Krishnan presses on ELL technology use policy and teacher professional development
Krishnan asks whether DOE has considered what screen use looks like for ELLs beyond just allowing it, and whether ENL teachers receive specific professional development on technology use. McDonald describes curricular scaffolds and PD within NYC READS curriculum.
Okay, well.
There is a fear and a concern, and I think it's rooted in reality, the reality we see around screens where it's the solution to a problem rather than a tool to enhance learning.
And in your policy, have you considered not just that we're allowed to give screens to multilingual learners, but what that looks like?
Absolutely.
So again, grounded in the rest of the policy around that we do not have any unstructured, unfeathered, unsupervised time with our students using the devices.
And so that same requirement that when English language learners are using instructional technology devices, that it's something that is directly tied, it is intentionally connected to the content that the student would be learning,
and then is equitable to the grade level that the students will be participating in.
And lastly, as part of your policy, are ENL teachers being specifically provided with professional development related to technology use for English language learners?
As a part of the New York City READS curriculum, we're working on a variety of curricular bases.
And some of these include scaffolds for English language learners as well as some home language curriculum that do have some technological elements that teachers are receiving professional development in if they're participating in those curricula.