Home Tags Posts tagged with "ESL/ELL"
Tag:

ESL/ELL

Using iPads to Support Emerging Bilingual Students
AppleESL/ELLiOS Tips and Tricks

iPad Apps and Features That Support Emerging Bilingual Students

by Lindsay Cross
written by Lindsay Cross

iPad offers numerous built-in features and native apps that can benefit all students throughout the school day. The accessibility features discussed in this article support content processing and language development, with a focus on emerging bilingual students. But they are also beneficial for all learners. Native Apple apps, Keynote, Clips, and GarageBand, facilitate the development of speaking, reading, writing, and listening skills. They enable students to express their understanding of content in an accessible manner. Teachers often seek new tools and apps, sometimes overlooking features readily available on iPad. Let’s explore these features and how to effectively utilize them in your classroom to support all learners. 

iPad Accessibility Features 

Spoken Content

Spoken content enables students to listen to text being read aloud to them. For instance, this feature can read highlighted text on a webpage, a PDF, or even text highlighted within a photo. Students have the flexibility to adjust the reading speed, apply text highlighting or underlining, select the voice, and even incorporate custom pronunciations. An effective method for students to enhance their listening skills is to have them select the text they have written, hear it read aloud, and then identify areas that may require revisions or edits in their writing. You can enable this feature from the accessibility settings on your iPad.

Dictation

Dictation on iPad translates students’ spoken content into text. Students may encounter difficulties when it comes to expressing their ideas or initiating the writing process. Dictation provides students with a low-pressure way to begin the writing process. It can be especially beneficial for students who face challenges with spelling. At times, we want students to focus solely on writing, rather than spelling. We can remove barriers so students can focus on the writing task, continuing their growth as writers. Additionally, dictation serves as an excellent tool for students to hone their speaking skills, as it encourages clear enunciation to ensure accurate recognition by the device. You can enable the dictation feature from your iPad’s keyboard settings.

Predictive Text

Predictive text is a feature that helps students with typing and composing text. When this feature is enabled, a list of suggested words appears above the keyboard every time a student types on their device. It can help students with spelling specific words or provide a bank of words that could be used in the next part of their sentence. Enabling this feature for our emerging bilingual students provides scaffolding and can reduce stress when they are tasked with writing.

Live Text

Live text is a newer iPad feature that enables students to capture text in images and have it read aloud or translated. This feature is valuable as it empowers students to scan various types of text in the classroom, such as books, anchor charts, printed material, and more. After scanning the text, students can choose which parts they want to access. After enabling the live text feature, students have the option to listen to the text, translate it, or even listen to the translated version. Live text is only available on certain generations of iPad. 

iPad Apps to Support Speaking, Listening, Reading & Writing

Keynote
Student project for emerging bilingual students using the Keynote iPad app.
Screenshot by Lindsay Cross: Images in this screenshot of Keynote are from PebbleGo. 

Keynote is a native Apple app available on macOS and iOS devices. It is often categorized as a presentation tool, but Keynote’s built-in multimodal features make it a more versatile creation tool. Keynote empowers students to create using shapes, text, drawings, animations, photos, live video, charts, tables, and audio recordings. These features allow students to animate vocabulary for visual representation and conveniently add audio within the app, enhancing their flexibility in sharing their learning. The array of multimodal features offered by Keynote provides essential support for our emerging bilingual students in expressing their understanding of content. For a detailed Keynote lesson idea, you can explore this resource available on the Apple Education Forum. 

Explore a Keynote Lesson Idea
Clips 
Student project for emerging bilingual students using the Clips iPad app.
Screenshot by Linsday Cross: Student Project Using Clips

Clips is an app that enables students to create simple, engaging videos. Students use a combination of pictures, posters, emojis, stickers, live titles, and other features to make their videos engaging. One way Clips can support our emerging bilingual students is by allowing them to record audio directly into their video. This is a great method for students to practice their speaking skills. It is important for students to ensure they speak clearly, avoid mumbling, and speak loudly enough for the app to capture their audio. In Clips, students can activate Live Titles, which automatically adds captions to their video. Editing the captions provides an excellent opportunity for students to practice their reading and writing skills. Students can review their Live Titles, ensure they are written correctly, make necessary edits, and add punctuation.

