Sarah- TP10

Our first "half" of the tutoring session went so long, that when we came back from the break, we only had 30 minutes left. I figured we could practice with the roadsign props from last time, and answer a few questions in her driver's ed book. I don't like doing the driver's ed book, even though I know it is her favorite, because I know that she doesn't really take anything away from it. As much as I break down a sentence, and finally reach a comprehension level, she only understands (hopefully) because I explained it to her, and still does not understand the sentence. They are WAY too hard for her! I know that one of her main goals is learning to drive though, and I'm afraid she cares much more about this than learning English. However, the two are inevitably linked as passing the written drivers test requires a nearly fluent mastery of the language. I don't think she understands this, as she gets bored by basic English, that she has a chance of understanding, and really just wants to tacle the study questions in the book. I have to balance this out, because the library really encourages working with the students on their work related goals, and I even have to fill out a box asking "how much time did you spend on work related skills" each time I sign out.

Sure enough, we spent the rest of the time on this. After only three questions, 25 minutes had gone by, and she asked "done?" so I figured what the heck, and let her go 5 minutes early.

One of the questions said "If your license is lost or stolen, where can you go to get a replacement?" The answer was the State Tax Collector Office. (there was another official word in there that I don't even remember. I was able to show her the difference between fill in the blank and multiple choice, and told her that the test will be multiple choice, so she wont have to come up with these answers, but only remember and recognize them. This was supposed to comfort her about this long answer, but again, she didn't seem to care either way, and I probably ended up consoling myself more than anything.

The last question we did looked something like this:
What would happen to the driver's license of a person who is involved in an accident and leaves the scene without offering help to another injured driver?

The answer is that the lisence would be revoked. For a student who has trouble with "Johnny walks to the pet store", this sentence is a nightmare. I find myself thankful that I'm not going through the entire language learning / driver's license aquisition process with her because the feat just seems so daunting. And for that I feel enormously guilty. I feel like with beginner language learners, it is important for both the student and the teacher to work on manageable goals so that they can stay encouraged, and see progress. This is why the worksheets are so good, and I wish she weren't so determined to tackle the whole darn legal driving system right now. She doesn't seemed to be phased by the difficulty however. She just nods her head (a sure sign that she understands absolutely nothing) and writes down the answer when I find it.

Foundations is the hardest thing ever. Props to the Vicki's.