Yahui Cai

Dr. Iryna Kozlova

EDUC 8215
9/19/2023
CBLP Reflection Blog 2
Pre-service reflection

Q: What materials and curriculum are currently in place for the Beginner English program?
A: We use the “Ventures” series. And for beginners, Ventures 1 covers many everyday
situations and can provide the foundational vocabulary and grammar structures required for
students’ basic communication.

Q: Do we need to teach exactly what the textbook says?

A: No. You can do that if you want. If you don't want to, you can just choose what you want
to teach, or pick activities that you find useful. You can use those activities you learned in
your courses, as long as you think it is useful or interesting. The textbooks we provide are for
your reference only.

Q: What additional resources or support can I provide to students outside of the textbook?
A: It is recommended that you spend no less than five minutes per lesson on digital literacy.
Because with the development of technology, digital literacy has become really important for
modern life and work. So providing students digital literacy can help them better involve in
social and professional environments.

Q: Could you describe a typical student who enrolls in this program?

A: The students who come to our beginner classes basically have two goals: to better
communicate on a daily basis or to better find a job.

Q: What are some of the most common challenges previous instructors have reported
regarding teaching beginners in this setting?
A: Although all are beginner, the level of the students may be uneven, from those who know
no English at all to those who are able to carry on a short conversation. How to coordinate the
course content and meet the needs of different students is a problem that needs to be
considered. If a student really can't understand a class in English, ask them to use something
like google translator to help them understand at first. Also, you can use modeling or like
pictures to help them.

Q: How can we encourage students to attend more of our programs in a way that is not
coercive?
A: You can send a welcome email ahead of time and emphasize your class time in the first
class to remind students.

Q: For beginner students, how can we give them feedback?

A: Just one thing, feedback needs to be precise. Make sure they know exactly what went
wrong and how to correct it.

Q: What kind of additional support or resources students can expect from the library?
A: You can encourage your students to apply for library cards, so that they can borrow books
and use the computers at free library.

Q: Are there any other library events or programs that align with our course goals, which we
can encourage students to participate in?
A: Yes, at Independence Library, 2:00 - 3:30pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays, there will be
English Conversation Groups. You can encourage your students to get involved in these
library activities.

Q: Do you have any other advice for us?

A: Since our course is free, many students will come to the class even if they are not at this
level. You can advise they to take other classes at free library. Free library also offers other
level classes. Or if they can't attend in-person classes due to time or other reasons, you can
also tell students that there are many virtual classes available in the library. Another thing I
would suggest is that you don't start your first class as soon as it's the time. You can wait
about five minutes for more students to enter the classroom.

Some thoughts:
As the importance of digital literacy was emphasized, I think we can create a series of
lessons focused on digital literacy for English learners. We can look at what kind of digital
literacy each class can relate to and incorporate that digital literacy into that class. This can
help them not only get language acquisition but also become more familiar with digital
literacy. Also, since teachers don't have to follow the textbook rigidly and students are
beginner, I think we can create some supplementary materials, such as handouts and visual
aids, to help our students.