Learning communities finding common ground for the common good

Museum educators and instructors of English as a Second Language (ESOL) at a community college in New York reflect on their experiences facilitating a program designed to enrich the language, cultural, and visual literacy skills of adult immigrant students. The CALTA21 program brought together three stakeholders, immigrant ESOL students, language instructors, and museum educators in collaboration to build linguistic, social, and cultural capital. A professional development institute, utilizing Visual Thinking Strategies as a core pedagogy, provided a common practice used by the stakeholders in the classroom and the museum. This democratic method subverted the traditional student-teacher relationship by using inquiry and personal narratives to inspire an exchange of ideas. The case study will consider the elements of the program that supported the development of a dynamic community of learners, and the empowering experience of teaching and learning within a model of shared authority.