The U.S. online Portuguese exam, part of the National Examinations in World Languages (NEWL), had its highest number of registrations (345) this year. “Despite the restrictions and constraints arising from the current pandemic situation and the fact that many schools are in hybrid or distance education, 345 registrations were recorded nationally (the highest number ever),” reads a statement from the Coordination of Portuguese Education in the U.S. (CEPE-USA) sent to Macau Business News.
Of 345 registrants, 279 from 29 schools in 13 U.S. states reached the final phase. The NEWL exams are computer-based tests for reading, writing, listening, and recording spoken answers to assess knowledge in Portuguese, Arabic, Korean, and Russian and are aimed at students from the ninth year of schooling, or aged 14 years or over.
The NEWL exams are accepted as credits for applications to higher education in the U.S. and represent a certification of Portuguese language skills as an advantage for entry into some universities.
According to CEPE-USA data, in the current school year there are 20,000 pupils of Portuguese and 386 teachers, in 189 schools all over the U.S. The fact that the overwhelming majority are in state schools is a positive point, the secretary of state for Portuguese communities, Berta Nunes, told Macau Business News, “because it increases the awareness of the language” and broadens the promotion of Portuguese in the U.S.
Interestingly, 130 registrants, almost half of those who took the final exam, were from Utah, where there are 18 schools that include Portuguese in their curricula.
According to the CEPE statement, 109 of those who took the NEWL exam are Lusodescendants who are beneficiaries of financial support under a memorandum of understanding between the Camões Institute, the Luso-American Development Foundation (FLAD), and the American Council for International Education.
Each year, Renaissance releases the What Kids Are Reading report, and each year it grows by leaps and bounds.1 This year’s report looked at the reading habits of seven million students from more than 26,000 schools in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. These students read more than 255 million books last year, making it the largest annual study of student reading practice. Before I share some of the key findings of What Kids Are Reading and the free tools it offers educators, it’s worth taking a moment to answer the question: “Why does it matter what kids are reading outside of classwork?”
Practicing Reading Skills Is Not Reading Practice
Educators have known for years that students who read a lot outside of school perform well academically, and there’s an emerging body of research that’s beginning to explain why that is. At the simplest level, as students read more, they gain the ability to recognize more words instantly, which leads to more fluent reading. But it continues to build from there. Each book provides more vocabulary, more background knowledge, and even sharper critical thinking skills.
The cognitive research community is beginning to push back on the approach that educators have taken to reading practice for so long, an approach that “skillifies” reading and asks students to practice discrete skills such as decoding or finding the main idea in a paragraph.
The discrete skills are real, but they can’t be isolated effectively and must be practiced together.
Last year, for example, the Fordham Foundation published a report finding that, between struggling readers who received extra time in social studies and those who received extra time in reading skills, the students with extra social studies time made better reading progress.2 Practicing reading skills will never teach students that the Berlin Wall was anything other than a wall in Berlin, but reading in a social studies class very well might.
With the idea in mind that reading is the most fundamental academic skill, we design the report in large part to help teachers and other educators find new and great books their students will love reading. In order to make comparisons from one year to the next, and because we find certain items particularly helpful, features like the favorite books by grade level are included every year. Teachers looking for books that will interest their students can find the most popular print and digital books by grade level or by state or find out which books are trending in the “New and Now” section.
However, the education world is constantly changing, so each year we also like to add a couple features to help put the findings in context. This year, of course, it’s difficult to talk about anything without acknowledging the disruptions caused by the pandemic, so we chose to look a little more closely at digital reading. We also drilled down on the topics kids were reading from a social and emotional learning angle and from a perspective of diversity and inclusion, given the level of social unrest as the country grapples with a lot of difficult issues. For example, many students in seventh grade this year were reading Can I Touch Your Hair to support social and emotional learning and I Remember: Poems and Pictures of Heritage to learn about diversity and inclusion.
This Year’s Findings
People really needed some good news this year, and I can deliver some positive findings from this year’s report—digital reading increased 107% from the previous year, thanks in part to digital reading platforms like Renaissance’s myON giving schools access for free.
The other piece of good news is that students are still reading at the same difficulty level and comprehending just as much as in previous years. This year’s fifth graders, for example, are reading texts just as difficult as last year’s fifth graders, and they’re comprehending what they’re reading at a similar level, despite experiencing greater disruption to their learning than at any time in recent memory.
