Learning with Computers Requires New Skills for Immigrant Students
2020-09-30
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1The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting education in many countries.
2Some immigrants to the United States are having to learn new skills to begin taking classes online.
3That is not always easy because of language difficulties and education cut short by earlier events in their lives.
4Necole Durham is a teacher in an adult education program in Atlanta, Georgia.
5She says it is hard to keep her English learners' attention.
6"There have been ups and downs with the online learning. I feel like I am more of a television production artist when I'm doing my classes. I feel like it has to be so entertaining ... because they have told me that there are days when they just don't feel like getting on the computer and looking at a computer screen... that's my job to figure out a way to make it so that they want to be there."
7Nicholas Rhea teaches in a program for English learners in Nashville, Tennessee.
8His students are mainly refugees and recently arrived immigrants.
9His team works with students whose education had been cut short.
10Rhea said the biggest difficulty in starting to learn on computers at-home is teaching the students how to use the internet and the computer itself.
11He told VOA he had to teach them special keys to press, that is "to hit control-alt-delete to log into the computer."
12Before joining the program, some of the students had never used e-mail before.
13Mary Mikulski works in a general education, or GED adult program in Springfield, Virginia.
14Her students come from all over the world.
15They are adult learners whose first language is usually not English.
16Like Rhea, Mikulski found that she had to spend a great deal of time teaching her students how to use the technology they would use in class.
17The teachers we spoke with found they had to choose different kinds of work for students to do at home.
18Durham noted that asking students to write as if they were in the classroom did not seem to work after going online.
19Few students did the homework and correcting it made a lot of work for her.
20So, she decided to use software applications, like iSLCollective and Kahoot!, that give corrections immediately.
21She said these apps are easy on the teacher and keep the students' attention.
22After Rhea started offering classes online, he recognized that some of his students did not have the internet or a telephone.
23Luckily, the local school system has a "one-to-one" computer policy for students.
24This means that the school system gives a computer to each student if they need it.
25Also, if the family does not have internet connection, they can receive a device that provides one.
26Rhea also had to find ways to communicate with the families of his students.
27He and other teachers use apps like Remind or Talking Points to send messages to students and their parents.
28These programs change the language from English to the first language of the student.
29At times, he visited the families at their homes to give them information on how the classes would work online.
30Rhea said that he wants to give his students the tools to be able to work online.
31He wants to show them how to use an email, how to join an online meeting, and how to be independent learners.
32One helpful thing with messaging online, he notes, is that students can use small pictures, such as GIFs or emojis, to send messages without using English.
33"Like 'How are you feeling today?' and then they post up some emoji or something like that - really accessible."
34Rhea thinks the pictures help students stay involved with messaging online when they do not know the words to show how they are feeling.
35Rhea understands the feeling of tiredness many students have from long video calls.
36To help them, he made some activities that involve traditional writing instruments, such as a pen.
37"...So just going outside and writing down, drawing pictures of what they see, and then they can just hold that up to the camera later or take a picture of it and upload it to the discussion, so the main activities aren't actually online, they're outside.
38For example, one of his students counts ten things he sees during a walk to help learn new words.
39Another student works at a market and learns new words by remembering the names of the products being sold.
40Rhea thinks it is important to find ways to keep the students' attention without using a computer.
41Shortly after the pandemic was declared, Mikulski spent most of her time helping students learn how to operate computers.
42For example, some of her students did not know what a 'tab,' or window in a computer application, was.
43Many of her students were using their phones for everything, so they had to learn from the beginning how to use a computer.
44Many teachers also found that they learned from each other.
45Mikulski said in one meeting with teachers, she noticed a new way to have students be more active in the class.
46She saw how other teachers permitted students to write their answers on the same image the teacher is showing.
47"It was like an 'aha!' moment: 'Oh, you give them a link to your Google slideshow instead of the present mode.' And then they stay on their copy."
48She notes that social-emotional learning is important as well.
49After Mikulski taught her students how to use the computer, she recognized her students were missing the connections they would have had in class.
50She permitted her students to interact with one another during her office hours.
51Mikulski said that developing relationships with the students and the local community is a top concern.
52She said that an important consideration for teachers is "knowing your students so that when you teach, you can reach more people."
53Durham noted that one appealing thing about her adult classes has been the chance to meet people and make friends.
54In the online classes, she builds the feeling of community by giving students time to talk with each other in breakout rooms - a way to form a small group within a larger online meeting.
55I'm Jill Robbins.
56And I'm Gregory Stachel.
