Post 2: Ensuring Learning Progress...

Some districts are experiencing more and more students enrolling whose primary language isn't English. There are so many considerations for these students that need to be considered when planning the learning environment. What are the "hooks" that can be used to help students acquire stronger language skills? How will students learn the "academic English" that is used in so many standardized test? What strategies can be used in the classroom to help students stay focused? How can teachers use a student's home culture to aid with their learning? What is the difference between a "correction" and a "criticism"? These topics are covered in an article I read called "Ensuring progress and knowledge retention among ESL students" by Douglas Magrath. I had a lot of take-aways from this article like using a ukele to help reinforce grammar, cultural reinforced instruction, and understanding the difference and perceptions of "correction" and "criticism". `This article is very much worth the read.

Another article I found that really excited me comes from Pittsburgh. The segment on the local news station is "Kidsburgh", which I found to be really catchy. The reporter spent time in a few schools to get an idea of what kinds of technology are being used for in person and remote learners, the different kinds of programs (I was really excited by the plant growing program) that are helping to level the playing field between those students who are at home and those students at school. Other teachers were using some of the tried and true websites, like Google Earth, and PBS Kids to connect students to learning in a different way. These teachers are reinventing ways to teach students even if the students are not able to learn in the conventional place (school) or collaborate the way that they used to (shoulder to shoulder). The article is called: Kidsburgh: Pittsburgh-Area School Districts Use Technology To Help Students Learn In New Ways.