Support for Emerging Biliterates
The research has been increasingly clear lately that, as students continue developing literacy in their native languages, they are likely to progress faster in English as well. There is a mutually beneficial relationship between literacy and fluency in one language and literacy in another.
These emerging biliterate students actually have brighter prospects than students who are performing equally well but only in a single language.
To help encourage this relationship, we flagged all the top books in the report that have Spanish-language quizzes in Accelerated Reader, such as To Kill a Mockingbird and The Great Gatsby, as well as listing all the most popular titles in Spanish for each grade, such as …y no se lo tragó la tierra for ninth grade.
Help for Struggling Readers
There are three helpful ways to divide struggling readers into broad categories to determine what those students need to succeed. The first group is students who were not taught the mechanics of reading, such as phonics and other foundational skills, in the very early grades. The research is very clear on what they need, and it’s no surprise that it’s those foundational skills.
The second group is students with learning disabilities. They may have received the appropriate instruction, but they may also need additional reinforcements and support. It takes a little more, perhaps a more systematic approach, to help these students perform as well as they are able.
The final group is simply struggling readers. These are kids who were taught to read and have no diagnosed or undiagnosed cognitive or learning disability, but who still fail to read at an appropriate level. The other day a colleague was talking about a couple kids she knew, one of whom was at the top of his class and the other of whom was a heavy reader. They both got into college, but that top-performing student struggled because there’s a lot of reading in college. In college, literature students may be expected to read a novel a week for a single class.
The reading is lighter for freshmen, but they’re still being asked to be marathon readers from day one.
Now, personally I can run, but I cannot run a marathon without training. Trying to read long, complex texts without practice beforehand is just like trying to run a marathon without training and is exactly what many kids are trying to do when they start college. They just don’t have the stamina. And it’s no wonder. They simply don’t practice. Many years ago when we first looked into the time the average student spends on independent reading, it was only about four minutes per day across all grades. Can you imagine a football team practicing from 3:00 to 3:04 p.m. each day and then thinking they’ll go to the state championship? They won’t, and we’d all think it was a ridiculous expectation.
That’s why we spend so much time finding titles that teachers can use to engage their students. A lot of kids just never practice reading enough to be even remotely successful, but if teachers can help students find books their peers are excited about, they’re most of the way toward effective, wide reading happening across their schools. And a school with wide reading is a school that has a fighting shot at making everything else work well.
Dr. Gene Kerns (@GeneKerns) is vice president and chief academic officer at Renaissance (www.renaissance.com). He is a third-generation educator and has served as a public school teacher, adjunct faculty member, professional development trainer, district supervisor of academic services, and academic advisor at one of the nation’s top edtech companies. He has trained and consulted internationally and is the co-author of three books. He can be reached at [email protected].
The National Alliance of Black School Educators (NABSE) recently launched the 2021 NABSE $10,000 Scholarship Award to promote and increase Black representation at the highest levels in school districts nationwide. The inaugural award, which is sponsored by Curriculum Associates, will be given to a qualified Black educator who is pursuing an advanced degree in educational leadership. Applications are being accepted through September 30, 2021.
“We recognize the need to develop a new generation of educational leaders, and—at this time in our country’s history—developing African-American and Hispanic leaders is especially important to the growth of the field,” said Fadhilika Atiba-Weza, executive director of NABSE. “We are appreciative of Curriculum Associates for sharing this vision and funding this scholarship as part of our strategic partnership.”
All NABSE members who are aspiring superintendents and currently enrolled in—or have been accepted into—an advanced degree program in education at a college or university are encouraged to apply for the award. All applicants must submit the scholarship application form, an up-to-500-word essay on how an advanced degree will contribute to the goal of becoming a school district leader and further the goals of NABSE, a resume, a brief biography, and three letters of recommendation.
The scholarship recipient will be recognized during the Awards Banquet at the 49th Annual NABSE Conference, taking place November 10–14, 2021 in Los Angeles, CA.
“For decades, NABSE has been a champion of equity in education through its ongoing support of Black students and educators alike,” said Rob Waldron, CEO of Curriculum Associates. “We value and recognize the important work of the organization and are proud to sponsor this scholarship, which will go a long way in supporting the professional advancement of a standout educator.” To learn more about NABSE and the $10,000 Scholarship Award, visit NABSE.org/Scholarship-Award/. To learn more about Curriculum Associates, visit CurriculumAssociates.com.
