Poland and Polish Culture: Touro University TESOL Gabrielle Mescia’s Cultural Investigation Report for EDPN 671

EDPN 671: Theory and Practice of Bilingual and Multicultural Education: This course reviews the impact of historical, legal, sociological, and political issues in relationship to the education of culturally and linguistically diverse students. Students explore the evolution of attitudes regarding bilingualism and multiculturalism in the United States. Emphasis will be placed on developing multicultural competence as educators, with areas of focus including: cross-cultural communication in the classroom and with parents; how the language and culture of the home and the community impact student learning; cultural factors in the relationships between the school and the community. Models of multicultural and bilingual education will be presented and analyzed. Includes 10 hours of field work.

Gabrielle Mescia is a Pre-K teacher in the West Islip School District in Long Island, NY. Gabrielle graduated from St. Joseph’s College in May 2020 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Child Study, and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in TESOL at Touro College. In her free time she enjoys cooking, reading, exercising, and spending time with her loved ones.

Gabrielle Mescia, Touro University, TESOL Candidate

I learned quite a bit from this investigation of Polish culture, and I am glad that I chose this project to inform my knowledge and meet the changing needs of my school population. I will be able to use what I learned going forward to provide Polish families with resources and bring students’ culture into the classroom with bilingual and multicultural books and materials. Additionally, I now know many of the differences between Polish and English, and the areas where these students may struggle with learning the language. Here some examples: The polish alphabet (alfabet polski) consists of 32 letters (23 consonants and 9 vowels). Unlike other slavic languages, the polish language (język polski) uses Latin Script with additional diacritics for the special polish phonemes (such as ą and ł). A good rule to remember is that with the most Polish words, the stress lies on the second last syllable. There is no English equivalent of any of the Polish vowels.

Gabrielle Mescia, Touro University, TESOL Candidate
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Author: drcowinj

Education is our passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs only to the people who prepare for it today,” determined Malcolm X at the O.A.A.U.’s [Organization of Afro-American Unity] founding forum at the Audubon Ballroom. (June 28, 1964). (X, n.d.) Dr. Jasmin Bey Cowin a Fulbright Scholar, SIT Graduate, completed the Education Policy Fellowship Program (EPFP™) at Columbia University, Teachers College. Dr. Cowin served as the President of the Rotary Club of New York and Assistant Governor for New York State; long-term Chair of the Rotary United Nations International Breakfast meetings; and works as an Assistant Professor at Touro College, Graduate School of Education. Dr. Cowin has over twenty-five years of experience as an educator, tech innovator, entrepreneur, and institutional leader with a focus on equity and access to digital literacy and education in the Sub-Saharan Africa region. Her extensive background in education, administration, not-for-profit leadership, entrepreneurial spirit, and technology innovation provide her with unique skills and vertical networks locally and globally. Dr. Cowin participates fully in the larger world of TESOL academic discipline as elected Vice President and Chair-Elect for the New York State, NYS TESOL organization, for the 2021 conference. Ongoing research, expressed in scholarly contributions to the advancement of knowledge is demonstrated through publications, presentations, and participation in academic conferences, blogging, and other scholarly activities, including public performances and exhibitions at conferences and workshops. Of particular interest to her are The Blockchain of Things and its implications for Higher Education; Current Global Trends in TESOL; Developing Materials and Resources in Teaching English; E-learning; Micro and Macro-Methodologies in TESOL; E-Resources Discovery and Analysis; and Language Acquisition and the Oculus Rift in VR.

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