How can teachers maximize engagement among multilingual students?
While reading Cummins’s article (2019) titled, “How Can Teachers Maximize Engagement among Multilingual Students?” I recognized thematically throughout Cummins ambiguously highlighting the ideas of adaptability and curriculum as praxis. Creating a classroom prioritizing adaptability requires educators to identify inequities and alter learning opportunities towards equitable classrooms.
Adaptability will promote engagement by allowing students to feel the tasks proposed throughout learning are achievable. Adapting lessons by allowing students to utilize their lingual differences will enrich learning development.
Curriculum as praxis is just as vital in promoting engagement and success. Last year, I had the opportunity to live with a multilingual exchange student while attending university. The lessons I learnt from her will impact my future teaching career. Her biggest complaint about our education system was timed tests. She stated that she struggled with comprehending questions when they were written in English. When she struggled with comprehension, she needed to translate them to Spanish before understanding, which the time limit did not allow for. If educators considered her individual learning needs and difficulties that extend beyond school, her success rate and comfortability would increase.
What are some effective ways to integrate multilingual instructional strategies into classrooms?
The article (Cummins, 2019) describes many strategies to incorporate multilingual instruction into lessons. Cummins (2019) includes allowing students to work in their home language and promoting the incorporation of homelife into school. One of my favourite strategies to implement students’ personalities and interests into the classroom is Genius Hour which I have mentioned many times before.
To read about Genius Hour, click here
Genius Hour could be utilized for multilingual students to teach other classmates about their language or something that interests them, incorporating their lingual differences.
References
Cummins, J. (2019, February 21). How Can Teachers Maximize Engagement Among Multilingual Students? EdCan Network. https://www.edcan.ca/articles/multilingual-students/
Genius hour. Resources & Guidance from The Learning Accelerator. (n.d.). Retrieved March 23, 2023, from https://practices.learningaccelerator.org/strategies/genius-hour
I loved how you connected multilingualism integration strategies as curriculum as praxis. Using praxis does not have to take up much extra planning time and can make a world of a difference in a student’s life! How will you fix the issue of having timed tests in your classroom, especially when you have a day packed with other activities? I think genius hour is a great idea for students to build connections with their peers while also making it an engaging learning experience.