Discover Ways to Use Clips
GarageBand
Student project for emerging bilingual students using the GarageBand iPad app.
Screenshot by Linsday Cross: Student Project in GarageBand

GarageBand is a native Apple app designed to create engaging audio content, including podcasts, songs, and public service announcements. With its voice effects feature, students can experiment with various voice effects and incorporate Live Loops to add sound effects and music. This process engages a range of essential skills, including reading, writing, listening, and speaking. To begin, students focus on crafting a script, fostering their reading and writing abilities. Once ready to record, they shift their focus to enhancing their speaking skills during the audio recording phase. After completing their recordings, students review their work, making necessary edits, and adding sound effects or music to enhance their audio. This stage of creation sharpens their listening skills.

Check Out a GarageBand Lesson Idea

In conclusion, the iPad has a wide variety of accessibility features and native tools that provide students with a wide variety of support without ever needing another tool, app, or subscription. The iPad is a powerful all-in-one device that empowers all learners, especially our emerging bilingual learners, to practice their reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills. Educators can use these native iPad features and tools to support emerging bilingual learners to interact with and create content in a way that fits their needs. If you have not explored the resources provided by Apple Education I highly encourage you to. Especially explore the wide variety of free resources in the Learning Center and Forum.

Want to learn more about iPad features that support learning? Don’t miss Lindsay Cross at TCEA’s 2024 Convention & Exposition in Austin, Texas! She’ll be leading a session on iPad Features That Support Literacy. Hurry and register before January 13 to get an advanced pricing discount. See you in Austin!

1 comment
1 FacebookTwitterPinterestLinkedinEmail
English Language ArtsESL/ELLWeb 2.0 Tool

Five Ways to Use QR Codes for Second Language Development

by Emily Horn
written by Emily Horn

Before we talk about QR codes, I’m going to tell you a secret. Many of you reading this are going to think that I’m absolutely crazy because of this secret. But there will be a few of you who will gasp lightly, smile, get a little excited, and think “Oh my gosh. Me, too!” Ok. Here goes.

I absolutely loved teaching prekindergarten. Loved it. As in it is my favorite grade I’ve ever taught.

It’s true. I am “that” person. The Pre-K-8 school where I taught prekindergarten had a major focus on language development, and I worked with many students learning English as a second (or third) language. This is the case for many students and teachers in classrooms around the country. If you teach prekindergarten or lower elementary and have English Language Learners (ELLs) in your classroom, let’s look at five ways QR codes can be used to support language development and promote vocabulary acquisition in your classroom. In the end, I’ll also share how to create different types of QR codes. But before we get started, let’s take a look at some research and information on language development in young children.

Why Is Language Development Important in Early Years?

Language development has been theorized for years by great psychologists and sociologists who have impacted education in major ways– like Skinner, Chomsky, Piaget, and Vygotsky. There is so much research out there! According to researcher Patricia K. Kuhl, Ph.D. in “Brain Mechanisms in Early Language Acquisition,”

There is evidence that early mastery of the phonetic units of language requires learning in a social context.

So the family, school, and social environment of learners is an important part of their language learning. This can be connected to Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development which is focused on language development through social interaction. Kuhl, along with many other researchers, also finds that:

In the domain of language, infants and young children are superior learners when compared to adults, in spite of adults’ cognitive superiority. Language is one of the classic examples of a “critical” or “sensitive” period in neurobiology. Scientists are generally in agreement that this learning curve is representative of data across a wide variety of second-language learning studies.

Brain Mechanisms in Early Language Acquisition

For example, here is a chart shared by Kuhl showing the age of second language acquisition related to grammatical proficiency in the second language. It’s interesting to see that proficiency is highest in those children learning the language before age seven. Teachers working with ELLs in preschool through second grade, you have an important job during a critical stage in language development. But if you’re a teacher working with older students, research also shows that our brains are still very skilled, more so than originally thought, at learning the grammar of a new language up to age 17 or 18.

Brain Mechanisms in Early Language Acquisition

Seeing how important second language learning is in the critical stage before age seven, let’s take a look at five ways to use QR codes to boost acquisition of language structures and vocabulary and foster positive social interaction to support language development.

