names, where they were from, and how long they had been living here in the United Kingdom.Today’s task was for them to write a formal letter applying for a job in an assistant caretaker role. They had to research the role and write about why they would be fit for the job. They were required to write in paragraphs and write at least 200 words. The teacher provided the class with a format for the letter, and briefly broke it down step by step, allowing the students to show that they understood what they were meant to be doing. This activity allowed the students to practice applying for a job, which is a skill they will need when they are entering the workforce. 

We were supposed to leave Birmingham around 3, but our bus did not arrive until 3:40, so once we got to the hotel in London, we had to rush to change and head over to the Alumni dinner. The food was so good, and the alumni were so nice! One of them even grew up right near me! It was so much fun, but I am so exhausted and cannot wait to sleep