As we continue to struggle in this unprecedented crisis, the Integrated Learning Team at Learning Empowered wants wish our English language and civics students, community members, and partners to stay safe and healthy. We want to reaffirm our commitment to empower our students with the online tools and legal assistance they need to successfully complete the naturalization process. We also know we can find strength and support in our community that believe in our unique naturalization program that infuses asset-centered teaching, digital technology, legal support, ESOL, and civics instruction.
As the result of the COVID-19 pandemic, we are seeing the trauma and sudden challenges many of our students and their families face every day now magnified with schools being closed: homelessness, job loss, hunger… We feel unprepared and scramble to respond to these challenges real-time by calling our students or their family members to translate and helping them with their unemployment applications and resources to foodbanks while keeping teaching and learning going in some way, shape, or form. These uncertain times have tested our coping skills with technology, communication, and traumatic circumstances.
While we navigate the uncertainty this pandemic has imposed, one thing remains clear: whether 6 feet apart or 100 miles away, we will continue to adapt to the new conditions to serve our community through virtual events, legal and advocacy outreach.
On behalf of the Integrated Learning Team, I would like to share what we are learning about what practitioners can do during this time to address issues of inclusion in their online classrooms.
Collect needs analysis — assess students’ and teachers’ needs for online learning. What kinds of online platforms do they use for learning/teaching? How do they interact on those learning platforms? Use learner-friendly and accessible communication and remote learning tools to connect with students. WhatsApp and Zoom
Support educators in developing knowledge in these platforms through training and online webinars. We offered professional development sessions on remote learning, and we reached out to help less tech-savvy teachers. We also observed several classes to assist instructors and students. Provided training to volunteers.
Connect with students remotely — Checking in before the online classes with students helped me understand their traumatic experiences of our students. About 70% of our students have experienced sudden unemployment and limited resources for food/medical care
Draw on learners’ language and digital literacy repertoires in teaching and communication contexts. For these reasons, trans-languaging can play a vital instructional role when teachers encourage students to convey meaning using the new language where they can and switch to another language to fill gaps.
Our Citizenship Team is a resilient one, and even though we are more physically separated than ever before, we are also reminded of what brings us together: our dedication to the teaching of civics and English and our commitment to the learners and community members that we serve. It is this dedication to our service that will undoubtedly help us overcome the many obstacles we now face. Like many nonprofit organizations, the Citizenship Team is looking forward to the day when we can once again come together in-person and celebrate our renewed vision and commitment. This day will come. Until then, we hope for the continued health and safety of all our citizenship students and supporters.
We invite you to show your own appreciation for the citizenship students and the Citizenship Program here: https://www.learning-empowered.org/donate.