A Compilation of Internet Resources for ELL Teachers
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The slides in this presentation provide several Internet links for TESOL specialists who need a little help finding resources in all areas of language instruction. The pros and cons of each website are included.
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A Compilation of Internet Resources for ELL Teachers
- 1. USING INTERNET RESOURCES: A SHORT GUIDE FOR GRADES 9-12 ELL TEACHERS Presented by: Etienne A. Kouakou Venue: Bronx International High School
- 2. INTRODUCTION The Worldwide web as an indispensable teaching tool (Pringprom, 2011) Need to address various learning styles Availability of ready-to-use relevant and reliable resources Evaluate and Provide guidance
- 3. EVALUATION CRITERIA Site administrator Intended users Appropriateness and relevance Currency User-friendliness
- 4. CATEGORIES OF WEBSITES Reading and Literature Writing Listening and Speaking Practice Grammar Vocabulary Development
- 5. READING AND LITERATURE Newsela • Address: https://newsela.com/ • Author: Matthew Gross, CEO and Founder • Pros: Provides adjustable reading levels, interactive comprehension exercises, periodic student assessment for teachers • Cons: Pay to receive full benefits Lit2Go • Address: http://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/
- 6. READING AND LITERATURE (CONT.) • Author: University of South Florida • Pros: accessible full-text novels and short stories, organized by genre, readability (grade level), author, etc. audios available for may books. • Cons: None
- 7. WRITING PRACTICE Coloring Colorado, administered by Lydia Breiseth • Housed at : http://www.colorincolorado.org/index.php?langswitch=en Pros: provides resources in all language acquisition areas; resources in both English and Spanish; well organized and common core aligned Cons: May be overwhelming due to wide variety of choices.
- 8. WRITING PRACTICE (CONT.) Lesson Plans and Resources for ESL Bilingual and Foreign Language Teachers (created and administered by Marty Lavine, California State University) • Housed at http://www.csun.edu/~hcedu013/eslindex.html • Pros: Administered by a teacher trainer from state university; offers writing activities and exercises; links to other useful websites. • Cons: May be hard to navigate because of organization.
- 9. LISTENING AND SPEAKING PRACTICE Randall’s Cyber Listening Lab • Accessible at: http://www.esl-lab.com/ • Author: Randall Davis • Pros: Provides pre-listening, while listening, and post- listening activities; covers a wide range of topics; good for academic and social situations; quizzes available • Cons: ads on the page
- 10. LISTENING AND SPEAKING (CONT.) Learning English, a website of the British Broadcasting Corporation • Access: http://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/ • Pros: Organized by unit (10 altogether) broken into 5 sessions each; provides vocabulary and grammar relevant to the listening video clip; follow-up with practice exercises. • Cons: British English (may not be suitable for those who prefer American English).
- 11. GRAMMAR Perfect English Grammar, administered by Seonaid, Mphil • Access: http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/index.html • Pros: Covers a wide range of grammar topics; impeccable organization; interactive (for individualized practice) and downloadable exercises (PDF). • Cons: Seonaid is British, so watch for possible differences.
- 12. GRAMMAR (CONT.) ESL Grammar Lessons, administered by Randall Davis • Access: http://www.esl-lab.com/grammarquizzes.htm • Pros: Features a wide range of grammar topics organized by level (beginner-intermediate); video for some lessons; easy navigation. • Cons: Ads
- 13. VOCABULARY DEVELOPMENT A Guide to Learning English, administered by the Frankfurt International School • Access: http://esl.fis.edu/vocab/index.htm • Pros: Features general, subject-specific and academic vocabulary; practice exercises available; instructions for the teacher. • Cons: Presents vocabulary as a list—context provided only in exercises.
- 14. VOCABULARY DEVELOPMENT (CONT.) Academic Language for English Language Learners, Lydia Breiseth (Manager) • Access: http://www.colorincolorado.org/educators/academic/ • Pros: Advice for teachers, wide range of resources for teachers, powered by WETA (a reputable organization), aligned to Common Core Standards • Cons: Focused on teacher training
- 15. CONCLUSION AND FINAL THOUGHTS Web as an indispensable teaching tool Provides fun and relevant instruction Facilitates individualized instruction Promotes well-rounded learner Selecting wisely according to criteria makes a difference
- 16. REFERENCES Celce-Murcia, M. (2013). Teaching English as a second or foreign language. 4th ed. Florence, KY: Thomson Learning. 978-1111351694 Herrera, S., & Murray, K. (2010). Mastering ESL and bilingual methods: Differentiated instruction for culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students. 2nd ed. Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon . 9780137056699 Pringprom, P. (2011). Evaluation and Response from Students and Teachers on a Preliminary Launch of an ELT Resource-based Website. Proceedings Of The International Conference On Intellectual Capital, Knowledge Management & Organizational Learning, 418-426.
Editor's Notes
- Good evening everyone and welcome to Second Language Acquisition and Development. As you can see from the course outline, this is an introductory course. As such, we will survey the most important theories and models of language acquisition. It is up to those who are interested in deepening their knowledge of specific theories or models to carry out further research in their area of interest. There will be a Q&A session at the conclusion of my presentation, but do feel free to interrupt me if you need clarification on any aspect of it.
- At our last faculty meeting, I was asked to put together a short list of internet resources to guide our new colleagues in their search for resources to supplement and spice up their teaching. So I spent the last few days browsing the internet to see what’s out there. I have to tell you that this presentation is just a fraction of the wealth of resources you can find online. The objective here is not to be exhaustive, but to get some of our colleagues thinking critically in their search for supplemental materials, especially on the Worldwide Web. Let me begin by saying that the internet has became an indispensable tool for all professional, including all participants in the education of our children. In our attempts at differentiating instruction to cater to various learning styles, we need ready-to-use and relevant materials. There is no need to reinvent the wheel, especially when time is of the essence. Just turn to your computer and see what other colle’agues have available. But choosing he right resources can be a challenge unless you have a clear set of criteria.
- To compile this short list, I used the five criteria on the screen now—site administrator, intended users, appropriateness, currency and use-friendliness. When choosing a web resource, it is important to know who created it, what credentials the person has and who you can contact should you have any questions or want to make suggestions. It is equally important to know who are the targeted users—high school students, teachers, administrators, etc. Next, you need to find out about the appropriateness and relevance of the web resource. Are you looking for grammar, vocabulary or reading resources? What level do you need? What kind of resources, downloadable materials or interactive activities that are graded automatically? Next, think about currency. This notion refers to how up-to-date the content material is. Is the website updated regularly? You want to avoid data or information that is out of date. Those of you who teach computer science or history know how fast information can change. So you want to make sure that a web resources is frequently updated so the information you ;use for your class is fresh and relevant. Finally, how easy is it to navigate the website? Is the material organized logically according to specific criteria? The less you have to clic to access what you need, the better. When you decide go resource hunting on the web, remember at least these five criteria.
- In addition to the five criteria discussed in the previous slide, it is also important to know the kind of materials you need. Are you interested in reading, writing, listening, grammar or vocabulary development? This will help you narrow your search and find what you need faster and more easily.
- For reading and literature, I have identified two websites, which I think epitomize what most teachers want. Newsela, the first of these websites focuses more on news articles and nonfiction in general. Articles are grouped by subject and the level of difficulty is adjustable. You may read the same article on a 12th grade level or a 5th grade level. This makes it easier to differentiate by level of proficiency, as well as by interest. The site also features interactive reading comprehension exercises and periodic overall assessments for those who are paying members. Now this [is probably one of the disadvantages—that you have to pay to enjoy the most sophisticated features this website has to offer.
- The second website, Lit2Go is focused on literature. The site comprises many literary classics in full text. Equally interesting is the adjustability of profeici0ency. The material is organized along a variety of criteria—by genre, readability (grade level) by author, etc. Many of the books also have audio versions, so you may not have to read to your class. You can just download and us the audio. This audio can also be invaluable as listening comprehension tools. The website is administered by the University of South Florida, an educational institution, which guarantees iits value.
- For writing practice, I couldn’t a better website than Coloring Colorado. The website provides resources in all aspects of language acquisition, including, of course, writing. The resources are in both Spanish and English, which makes it an invaluable tool not just for ESL, but al[so for our colleague who teach in bilingual programs. The resources are well organized and aligned to the Common Core Standards. A little challenge with this website may be the wealth of resources it holds. The plethora of links may make navigation a little difficult to those who are still working on their computer skills. But overall, it’s a fantastic website for students, teachers and parents.
- The second writing-related website, Lesson Plans and Resources for ESL Bilingual and Foreign Language Teachers, is administered by Marty Lavine, a professor at California State University. The advantages are that the website offers writing activities and exercises. Additionally, there are links to other useful websites, which makes it easier to access other related resources. The only problem with this website is that iit may be difficult to navigate. At least to me, it was difficult to understand the logic that guides the organization of the resources.
- For listening and speaking, I chanced upon Randall’s Cyber Listening Lab. This is a fabulous website for listening; I find the organization very professional—pre-listening, while-listening and post-listening activities are all provided. In addition, the website covers a wide variety of topics from personal to professional. Finally, the site features quizzes to test students’ comprehension. A little issue may be the presence of ads on the website. But overall, navigation is relatively easy. And yes, the website has follow-up discussion activities!
- Learning English is a listening and speaking website administered by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). The material is organized by unit—10 altogether—and broken down into 5 sessions each. There vocabulary and grammar activities related to the video clips. The site also features follow-up practice exercises to help students further cement their learning. Now, be warned that this is British English. I personally do not see this as a problem, but it all depends of your students’ and your preferences.
- Grammar! Yes, some say teach it, others say don’t! Anyway, I believe students need to build a solid foundation and that grammar, if taught intelligently, can help fast-track students’ acquisition of some basics in writing. This website, administered by Seonaid (pronounced Shona) features a wide range of grammar topics with a strong focus on verb tenses. The organization is impeccable and you have a choice of downloadable and interactive resources. Caution, Seonaid is British, so you should watch for any potential difference in usage or even structure.
- The second grammar website is ESL Grammar Lessons, a website administered by the same Randall I spoke about earlier. The resources are organized randomly, but navigation is easy. The targeted audience comprise beginner and intermediate students. Several lessons have a video companion. The only problem here are the ads. The are several of them of the website and they can be annoying.
- Language development is essential. A strong vocabulary is an indicator of academic success according to Celce-Murcia (2013) and Herrera (2010). A Guide to Learning English, a website of the Frankfort International School features general vocabulary, subject-specific vocabulary, academic vocabulary, as well as practice exercises to help students use the vocabulary they have learned. Now, we all know that vocabulary is learned best in context. The practice exercises off that context. In addition to the resources, there is an abundance of guidance for the teacher. One little problem is that the vocabulary iis mostly presented as a set of lists, and you have to wait until the practice exercises to have some context. So be creative when using this website.
- The second vocabulary-related website is Academic Language for English Language Learners administered by Lydia Breiseth. The website has a wealth of advice for the teacher, as well as a wide array of resources for teachers. The resources for teacher helps with the creation of targeted materials. One important observation is that the materials are aligned to the Common Core State Standards. Most of the resources target teachers, so if you’re looking for materials for your students to practice, you might find it helpful to check out the various links also provided on the website.
- This conclude my presentation. In closing, let me reiterate that technology has become an indispensable teaching tool today. As teachers, it is our responsibility to create relevant and fun activities that promote learning for our students. We need to cater to a varied of backgrounds, interests and learning styles. Using the internet wisely can potentially help educators train well-rounded learners. It all depends on how wisely we select our resources. I hope this was helpful. Thank you all for you attention and participation!
- An opportunity for questions and discussions.