The Program is designed for non-native English speakers who want to improve their language and culture skills. Students enroll in either Intensive English for Academic Purposes [credit] or Intensive English for Communication and Work [continuing education]. The program has been accredited by the TESOL Commission on Accreditation and the American Association of Intensive English Programs.

Credit ESL focuses on academically bound students and emphasizes preparation for college study. Students can earn institutional credit qualifying them for full-time student status, financial aid, and insurance needs. Continuing Education ESL is designed for professionals, participants preparing to enter careers requiring English proficiency, and those seeking general broad-based English skill development. It emphasizes English for everyday living and informal business transactions. Students are awarded institutional semester credit hours (SCH) or Continuing Education Units (CEU) for each level.

There are six levels of instruction in the Intensive English Program with each level lasting eight weeks. Students study from four to six hours daily in instructor-guided classes. The Listening/ Speaking classes meet in the mornings from 8:30 am to 10:20 am and the Grammar/Writing classes from 10:30 am to 12:20 pm, Monday through Friday. The Reading/Vocabulary Development classes are offered from 12:30 pm to 2:00 pm, Monday through Thursday. Furthermore, depending on your needs and interests, you can also register for Pronunciation, TOEFL, and ESL Public Speaking classes. In addition, you can choose from a wide variety of materials from our Multi-Media Resource Center for additional language study using computers, videos, and audio cassettes. There are two 8-week sessions in the Fall and Spring semesters with an additional session in the Summer.

For more information, check out the Language Center Home Page at esl.nhmccd.edu.

Language Skills

The Intensive ESL Program provides an introduction to the language and culture of the English-speaking world. By the time the students complete the program, they have acquired a command of the key vocabulary and structures necessary for personal and business communication as well as an insight into American customs and values. The program features the best of what has come to be known as "communicative language teaching," including recent developments in creating interactive, learner-centered classrooms. It provides students with natural, meaningful contexts in which to practice the communicative functions of the language.

Cross-Cultural Training

A determining factor in student success is the ability to adapt to a different, environment. To help participants overcome this barrier, cross-cultural training is also provided throughout the program as a part of language instruction. This cultural training is not only related to learning about American cultural beliefs and work practices, but is an experience in learning how to get along better with people in one's own life. Students develop the capacity to meet and respond to behavior of ethnically different persons in a manner which is mutually beneficial.

Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL)

Join the technologically modern world of computer instruction. North Harris College offers a wide variety of English language materials through the use of specialized computer programs designed to reinforce the meaningful use of grammar, vocabulary, and word order and to facilitate practice of all language skills - listening, speaking, reading, and writing - by allowing students to record and work with living sound on a computer.

Multi-Media Resource Center

The English as a Second Language Program encourages students to choose from a wide variety of materials from our Multi-Media Resource Center. By using the computer laboratory, video tapes, and audio cassettes, students can obtain additional language study and practice.

Academic Services

Several student development programs are provided by North Harris College. These services are designed to complement the instructional programs and to provide individual attention to the needs of students.

Counseling and Advising Services

Counseling and Advising Offices provide individual attention to all students enrolled in the college. Counselors and advisors are available for day and evening appointments. Students are encouraged to contact a counselor or advisor when any of the following services are needed:

Educational-Academic
Counseling Career Exploration
Human Enrichment Seminars
New Student Information
Faculty Advisement

Testing - A wide variety of tests (such as vocational interest inventories, aptitude tests, study habits inventories and intelligence measures) are available. NHMCCD is an official test center for American College Testing Program - ACT, a college entrance exam. It is also an official test center for Texas Academic Skills Program - TASP, a test to determine whether a student has the academic skills to succeed in college-level course.

Library

The Learning Resource Center provides print and nonprint resources and services to meet the curricular, vocational, and recreational needs of our students. Students are afforded computer access to a variety of information in electronic form including bibliographic indexes to journals, Internet resources, and multimedia publications. In addition, a Learning Support Center provides print and audio-visual materials as well as tutorial assistance and computer labs for students who need academic support services.