1. Vocabulary Reinforcement

“I Have/Who Has” Example Card

Learning supply and school vocabulary. Label supplies, materials, and toys in your classroom with audio-only QR codes. This will allow students to scan and hear the words for vocabulary practice.

Checking for understanding. Students can pick QR codes from a mystery box or bag, listen to the word, and identify the correlating object(s) in pictures, flashcards, or the classroom. For example, if a student scans a QR code and hears the word “scissors,” they can show they understand by finding scissors in the classroom, choosing them out of a set of picture cards, or by pointing to scissors in a picture of a classroom.

Scan and say. You can also put audio QR codes on image cards for students to scan and say. Labeling flashcard images with QR codes for matching games is fun, too. Students flip the card, scan to hear, then say the word before choosing their second card. You can also place codes on “I Have/Who Has” cards if a student gets stuck.

2. Songs, Poems, and Nursery Rhymes

Old MacDonald Had a Farm (Audio Only Example)

Songs, poems, and nursery rhymes are fantastic for language learning. And they are a tried-and-true way to teach vocabulary and sentence structure. Not only that but students really love them! Give ELLs the opportunity to revisit songs, poems, and nursery rhymes to reinforce vocabulary on their own by creating a Song and Poetry book with QR codes. Prior to introducing a new song, create a video or audio recording of it. Be sure to speak (or sing) slowly and clearly. Once students have been introduced to the song and any related vocabulary, you can paste the audio or video QR code along with lyrics and related pictures of vocabulary into the Song and Poetry book. This book can stay in the library or music center, for example. Repeated listening is good vocabulary reinforcement and it builds confidence in students who may be hesitant to participate at first.

3. Language-Based Scavenger Hunts

Clue 1 for Scavenger Hunt to Find the Missing Bear

There are several ways you can create fun, language-based scavenger hunts for your ELLs. Place audio-only QR codes on numbered cards around your classroom or school to give oral instructions on where to go next for treasure hunts. Or have students pick a QR code from a bag to collect objects or have “I Spy” adventures.

Here are just a couple of adaptable scavenger hunt ideas:

  • The class mascot is missing!
  • Find the hidden treasure.
  • Spy objects on a nature walk.
  • Gather a collection of items.
  • Look for shapes, numbers, and colors!

4. Connect School and Home with Language Journals

Create a Language Journal with ELLs. Include lyrics to songs, poems, and nursery rhymes, and add images and words for vocabulary. Add QR codes for these so students can practice outside of school. They can take their journal home each weekend to add photos or drawings to bring back to school on Monday. In my classroom, students were very motivated to speak about their lives. They enjoyed showing me their pictures and drawings and describing them. Not only was it a great time to connect with students on a personal level, it was also a great way to get them comfortable speaking.

5. Read Alouds

Storyline Online: Clark the Shark read by Chris Pine

Record your own read alouds or find them on YouTube. Laminate QR code cards containing the QR code and a picture of the book cover, and students will love to revisit texts you’ve read in class. This is great for listening comprehension and reinforcing vocabulary, much like the Song and Poetry book. I kept these in a basket in the library center. Students could watch a video read aloud or listen to an audio-only read aloud while looking at the book.

Read Aloud Resources:

How to Create QR Codes

Video QR Codes

This video shows you how to create a QR code using a video in your Google Drive. Be sure that your share settings are set to “Anyone with the link can view.”

For YouTube videos, you can use the same instructions, but with a YouTube video link.

Audio QR Codes

You can follow the instructions above for audio files in your Google Drive. But you can also easily use Vocaroo. Vocaroo is a fantastically easy tool to use for creating free, audio-only QR codes. Click the red record button, click Save and Share, and then download your audio QR code. This has been one of the most valuable tools I’ve found.

In Conclusion

I hope you’ve found something you can use in your classroom to make second language learning fun and to support vocabulary acquisition. If not, I hope one of these ideas sparked an idea in you. Please feel free to share what’s worked in your classroom in the comments section.

4 comments
3 FacebookTwitterPinterestLinkedinEmail
elementary
Educational Trends

What We Learned at the Elementary Technology Conference

by Andrew Roush
written by Andrew Roush

Elementary education comes with unique challenges. Because young learners are in such a formative time in their lives and their lifelong learning journeys, elementary teachers take pride in keeping up with the latest tools and best teaching practices to make those tools work for students. That’s what our unique Elementary Technology Conference, June 13–15, was all about.

