English Language Learners and Technology: Applying Universal Design for Learning and the Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol in the Evaluation of Literacy Support Software

The population of culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students in U.S. schools has been steadily increasing. These students do not experience equal educational opportunity in U.S. secondary schools. CLD students need to develop English literacy as well as content knowledge to attain equal educational opportunity. Teachers of CLD students need techniques and tools which support CLD students in mastering the content expected of secondary school students while acquiring English literacy. The criteria for effective lesson design and delivery inherent in the Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP) and the criteria for designing curriculum without barriers to access inherent in Universal Design for Learning (UDL) are combined into a researcher-created assessment tool, the Literacy Support Software Evaluation Protocol (LSSEP). Nine software applications are evaluated for their effective use with CLD students. The LS SEP is made available for use on other literacy support software

Integrating Internet resources into the learning of English as a foreign language in a Taiwanese high school : a case study.

This research study explores use of Internet resources for learning English as a foreign language (EFL) in Taiwanese high school EFL education. The overall objectives of this research are to examine qualitatively 40 high school students\u27 performance, attitudes, and learning strategies using an experimental Internet-integrated learning mode; to consider its potential impact on current EFL education in Taiwan; and to gain insight into the feasibility of integrating the Internet into Taiwanese high school EFL standard curriculum. Subjects were engaged in thematic, purposeful, collaborative Internet-integrated learning activities where English is used for data searching, group discussion, and individual presentation, as well as for acquiring knowledge of other subject matter. E-mail messages, mailing lists, interviews, questionnaires and subjects\u27 writing samples were collected and analyzed. Students\u27 performances were recorded through fieldnotes, audiotaping, and videotaping. Results indicate that the Internet-integrated learning environment sufficiently scaffolded subjects in information processing and knowledge construction of the target language via exploration, discovery, and meaning-negotiated interactions. Results are discussed in terms of meeting the demands of information and human resources required for effective EFL learning and reshaping the role of instructor as guide and co-learner. Also discussed is how the Internet-integrated mode facilitates interdisciplinary, collaborative and learner-centered EFL learning and incorporates students\u27 and teachers\u27 interests and expertise. Finally, recommendations are offered for future research studies, including possibly developing a compatible assessment system and establishing an EFL instruction web station to convince and support teachers interested in conducting authentic, cross-cultural, and learner-centered EFL instruction with the aid of rich and dynamic multimedia resources on the Internet

Translanguaging Writing Strategies for the High School Classroom and Low-Level Literacy EL Students

Translanguaging has been shown to be a successful strategy to support high school EL students in accessing content knowledge, prior knowledge, and preserving a student’s cultural identity. Many emergent bilingual students struggle to access content due to low-level literacy in their first language, and the high content demands of high school. This is especially true when it comes to writing in English. Using translanguaging writing strategies, such as pre-writing in the student’s L1, discussion in L1, and translated texts, allows students to showcase what they know and meet standards. This capstone project resulted in a Canvas Course for high school teachers that provides strategies for using translanguaging in writing to help English Learners demonstrate content knowledge

The effect of computer-mediated discussion on L2 academic writing in a composition course for ESL students

textThis dissertation research investigated the role of online discussion in students’ experience in an academic writing class. As an intervention study, I implemented 20-minute-long online discussions at the end of every class period over a semester as part of required class activities and measured students’ subsequent timed writings and their first and final essays to trace some possible influence from online discussion to their writing development. Topics for online discussions were organized according to course objectives and the day’s lesson, with students developing subtopics reflecting their own interest according to the evolution of each discussion. These topics included theoretical concepts on academic writing as well as orthographical, lexical, grammar, and discourse-related inquiries. Participants included 10 treatment and 12 control students registered in two sections of a rhetoric and composition course designated for non-native English speaking students at a private university. This course was not an ESL class, but was part of the regular composition course offerings, except that it was restricted to international students specifically. Data sources included the treatment group’s 26 online discussion transcripts, 12 sets of timed writings, individual interviews, field notes, two types of essays, and surveys. The control group contributed essays, one set of timed writing taken in the middle of the semester, survey responses, five class recordings, and an instructor interview. Data analysis was performed by using a mixed method approach. Results from online discussion transcripts revealed that treatment students made use of online discussions for their learning, shown through types and characteristics of language-, content-, and writing-related episodes and the semester-long changes and pattern in such talk. Interviews and survey data showed students’ positive learning experiences and changes in their perception toward computer-mediated learning experiences over the semester. In terms of students’ writing, the treatment group made significant improvement in their timed writings over the semester and also outperformed the control group in essay writing significantly, in five of seven categories on a writing rubric. The most significant finding from this study was the improvement of treatment students’ writing scores over the semester. This study suggests the possible value of incorporating computer-mediated instruction in writing instruction as well as future research ideas that bridge research on traditional L2 writing and technology-enriched language learning.Foreign Language Educatio

Fun Bilingual-Bimodal Ebooks For Deaf Children

Ebooks provide new ways to advance developing literacy among deaf children. While some aim to promote literacy through explicit pedagogical techniques, the new ebooks described here aim only to offer stories that are fun to share, encouraging learning through interaction that naturally fosters language and preliteracy skills. Reading for pleasure is recognized as valuable for hearing children; it needs to be recognized as such for deaf children. We present the rationale for these ebooks and give examples of how they advance preliteracy skills, in the hopes that those raising and educating deaf children will use them, offered gratis on the Internet

