Benefits of viewing, creating, and sharing Videos (Youtube & TeacherTube) with ELLs

What are YouTube and TeacherTube?

Online video hosts allow users to upload personal videos and store them on a “channel” for others to view, comment on, rate, and share with friends. Perhaps the most famous online video host is YouTube where viewers can comment on videos, add them to playlists, subscribe to others’ channels, rate videos, and become ‘friends’ with other registered users. However, when using YouTube with students, it is important to address critical viewing and media literacy issues so they are prepared when they stumble across video segments that are not meant for the eyes of young viewers.

When used as a means of creating, posting, and sharing student-created videos, YouTube becomes a means of fostering creativity in students as well as a powerful tool for active speaking practice. They take on the role of the digital storytellers and they use English to tell their stories.

Why view, create, and share videos with ELL’s?

ELL students are often hesitant to perform, do skits, or otherwise speak in front of their fellow students. If given the option to create a video of their work, students often feel more in control and more at ease because they can record, rerecord, and edit their presentation prior to sharing it. Videos allow students to make decisions about their work and be creative, which, in turn, is fun as well as motivational for students.

Examples of how to use online videos with ELLs:

·         Documenting and filming student classroom presentations

·         Movie or TV-show parodies

·         PhotoStory movies

·         Film and book reviews

·         Acting out plays or literature

·         Cooking shows

·         Science demonstrations

·         Music Videos

How Teachers Can Create a More Cultural Atmosphere in School

• Have school décor represent other cultures: displays of cultural artifacts, posters with information and pictures from different countries, different countries’ flags

• Welcome booth at the entrance of the school with information in the other languages spoken in the school

• Signs in the other languages

• ESL “open house” where students create project boards with pictures, flags, pieces written about holiday traditions and family stories, personal interests, and life maps including future plans displayed

• Students write about “the immigrant experience” and “their” cultural background; pick one country or part of their background and research traditions, values, and reasons for immigrating, as well as how these immigrants were historically received in America; read different texts about historical and contemporary experiences of immigrants

• Research project on their family experience – family tree poster with some information about their heritage provided by the families and things like the flag, money, etc.

• “World Culture Day” – classrooms research a country and make posters and things about their country; certain classes or grade levels learn about specific things having to do with student heritage, pick a certain country for each class that students have a heritage from. Students could take home a short survey indicating their heritage and students could switch within grade level to learn/share about their own culture.

• “Culture Night” or “Culture Fair” – different foods from all the countries represented in the school, dress/traditional clothing, music, games, stories, traditions, holidays, etc. Students can make a list of how everyone is the same

• Do cultural lessons throughout the year, especially on holidays from other cultures, where students learn about what countries celebrate it and why, what they do, traditions, etc, and do activities that are representative of what they do

• Interview recently immigrated students and have them talk about their school in their home country; do a compare/contrast lesson about the two schools

• Wear nametags with position and have all important documents already translated into the school’s other languages

• Embed some of the history and traditions of other cultures into “higher-order thinking” lessons and ideas, such as: “Day of the Dead” could connect to the more fluid time continuum, not as much focus on the here and now, held by many Latino cultures. Talk about the important of family and rich religious values of many cultures. Explore the differences of values, such as in foods: “hamburger, hotdog = America” – can be “on-the-go foods.” Many Middle Eastern countries have large platters of rice-based foods that are served communally and cannot be eaten “on the go”; does that say anything about the values?

• Morning show – incorporate an interview with an ESL student, an announcement in a foreign language, or some sort of trivia question about a different culture

• Pen pal program with a school in a different country. Many other countries stress the importance of English from a young age, so letters can be written in English. The classroom teacher can create a graphic organizer to make connections between family life, school life, and what kids do for fun. Students can then further research the country and make inference into values in the culture

• “Today in History” events could be more international and not just focused on the U.S.

Reference:
Dr. Broady's ESL website

KDE Approved Instructional Accomidations for LEP Students

KDE approved instructional accommodations for Limited English Proficient (LEP) students include:

Read text in English
Scribe responses
Bilingual or English dictionary
Promoting/cueing
Provide visuals/organizers
Use spell-check
Provide content objectives
Engage in academic conversations
Teach and model mega-cognitive
Oral native language support
Read test in primary language
Extended time
Small group/single test form admin.
Provide adapted materials/tech
Link instruction to prior learning
Build background knowledge
Scaffold responses (oral/written)
Bilingual or English glossary
Simplified language
Assistive technology
Adapt pace of instruction
Use computer/software
Provide language objectives
Model language/task completion
Provide interaction opportunities

**Note that the LEP accommodations are almost the exactly the same as accommodations for students in special education.

Benefits of Using Podcasts with ESL Students

What is a podcast?
A podcast is a series of audio or video digital media files that can be distributed and downloaded from the internet through web feeds to portable media players or personal computers (p.49). Basically, “a podcast is like a radio show on your computer” (p.49).

