MPTC Electricity Instructor, Gus Boyle-Gustavus, was looking to push her electricity students to think and communicate creatively on the construction site, specifically when working with diverse customers and/or colleagues. Instead of simply reading or discussing this topic in the classroom, she wanted the students to be active in utilizing their intercultural communication skills.

Collaboration took place between Gus and ELL Program Specialist, Tony Rodriguez, to plan an activity where our MPTC ELL students would only utilize their native language to provide a set of directions to the electricity students. Electricity students needed to problem-solve, communicate creatively, and work with their ELL student partner, to understand the directions provided to them in another language in order to complete their assigned task.

There were a mix of emotions as electricity students worked through the language barrier to complete their task. Many enjoyed the experience and cited that they felt frustrated at times that they could not understand. Several students mentioned this experience inspired them to want to take a Spanish course at some point in the future to help them on the construction site. Many students stated that this experience helped them truly understand the barriers that non-native English speakers face, and that they wanted to continue to develop their knowledge and communication skills in the future.

“Tying in an emotional impact to this type of activity will make it an experience we can learn a great deal from and not forget,” commented one electricity student.

For more information, visit morainepark.edu.

This past weekend in West Bend, Moraine Park participated in Fiesta Latina hosted by Casa Guadalupe Education Center.  Fiesta Latina is an event to experience the Hispanic culture through music, food, and activities.  I was able to represent Diversity Relations at Fiesta Latina and enjoyed conversing with many community members, as well as other vendors offering information about community services.  I also had the opportunity to meet and talk with US Senator Tammy Baldwin.

There were many fun kids’ activities such as face painting, games, balloon animals, piñatas, and our own Cosmetology students doing mini manicures.  Many other great activities as well such Latin Zumba, salsa line dancing, and jalapeño eating contest.  Maximus even made an appearance! Special shout out to the Cosmetology students, they did a wonderful job!

I along with everyone else were able to taste authentic Hispanic food, which by the way was delicious!  From tacos and tamales to horchata and jarritos, everything that I was able to taste was phenomenal.  Casa Tequila and the Norbert cooked the delicious food. 

We were also able to listen to mariachi music, see a live performance from Ballet Folklórico Sones Mexicanos, as well as listen to live music from Grupo Masivo Show band and Gigantes de la Música band.

Experiencing these cultural events is essential to bridging our communities and preparing for a diverse and globally connected world.

There are 7.442 billion people in this world, 6,500 languages, and 4,200 different religions. Our world is full of diversity, yet most will experience very little of it in their lifetime.

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Do you enjoy meeting new people? Do you like practicing intercultural communication skills? Do you wish to expand your knowledge about different viewpoints on family, food, education, success, gender roles, and even religion in a safe, respectful environment?

You may be thinking, “WOW, that sounds interesting!” Our students at Moraine Park Technical College are doing just that!

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Eat a grape and make a wish! Have a competition of nativities. Wear yellow pants to ensure good finances in the coming year! These are just a few of the cultural traditions Moraine Park’s English Language students shared during our end of the semester holiday-themed classes. We kicked off the holiday conversation with a trip to Regner Park’s “Enchantment in the Park” lights display where the students learned about the United States’ holiday traditions including Christmas lights, Santa Claus, carolers and hot cocoa.
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This week, students in our English Language Learner (ELL) class enjoyed coupling language learning with team-building skills through “The Marshmallow Challenge.”  Modified from an activity discussed in Mark Wujec’s TED talk, the students were tasked with working together in teams to build the tallest structure in a limited amount of time, from a limited set of materials.

They did a wonderful job creating some very unique free-standing structures!
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