All of my students have an eagerness to learn but still struggle accessing the same information as their peers due to language connections or learning struggles. They are all ready to take their first steps into the 21st century and gain access through the Internet and all it has to offer.
All of my students are English Learners or students who are struggling at Below Basic and Far below Basic reading levels based on multiple measures like CST, NWEA, and report card grades.
Most of my students have not yet had access to computers or the Internet in their homes, so this leaves school to give them most or all of that exposure. None of them know how to type or use a track pad, and most don't know how to navigate using a mouse, let alone navigate on the internet. However, what they lack in technical know-how, they make up with in energy and enthusiasm. They are eager and engaged in the work we do and are ready to be pushed even more.
Our school is a large elementary school in the SF Bay Area. We have over 900 students with over 300 of them English learning students. My students are those that are both English learners and below basic or far below basic readers. The interventions put in place support over 60 students in critical thinking and reading comprehension.
My Project
With the Common Core State Standards testing being implemented online, these students need access and practice using the tools that they will have to take the test on. Having access to Chromebooks in the general Ed classroom and in interventions will allow these students additional time to become familiar with how to use them and access their features so they are not trying to learn how to use them and how to take the new CCSS test at the same time. The use of Chromebooks also allows the students to use apps, gain typing skills, familiarize themselves with a track pad, and navigate documents similar to how they will need to for their entire school careers. Additionally, the use of headphones with built in microphones allows students to do many things. They are able to read books on the computer and play back their voice to hear themselves read, think critically about their reading, and make adjustments on their own in addition to collaborating online through groups chats.
21st Century students are not students who just have a computer as a tool.
They are students who use these tools in an everyday setting. English Learners need to gain daily access to these Chromebooks in order to use them as easily as they would a textbook. These students have not had the same opportunities as their peers, creating an inequitable situation. By allowing these students access to the Chromebook tool through small group instruction puts them on par with their peers.
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