Ed-tech: With so many new apps popping up and the way that we all suddenly shifted to fully online learning during the beginning of the pandemic, is it any wonder that some educators look at technology with a slightly raised eyebrow? It should be noted however that this love/apprehension relationship with Ed-tech has existed for some since…always. High tech and low tech can be innovative, if the tool is used to allow us to teach and learn in a new way.
CALL (Computer Assisted Language Learning) tools are essential because they provide EBs with comprehensible input and output opportunities, multimodal access to curricular concepts, and language practice through various formats. In my personal experience, tech such as google translate’s conversation feature (voice-to-text) and text-to-speech applications are crucial tools for Newcomers or students that are still in their silent phase.
“By using multimedia technology to incorporate pictures or video into the lesson, the teacher can provide students with the necessary contextual cues to understand new concepts. Visual information can provide the necessary bridge or scaffold between everyday language and more difficult academic language (Cruz, 2004). In addition, technology allows students to show what they have learned in multiple ways — offering a more accurate assessment of their growth.” (Brozek & Duckworth, Supporting English Language Learners Through Technology, 2011).
But with so many tools to choose from, and many that are blocked or not FIPPA-compliant, where do we start? Well, dear readers, as the daughter of a high school computer teacher since computers were invented, let me tell you that I’ve done the legwork and here are my top resources (in no order):
Web-Based Language Games
Dave’s ESL Cafe - ELL quizzes and games (and where I landed my first ever teaching abroad job from, in 2006!)
Newsela - comprehension and literacy texts at five Lexile levels
ThinkCERCA - Leveled texts and cloze reading
Simple English Wikipedia - Wikis that used simplified language (though some of the pages could use some work & editing)
BrainPOP ELL - This robot lives rent free in my brain
Hardware
Document cameras (can model manipulatives, which I found useful)
Interactive whiteboards (in my district these have been replaced with projectors, sadly)
Apps for Output
Animoto
iMovie (Apple)
Issuu
Book Creator - note, I’ve yet used this, but I am quite intrigued!
Piktochart - for creating infographics as anchor charts and references for your class
Google Apps
Translate - as mentioned, great for Newcomers. Though the translation is often imperfect, additional learning can organically come from discuss why/how the translations were wrong
Lens - students can become independent learners as they don’t need to wait for a translator
What are some barriers to consider that ELLs/EBs might face when using ed-tech?
Do you have any more you can add? What are your favourite tools?
CALL (Computer Assisted Language Learning) tools are essential because they provide EBs with comprehensible input and output opportunities, multimodal access to curricular concepts, and language practice through various formats. In my personal experience, tech such as google translate’s conversation feature (voice-to-text) and text-to-speech applications are crucial tools for Newcomers or students that are still in their silent phase.
“By using multimedia technology to incorporate pictures or video into the lesson, the teacher can provide students with the necessary contextual cues to understand new concepts. Visual information can provide the necessary bridge or scaffold between everyday language and more difficult academic language (Cruz, 2004). In addition, technology allows students to show what they have learned in multiple ways — offering a more accurate assessment of their growth.” (Brozek & Duckworth, Supporting English Language Learners Through Technology, 2011).
But with so many tools to choose from, and many that are blocked or not FIPPA-compliant, where do we start? Well, dear readers, as the daughter of a high school computer teacher since computers were invented, let me tell you that I’ve done the legwork and here are my top resources (in no order):
Web-Based Language Games
Dave’s ESL Cafe - ELL quizzes and games (and where I landed my first ever teaching abroad job from, in 2006!)
Newsela - comprehension and literacy texts at five Lexile levels
ThinkCERCA - Leveled texts and cloze reading
Simple English Wikipedia - Wikis that used simplified language (though some of the pages could use some work & editing)
BrainPOP ELL - This robot lives rent free in my brain
Hardware
Document cameras (can model manipulatives, which I found useful)
Interactive whiteboards (in my district these have been replaced with projectors, sadly)
Apps for Output
Animoto
iMovie (Apple)
Issuu
Book Creator - note, I’ve yet used this, but I am quite intrigued!
Piktochart - for creating infographics as anchor charts and references for your class
Google Apps
Translate - as mentioned, great for Newcomers. Though the translation is often imperfect, additional learning can organically come from discuss why/how the translations were wrong
Lens - students can become independent learners as they don’t need to wait for a translator
What are some barriers to consider that ELLs/EBs might face when using ed-tech?
- Access to devices and internet at home
- District and school budgets for individually-assigned devices
- Instructing students how to use new tools and apps while simultaneously allowing them to discover, innovate, and create their own learning strategies
- Teachers having time to vett content with valid criteria
- Pre-teaching digital literacy skills for when students explore more independently
Do you have any more you can add? What are your favourite tools?