Why listen and create podcasts with ELLs?

There are podcasts on almost every subject you can dream of and they are excellent listening resources for ELLs. Podcasts can provide information, aural practice, and accent training. Listening to podcasts can provide students with exposure to different accents from different regions of the county and of the world .

By creating their own podcasts and publishing them to the web, students know that their voices can be heard by others around the world and, therefore, feel more motivated to create dynamic and polish podcasts.

In addition, according to Langer de Ramirez, “beginning ELLs who may be going through their silent period may feel more comfortable speaking into a microphone in a corner of the classroom or at home rather than speaking in front of a class of peers. They can record – and rerecord – their podcasts until they are satisfied with the results” (p.53).

Examples of how to use podcasts in the classroom:

• Weather reports
• Science reports 
•  Poetry recitation
• Story read aloud
•  Pronunciation practice
• Classroom news
• Interviews with parents, teachers, and classmates

Resources:
Langer de Ramirez, Lori. (2010). Empower English Language Learners with Tools from the Web. Corwin: Thousand Oaks, CA.

Benefits of using Blogs & Wikis with ESL Students

When publishing their work online, students pay more attention to polishing their work and think more deeply about the content they produce. Blogs and wikis are great online tools that are particularly well suited for English language learners for a variety of reasons... one major reason being motivation. 

As a whole, blogs and wikis are a new way of journaling, and they can be a fun and rewarding activity for students. They provide ELLs with the opportunity for their language to be read or listened to by a broad audience beyond their teacher and classmates. In using blogs, ELLs are able to make comments on other blogs while receiving comments about their own writing. Wikis, in tern, give ELL students the ability to collaborate with others to create an end result. This communication helps the student feel connected without forcing him or her to speak in class. As a result, students can try out their language skills in a less intimidating setting. In addition, there is a strong sense of autonomy in blogging and wiki writing as students are able to work on their own time and in their own setting as they create something that is personal yet connected to a school-initiated task. The student's ability to write and self-correct is a huge asset to all students, especially ELL's as they develop and practice a new lanaguge. According to Lori Langer de Ramirez (2010), "this writing with a purpose & for a real audience - and the motivational factor makes all the difference in getting ELLs to write... and write some more" (p.17).

What exactly is a Blog?
A blog web page that is created by an individual or group where they post their opinions, ideas, or information on a topic. The types of blogs are endless, they can range from cooking tips to time travel.

Examples of how to use blogs in the classroom:

• Writing journals/diaries
• Creative Writing
• Class Debates
• Poetry Collections
• Novel or Story Reviews

What is a Wiki?
A wiki is an online tool in which many people can add, delete, and edit information.  It is created for a purpose for a specific group of people to collaborate. The work is instantly published and sent out into the world wide web for all to see.

Examples of how to use wikis in the classroom: 

• Collaborative projects
• Planning a class or school event
• Online study communities
• A place to post and share student Art, Music, Writing

** Note to Teachers: When using these types of resources it is important for the teacher to set clear goals and expectations with the students. If everyone is on the same page from the beginning it will make the project go much smoother and you are more likely to have successful outcomes.


Resources:
Langer de Ramirez, Lori. (2010). Empower English Language Learners with Tools from the Web. Corwin: Thousand Oaks, CA.

What are the TESOL Technology Standards?

The TESOL Technology Standards, gathered from practice and research, focus on how English language teachers, teacher educators, and administrators can and should use technology in and out of the classroom. These standards build on work done by the National Educational Technology Standards Project in the International Society for Technology in Education, but have a strong focus on pedagogy specific to English language teaching. They are designed to be applicable to teachers and students at a range of English proficiency levels in many English language teaching and learning settings around the world.

The TESOL Technology Standards Framework consists of two sets of standards including standards for language learners, and standards for language teachers.

To see the standards and examples of how to meet these standards, click the links below:

Meeting TESOL Technology Standards for Language Learners
Meeting TESOL Technology Standards for Language Teachers
 

Contrary to popular belief, American English spelling does make sense!

Development of English Spelling

Old English (450 to 1100) – The alphabet was much like the Modern English alphabet, but Old English did not use the letters j, k, v, w and used q & z rarely; Old English used other letters to represent sounds in the language, including æ (called an ash); ð (the barred d) for both the voiced and voiceless “th”; a kind of z, the yogh, which represented the /g/ sound; and two other symbols for th and w. Some sounds were spelled differently that they are in Modern English (102).