This was TCEA’s second year hosting this event online. Despite missing the sunny beach in Galveston, it was a vibrant, fun, and useful event. And, as we’ve all learned in recent months, sometimes meeting digitally has its perks. On-demand and recorded sessions mean registered attendees can enjoy sessions all the way through July 12, and live chat, kickoff sessions, and discussion boards allowed attendees to socialize, share ideas, and even win prizes during ETC.

One thing that was clear during the event is that elementary teachers are ready to keep pushing, keep learning, and keep improving. In sessions led by both experts — including TCEA’s terrific PD team — and in-the-classroom educators, there was lots of positive energy, lots of sharing, and of course, lots of good ideas to put into practice in the 2021–22 school year.

Below are some themes that caught our eye at this year’s Elementary Technology Conference. 

Learning Is Personal

We know that everyone learns differently. We also know that it’s difficult to learn when you don’t feel comfortable and supported. That’s why one trend that’s unlikely to go away is social-emotional learning. CASEL defines social-emotional learning (SEL) as “SEL is the process through which all young people and adults acquire and apply the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to develop healthy identities, manage emotions and achieve personal and collective goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain supportive relationships, and make responsible and caring decisions” (source).

This was highlighted in sessions like Integrating Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) in the Classroom with TCEA’s own Diana Benner.

SEL Resources from TCEA

Tech and Reading Go Hand-in-Hand

One content area where ed tech can help expand the ways elementary students learn is in English and Language Arts. Obviously, elementary grades are a vital time for language learning, so it’s only natural that this would be a highlight. And notably, a number of digital tools now exist to help students read, hear, see, and speak words as they develop literacy skills. This is also useful for the large number of students who are English language learners (ELLs), who are learning English in addition to their native language.

This theme came through in sessions like Slide into Digital Libraries with Natalie Pearson and Valeri Shaw of Fort Sam Houston ISD, Supporting All Language Learners with Book Creator with Jon Smith of Book Creator, and many more.

ELAR Resources from TCEA

Going Further

If you’re looking to build up your skills, find new ways to engage young learners, or even boost your hireability, and, of course, earn some PD credit hours, consider TCEA’s self-paced professional learning courses, starting at just $29.

These expert-developed courses are easy to engage with on your own time, and give you proven ways to accelerate learning. Elementary educators may be interested in these courses:

1 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestLinkedinEmail
ell
ESL/ELL

ELL and Bilingual Resources for Remote Learning

by Andrew Roush
written by Andrew Roush

In the U.S. today, bilingual education and education for English language learners (ELLs) is in high demand. And while students with limited English proficiency (LEP) might face difficulties at school, institutions have also struggled to support and fund bilingual and ELL programs among a number of competing demands. 

The changes to education occurring because of the COVID-19 pandemic pose new challenges for all kinds of learners, and especially those with limited English proficiency. Organizations are responding to the need, however, and we’ve put together a curated collection of useful resources that can help educators deliver quality English language instruction while in a period of remote teaching and learning.

Resources for ELL Remote Education

  • The nonprofit New Jersey Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages/New Jersey Bilingual Educators shares an extensive list of teaching resources, from best practices to tools and templates.
  • Colorín Colorado, an  English language learning site from WETA Learning Media, has a comprehensive guide for remote ELL education, complete with sample schedules, activities, and more. 
  • For educators looking for Spanish-langauge resources, Colorín Colorado also offers a clearinghouse of bilingual education resources in Spanish.
  • Edutopia outlines ways to use video and learning apps to help engage ELLs.
  • Those searching for interactive learning websites should investigate the University of Wisconsin Libraries’ ESL/ELL Education: Interactive Websites for Learning research guide.
  • The United Federation of Teachers (UFT) has developed its own collection of resources for supporting effective instruction for ELLs, including sites, publications and guides, information from other professional organizations, and more. 
  • You can find webinars and tools in the list of resources available from TESOL, an international association of English language teaching professionals.
  • Common Sense Education shares not only existing resources for ELL education, but also helpful information to help educators independently find or develop resources. 
  • Region 18 Educational Consultant Maria Mata shares health guidelines, lessons, free resources, and more in her Bilingual/ESL/Title III remote teaching resources newsletter. 
  • The English Learner Support Division of the Texas Education Association (TEA) also shares a number of updates and helpful links, including the English Learner Web Portal. 