The University of South Africa—locally known as UNISA—the largest university system in the nation, has been working on phasing out Afrikaans as a language of instruction since 2016, a move that has been met with protest from some of the nation’s Afrikaans speakers. Now, the highest court in the country will determine the constitutionality of the university’s language policy.
Another major university in South Africa—the University of Pretoria—adopted a similar policy also in 2016, with proponents of the policy arguing that it would make the university more accessible to Black citizens, many of whom speak languages native to South Africa or English (Afrikaans is a descendant of Dutch, which evolved from the dialect spoken by Dutch colonists in the region). By privileging Afrikaans over other languages spoken in the country, the university was seen by some as privileging White students over native African students.
In UNISA’s case, not only was Afrikaans a potential barrier for many of the nation’s Black students but there was also relatively low demand for Afrikaans courses to begin with—the university claims that it would be costly and impractical for it to reintroduce Afrikaans as a language of instruction and that it also would be illogical to offer courses in Afrikaans and English but not in South Africa’s eight other official languages, like isiXhosa and isiZulu, both of which have larger populations of native speakers than Afrikaans does.
After the Supreme Court ruled the move unconstitutional, UNISA is taking its legal battle to the Constitutional Court, the nation’s highest legal court. The Supreme Court initially ruled that the university must reverse its decision and begin offering classes in Afrikaans once again to accommodate students who had already been enrolled in Afrikaans courses prior to the decision.
Many opponents of UNISA’s language policy argue not only that it negatively impacts Afrikaner students but that the decision was extremely rushed and not well handled.
However, the university claims that it is unable to reinstate the language immediately, and if the Constitutional Court rules against UNISA, it would need until at least 2023 to begin offering Afrikaans as a language of instruction again. Andrew Warner
For some Americans, the federal government investing a single dime in education is considered an overreach of power and an insult to the Constitution, which lays out that the responsibility for all functions not assigned to the federal government, like education, remains with the states. However, over the last few decades, there has been a bipartisan consensus that education has such broad consequences for the nation as a whole that the federal government needs to do what it can to improve educational outcomes and, especially, equity of educational opportunity. President Biden’s ambitious and expensive educational investment plan may succeed in these goals where previous plans have not.
Major federal programs, like George W. Bush’s No Child Left Behind Act and Obama’s Every Student Succeeds Act, have invested substantially in state education systems only to see ever-increasing school segregation and little to no impact on school funding inequity. President Biden’s $1.8 trillion American Families Plan may be ambitious enough to make an impact at a time when growing teacher shortages look set to plunge public education into crisis.
The bill would expand universal prekindergarten access, make it easier for high-poverty schools to serve free meals, and fund programs to train and support teachers. The proposed $9 billion investment in K–12 teachers includes $2 billion “to support programs that leverage teachers as leaders, such as high-quality mentorship programs for new teachers and teachers of color”; $1.6 billion “to provide educators with opportunities to obtain additional certifications in high-demand areas like special education, bilingual education, and certifications that improve teacher performance. This funding will support over 100,000 educators, with priority for public school teachers with at least two years of experience at schools with a significant portion of low-income students or significant teacher shortages”; “double scholarships for future teachers from $4,000 to $8,000 per year while earning their degree, strengthening the program, and expanding it to early childhood educators”; $2.8 billion for “Grow Your Own” programs and year-long, paid teacher residency programs, which have a greater impact on student outcomes and teacher retention and are more likely to enroll teacher candidates of color; $900 million for special education teachers; and $400 million for teacher preparation at historically Black colleges and universities, tribal colleges and universities, and minority-serving institutions.
The package was the focus of Biden’s address to a joint session of Congress, in which he said, “We can’t be so busy competing with each other that we forget the competition is with the rest of the world to win the 21st century. To win that competition for the future, we also need to make a once-in-a-generation investment in our families—in our children.”
The president wisely focused on investment in children—rather than teachers, which may be unpalatable to some policymakers—but the plan will still be a challenge to pass in a partisan Senate. In the Republican response to the address, Senator Tim Scott (R–South Carolina) called it “even more taxing, even more spending, to put Washington even more in the middle of your life—from the cradle to college.”
“The beauty of the American Dream is that families get to define it for themselves,” he added, but he neglected to mention that without an adequate supply of qualified teachers who represent the communities they serve, families will struggle to access the education their children will require to achieve even a basic standard of living, let alone the American Dream. To work, federal education plans need buy-in from states and recognition that they represent a sound investment for the economic future of the country. Investment in teachers is investment in children.
