WEBVTT 00:00:02.848 --> 00:00:06.311 One in 10 Americans cannot read this sentence. 00:00:07.201 --> 00:00:43.503 But there is hope. [music] 00:00:44.253 --> 00:00:48.341 I came out of school some 25 years ago, 00:00:48.341 --> 00:00:52.052 because I started off very young with a child. 00:00:52.352 --> 00:00:56.784 I lost my job, and I found that it was virtually impossible 00:00:56.784 --> 00:01:02.410 to even get your foot in the door without a high school diploma or GED. 00:01:02.410 --> 00:01:08.803 I was 17 years old. I came here to help my parents economically, but when I came 00:01:08.803 --> 00:01:17.364 to this country I knew that I wanted to be more than a babysitter or a restaurant worker. 00:01:17.364 --> 00:01:19.862 There are 42 million Americans who are functionally illiterate. 00:01:19.862 --> 00:01:24.307 Only 2.1 million are served by the national adult education program. 00:01:24.307 --> 00:01:29.864 The American Institutes for Research is helping partners to find solutions. 00:01:29.864 --> 00:01:33.523 There really are three types of learners, and I think this is one 00:01:33.523 --> 00:01:34.425 of the things that makes adult education unique. Adults that are 00:01:34.425 --> 00:01:40.623 disconnected from their education. They didn't finish high school. 00:01:40.623 --> 00:01:44.714 Dropped out of school, or they may be older adults who 00:01:44.714 --> 00:01:47.816 also left school before they completed, and now they want to 00:01:47.816 --> 00:01:51.519 come back. Then, you also have adults that maybe already 00:01:51.519 --> 00:01:55.163 had some education, but they want to upgrade their skills for 00:01:55.163 --> 00:01:59.935 different reasons. And, then you have immigrants who want 00:01:59.935 --> 00:02:05.104 to learn English, and they could be new comers or immigrants 00:02:05.104 --> 00:02:07.033 who have been here a while, and their English Language skills 00:02:07.033 --> 00:02:08.384 are not very good. 00:02:08.384 --> 00:02:11.984 I started from nothing, and now I'm talking to you in English. 00:02:11.984 --> 00:02:18.994 So, I would like to help the community to speak Spanish and English. 00:02:18.994 --> 00:02:26.734 We are known for education. A lot of education is about preparing 00:02:26.734 --> 00:02:30.812 you for employment, and there is a large segment of the 00:02:30.812 --> 00:02:37.635 workforce who is unemployed or underemployed because they 00:02:37.635 --> 00:02:43.333 lack basic literacy. So, given AIR's focus and the things we do, 00:02:43.333 --> 00:02:47.814 it has and will continue to be an area we emphasize. 00:02:47.814 --> 00:03:03.575 What is important about adult education to me is the fact that 00:03:03.575 --> 00:03:09.975 adult learners ... not only in DC, but in other parts of the nation, 00:03:09.975 --> 00:03:14.136 are often forgotten about. There is a great emphasis on 00:03:14.136 --> 00:03:19.117 children, infants, and toddlers, but not enough emphasis on 00:03:19.117 --> 00:03:22.613 helping adults to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to 00:03:22.613 --> 00:03:24.715 help their children to be successful. 00:03:24.715 --> 00:03:29.596 The top 2 reasons that adults come to us ... they want a better job 00:03:29.596 --> 00:03:32.926 and there is an economic reason for coming, and they can't 00:03:32.926 --> 00:03:35.308 help their children with their homework anymore. And, 00:03:35.308 --> 00:03:39.385 that's usually sort of that motivating factor. Once their child 00:03:39.385 --> 00:03:42.945 brings home homework that they can't assist them with, it's time 00:03:42.945 --> 00:03:45.546 to get that high school credential. 