Share Your Ideas

Do you have resources you’d like to share? Let us know in the comments!

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

1 comment
2 FacebookTwitterPinterestLinkedinEmail
Good TeachingRobotics

Bee-Bots in the Early Childhood Classroom

by Angel M. Herring, Guest Author
written by Angel M. Herring, Guest Author

The first time I saw a Bee-bot, I was intrigued.  I was not sure what it was, but I knew that I needed one. It was adorable, with its flashing lights and noises and I knew that my students would love it. I am an ESL (English as a Second Language) Pre-K teacher, and I am always looking for new and exciting ideas to use in my classroom to help the students buy into the idea of learning.  

Buzzing with Ideas for the Bee-Bots

As I learned about Bee-Bots at the summer Elementary Technology Conference in Galveston, I fell more and more in love with them.  I knew that they would be a big hit with the kids. When I realized that we could design our own floor mats to fit our specific needs, I was hooked. Being able to customize what we need for our learning has been such an eye-opener and a great learning experience for me and it has helped the students in all subject areas.

At the end of the conference, my mind was spinning. I was beginning to imagine all the ways I could use these adorable little floor robots in my classroom. Instantly, I went to work on creating some mats for the class to use to meet district requirements. We would need one for every subject from phonics and math to science and social studies.  Since my students are ESL learners, we use lots of photos to help us learn and build a foundation in vocabulary. They have loved looking at the bright-colored photos, and it has helped inspire conversations between the students, which in turn has helped them with their social and emotional skills.

A Hive of Activity

In the photo below, the students are working on a foundational skill in math. We are using the digits from 1 to 10, as well as a subitizing ten frame. The small cards are the digits from 1 to 10. The student can choose to code to the matching digit or the matching ten frame. I created it this way in order to allow for some differentiation.  

When coding the robot, students can move it forward, backwards, and turn either way. They know the rules include keeping their Bee-Bots on the floor at all times and using the buttons to make him turn and move. They have to count the number of times it must move to get to the right spot. The Bee-Bot blinks and makes noise when it is finished with the command the students entered. If they have coded it correctly and it arrives at the desired number, we celebrate with a silent hand cheer. If the Bee-Bot does not make it to the correct desired number, the students move him back to the original spot, select the clear button, and try again. This is also a great way to incorporate problem-solving skills. 

Using these Bee-Bots in my classroom has become a favorite of all the students. Their faces light up with excitement when I bring them out of their hiding place. When we make learning fun for our students, they retain more, have fewer behavior problems, and go home with a smile on their faces. When I see my students smiling, I know all is right in the world, and it warms my teacher heart. 

Photo: Boris Smokrovic

2 comments
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestLinkedinEmail
handprints made of blue and red paint on a white canvas
iOS Tips and TricksSTEM/STEAM

Bring Digital Media into Your Classroom with Kid Pix

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

In the old days (circa 1990s), there was only one creation tool that mattered. Sure, word processors were plentiful.  For classrooms, though, Kid Pix ruled supreme. Today, a new version offers current content creators an even more powerful toolkit for creativity. Let’s take a quick look at the new Kid Pix 5, which makes digital media in the classroom easy.

A Trip Down Memory Lane

Before we do that, let’s recall some of the main features of Kid Pix. These videos provide some awesome memories for those of you who had the chance to use it with students. I was one of those classroom teachers who loved to see what kids could come up with.

Kid Pix Goes Mobile

The new version of Kid Pix, version 5, includes an iPad version ($9.99). The desktop version costs $39.99 and a 15-day trial version is available.

digital media

Connect with Shirley Boyd to learn more about Kid Pix

The new version, focused on STEAM learning, seeks to combine art and science. Students are able to create digital stories while designing interactive quizzes. Students can create learning games, as well as be the narrator in their own documentaries. Animated characters can share the small stage as well.

