Blog Post #G- Chapter 10

Advances in technology have influenced and benefited the classroom in many ways. There are many ways that technology has impacted the classroom and has helped culturally and linguistically diverse students. Technology provides powerful ways to offer learning for diverse learners in many different ways that can benefit them. I think it is important to implement different technology tools to adapt to different and diverse students.

The first concept I would like to discuss is, how technology supports the learning of culturally and linguistically diverse students. There are many different tools that can support the learning of these students. These specific students include, African American, Latino, and Native American students, as well as students with special educational needs, and even students with a different first language. Below I have created a poster of the different techniques that implements technology and diverse learners. Each of these tools are great in assisting students who struggle with language barriers, instead of them feeling singled out, these can encourage them to involve themselves more in their learning and give them the confidence to learn the English language.

The second concept I would like to discuss is how educators can use different technology adaptations to create a classroom for every student. This involves making change to the learning environment so that every student has an equal opportunity to learn. Teachers can attain these classroom goals by many different methods and forms of technology. Some of these examples are hand held spellers, dictionaries, and calculators. Some of these basic tools can create a huge difference in classroom to create an environment that is effective for certain learners. All students should be able to express their individuality and their talents while learning. Teachers can encourage this by making their classrooms effective for everyone not only as a group but individual.

The third concept I would like to discuss is how assistive technologies can help teachers make the best out of their teaching for all their students. There are multiple tools that all students can participate in that they can all benefit from. Although some students may be hearing, sight, mobility, or cognitively challenged and impaired they can all benefit from the same type of assistive technology. While technology is a huge benefit and help factor to students there are also cases where you can over use technology. There are cases where students become dependent on technology and cannot learn or retain information without it therefore, this is not beneficial. Students must have a healthy relationship with technology and not over use it. The video below has great examples of different assistive technologies. Although it is a nine minute video, watching a small clip of it shows great strategies to implement in a future classroom.

Resources:

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc

Izquierdo, N (2015, October 19). Using Technology With Linguistically Diverse Learners . Created with Canva.