1The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting education in many countries. Some immigrants to the United States are having to learn new skills to begin taking classes online. That is not always easy because of language difficulties and education cut short by earlier events in their lives. 2Necole Durham is a teacher in an adult education program in Atlanta, Georgia. She says it is hard to keep her English learners' attention. 3"There have been ups and downs with the online learning. I feel like I am more of a television production artist when I'm doing my classes. I feel like it has to be so entertaining ... because they have told me that there are days when they just don't feel like getting on the computer and looking at a computer screen... that's my job to figure out a way to make it so that they want to be there." 4Nicholas Rhea teaches in a program for English learners in Nashville, Tennessee. His students are mainly refugees and recently arrived immigrants. His team works with students whose education had been cut short. 5Rhea said the biggest difficulty in starting to learn on computers at-home is teaching the students how to use the internet and the computer itself. He told VOA he had to teach them special keys to press, that is "to hit control-alt-delete to log into the computer." 6Before joining the program, some of the students had never used e-mail before. 7Mary Mikulski works in a general education, or GED adult program in Springfield, Virginia. Her students come from all over the world. They are adult learners whose first language is usually not English. Like Rhea, Mikulski found that she had to spend a great deal of time teaching her students how to use the technology they would use in class. 8Change in given work 9The teachers we spoke with found they had to choose different kinds of work for students to do at home. Durham noted that asking students to write as if they were in the classroom did not seem to work after going online. Few students did the homework and correcting it made a lot of work for her. 10So, she decided to use software applications, like iSLCollective and Kahoot!, that give corrections immediately. She said these apps are easy on the teacher and keep the students' attention. 11Getting connected 12After Rhea started offering classes online, he recognized that some of his students did not have the internet or a telephone. Luckily, the local school system has a "one-to-one" computer policy for students. This means that the school system gives a computer to each student if they need it. Also, if the family does not have internet connection, they can receive a device that provides one. 13Rhea also had to find ways to communicate with the families of his students. He and other teachers use apps like Remind or Talking Points to send messages to students and their parents. These programs change the language from English to the first language of the student. At times, he visited the families at their homes to give them information on how the classes would work online. 14Rhea said that he wants to give his students the tools to be able to work online. He wants to show them how to use an email, how to join an online meeting, and how to be independent learners. 15Communicating with pictures 16One helpful thing with messaging online, he notes, is that students can use small pictures, such as GIFs or emojis, to send messages without using English. 17"Like 'How are you feeling today?' and then they post up some emoji or something like that - really accessible." 18Rhea thinks the pictures help students stay involved with messaging online when they do not know the words to show how they are feeling. 19Rhea understands the feeling of tiredness many students have from long video calls. To help them, he made some activities that involve traditional writing instruments, such as a pen. 20"...So just going outside and writing down, drawing pictures of what they see, and then they can just hold that up to the camera later or take a picture of it and upload it to the discussion, so the main activities aren't actually online, they're outside. 21For example, one of his students counts ten things he sees during a walk to help learn new words. Another student works at a market and learns new words by remembering the names of the products being sold. Rhea thinks it is important to find ways to keep the students' attention without using a computer. 22Teachers and students alike learn new ways 23Shortly after the pandemic was declared, Mikulski spent most of her time helping students learn how to operate computers. For example, some of her students did not know what a 'tab,' or window in a computer application, was. Many of her students were using their phones for everything, so they had to learn from the beginning how to use a computer. 24Many teachers also found that they learned from each other. Mikulski said in one meeting with teachers, she noticed a new way to have students be more active in the class. She saw how other teachers permitted students to write their answers on the same image the teacher is showing. 25"It was like an 'aha!' moment: 'Oh, you give them a link to your Google slideshow instead of the present mode.' And then they stay on their copy." 26She notes that social-emotional learning is important as well. After Mikulski taught her students how to use the computer, she recognized her students were missing the connections they would have had in class. She permitted her students to interact with one another during her office hours. 27Mikulski said that developing relationships with the students and the local community is a top concern. She said that an important consideration for teachers is "knowing your students so that when you teach, you can reach more people." 28Durham noted that one appealing thing about her adult classes has been the chance to meet people and make friends. In the online classes, she builds the feeling of community by giving students time to talk with each other in breakout rooms - a way to form a small group within a larger online meeting. 29I'm Jill Robbins. 30And I'm Gregory Stachel. 31Gregory Stachel and Jill Robbins wrote this story for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 32_______________________________________________________________ 33Words in This Story 34entertain - v. to perform for (an audience) : to provide amusement for (someone) by singing or acting 35screen - n. the usually flat part of a television or computer that shows the images or written material; the part of a television or computer that you look at when you are using it 36figure out - phrasal verb. to understand or find (something, such as a reason or a solution) by thinking 37application - n. a computer program that performs a special operation (such as word processing) 38feedback - n. helpful information or criticism that is given to someone to say what can be done to improve a performance, product 39accessible - adj. able to be reached or approached 40drawing - n. a picture, image, etc., that is made by making lines on a surface with a pencil, pen, marker, or chalk 41moment - n. a very short period of time 42mode - n. the state in which a machine performs an operation 43Are there refugees or immigrants in your country? During the pandemic, how are people helping them to live in your country and speak your language? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.