Student Edjane Kane and Tutor Bob Mondor
Edjane Kane and her husband came from Brazil to New York City in search of the American dream. Fourteen years later, Edjane has sunk deep roots in our own community: She is now retired and lives in an apartment complex in Glen Burnie. Now that she has more free time, Edjane wants to improve her English skills so that she can more easily converse with her grandson, doctors, and friends.
Not long after Bob Mondor, a retired engineer, completed the Literacy Council’s tutor training, he was assigned to work with Edjane. In just four months, Edjane–a fluent Portuguese and Spanish speaker–has completed Lesson 9 in the Laubach ESL English Book 3, and Lesson 10 in the Laubach Reading Book 3. Bob reports that she already has a fairly extensive vocabulary and excellent reading comprehension, but like all non-native English speakers, struggles with pronunciation at times.
Bob says that his experience as a tutor constantly reminds him of how difficult it is for most people to learn English, particularly when the same word can have two or three different meanings depending on whether it is being used as a noun, a verb or adjective. But Edjane is doing so well in English that her relatives in Brazil constantly ask her to text them in English so that they can improve their own English skills.
Edjane’s confidence is growing more and more with each passing day as she practices reading, engaging in dialogues, and simply chatting with Bob and other friends and family members. “Edjane is extremely dedicated, determined, and learns quickly,” notes her tutor, adding “Although our tutoring sessions are typically three hours long, the time really flies since the experience is so enjoyable!”