Some notable, new features include the following five:

  • Collaborative video narration. Students using the iPad’s built-in dual camera can create a video narration. This makes it possible for them to appear in animated costume frames and appear as characters in digital stories.
  • Interactive tappable objects. Students can create interactive characters that react when tapped. This means the interactive characters can tell a story, sing a song, or make a funny noise.
  • Full-length voiceovers. Students can record full-length narration for their slideshow. They can also assign voices to all the characters in an animated tale they create.
  • Triple soundtracks for projects. Three soundtracks make it easy to combine voice and other audio. This makes it easy to create digital documentaries, stories, and presentations. Exporting it as video even results in an enhanced podcast published via YouTube!
  • Publish and share to many locations. With this version of Kid Pix, you can publish direct to YouTube, but also share to Google Drive (unlimited storage for G Suite EDU), Dropbox, or elsewhere.

Those are some of my favorite new enhancements to Kid Pix 5 for iPad. One additional feature I would like to see is green screen support. This would make combining content with the over 163 video backgrounds even better.

digital media

Visit the Projects Gallery

Curious about what your students can create with Kid Pix 5? Check out the Kid Pix Gallery. Amazing children’s voices find expression via Kid Pix. Ask yourself, how are you amplifying students’ voices with the technology you have now? If you’re stuck for answers, why not give Kid Pix a try?

Research on Kid Pix Use

Surprising as it may be for such a longstanding tool, Kid Pix is often dismissed as a drawing tool for children. Yet it offers many of the features we look for in drawing, animation, and story creation.

More importantly, there is a wealth of research supporting programs like Kid Pix for Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Checkpoint 2.5. That checkpoint includes the following:

In formal schooling, there is a marked tendency to present the majority of information in language. That is, in printed text.  Many students for whom language is not a particular strength thus face persistent barriers not experienced by others. The experimental studies on the option of illustrating key concepts non-linguistically listed here span a range of media.

There is extensive research to support the representation of information through a variety of formats: video, diagram, image, music, animation, and more. The scholarly reviews and opinion pieces provide more classroom-based perspectives on the importance of using a range of media to convey content to students.

You can see the research on illustrating through multiple media online at the UDL Guidelines website. What’s more, in their book Digital Media in Today’s Classrooms, the authors point out:

  • When students create original products with multimedia, gains in achievement result (Goodlin, 2012).
  • Student-created digital media has demonstrated a positive effect on student achievement. Performance on high-stakes testing improves.
  • When students have the opportunity engage in active processing, academic achievement increases. Active processing includes five different levels: selecting words, selecting images, organizing words, organizing images, and integrating words and images.
  • Learners make sense of visuals sixty-thousand times faster than text.

Digital Media in the Classroom

Ready to get your students processing visual information sixty thousand times faster? Get them to start making things in tools like Kid Pix 5.

0 comment
2 FacebookTwitterPinterestLinkedinEmail
pair of glasses on top of open book
AndroidChromebooksContent AreasESL/ELL

Reciprocal Teaching with Popular Reading Apps

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Few would disagree that reading plays a crucial role in life. Scaffolding student cognition during reading can enhance student achievement. One of the techniques I employed as a young teacher included Reciprocal Teaching. In this blog entry, you will see a few amazing reading apps you can try reciprocal teaching on.

Google Rivet Transitions to Google’s Kids Space 

This blog entry previously featured Google Rivet, which Google shelved on October 16, 2020. The Rivet content (3500 books) found its way into Google’s new Kids Space. Per the Google Kids Space website, you can get to it via select Android tablets. Children are able to access apps, books, and videos. These are age-appropriate and targeted by age. One neat feature is that multiple children can use the same tablet. This is because children’s accounts are kept separate. Children’s education and media specialists have all reviewed apps and books included.

Effect Size of Reciprocal Teaching

Reciprocal Teaching (Palinscar & Brown, 1984) has strong support among researchers. Consider that John Hattie’s meta-analyses results include reciprocal teaching as a high-impact strategy. Its effect size of .79 means that it can advance student achievement almost two years growth for one year of school. (You can learn more about Hattie’s research in these blogs or join TCEA’s empowerED program and receive inexpensive professional development on his strategies.)

rivet

 

What Is Reciprocal Teaching?

