Thousands of immigrants are waiting three to six months for access to low-cost English classes in Montgomery County, despite at least 52 different locations providing English for Speakers of Other Languages programs, according to county ESOL providers.
County officials say they are walking a tightrope between trying to meet the growing need for instruction and ensuring thatresources are being put to their best use. Most of the immigrants seeking English classes are Hispanic, but ESOL program leaders say Chinese and Korean students also are increasing in number.
“We’d like to put enough resources in to eliminate the waiting lists entirely,” County Council Education Chairman Mike Knapp said. “We’re finding that as more people recognize there are programs, more people come forward to take advantage of those programs.
“I don’t think anybody knows where those curves cross just yet, and we’re trying to figure that out.”
Knapp said the county is asking the Montgomery Coalition for Adult English Literacy to assess supply versus demand for ESOL programs and to establish uniform standards for English classes.
In spring 2006, the coalition reported more than 1,000 adults were waiting for access to ESOL classes. A year later, CASA of Maryland, a nonprofit immigrant advocacy group, says there are an average of 200 people on its waiting lists for ESOL programs, and Montgomery College says there were 2,000 people on the waiting lists for its most basic programs during the 2006-07 school year and 350 who are on the summer program’s waiting lists.
“We may not know the exact numbers for a few years,” the coalition’s executive director Laurie Lester said. “A lot of providers have been hesitant to advertise their services too widely because they thought they’d be inundated with demand and they wouldn’t be able to meet it.”
ESOL program leaders say there aren’t enough qualified teachers available to meet the growing demand for English classes in the county.
Also, according to Montgomery College Adult ESOL and literacy program manager Emma Wilson, adult ESOL programs suffer because they need part-time instructors and most qualified instructors are looking for full-time work.
“You go through all this schooling and of course you want a full-time job,” Wilson said. “The only full-time ESOL jobs here are in the Montgomery County public schools.”
