By gloria stravelli
Staff Writer
PHOTOS BY FARRAH MAFFAI Lawrence Pergola uses axioms to help Hispanic students like Ada Flores (r) learn English.
His students need to master English to do everyday things like filling out job applications or talking to a child’s teacher. And so, Lawrence Pergola mixes music, axioms and songs in with conjugating verbs to help them learn the language of their adopted country.
"I try to incorporate a little bit of everything," said Pergola, who teaches English to Hispanic immigrants at the Red Bank Public Library. "I give a little time for grammar, a little time for idioms, a little time for proverbs, for reading, writing, speaking and understanding. And I make sure that all the students know what the lesson means in Spanish."
"It can be very frustrating," he acknowledged, "because not only is the language very different, the grammar is different and the mode of thinking is different in Spanish and in English.
"I admire them because they really struggle," said the retired teacher, who volunteered to teach weekly English as a Second Language classes at the library.
Pergola, who also teaches classes at the United Methodist Church in Belmar, retired in 1995 after 18 years as a French and Spanish teacher at the Maxson School in Plainfield. Before joining the Plainfield school system in 1977, he taught at the Ranney School in Tinton Falls.
"I love the language, and it gives me satisfaction to help the students," said the Ocean Grove resident. "I hope it encourages others to volunteer to teach English to new immigrants."
A year abroad while he was a student at Monmouth College in West Long Branch gave him insight into coping with language barriers. As a result, Pergola said he can relate to the challenge faced by his students, most of whom have migrated from Central and South America.
"When I was a young man, I spent one year living on my own in Paris. I was there during the Vietnam War when it wasn’t a great thing to be an American," he recounted. "So I know what it is to be in a foreign country and have to struggle with a language."
"Even though I had a good background in French, I had to learn Parisian slang," he continued. "I had to learn to speak and understand very quickly. So I know what it is to be in a new country struggling with a new language, and I have a great deal of empathy for them."
The number of students in Pergola’s class varies each week, and there are generally between 12 to 23 adults and young adults.
"Most are from Mexico, but I’ve had students from Spain, Guatemala, Panama, Colombia and El Salvador," he explained. "I also have students who are not Hispanic but who understand the Spanish language. I have Brazilians who speak Portuguese and that’s very similar to Spanish, but it’s a distinct language," he added.
Sponsored by the library, the free classes run from May through October, and Pergola has to gear lessons to the different levels of proficiency of students.
"Some are very advanced, and some are beginners. Some are better at speaking or reading or writing," he explained. "So I deal with different levels, and everyone seems to feel comfortable because everything is explained in Spanish, and I give handouts they can fall back on."
He is acutely aware that students generally arrive at the end of the workday.
"I try to make the class informal," he said. "They work and don’t have much time."
To make the class interesting, Pergola uses different tools, including tapes of Spanish rock ‘n’ roll translated into English, videos of Niagara Falls (students learned the word daredevil), even a sentimental song by an Irish tenor.
"I really think music is a great way to learn a language," he said. "I have hundreds of records and tapes of Spanish music. I think it’s enjoyable and not too stressful to learn with songs that are intelligible and meaningful."
The lessons aim to build students’ confidence as well as their facility with the language.
"My aim is to inspire and encourage them to listen when English is spoken and not to be afraid to make a mistake," he said. "I try to help them understand that it will take time and not to become discouraged. I know it’s like going up a mountain, but each step is a little higher. They have to have confidence in themselves, and they can’t give up."
Attendance varies each week, but the class is growing, Pergola noted.
"Every week there’s someone new. The word is getting around that they can learn English here and feel confident," he said. "I explain I’m not there to grade them but to encourage them, to answer questions, to make them feel comfortable. I know many are making progress. It’s a great reward to share with others."
"For me, English is easy. I learned it in Spain," said Sonia Santos of Fair Haven. "But I think most people who come to America for the first time don’t know anything, and it’s so difficult," said Santos, who teaches Spanish at The Language School in Red Bank.
Others, like Sofia Carillo of Red Bank, are learning English for the first time. With Santos’ help, Carillo said she is making progress.
"Before she didn’t know anything. Now she’s making some progress," Santos interpreted for Carillo. "She says it’s a long road."
Why learn English? "Work, applications, doctor, children," recited Maria Contreras of Red Bank, indicating language skills are necessary to conduct the everyday business of communication at work or with her children’s teachers.
Pergola explains exercises in both Spanish and English.
"I really believe in bilingual work," he explained. "It’s more helpful because they’re learning to improve their skills in their own language as well, and those are skills which they may not have. Some people don’t write well in their own language."
Contractions pose a special challenge for his Hispanic students, Pergola noted.
"We love to use contractions in English, like didn’t," he explained, "and I think they’re difficult for foreigners."
He clarifies idioms.
"You can say certain things in Spanish, but you can’t translate them exactly that way in English," he explained. "In Spanish you say, ‘I have hunger,’ but in English you say, ‘I am hungry.’
But the greatest challenge to students learning English as their second language is the disconnect between English spelling and pronunciation, he contended.
"The hardest thing about learning English is that it’s not phonetic, and Spanish is so phonetic," he explained. "In Spanish, you write it the way you say it, whereas in English you have words that are pronounced differently than they’re written, like the word colonel. We don’t pronounce it that way. How do you get kernel from colonel?
"English is illogical," he continued. "How do you explain that to them? With many words in English you just have to memorize the spelling. I think that’s the hardest part."
The weekly lessons offer more than the opportunity to learn a new language, he acknowledged.
"They’re trying to immerse themselves in a new culture," he observed. "Slowly, they’re becoming Americans. The first step is to learn the language."
John Santos, a native of Brazil, explained the importance of learning the language of his adopted country.
"I need it for my life," said the Belford resident. "No English, no communication. No English, no work."
Haltingly, he also found the words to explain why learning English is vital to understanding the emotional context of conversations and to participating fully in life.
"Sometimes I don’t understand the words so I don’t understand the emotion, and that’s very important," explained Santos. "No emotion, no understanding of anger or sadness or happiness. No emotion, no life."