Regarding Beth Hawkins’ article, “Innovative program in Minneapolis helps Somali children ease the transition to school”:
As a Somali student, born and raised in America, I understand how hard the transition of going to school in America is when one migrates from Africa. I had many peers who were new to America in my high school. The teacher, who was not Somali, would take a lot of time from class to explain concepts we thought were simple to those students who were new to America. This would happen every day until the school hired a Somali teacher assistant.
The need for Somali teachers and assistants is great. They are very important to improving the academic performance of new Somali immigrant students. The experiences of non-Somali teachers expressed in the article are just a glimpse of what is going on.
I really hope that “NABAD” becomes a program we can implement nationwide.
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