Quite a few participants wanted to borrow the newspapers so they could read them later. This filled us with a sense of fulfillment.
While documenting this experience, we thought of a follow up activity which did not occur to us at the time of the class. The participants are in constant touch with people through the phone and the email. They could write a brief note on any news from their countries that they would like to share with others and put it on the notice board. This will certainly highlight their concerns, create a discussion forum, and help perspectives emerge.
Variations of this activity such as preparing a regional page or national page might work equally well in any classroom. Especially in the developing countries where there are many rural and first generation learners in the urban English classroom. These activities create opportunities for the class to understand each other as humans with values and concerns and not just ESL learners.