Building, construction, LEPs multimedia, vocabulary, VESL (vocational ESL) many occupations, among them the building and construction trades, offer economic opportunities for trained and qualified people. However, English proficiency as well as knowledge of the essential terms and concepts are prerequisites for most apprenticeship and job training programs. Neuwirth associates proposes to develop an interactive multimedia package that would help prepare beginning and intermediate vocational ESL students to learn the basic concepts and vocabulary needed to enter job training. Working with associated builders and contractors and the center for workforce education, we propose to develop vocabulary training in fifteen building and construction crafts, including welding, painting, and pipefitting. The program will integrate CD-ROM images, audio, and text to create a rich learning environment. Learners will learn to understand, pronounce, spell and use the core vocabulary of each craft in meaningful ways. Two components will be created upon completion of phase II. The first is a customizable software shell to run the program. This shell will enable teachers to add new vocabulary items, provide local dialect variations, provide translations, and create new vocabulary lessons for virtually any occupation. The second is the application program specifically designed to teach the core concepts and vocabulary of building and construction trades.Results:Phase I will include the design of the instructional shell and the development of the specific content for the building and construction crafts. Phase ii will result in the production of the complete multimedia package. Upon completion, we anticipate forming an agreement with a noted commercial publisher to produce and market the multimedia package. When completed, the program would serve a potential pool of approximately 70,000 LEP construction workers and trainees nationwide.
