CALTA21 - ESL students learning through art education

In October of 2012, Queensborough Community College teamed up with several New York City museums (including the Rubin Museum of Art, the Katonah Museum of Art, El Museo del Barrio, and the Godwin-Ternbach Museum at Queens College). Their goal was to use visual art as a way to teach literacy to ESL students. The students brought their original life experiences and cultures into the mix, and learned about art and cultures of which they might not have otherwise known. The literacy program is called “Cultures & Literacies Through Arts for the 21st Century,” or CALTA21. In the program, adult ESL students describe the works of art they see during field trips to various participating museums, and have discussions about the works.  By doing this, they not only acquire new vocabularies and language skills, but they learn how to navigate a museum and use the resources that museums can provide. According to IMLS, “QCC received a National Leadership Grant of $495,000 from the IMLS to run the program from October 2011 through September 2014. The goal is to eventually implement CALTA21 in Adult Literacy Programs across the nation.”

The program’s development and implementation process includes the following:

1. A continual cycle of testing, revision and redesign of the two project cornerstones: our professional development institute and the curriculum.
2. The creation of a manual to serve as a resource guide for museums and community college literacy programs when launching a partnership.
3. The design and implementation of a dissemination plan that focuses on national implementation opportunities and includes [their] website where all materials will be available free of charge.
4. A culminating symposium will gather participants to share their experiences and evaluators to share their findings for future replication of the model.

The benefits of this type of program are numerous. Providing an art education while simultaneously teaching necessary life skills for immigrants is a seemingly daunting task- yet this class seems to incorporate these goals seamlessly. When students visit museums, they realize that these institutions are more accessible and welcoming than they might have thought. In class, we discussed accessibility for minorities in LAMs at length. When these people are brought into these museums, they have the ability to become familiar with how museums operate. The report claims that the students brought their friends and family to the museums, acting as guides and encouraging them to learn as well. This benefits the museums in countless ways, most notably a rise in attendance, specifically from minority groups. The students learn about resources the museum has and what questions to ask when they are there. The program additionally wishes to target museum professionals and volunteers, as well as faculty and staff of the community colleges involved. The museums can use this program as a form of educational outreach to a demographic that is not easily reached otherwise. The educators can use this unique program as a way to draw students into their programs. The program leaders, especially at the museum level, can use this platform as a way to interact with this demographic to learn more about the needs of their new users. There are several “measurable outcomes” that CALTA21 produced. These include improved literacy for the students; capacity building for museum and literacy educators; museum-community college partnerships, and new practices, materials, and resources.

CALTA21’s website (CALTA21.org) provides a detailed look into the program and its goals.  The program lists six “principles” that allow them to detail their mission statement.

1. Every person has the right to equal access to aesthetic encounters with art and to museums in a meaningful and independent way and institutions have a responsibility t engage all community members.
2. There is inherent value to all points of view and backgrounds.
3. Teaching and learning should be a dialogue based on shared authority.
4. Art and culture are powerful catalysts for developing literacy skills.
5. Situated and contextualized learning fosters transformative experiences.
6. Museums must embrace their new expanded goals- inclusion, access to knowledge, civic engagement, and democratic practice.

CALTA21’s grant spanned from 2011 to 2014 and in that time partnered with four museums (listed above) to achieve their goals. On their website they advertise ways to get involved and bring the programs to other schools and museums. This, as well as various articles posted on the site, leads me to believe the program was largely successful. Their goal is to eventually implement this program across the nation.  

With any large scale project, there are issues that must be overcome. One museum educator noted that students would often wander away from the discussions and try to explore the museum individually. While any museum would encourage exploration, this action led away from the main discussions and therefore the purpose of group education. This person suggested that students be allowed time before or after the lesson to explore individually so that more time could be devoted to learning. Another museum professional found that contextual information (both artistic and historical) was a difficulty in explaining the pieces. “The contribution to the conversation by someone who’s been studying the work and had developed a personal relationship to the pieces discussed is often a great way to transmit enthusiasm and curiosity, which isn’t possible when one has to remain a blank slate.” Strangely- or not? - looking through language instructor and student testimonials, there seemed to be no complaints about the program. I anticipate the majority of the issues that would come from this sort of project would be convincing the museums to set aside time for these field trips and to have staff trained to deal with ESL students who are unfamiliar with museums and museum protocol. Other than that, this program seems like an absolutely fantastic way to engage ESL students in the museum world. The way that the students are influenced by the art, and given confidence in their language skills is so important.