This tried-and-true technique works especially well with second language learners. Under the tutelage of Mark Gabehart (Round Rock ISD CTO), I discovered this first-hand working with bilingual/ESL students in urban school settings. Reciprocal teaching includes a cycle of predicting, clarifying, questioning, and summarizing. The video below illustrates the reciprocal teaching cycle:

Through the use of statement stems, students are able to learn critical processes. For example, for Predictor, students think about what they have read. Then they predict what will happen next. Assisting students in understanding how to predict is key. For questioning, students can use sentence stems such as “I wonder…” or the five Ws to unearth ideas and information.  You can see some sentence stems via this reciprocal teaching Pinterest board. Explore the Wakelet embedded below:

rivet

View Wakelet on Reciprocal Teaching

Why Is Reciprocal Teaching Needed?

If your students face any or all of the following obstacles (adapted from ASCD Publication: Lori D. Oczkus’ Reciprocal Teaching At Work),  reciprocal teaching may be what’s needed.

  • Students don’t remember what they read, even when they can decode text
  • Little to no engagement with reading material
  • Students read at two or more years below grade level
  • Informational text (non-fiction) is difficult to understand
  • Challenging words are difficult to decipher
  • Students may be unable to describe the difference between main idea and supporting details

As a result of reciprocal teaching technique’s effectiveness for over thirty years, it is worth adopting. The National Behaviour Support Service offers this visual which may assist you:

Reciprocal Teaching Outside the Classroom

We imagine that RT may be for classroom use only, but that’s not true. We can encourage its use outside of the classroom by helping students to become teachers. “The act of teaching activates more regions of the brain,” says Dr. Lou Whitaker. Another approach could involve students modeling the RT cycle. They use this high impact reading strategy with Flipgrid, as you can see below.

Another may involve recording a video and then using EdPuzzle.com to empower students. These students create a video with questions interspersed throughout.

How could students use this with new reading apps, such as Google’s Kid Space and other amazing reading apps?

:video

Exploring Five, Incredible Reading Apps

One of the challenges students face is access to common text. Now, with these reading apps, students can access common content and can apply reciprocal teaching strategies to that text. Having apps you can share with students that feature common content is a win for both teachers and students.

While most educators may rely on Epic! books as their common text, don’t forget about other great sources of reading material online. You can find a comprehensive list in this TCEA TechNotes blog entry, Digital Stories for Remote Learners.

This blog entry was updated on 6/29/2021 with new content.

1 comment
1 FacebookTwitterPinterestLinkedinEmail
woman sitting at a laptop
ESL/ELL

For the ELL Student, Does Practice Make Perfect?

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Do educators believe that practice makes perfect? Do you believe that English language learners’ brains work like muscles that, if properly exercised, will become more adept at the tasks they are set? These questions popped into my mind as I reflected on the following Tweet.

#ELLs speak, on average, fewer than 10 minutes a day in school. How can you learn a language when you aren’t allowed to speak? #WIDA2016

This tweet raises a few questions and responses. You are invited to inventory your biases, as I did when I resisted the inclination to agree. Let’s explore the questions.

Does Practice Make Perfect in Language Learning?

Stephen Krashen (@skrashen) points out that we learn language when it is comprehensible to us, when it means something. The Comprehension Hypothesis points out that we understand language (input) by achieving three criteria:

  • We have some language background to refer to.
  • We have some knowledge of the world around us.
  • We have context.

According to Krashen, this means that we acquire language by input, not by output. “Talking” he points out, “is not practicing.” He goes on to say, “More output, more speaking (or writing) will not result in more language acquisition. . .the ability to speak is the result of language acquisition, not the cause.” Speaking, however, does provide a way for students to obtain comprehensible input.

If Krashen’s second language acquisition hypothesis is accurate, then it does not matter that English language learners speak fewer than ten minutes a day in school. There is little correlation between learning and quantity of output. Practice, or activities that promote output, are important because of the opportunities they provide language learners in effective processing of input. Throughout this, students build a theory of the world around them, a “shield against bewilderment” (Smith, 2012).

If Practice Doesn’t Make Perfect, How Do ELL Students Learn?