00:03:45.546 --> 00:03:48.547 I would say that my grandchildren encouraged me. They 00:03:48.547 --> 00:03:52.305 motivated me a lot, and they don't even know it but they did. 00:03:52.305 --> 00:03:55.611 Because, a lot of times I would see them doing their homework 00:03:55.611 --> 00:04:00.426 and things, and I would be like, "Grandma doesn't even know 00:04:00.426 --> 00:04:02.238 ... I can't even image what that is." 00:04:02.238 --> 00:04:05.807 I want to learn something and I want to do something 00:04:05.807 --> 00:04:13.407 with my life. And, I want my son and my family to be proud of me. 00:04:13.407 --> 00:04:20.607 I was afraid to speak like I am doing now, but even if I make a 00:04:20.607 --> 00:04:23.247 mistake now, I am not afraid to speak English because in 00:04:23.247 --> 00:04:29.543 Carlos Rosario they taught me how to speak and how to be 00:04:29.543 --> 00:04:35.521 comfortable in reading, writing ... everything. 00:04:35.521 --> 00:04:41.306 We have a three pronged approach. We start with foundational skills, 00:04:41.306 --> 00:04:46.196 English literacy, high school diploma, technology literacy. 00:04:46.196 --> 00:04:50.055 We also have career certification training, so we have a 00:04:50.055 --> 00:04:54.558 culinary arts training program, our IT certification training program, and 00:04:54.558 --> 00:04:58.247 our newest is our nurse aid certification training program. 00:04:58.247 --> 00:05:01.919 I joined the culinary program, and I actually enjoyed every 00:05:01.919 --> 00:05:06.464 minute of it. It showed me how much more work is involved 00:05:06.464 --> 00:05:09.961 in the culinary field than what people think of. It's not just 00:05:09.961 --> 00:05:12.310 putting food on a plate and serving it. 00:05:12.310 --> 00:05:19.308 I want to learn pastry chef. I want to improve my knowlege in 00:05:19.308 --> 00:05:24.278 culinary, and I want to have my small business ... my 00:05:24.278 --> 00:05:26.191 own business. 00:05:26.191 --> 00:05:28.398 Adult education providers are committed to helping those 00:05:28.398 --> 00:05:33.534 individuals to be successful in those workforce development 00:05:33.534 --> 00:05:38.343 programs so that they can one day go to college. Get an 00:05:38.343 --> 00:05:42.769 associated degree, a master's degree if they so desire, and 00:05:42.769 --> 00:05:46.079 improve the quality of their life for themselves and their children. 00:05:46.079 --> 00:05:49.899 Many times adults have had to drop out of school 00:05:49.899 --> 00:05:52.159 because they've had to contribute to the household 00:05:52.159 --> 00:05:55.183 financially they needed to work, or they didn't have 00:05:55.183 --> 00:05:57.603 support systems in place where they were dealing with 00:05:57.603 --> 00:06:01.419 a lot of social issues. It's very rare that it's an 00:06:01.419 --> 00:06:04.748 individual who decided, "oh ... school wasn't for me and 00:06:04.748 --> 00:06:07.050 I decided to goof off." I've had some 00:06:07.050 --> 00:06:09.740 amazing teacher moments. Last semester, 00:06:09.740 --> 00:06:13.312 I had a student who when I asked her about 00:06:13.312 --> 00:06:15.467 her goal she said she wanted to improve 00:06:15.467 --> 00:06:18.591 her reading and she said she's at home 00:06:18.591 --> 00:06:21.519 now she's reading for herself. She's also 00:06:21.519 --> 00:06:24.310 reading with her children, and she said 00:06:24.310 --> 00:06:28.640 she now turns off the TV and instead of watching TV 00:06:28.640 --> 00:06:32.497 she reads her book. Well, that's a moment 00:06:32.497 --> 00:06:35.852 that every teacher cherishes. 00:06:35.852 --> 00:06:39.749 And, from a more practical standpoint, I had a student 00:06:39.749 --> 00:06:43.473 a semester ago who had just come back from a job 00:06:43.473 --> 00:06:47.534 interview, and she said they asked me all of the 00:06:47.534 --> 00:06:51.300 questions that you asked us in class. So, everything that 00:06:51.300 --> 00:06:52.937 we had practiced in class, 00:06:52.937 --> 00:06:55.190 those are the kind of questions they asked me on the 00:06:55.190 --> 00:06:57.590 interview ... and I got the job! 00:06:57.590 --> 00:07:00.950 After three months I believe I was understanding 00:07:00.950 --> 00:07:02.611 what people were 00:07:02.611 --> 00:07:05.521 saying on the bus and it was so exciting 00:07:05.521 --> 00:07:08.571 to be able to communicate in this country. 00:07:08.571 --> 00:07:11.401 I love working with this community, because they are 00:07:11.401 --> 00:07:15.601 really exhibiting the American dream at work. They're 00:07:15.601 --> 00:07:19.100 achieving the American dream. They're here to see 00:07:19.100 --> 00:07:21.217 what their potential is and 00:07:21.217 --> 00:07:24.231 to achieve it, and I see that every day here at our school. 00:07:24.231 --> 00:07:27.600 I want to improve myself to take some computer 00:07:27.600 --> 00:07:33.191 classes so that will help me in the future so I can have a better job. 00:07:33.191 --> 00:07:38.431 You have to have a heart for people. It's a calling. Not 00:07:38.431 --> 00:07:40.925 everyone can be an adult educator. 00:07:40.925 --> 00:07:44.837 It has just been an absolute dream job for me, and I can't 00:07:44.837 --> 00:07:47.632 believe I'm working at one of the best adult education 00:07:47.632 --> 00:07:52.722 schools anywhere in the world, and I have a job that I love 00:07:52.722 --> 00:07:57.762 getting up in the morning to go to. And, no matter how I 00:07:57.762 --> 00:08:00.871 feel when I walk into that classroom, when I see those students, 00:08:00.871 --> 00:08:04.470 everything else just fades away. 00:08:04.470 --> 00:08:08.021 Maybe in the future after I work a little bit and get more experience 00:08:08.021 --> 00:08:12.382 maybe I open a little business to repair computers. 00:08:12.382 --> 00:08:14.357 Just get out there and do what you have to do. 00:08:14.357 --> 00:08:17.741 Find schools like this that actually are willing to help you 00:08:17.741 --> 00:08:20.684 further your education. Make sure you have what you need to 00:08:20.684 --> 00:08:25.601 complete the GED, and go on further with your life. 00:08:25.601 --> 00:08:27.538 They're here to help you. 00:08:27.538 --> 00:08:31.643 Adult learners really are committed to their education. 00:08:31.643 --> 00:08:34.203 Sometimes life doesn't permit it to happen in the 00:08:34.203 --> 00:08:37.802 in the way that they wanted to. I didn't choose the life that was dealt to me. 00:08:37.802 --> 00:08:42.603 Things happen, but what I did was make bad choices. 00:08:42.603 --> 00:08:44.982 But, I make different choices today. 00:08:44.982 --> 00:08:46.591 Working with adults is just a very 00:08:46.591 --> 00:08:48.793 special experience, because they get it. 00:08:48.793 --> 00:08:50.173 They've already gone through the 00:08:50.173 --> 00:08:51.750 experience. They know the value of an 00:08:51.750 --> 00:08:53.390 education. They've gone through 00:08:53.390 --> 00:08:56.353 some tough experiences, and 00:08:56.353 --> 00:08:59.293 they're able to share that not only 00:08:59.293 --> 00:09:00.937 with the young people who come to our 00:09:00.937 --> 00:09:03.952 program, but the teaching and 00:09:03.952 --> 00:09:05.702 learning with adults ... were we're all 00:09:05.702 --> 00:09:09.232 learning in that classroom. I'll be 58 in 00:09:09.232 --> 00:09:15.672 July and at this point and time I've never 00:09:15.672 --> 00:09:19.213 felt more encouraged and never feel more 00:09:19.213 --> 00:09:23.763 geeked about learning. Learning is a thrill. 00:09:23.763 --> 00:09:27.643 Learning is just one of the most 00:09:27.643 --> 00:09:29.373 pleasurable things in my life right now. 00:09:29.373 --> 00:09:33.344 Getting good grades. Getting you know 00:09:33.344 --> 00:09:37.514 talking to professors. Not to say I'm 00:09:37.514 --> 00:09:46.403 doing it, but because I am doing it. 00:09:46.403 --> 00:10:10.258 [music]