Social Media, Technology, TikTok

Social media is a great platform to learn from. We can learn about fads, singing, dancing, learning about math and about current and past events. Technology is a great way for teachers to use as learning tools and help students in their learning journey. We all have valuable important information, tips, tricks that we can take away and learn from each other. With social media it allows more people to see and share this great information. So, I have been watching educational TikTok from a variety creators that share lots of great information which leaves me to have a new perspective and to be a more positive person with myself.

One of the creators named Anna has one video about the variation in pronouncing the following words tomatoes, either, neither, groceries and more that can be pronounced slightly different depending on where you are from and who you are listening to when speaking.  One word that I thought of that was not mentioned in the video is the word garage. I think of two ways that I can say the word garage and both arebeing correct.

Anna also has a video called, “Linking English Part One” and “Linking English Part Two” where she mentions if a word ends in a constant sound and the next word starts with a vowel it can be confusing for people who are learning English. For example, “someone I know” may sound like “someone-I” leading English language learners to be confused on deciphering what the words are and what the words mean as it sometimes sounds like one big word when people start talking fast. I believe we can correct this by being more considerate when we are speaking, asking for clarification, or spelling the words out as we speak. Most of all educators must be aware of these confusions that may arise for our students.

Another user of TikTok is a Canadian Indigenous man that goes by the username the_land. He talks about Indigenous culture and traditions with the dances that their tribe follows and believes in. I enjoy his videos as they are informational, which give me more insight on indigenous culture and traditions helping myself grow as a better teacher. These videos gives me ideas of what to do in my future classroom. This is a great account as a resource for people of all ages to learn from each other.

There is also another great indigenous man who educates people about his culture and heritage in a positive manner. His videos have allowed me to think deep about the indigenous ways of living. There is one video that James captions “Always be proud of your culture” ,where he shows three different hair styles; single braid down his back, two braided strands down his back and three braided strands down his back that represent the body, the mind and spirit. Learning about indigenous hair and how culture relates to everything allows my knowledge to grow further and giving me more insight on new information. (James Jones has a whole series dedicated to braiding hair.) James addresses the question, “Do all indigenous men have to grow out their hair?”; he goes on politely and honorably by educating others by saying no. We do not all look, speak the same and that there are over 500 different tribes across North America. Each tribe may have different teachings, beliefs, languages but they are all family. I love this idea of family, as it is a great sense community.

I have downloaded the app tiktok so I can continue to learn along side all these great creators that I can learn from. I hope to start creating videos once the semester is over so I have more time to dedicate my time to create good, engaging content for people of all ages.

I recognize the importance of sharing information and the instructional strategies these creators use. Many videos have lots of great tips and advice that helps and support English Language Learners, pre-service and service teachers. We all continue to learn and as a pre-service teachers, we must ensure all students have the opportunity to learn in different ways. I know I have been watching some tips and tricks on classroom management, lesson and assessment ideas and I would not have the opportunity with out technology. I want to promote my students to use technology to be creative and educate others as well. I suggest all teachers to stay on top of the technology in your classroom and get to know what apps students are using to create conversations and help form relationships with students. Build that community in and out of the classroom. Together.

Learning with English Language Learner

Hayley and I prepared a fun interactive experience for our English Language Learners where we were able to get to know our students with basic introducing each other in our conversation. All of the students communicated and participated within the conversation which was a proud moment for me. It was nice to be able to connect with the students, see some new faces and some familiar faces from last time we met and be able to see their confidence in they way they spoke and asked questions.

As we started the presentation, we created a small PowerPoint where there are video streaming pictures and questions that were used to prompt students. This allowed us to continue to connect on a deeper level and get to know their interests based on what the students watch on video streaming websites and apps. I ensured that the questions ranged in ability and tried to include how and why questions. I found the students were all excited and eager to be talking with Hayley and I.

However, two of the three groups talked more about video games rather than television which caught me off guard. So, we had to compromise and ask new and slightly different open-ended questions to support the conversation moving along. It was great conversation for all three groups and I was happy to see and hear the students partcipating and asking about Hayley and I. It made the conversation more mature and realistic on a personal level.

All the students were thoughtful and considerate when speaking and asking questions. A few times both parties restated what they had said for more clarity. I loved having the experience with the English Language Learners as something new and directly learned from each other.

I am happy and appreciate that Rubina presented myself and my classmates with these great hands-on opportunity to deepen our learning. I have gained great insight from the lectures and was able to put my skills to practice with the English Language Learners. Furthermore, it has presented me with more experience and exposure to English Language Learners as I have very limited experience and hope to use the skills from this class to help me moving forward into internship in the Fall 2021 and my future classroom. It is important to note that these strategies can be used for Indigenous students and students who may need extra help in English Language Arts as we can all learn from each other!