Sheltered Instruction
Technolgy Integration Plan for 5th Grade Students
By Roslyn Sears
SEI/ 503 Professor Diana Lucero
Large Group Instruction
"English language learners typically spend the most time in heterogeneous groups. They benefit in these settings when they can experience "authentic" communication with fluent English-speaking models and are exposed to a rigorous academic program" (De Jong & Commins, 2009, 16).
Class Participation
Individual Work
"Instruction can range from classrooms where all students receive bilingual/dual-language instruction to structured/sheltered English immersion classrooms to general education classrooms, where content instruction from the mainstream teacher is supported by an ESL teacher working with individual students" (Samson & Collins, 2012, p. 4).
Introduction
Large Group Instruction
Once educators choose a category, they can select a specific grade. For example, when choosing tutorials for fifth grade math, instructors have six modules that can support learning: place value and decimal fractions, multi-digit whole number and decimal fraction operations, addition and subtractions of fractions, multiplication and division of fractions and decimal fractions, addition and multiplication with volume and area, and problem solving with the coordinate plane (Khan Academy, 2017).
Educators can upload their chosen tutorial on the Smart Board so the whole class can view it collectively. During the short video, students can be instructed to jot down notes in their journals. Teachers can use the journal notes to measure which areas ELLs need response to intervention. Furthermore, instructors can analyze the journal entries to assess a learner's proficiency in expressive, receptive, writing, and reading skills.
The great thing about Smart technology is that the device can also be used to upload PowerPoint presentations. Instructors can use presentations to animate the lesson's content and make it more adaptable to diverse learning styles, and needs. Using the internet, through the interactive Smart Board, can help teachers connect lesson objectives with real life applications. For instance, when teaching about the Revolutionary War, teachers can upload a short video that highlights what the text book states. The colorful images can solidify content.
The best aspect of using technology to support lesson implementation is that teachers can pause videos, rewind, or fast forward to adjust to the student's learning pace. Also, when considering vocabulary building skills, educators can use the interactive board to upload the synonym, antonym, pronunciation, and the translation of words for the whole group to see. Passages of stories can be uploaded and the interactive tools allows educators to underline, circle, highlight, and add information to material. Thus, enhancing the learning experience for ELLs.
Class Participation
Since ELLs are unfamiliar with the English language, it is imperative that teachers find ways to use technology to encourage class participation. Smart technology makes this a breeze. Students love to practice new skills and show their proficiency with their peers. For instance, instructors can upload a math word problem on the White Board. The teacher can choose a student to go up to the board and write down what the class dictates to him/her. The pupil can underline context clues from the word problem that indicate which operations to use and he/she can circle any new words. Another student can write down the expression to solve the problem and someone else can write down the steps the class needs to take to solve the problem.
Read Naturally is a program that teachers can use to promote class participation. Since Smart Boards are interactive, the program can be uploaded so students can use it as a group. If the class has a large population of ELLs, uploading Reading Naturally on the Smart Board can be an efficient use of time. The program supports the language learners struggles with reading and speaking English through story telling, and vocabulary building techniques. "ELL students gain general background knowledge by reading the Read Naturally stories. Each story is nonfiction and provides information on a wide range of topics. Some stories discuss American manners and customs, and others define idioms" (Read Naturally, para. 7).
Teachers can use the stories to develop opportunities for students to practice social norms by participating in reenacting the stories from the Read Naturally software. When students have the support of their peers and learn in a group setting, they are more apt to participate. When students participate and join in activities, teachers can observe who shows proficiency, who needs intervention, which strategies work, and which strategies need differentiating.
Individual Work
Each facet of Fast Forword personalizes practice sessions to ensure that activities cater to the student's proficiency level and skill set. "Using speech verification technology, our program listens to students as they read aloud, like a guided reading coach! Learners reinforce their new reading and language skills and rapidly build fluency and comprehension" (Fast Forword, 2017, para. 5). Fast Forword is perfect for ELLs because it has numerous exercises for primary and secondary students that can be used on various devices. The program is adaptive and can be altered to fit the needs of diverse learners. Teachers love the digital reporting and automated assessments that make tracking student growth efficient.
