More States Take On Media Literacy in Schools

In the wake of fake news and the ability to obtain information almost instantly, more and more articles are being published with bias arguments and without reliable sources. In this article, author Jackie Zubrzycki identified a 2017 Washington law that is now a model for other states in which the law encourages states to teach about digital citizenship and Internet safety while requiring a mix of sources and perspectives. After passing this bill, six other states have considered bills based on the same principals of the one passed in Washington.

In my opinion, teaching students how to locate and identify reliable and accurate information is crucial in a world filled with social media. Often times our students, even ESL students, get their news from social media, it is easy to click on and share fake news, I have even done it myself. The passing of these bills will allow educators the ability to teach media literacy classes that encourage critical thinking skills and help them navigate the complex world of online information. 

Source: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/curriculum/2017/07/media_literacy_laws.html

Essential Technology Tools in the ELL Classroom

This week I read an article written by Toshiko Maurizio, an administrator for multilingual programs at a public school in Oregon. He identified the importance of technology when engaging students in activities while providing resources to bridge the gap between their native language and English.

Maurizio identified the following tools as tech essentials for the ESL classroom;

Audio systems- The system is essentially an amp that enhances the teacher natural voice so they don’t have to shout to ensure that all students are hearing the teacher voice and intonation, which is very important in the language learning process.

Laptops are used on a daily basis for lesson-planning, presentations, and for visuals. The use of visuals when learning a language is key to making connections between the students’ native language and English.  

iPads allow for convenience when traveling throughout the classrooms and to other classrooms during the school day. Google Translate allows students to have easy access to naïve language. Maurizino also pointed out that Google translate settings allow for keyboard settings on iPads to show the English letter underneath their native language, allowing students to transfer knowledge back and forth between languages.

As an educator, all of these tools are beneficial to any classroom. With the abundance of free applications available, the use of an iPad would probably be the most essential tool in an ESL classroom in my opinion.

Source: https://www.eschoolnews.com/2017/07/21/curriculum-tech-essentials/

When Adaptive Tools Can’t Adapt to a Student’s Native Language

This week I read an article about the difficulties of translation materials and tools used when translating English to Spanish for language learners. With the growing population of English Language Learners, software companies are designing their programs to keep up with the demand to expand to the ESL community. However, many products are falling short of their promise to provide accurate translation and are having difficulty adapting to the student’s native language.  With the difference between spoken and written language, and while translation isn’t always perfect from one language to another, users are discovering that reading levels are changing when trying to translate English stories to Spanish stories. Making it particularly harder for the elementary ESL students to keep up let alone make sense of what they are reading.

One solution to the problem is for teachers to assign students’ material that is on their native reading level rather than their English reading level. Which then poses the problem of ESL students disengaged in the content they are reading because they English reading level will be significantly lower than the Spanish Reading level. For example, the fourth grade reading level book, Diary of a Whimpy Kid actually translates to a sixth grade reading level in Spanish. The author also points out that students coming into the US tend to have difficulty with literacy skills in their first language to begin with which can pose and even greater problem. The end goal is for student to become proficient in English. By offering materials that are on their native reading level, while also taking into account their literacy skills and interest, students should be more successful while using the adaptive tools.

Source: https://www.edsurge.com/news/2017-06-29-when-adaptive-tools-can-t-adapt-to-students-native-language

Digital Literacy is More Than Just Social Use

This week I read an article that identified the need for digital literacy outside of social use. As educators, we often stress to our students the importance of privacy and social awareness online in social communities. Much of teaching technology, especially to ESL students is teaching technological skills outside of students’ everyday social use. Many of my students can run circles around me when it comes to using technology in social ways but what they are lacking is basic technology skills that will benefit their educational career for years to come.

The article identified a set of technology skill needed for students, starting with the ability to write an appropriate email or essay. The author pointed out that many students don’t know how to write an email without using text language or the language they would use when commenting on social media rather than professional language. By learning this skill, students will be able to write better emails, blogs and essays. The important skills set for students include the ability to see technology as a tool to solve problems, gather credible information, evaluate sources, and navigate through digital portals. While student often use technology to problem solve, part of digital literacy is using technology to create as well. The abundance of social media in our everyday lives is not going anywhere anytime soon. It is our job as educators to help our students see technology as a valuable educational tool rather than just a social tool.

Source: http://www.tcpalm.com/story/specialty-publications/progress-and-innovation/2017/06/19/educatipn-overview/364299001/

Babbel- Language Learning on the GO

This week I read about a new language-learning app called Babbel. Babbel focuses on real life language learning through conversation rather than typical textbook vocabulary and phrases. Since learning a new language take a dedicated amount of time to acquire, the use of Babbel allows user to practice their language skills in 10-15 minute lessons while on the go. The program features 14 different languages ranging from Spanish to Indonesian.

Babbel does not only teach vocabulary and conversation in the learned language, it  challenges the learner to test their speech again native speakers to teach more of  an authentic accent. Babbel combines authentic learning with convenience to make language learning more attainable and achievable in our busy lives. Find out more about Babbel here. 

Netsafe- Helping Students Deal with Online Safety and Bullying

This week I read an article about an Internet safety group created in New Zealand called Netsafe. Essentially, Netsafe provides advice and resources for educators on how to manage online safety for their students. The site came about after complaints of online bullying have increased over the years as technology and Internet access is becoming more abundant with students. Netsafe found a need for schools to integrate online safety and digital citizenship skills into the curriculum to ensure that all students are practicing these skills in school and at home.

Netsafe can be useful to develop a proactive plan to talk about what is important and appropriate in school communities while developing incident response procedure and security systems. These lessons can be accessed online or face-to-face for parents and educators to become more aware of protocol for online safety and digital citizenship.

I think this site is beneficial to not only technology administrators and educators, but parents and students as well. From what I gathered from the article and from browsing the Netsafe site, this site has comprehensive article on cyber bullying, harassment, cold call scams, and overall online safety. One feature that I truly find beneficial is an incidence-reporting feature. Victims and bystanders can report an online incident and a Netsafe professional will contact the reporter with advice on what to do next. This feature is a great way for young students to report online bullying or harassment especially if they are not comfortable bringing the problem to their parents or teachers.

References:

Curran, M. (2017, May 29). Netsafe helping students deal with cyber bullying. Retrieved June 07, 2017, from http://nz.educationhq.com/news/39693/netsafe-helping-students-deal-with-cyber-bullying/

Netsafe: https://www.netsafe.org.nz/