Navigating Language and Life: Teaching English as a Second Language with Sara Finesilver

In this episode, we talk with Sara Finesilver, an English as a Second Language (ESL) faculty member at Madison College. Sara shares her passion for helping non-native English speakers succeed, both in and out of the classroom. She discusses her innovative patient health portal project, which helps ESL students build health literacy and digital fluency. Sara also introduces the "Teaching the Skills That Matter" (TSTM) program and how project-based learning transforms her classes. Additionally, we explore her perspective on the rise of AI tools in education.

Sara Finesilver is a collaborative and creative ESL Instructor, with over 20 years of experience. She began her teaching career within the Wisconsin Technical College System (WTCS) in 2004 and has been a full-time faculty member at Madison College since 2018. Sara holds a BA in English with a TESOL certificate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Master’s in Higher Education from Capella University.

Her expertise includes contextualized instruction, authentic assessment, curriculum development, and faculty training. She is particularly passionate about EL-Civics, including areas such as Health Literacy and Job Readiness & Employability, and enjoys finding ways to integrate Digital Literacy into diverse teaching contexts. Sara finds deep fulfillment in working with refugees and immigrant professionals, supporting their career and employment goals, and helping them connect with our community.

Outside the classroom, Sara enjoys writing poetry, kayaking, hiking, being silly playing board games, spending time with loved ones under twinkling lights, and most importantly: finding joy in small things.

Check out the AI song Sara created for me on Suno! Teaching the Skills that Matter