Kurzweil Education takes the frustration out of teaching a class with ELLs from multiple language backgrounds because the technology incorporates approximately 20 text to speech dialects and languages that can be heard in about 30 natural voices. Therefore, students have the opportunity to hear interactive language similar to theirs. Not only can teachers customize the presentation format, but they can also adjust the reading rate as well. Kurzweil Education gives teachers access to almost 2,000 literary works. Other adaptive features like changing font size, keyboard shortcuts, and selecting font/background color make content easier to navigate for diverse learning needs. Students never have to remember where they left off because the Resume Reading feature acts like a book mark and will open the page to where the student last read from. Educators take advantage of Dual Zone Editing because it ensures ethical practices of test taking.
Lexia is a software program that students can access using a computer, tablet, iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. ELLs can hear directions in Spanish, Arabic, Portuguese, Haitian-Creole, and Vietnamese. The software uses developmental strategies that target reading, speaking, writing, and spelling skills. "With Lexia, ELL students can develop their fundamental reading skills with the rest of their classmates and receive student-driven and teacher-directed personalized instruction" (Lexia, 2017, para. 3).
The Lexia Core 5 software places students in their appropriate comprehension and skill level. If feedback from the lessons indicates that students need additional intervention, teachers can lead individual lessons that will help develop skills in the areas that the student shows continued weakness. Educators can access student progress online and see predictors that will give red flags if students are in danger.
Lexia also creates action plans for instruction. Through myLexia reports, teachers can see the plan that the program has created and begin developing intervention for each student. Furthermore, Lexia polls the achievements of the class and categorizes students by their proficiency levels and places them in groups. Educators can access this data and implement group work activities. The strategy allows teachers to assess needs without administering a summative assessment.
Help Math focuses on supporting the math needs of ELLs. The program uses scaffolds to break concepts down into small parts; making learning easier. Through interactive activities, students can make a connection between symbols, words, and their meaning. To make learning obtainable, Help Math builds prerequisite skills by developing background knowledge. Hyperlinked vocabulary words encourages ELLs to focus on new terminology. When learners click the words, they are re-directed to an online library where they can read and hear the definition of the word selected. Educators love the option of either having the bilingual setting off or on. "Explicitly teaching problem-solving and test-taking skills, providing multiple opportunities for student responses and immediate corrective feedback when errors are made" (Help Math, n.d., para. 4).
Conclusion
References
- Anonymous. (n.d.). Tips for English Language Learners (ELLs). Retrieved from: http://www.unc.edu/world/2007_Latin_Amer/Materials/K-12%20LA%20Follow-up%20Info.pdf
- Bing image of teacher and students with a smart board. (2017). https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=image%20of%20teacher%20and%20students%20with%20a%20smart%20board&qs=n&form=QBIR&sp=-1&pq=image%20of%20teacher%20and%20students%20with%20a%20smart%20board&sc=0-48&sk=&cvid=30F3047F8190446EA3B1528DAF4EE820
- Bing Images of teachers and students. (2016). Retrieved from: https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=image+of+teachers+and+students&qpvt=image+of+teachers+and+students&qpvt=image+of+teachers+and+students&qpvt=image+of+teachers+and+students&FORM=IGRE
- Concordia University. (2017). 5 Smart Ways to Use SMART Boards in the Classroom. Retrieved from: http://education.cu-portland.edu/blog/tech-ed/five-ways-that-smart-boards-are-a-smart-choice-in-the-classroom/
- De Jong, E. & Commins, N. L. (2009). How should ELLs be grouped for instruction? Colorin Colorado. Retrieved from: http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/how-should-ells-be-grouped-instruction
- Fast Forword. (2017). The Ideal Reading and Language Intervention Program for Struggling Readers and English Language Learners. Scientific Learning. Retrieved from: http://www.scilearn.com/products/fast-forword
- Help Math. (n.d.). About HELP Math.Retrieved from: http://www.helpprogram.net/About.htm
- Khan Academy. (2017). Retrieved from: https://www.khanacademy.org/
- Kurzweil Education. (2017). Retrieved from: https://www.kurzweiledu.com/default.html
- Lexia. (2017). Retrieved from: https://www.lexialearning.com/resources/research/bilingual-research-journal-2011
- Read Naturally. (2017). Supporting English Language Learners. Retrieved from: https://www.readnaturally.com/ell
- Samson, J. F., & Collins, B. A. (2012). Preparing All Teachers to Meet the Needs of English Language Learners: Applying Research to Policy and Practice for Teacher Effectiveness. Center for American Progress. Retrieved from: http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED535608.pdf
- Smore. Retrieved from: https://www.smore.com/qdtxv/edit?ref=show_author