Teaching Writing for Students with Learning Disabilities in an Inclusive Classroom Setting: A Curriculum Development Project

Students with learning disabilities often struggle with writing. They lack the appropriate strategies to use while writing, which leaves them frustrated and unwilling to continue writing. Teachers need to find strategies that will help their students become more engaged and excited about their writing. Finding effective strategies for planning, composing, and revising writing pieces will help students with learning disabilities become more proficient writers. Some strategies that can be used are graphic organizers, TREE, PLEASE, and CDO. These are different planning, composing, and revising strategies that can be taught to help the students become more effective with their writing. Being able to write proficiently is an important life skill that everyone needs to learn. Helping students with learning disabilities develop better writing skills will help them become more successful students and will lead them to a better future. In order for students with learning disabilities to become better writers, they need to be given appropriate strategies in planning, composing, and revising written pieces. This session will provide information on students with learning disabilities, writing, and strategies that can be used to help these students become successful writers. An example of a lesson plan aligned with the Educative Teacher Performance Assessment (edTPA) will be incorporated to show how these strategies can be used

The online challenge: how to design, build, and implement student-centered online introductory German language courses at the college level

Master's Project (M.Ed.) University of Alaska Fairbanks, 2023Online teaching has become a regular delivery method at higher education institutions, and with education shifting from traditional classrooms to online, instructors are encouraged to teach their courses online. In 2015, and with the assistance of eCampus at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, I started developing professional online courses from previous face-to-face courses. I not only transposed/translated my teaching approach to an online format; I built a professional online course with an architecture that is my own design. To better understand the transition from teaching in the classroom to online, I wanted to hear from students who had taken both types of courses. This led to the included project, “The Online Challenge,” which describes and explains the process of translating and transposing faceto-face courses and their teaching approaches into professionally designed online courses. It gives insight into the differences between teaching a foreign language course face-to-face and online, as well as the students’ opinions about those differences. Now, eight years later, the German department at the University of Alaska Fairbanks is offering eight different 100- and 200-level online college courses in the German language. Student numbers have tripled, eCampus uses the architecture of my course for the development of other courses at the university, and my design has been recognized and chosen to be presented at a national conference by the American Online Consortium, the premier organization for online learning. Hopefully, other colleagues making the switch to online learning find inspiration from this paper for their field and student body

Improving academic writing skills among undergraduates at a Hispanic serving university in South Texas with cooperative learning, scaffolded instruction, and formative feedback

Three teaching strategies: scaffolded instruction, cooperative learning, and formative feedback were analyzed to determine their effectiveness in improving academic writing skills among undergraduates at a Hispanic serving university in south Texas. Hispanic youth in the United States are graduating from high school and college at significantly lower rates than students from all other ethnic backgrounds. This mixed methods study was conducted during the spring semester of 2011. Forty-six students from two education classes participated. Data from a pre and post test survey, writing samples, and interviews were analyzed. Positive gains were seen in all areas of academic writing, but larger gains were seen in some areas of academic writing than others. The majority of the participants in this study improved substantially in their ability to follow APA formatting guidelines and in the area of style. Small positive gains were observed in the areas of writing mechanics, content, and organization. The three instructional strategies used in this study were perceived by the participants to support growth in academic writing. All of the participants perceived the instructional techniques used in this study to be helpful techniques for supporting growth in academic writing, regardless of their language or educational background. A major implication of this study is that college professors should use a combination of cooperative learning, scaffolded instruction, and formative feedback to support students in learning the different types of academic writing needed for success in college

The Enactment of Academic Language Policy in the International University: A Mixed-Methods Investigation

The existing literature on international education in relation to language policy has suggested that internationalizing higher education (HE) does not ensure interculturality (Bash, 2009; Durant & Shepherd, 2009; Jenkins, 2014; Seidlhofer, 2011); the potential relationship between the internationalization of HE and language remains unclear (Jenkins, 2014; Meyer, Gekeler, Manger, & Urank, 2012; Saarinen, 2012). This study responds to the timely question regarding what kind of language policy can meet the needs of international students in an increasingly globalized academic culture (Jenkins, 2014) by adding a Canadian voice to the debate and featuring the changing sociolinguistic realities in internationalized Canadian HE. This study aims to investigate the language policy for non-native English speaking (NNES) international students, as enacted at three interrelated but not necessarily congruent levels: language management, language beliefs, and language practices, with a particular focus on English for Academic Purposes (EAP) programs as an integral part of the ‘international’ university. Employing a mixed-methods approach, I collected data from document analysis, questionnaires, interviews, and classroom observations in three EAP programs in Canada. I draw on the theoretical framework of language policy (Spolsky, 2004, 2009, 2012/2018), and complementary concepts of mechanism (Shohamy, 2006) and plurilingual and pluricultural competence (Coste, Moore, & Zarate, 2009) to interpret and analyze the data. Findings of this study shed light on the two-fold characteristics of the tripartite language policy in the EAP domain. While there is increasing awareness of the homogenizing influence of internationalization as embodied in the monolingual orientation in language policy, international students’ languages and cultural differences are marginalized in the current educational structures (e.g., instruction, curriculum, and assessment) of EAP. The findings suggest that plurilingualism may serve as an alternative approach to reshaping the educational structures of EAP in alignment with internationalization. The results contribute to language policymaking by deepening current understanding of how language policies and practices can, or are intended to, respond to the call for a greater diversification of languages, nationally and internationally