![]() "There are several people out there who do use these devices in ELL classrooms, but by far we've taken this idea and moved it forward by giving our ELL students ownership of these devices for the year, rather than requiring them to turn them in at the end of the day or the end of the class period. "We were one of the first districts in the state that implemented an iPod Touch ELL initiative to the level and fidelity that we have," remarks Sandra Shelton, executive director of technology at Comal ISD. So in September 2009, after providing extensive professional development for its middle school ELL instructors, the district issued the devices to the estimated 130 ELL students that attend its five middle schools. The only device that matched all of the educators' requirements was the iPod Touch. We also needed the tool to include translators, dictionaries, and other language-based tools that are important for an ESL student, and to be small enough for the students to carry in their pocket, so they have constant access to these important resources." "We needed a device that would allow them to make recordings at home. "Also, from a teacher's perspective, it was extremely important that the tool allow students to record their voice so that their fluency could be monitored," explains Jennifer Wivagg, Comal ISD's instructional media specialist. ![]() The list included support for textbooks in audio format, access to English language movies and videos, and internet access both at school and off campus (whether at home or a local WiFi hotspot). When administrators and ELL educators at Comal ISD were hunting for a device that would help bridge the gap in test scores between general-ed and ELL students, they brainstormed a list of tasks that they'd like the ELL students to be able to do with the tool. Though it's too soon to collect significant quantitative data regarding the effect these devices have on English language learners, the experiences of the students and teachers using iPads and iPod Touches at these districts demonstrate the devices' potential to enrich, enhance, and extend ELL instruction beyond the boundaries of the traditional classroom environment. In the classroom he would only communicate in Spanish, but in the privacy of his own home, knowing that only the teacher would hear the recording, he had a breakthrough his teacher was able to hear him speak English for the first time.ĭistrict 214 and Comal ISD are pioneers in the incorporation of mobile devices such as the iPad and iPod Touch in the ELL classroom. The next day, after she syncs the devices to her iTunes library, she listens to a recording made by a student who has refused to speak English since joining her class two years prior. Meanwhile, in a middle school ELL classroom at Comal Independent School District in New Braunfels, TX, a teacher asks her students to bring their iPod Touch devices home and use their voice memo apps to record themselves reading aloud in English. Each armed with an iPad, they swipe their fingers across the screen, consulting their translation and dictionary apps to access forgotten key words and clarify difficult ideas-conversational moments that in the past would have left them frustrated enough to remain segregated outside of the classroom. But if you walked into that cafeteria anytime after September 2010, when the school launched its iPad initiative, you'd see a much different scene: students from around the world connecting with their fellow English language learners in their new, shared language. The students at the center emigrated from countries around the world, and up until about a year ago, if you walked into the school's cafeteria during lunch, you'd see them separated into cliques or pairs based on their native tongue, chatting in the language they're most comfortable with rather than practicing the language they're trying to learn. The school is a temporary stopover for these students-they stay at the center for about a year, building up their English-language skills, and are then transferred to an ESL program at their home school in the district. The typical student at the Newcomer Center, an alternative school in Township High School District 214 in Arlington Heights, IL, is a recent immigrant with little or no English skills. Two schools transform their ELL programs by giving students around-the-clock access to some of the latest mobile devices.
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