Providing a safe, language-rich environment can enable students to learn a new language and be motivated to use it meaningfully. Students have the choice whether to participate or not in a language learning classroom. Games, discussing topics of interest, storytelling, and projects present opportunities for students to acquire language that is at their level and that they can grow on (what Krashen calls “i+1” with the “i” being for “comprehensible input”). Grammatical accuracy comes as a result of successful second language acquisition, rather than through rigorous practice. Regrettably, the latter is standard in high school foreign language learning classes.

How Does Technology Play a Part in Language Learning?

Creating safe learning environments that promote language learning are possible with online learning management systems. Listening to others can result in comprehensible input. Some approaches for ELL teachers include the following:

  • Engage students in the authentic purpose of solving a problem (problem-based learning/inquiry-based learning).
  • Encourage student collaboration on projects focused on the creation of tangible product(s) (webquests, project-based learning).
  • Amplify human voices as they gather stories and share them (blogging, podcasts, digital storytelling).

Findings (Jarvis, 2014) suggest that 1) Language learners find that non-pedagogical uses of technology are helpful (as opposed to direct instruction via language exercises), 2) The Internet provides many opportunities for comprehensible input. 3) Finally, technology enhances language learning when used for authentic purposes.

For more suggestions on blending technology into second language learning, you are encouraged to read Stephen Krashen’s blog on The Potential of Technology. Also read and listen to these TCEA TechNotes blog entries and podcasts.

References

  1. Jarvis, H., & Krashen, S. (February, 2014). Is Computer-Assisted Language Learning Learning Obsolete? Language Acquisition and Language Learning Revisited in a Digital Age. Available online at http://ly.tcea.org/teslcallobsolete
  2. Krashen, S. (2013). Second Language Acquisition. Available online at http://www.sdkrashen.com/content/articles/krashen_sla.pdf
  3. Smith, F. (2012). Understanding Reading: A psycholinguistic analysis of reading and learning to read. Available online at http://ly.tcea.org/franksmith2012

 

1 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestLinkedinEmail
assessment
Web 2.0 Tool

Gamifying Learning with Quizizz

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

This blog was updated on May 21, 2016 to include new information.

Researchers from the Pew Research Center have found that gamifying learning stimulates interest and deep engagement with content.  Two tools that facilitate this include Kahoot! and the relative newcomer, Quizizz.

Quizizz allows you to create multi-player quizzes that work on almost any device. What’s more, you can access others’ assessments that can be completed in class or assigned as homework. With your free account, you can export the results as well. Teachers create their account and publish the link to the Quizizz. Then students, working at their own pace, complete the quiz using any Internet-connected mobile device. The more quickly they respond, the more points they gain.

Quizizz has more customizable features than Kahoot!,  including the ability to mix up the order of the questions and the answers for each student, the ability to show the correct answer after each question, and the ability to display a Quiz Review at the end that shows all questions. In addition, the teacher can turn off the timer and choose to show a Leaderboard (for greater gamification).

Screenshot 2016-03-07 at 7.26.13 PM.png

Quizizz enlivens the quiz with music and silly “correct” or “incorrect” images drawn from popular media. As the teacher, once the quiz is over, you can access data and analyze reports. The raw results can be exported, as shown in the screenshot below, to Excel format:

Screenshot 2016-03-07 at 7.29.27 PM.png

If a Quizizz is assigned as homework, the teacher can set a deadline for completion of up to 15 days from the start. Students can then complete the quiz at home. Some teachers are allowing their students to take the quiz over again repeatedly to raise their score (and learn the content even more!).

You can also integrate Quizizz with Google Classroom! Some of the features of Google Classroom integration include the following: 1) Quizizz reports will show the actual names of your students; 2) Student safety is enhanced since they are logging in with their Google accounts; and 3) Facilitate assignment tracking since completion reports are available in Google Classroom.

A new feature recently added to Quizizz is internationalization. If you click on the American flag in the upper right corner, you can change from English to Spanish. More languages will be coming soon.

Three ways to take Quizizz to the next level:

  1. Use the tool to facilitate “College Bowl” competition that pits teams against each other.

  2. Have students design quiz content for each other to highlight key content ideas and topics.

  3. Take a team-based approach to quizzes that works like this: Have students take the test and discuss what they got right or wrong. Then have them take the quiz as a group. This facilitates higher-order thinking and focus teams on the subject material.

Ready to try Quizizz yourself? Watch this seven-minute video overview.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestLinkedinEmail