Edtech By Marketscale

Teachers working with young students who are learning English as a second language already have to fight through several barriers. The COVID-19 pandemic added another. Whether educating in person or virtually, as so many are because of the coronavirus, Istation bilingual professional development specialists Julie Robinson and Michele Kimball see plenty of challenges ahead for teachers in the young school year. One question teachers have is how students are progressing. While, in person, a puzzled look may come across a student’s face or a child may ask a question to show they don’t comprehend the material, that’s less likely over an online platform. “I think some of the biggest struggles will be as an educator going, ‘OK, do they understand what I asked them to do? How can I really do those checks for understanding?’,” Robinson said. “When I’m in my classroom, I can see that look on their face that they’re lost or get a thumbs up or thumbs down or where are you at on this scale … It’s really hard to do that w