Middle English (1100 to 1500) – Many words were added from French and Latin, and Norman scribes introduced a number of changes in spelling including replacing cw with qu, so Old English cwen became queen. In addition, many words spelled with o in Old English were spelled with u in Middle English.

Modern English (1500 to the present) - Spellings began to become fixed and many Greek and Latin words entered the language during this period. Also, during the 1500’s there was a Great Vowel Shift.  During this period, a complex series of changes occurred in the pronunciations of the vowels.  The long vowels were pronounced at a higher point in the mouth.  In addition, high vowels became dipthongs and moved to a lower position (105).

American English Spelling

“Noah Webster was a patriot who wanted to create a uniquely American English language, different from the language in England” (105). He also wanted to simplify spelling.  His spelling book became the first spelling textbook published in America.

Words spelled with our in England, are spelled or in America.  Words with re in England are spelled er in America; Se substitutes for ce (defence, defense); ise is ize (recognize, recognize); k is dropped in words like music.

“Writing systems are designed to serve two different groups of people, readers and writers. Changes that would make writing easier would make reading more difficult, and changes that would make reading easier would make writing harder” (106). For example, languages have homonyms such as great versus grate. If both of these words were spelled the same, readers would have to use context clues to figure out which meaning the writer intended. "The variations in spellings of homonyms signal important meanings to a reader that would be lost if all words that sound the same were spelled the same way" (107). Without variations is spelling writing would be easier because you wouldn't have to remember which spelling goes with which meaning; however, this would make reading comprehension would be more difficult!”

The strongest demand on spelling system is the phonetic demand to spell a given sound consistently. The second demand comes from analogy (words that come from the same root and share the same meaning should be spelled the same). The third demand includes the idea that words should reflect their historical backgrounds. “This is the etymological demand, a force that keeps spelling consistent across time and across languages” (108).

Figure 5-1.  Forces that shape English spelling (109).

Force	Demand	Example
phonetic	Spell words the way they sound	sit
semantic	Spell words alike that share the same meaning	hymn hymnal
etymological	Spell words to reflect their origins	One (Old English) kangaroo (Australian)

 
“Most words are spelled the way they sound… However, spellings signal meanings, not just sounds. English has many words that sound the name but have different meanings. Alternate ways of spelling a sound allow writers to show meanings through spelling” (108). “Most spellings that strike readers as unusual are the result of retaining forgein spellings of borrowed words” (109).

Spelling Rules

Freeman & Freeman states that "two things, above all else, seem to help students become better at spelling. First, they need to be doing writing that they want others to read... Second, students need to understand that the spelling system is logical and does follow rules" (112). They go on to state that "many poor spellers think that good spellers just memorize all the words" (112). As a horrible speller myself, I agree with this statement! I have always felt that great spellers just knew some great tricks that I had failed to learn or understand. As it turns out, "it does appear that good spellers develop some sort of visual image of a correct spelling" (112).

According to Freeman & Freeman, "to help students investigate how the spelling system works, teachers can involve them in activities in which they collect words and try to make generalizations about the spellings. In doing this, teachers and students take a scientific approach to spelling. Even if students don't come up with a rule that works every time, the process of collecting words, looking for spelling patterns, and trying to state generalizations helps students become more conscious of correct spellings" (112). I think this is a wonderful idea for out ELLs!

In our class discussion this week, a classmate mentioned that “Spelling books often mix different spellings of the same sounds much to the confusion of students. Grouping like spellings together is one way to reduce confusion. Students can group words together and make generalizations about their characteristics. Studying patterns helps students learn to spell. Making a list of homonyms and studying sounds is one way to develop pattern awareness. Keeping running lists of like words is an excellent technique to develop spelling proficiency, and it helps students discover more patterns overtime (p. 113).”

The Silent e Rule

The silent e rule and the consonant doubling rule are procedural rules, “rules that involve changes in spelling when adding a suffix to a root word” (p.120).

The silent e rule can be taught by:

1.       “Help students visualize complex words as being made up of a root and a prefix or suffix” (p.120).

2.       Have student collect examples of silent e words.

3.       Question students why some words have a silent e.

The consonant doubling rule can be taught by:

1.       Pair students together to discuss a list of words and why you double a final consonant before adding a suffix.

2.       Tell students “final consonants are never double before a suffix that starts with a consonant” (p.125).

In English, some words are content words ("the words you put in a telegram") and some are function words (the ones that "connect and relate all the content words") (p. 122). It makes sense, then that these words have different lengths, with the content words being longer than the less essential function words.

Reference

Freeman, D. E. and Freeman, Y. S. (2004). Essential linguistics: What you need to know to teach reading, ESL, spelling, phonics, grammar. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.