Emily Rose Skirtich

Reflection on ELL and the Role of Technology

           I was struck by the universal role that Laura plays as the teacher who has little to no

background in teaching ELLs, yet she feels pressured to assimilate to the changing multicultural

classroom.  Like Laura, there are thousands of teachers in schools across the United States who

encounter this phenomenon each year, and more cases are cropping up and will continue to crop

up as the number of ELLs in the country increases.  For teachers like Laura who have never

before had to integrate ELLs into the classroom before due to a different all Caucasian

demography, they are at a loss when it comes to altering the delivery of the curriculum and even

more disheartened when the seek advice and direction from the administration, who is just as

confused, if not more confused, than the teachers themselves.

            To me as a future educator, I search for answers instead of focusing on the problems and

finding a scapegoat to the dismal situation.  The solution is clear: in order to demand higher

expectations and results from the faculty, the administration must meet those demands as well. 

School administrators and leaders need to have the necessary experience as educators in order to

efficiently and logically run a school.  If a school principal expects teachers to have the

background and experience teaching ELLs, then that administrator should also have that

experience.  Without walking the path himself that he deems the teachers should walk, the school

administrator loses all credibility and reasoning with the faculty.  Even though school districts

face huge deficit never before encountered, our students should remain our priority.  To provide

the best education for our students, we need to hire the best teachers and provide ongoing

professional development for our teachers as they encounter some hiccups throughout the school
 Emily Rose Skirtich

year, including handling an increase in the number of ELLs in a school’s demography.  By better

equipping the teachers with a higher level of skills sets and ongoing professional development,

schools will encounter and overcome many more issues than if they avoid potential problems. 

            Technology plays a pivotal role in the overall success of many ELL students as they have

been required to adjust to the English language and adhere to most school policies in which there

are few if any accommodations for students who do not speak English.  With pervasive

technologies that are readily available in classrooms across America, there is a higher chance

that students who are not native English speakers will not only understand the content being

discussed and taught in our schools, but rather, excel and feel comfortable in their own skin

although they are not native speakers of English.  A few of the incidents that I have encountered

throughout my teaching thus far in my brief yet enriching teaching career have all included

technology and how the students can use various programs for their own particular use to make

the learning accessible to them in a way that instills authentic, organic learning.  One such

example of this occurred when I had a student in one of my 7th grade English classes who hailed

from Egypt and knew very little English. When we used studied a vocabulary unit using the

grant-based NearPod programming that utilizes iPads and aggregates the data for the teacher, the

student felt more at ease because of the simple and individualized layout of the program.  The

program allows the teacher to send out information and questions to the student and therefore

allows the student to respond anonymously.  This was a great aspect of learning for my ELL

student because it allowed him to go online and respond according to his level of comfort and at

his own pace.  This accommodation allowed my as a teacher to support the diverse learner and

address his learning preferences and needs within the context of his familial and educational
 Emily Rose Skirtich

background. Even though this proves to be quite a challenge for many educators, it remains a

strong foundation of my teaching philosophy in that the students as individuals must remain the

center of all my instruction and consequently never be compromised despite the extra effort it

inevitably entails.