Title: Vocational ESL (VESL) for Auto
Technology/Diesel program
College: Santa Ana College
1530 West 17th Street,
Santa Ana, CA 92706
Contact:
Mary Walker,
Program Coordinator, 714-241-5749 orwalker_mary@sac.edu
Target population:
Bilingual/bicultural students who want to gain employment in
automotive/diesel mechanics occupations.
Goals: To enable
students to understand and effectively communicate using English
language terms specific to the automotive and diesel mechanics
occupations, and to effectively communicate with customers at
auto/diesel service sites.
Description:
The Santa Ana
College VESL program in Auto Technology/Diesel is a not-for- credit
program for students wanting to improve academic success and
employment opportunities in the automotive and diesel mechanics
occupational areas. The program is completing a yearlong planning
phase, and has an implementation date of Fall 2005.
Faculty will refer automotive technology/diesel students to the
program, which will run concurrently with for-credit courses. Plans
are also underway for establishing a VESL computer lab with
self-directed modules in automotive/diesel technology and, in the
future, other vocational occupational areas.
Staffing:
Auto
Technology/Diesel and ESL faculty
Facilities, equipment, materials:
Facilities: Classroom, lab
Costs, funding source:
VTEA and Continuing Education funding
Outreach and marketing:
When the program begins in fall 2005, faculty will identify and
refer Auto Technology/Diesel students who need assistance with
vocational English language skills. Other marketing and outreach
efforts are under development.
Evidence of effectiveness:
Curricula focuses on improving academic success and retention rates
of English as a Second Language learners in the college’s Auto
Technology/Diesel program; and transitioning graduates into high
wage and high skill occupations. Program planning has been a
collaborative effort, involving representatives from Ryder Systems
Inc.; ESL, Workforce/Career Development, and Student Services and
Instruction Deans; and Auto Technology/Diesel faculty members.
Suggestions for replication:
Start early! Planning and implementation takes a lot longer than you
think. For example, selecting curricular modules took 3 months. Do a
needs assessment as part of the planning process. For this program,
faculty could accurately document the VESL reading, writing,
comprehension needs of students enrolled in the Auto
Technology/Diesel program; and employers could provide information
on English language skill sets that graduates or non-students were
lacking when they entered the workforce.