Technology for Supporting ELLs in the Mainstream Secondary Classroom
Diane Waldron
I discovered two great resources, Ball (2011) and Nisbet & Austin (2013) that, while geared toward adult ESL students, would work equally well with high school ESL students. In a separate article, Boisvert and Rao (2015) explain one particular use of technology that has been effective with ESL students of any grade level.
I want to share with you some ideas for using technology with ESL students which you might find useful in your own classrooms, while also addressing the benefits of using technology when teaching ESL students. I focused my research primarily on what would work with high school students, and I focused primarily on literacy skills – reading, writing, listening, and speaking – as I teach high school English. I have also included a list of technology resources for ESL students suggested by the Connecticut Department of Education.
Wappel (2010, in Ball 2011) points out that technsology can be used to improve both “the quality and impact” (p. 12) of teaching ESL students, and that the use of technoology in teaching ESL students will positively impact learning (p. 13). Beare (1999), also in Ball (2011), cites the following ways that ESL learners can benefit from learning that incorporates various types of technology: increased engagement and stimulation, instant feedback, self-paced learning, and student control of his/her own learning (p. 13). Ball (2011) finds that computer assisted instruction, which is self-paced and can be designed to target specific learner needs, has been successful in helping adult ESL learners improve technology skills which enhance employability (p. 15). Additionally, Ball (2011) states that computer assisted instruction strengthens reading comprehesion skills which can also be strengthened by using text to speech programs (p. 15).
Nisbet and Austin (2013) provide a thorough discussion of the use of apps, or applications, on smart phones and tablets to support ESL students. Nisbet and Austin describe Graves’ (2009, in Nisbet & Austin, 2013) model of effective vocabulary instruction, which includes: teaching individual words, teaching word learning strategies, provision of rich and varied learning experiences, and encouraging an awareness of words (p. 3). The authors then provide a descriptive list of apps which support learners in English vocabulary acquisition.
Dictionary apps are suggested for the teaching of individual words (Nisbet & Austin, p. 4). Nisbet and Austin suggest Dictionary.com-Dictionary & Thesaurus along with The Free Dictionary, which they describe as “one of the most comprehensive” (p. 4) dictionary apps. Both are free and available on an iPhone.
Nisbet and Austin also suggest two translation apps: Google Translate and Translator with speech (p. 4), both available on iPhone, and both free. Two apps which the authors suggest for learning English idioms are Idioms and also Learn American English – Free Word Power (p. 5); again, these are both available on iPhone and both free.
Nisbet and Austin further offer the following tips for enhancing the vocabulary of ESL students using apps: show students how to use the app, then offer guided practice followed by independent practice with a final opportunity to share their experiences (p. 6). Also, teachers should help learners identify their own vocabulary learning goals, and report that to the teacher regularly either orally or in writing.
Boisvert and Rao explain a teaching tool that uses technology called video self modeling. Video self modeling is one technology that can help students with interrupted formal education build self-efficacy in learning both English as well as academic content. The process, which involves helping the students to produce a video of themselves performing an academic or language task correctly, and then viewing that video of themselves successfully completing the “target skill or behavior” (Boisvert & Rao, 2015, p. 39). Currently, videos can easily be produced using webcams, iPhones, or iPads; desktop editing programs make it easy to edit the video to include only the best example of the student successfully mastering the behavior or skill.
Producing a self modeling video allows many opportunities for collaboration as well as authentice language practice, along with allowing for collaborative activities that can include opportunities for students to share their cultural backgrounds (Boisvert & Rao, 2015, p. 42-45).
Following is a list of technology resources for working with ESL students to develop their English language skills. The websites are suggested by the Connecticut State Department of Education (SDE:Curriculum and Instruction, 2016).
http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/cwp/view.asp?a=2618&q=320848
EL Strategies Desk Cards offer strategies that I can use to help students to understand assigned reading materials. For examaple: pre-teaching vocabulary, using visuals, scaffolding instruction, and providing opportunities for discussion can all enhance reading comprehension.
This site provides online practice in English skills at all grade levels. It is a part of a more comprehensive site called Using English.com.
http://capl.washjeff.edu/index.php
This is the Culturally Authentic Pictorial Lexicon website. I think that this site could be very useful to a student who is trying to find images or looking for an image to help understand a particular idea or word.
At this site, students can learn new vocabulary by playing games. Hang Man, Memorize, and Match It are three games that students can play. The game levels are adjustable by level of difficulty as well as use (business, colloquial, and basic vocabulary).
ESLBasics.com offers video clips with free resources. This looks like a great supportive resource for a student in the process of acquiring a second language because materials are presented visually and audially.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish
This site provides lessons in speaking and understanding English from a very basic and utilitarian level up through more complex vocabulary and language issues. There are many levels and units through which an English learner can work to become more proficient. I think, though, that they would need to be directed to this site, and perhaps have support finding the basic sections.
ESL Gold has literally thousands of resources to offer English learners at all levels. I think that people new to English would find this site a bit intimidating; however, people/students who have acquired more English would be able to use it without a problem.
http://www.realenglish-mobile.com/
This very cool site works with smart phones or tablets and it provides lessons in the form of short video clips with audio. Each clip is a lesson; the first is simply the many ways to say “Hello” in English. Each lesson is followed by a quiz.
This site features many poems and other writings which can be played via audio; the idea is to listen to and then repeat the English language. Some of the works are quite advanced, and I think this would not be very good for students who are just beginning to learn English.
The Vocabulary Builder at vocabulix.com could prove a useful tool in helping English learners acquire vocabulary.
Wordsteps is a wonderful web site for learning more thantwenty different languages. From basic to more advanced words, students can keep a personal dictionary of words they wish to master. This site is also available on mobile devices.
Ball, N. (2011). “Technology in Adult Education ESOL Classes.” Journal of Adult Education, 40(1), 12-19.
Boisvert, Precille, and Kavita Rao. (2015). “Video Self-Modeling for English Language Learners.” TESOL Journal 6, no.1:36-58. Accessed October 9, 2016
Nisbet, D., and Austin D. (2013). “Enhancing ESL Vocabulary Development Through the Use of Mobile Technology.” Journal of Adult ducation, 42 (1), 1-7.
SDE: Curriculum & Instruction. (2016, June 20). Retrieved October 15, 2016, from
http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/cwp/view.asp?A=2618