Harmonie Ortiz, and Kevin Prum contributed to this article.
At Malden High School, new ESL teacher Alicia Roth helps all students feel seen and supported while they learn a new language, aspiring to have her students feel as comfortable as possible in her class while also encouraging them to develop their English speaking skills.
Roth, a graduate from UMass Boston with a degree in Linguistics, had worked at Cambridge Rindge and Latin before coming to Malden High. She is experiencing a welcoming community willing to help her. Roth stated that she has more opportunities to learn a variety of languages due to Malden High’s diversity.
Patrick Healey, a health teacher adjacent to Roth’s classroom, observed that she “seems like a teacher who really brings her whole personality into her teaching.” Roth intends to be open with her students because it is not only a new environment for her, but also for them.
Roth’s class has made a significant impact on Marvens Fanfan and Ezequiel Souza, two of her students in Period 5. “She is a very good teacher for me. I feel good in her class,” Fanfan shared. In her efforts to create a comfortable environment, she has taken the time to learn Haitian Creole, Fanfan’s native language. One of her other students, Souza, expressed, “ I feel like she really pushes me to speak more English.”
Roth wants to make a big impact on her students, wanting “to give them the option to go to college or push doors open for immigrants who have taken the time to learn English.” She continues to build on this goal by creating suitable work for all different languages and providing personal time to every student in hopes of giving them better chances to succeed.
As we continue to learn about the new ESL teacher, we see instances where, even before coming to Malden High, she stuck up for immigrants or people whose first language is not English. This is shown in an article by the Cambridge Day: “Cheering for the end of MCAS as a grad requirement is more muted among the student body than the faculty.”
When MCAS had been a graduation requirement, Roth observed that, “Some of my students are being prevented from graduating because it’s impossible to learn enough English in only a year or two…We can do MCAS prep, like how to turn around a prompt and make it an answer, but obviously their vocabulary is so limited…Students who arrive in the U.S. in the 12th grade can graduate without passing the test, but they get a special diploma. It’s not as good as a diploma that says you passed the MCAS – it’s not the caliber of diploma that colleges are looking for.”
As the school year progresses, Roth will become a model teacher. Her gentle, energetic personality will shape Malden High School into a safer and better place for students and teachers alike.
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