More than 70 countries and regions had incorporated the Chinese language into their national education system by the end of last year as the language’s global influence continued to spread, officials from China’s Ministry of Education claimed at a news conference in Beijing last month.
They added that some 20 million people are learning Chinese outside of China, and it was adopted as one of the official languages of the United Nations World Tourism Organization in January.
To meet that demand, Chinese-language instructors are adopting new approaches such as the Global Chinese Learning Platform. Launched in October 2019, the platform had attracted more than 2.1 million users from 170 countries and regions by the end of last year, said Liu Hong, deputy director of the ministry’s Department of Language Information Management.
The platform has developed a mobile app that supports six languages—Chinese, English, Russian, Japanese, Korean, and Thai—he said, adding that it will support more languages in the future.
It is divided into different sections to support the needs of preschool, primary, and secondary school students. It also has special sections to assist students from Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan as well as international students, Liu said.
The platform helped students at home and abroad to continue learning Chinese during the COVID-19 pandemic. It has a large amount of Chinese-language educational resources and offers an immersive learning experience, he added.
Officials from the ministry’s Center for Language Education and Cooperation, which organizes language exams, said the main test, the HSK, and other Chinese-language proficiency exams were taken 3 million times last year and that about 40 million students around the globe had now taken Chinese-language proficiency exams. They also explained that the HSK exams and other tests were put online last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic and 484 test centers offered online tests, while 41 new test centers were established last year and 1,207 test centers have now been set up in 156 countries.
A Chinese-language proficiency standard to evaluate the skills and levels of international learners, issued by the Ministry of Education and the State Language Commission in March, is expected to be implemented on July 1. Using four basic elements of the Chinese language—syllables, characters, vocabulary, and grammar—the standard classifies the Chinese proficiency of international learners into three stages and nine levels. The six levels of HSK exams will be expanded to nine to reflect the new standard.
The BIE program provides grants to institutions of higher education that enter into an agreement with a trade association to improve the academic teaching of the business curriculum and to conduct outreach activities that will assist the local business community to compete in the global arena. The purpose of the program is to meet the nation’s security and economic needs through the development of a national capacity in foreign languages and area and international business studies.
IFLE expects to make 20 new awards, totaling approximately $1.7 million, under the FY 2021 BIE competition. The application is now available at www.grants.gov. The deadline to submit an application is Aug. 13, 2021. Please refer to the official Federal Register notice for detailed information about the FY 2021 competition.
I know I can (I know I can) Be what I wanna be (be what I wanna be) If I work hard at it (if I work hard at it) I’ll be where I wanna be (I’ll be where I wanna be) –Nas, “I Can”
Where can you find dual language English/Haitian Creole instruction for students in first and second grades? At Mattahunt’s Toussaint L’Ouverture Academy (TLA), a Boston public elementary school. Founded in 2017, TLA is the nation’s first early learning English–Haitian Creole dual language program. The U.S. Department of Education Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA) lists Haitian Creole as the sixth most common language of K–12 English learners in the U.S. (U.S. Department of Education, 2019). After two decades of advocacy and planning by dedicated community members of Haitian descent, educators, politicians, and other stakeholders were overjoyed when the school finally enrolled its first class of students.
The school is named after an enslaved Haitian, later turned revolutionary, Toussaint L’Ouverture (1743–1803), who successfully led a revolt which resulted in Haiti’s independence from France. The program’s mission is to educate and support the students in becoming biliterate, bilingual, and bicultural citizens. As Beavers (2020) stated, “Language contributes to the ways in which individuals live, survive, and lead.” The principal, Mr. Walter Henderson, and assistant principal, Ms. Joelle Gamere, along with a dedicated teaching staff, have worked diligently to ensure the program is implemented as intended and maintains the highest levels of academic integrity. The school is located in Mattapan, a neighborhood in Boston, Massachusetts, which is home to a large Haitian immigrant population.
Going Back to Move Forward
The Mattahunt School initially faced closure due to a number of factors but ultimately was restructured, rebranded, and reopened to include the Haitian Creole–English dual language program. During the first year after reopening, the school leaders and a small group of community members were awarded a grant to research early literacy practices in Haiti. That research entailed several school visits, including one to a school on an island off the coast of Haiti. The dedication to education observed by Mr. Henderson’s team affirmed their commitment to creating a school that would teach the students Haitian Creole, their mother tongue, not French, the language of Haiti’s colonizer.
During their trip they met with a number of educators, Ministry of Education personnel, curriculum writers, tour guides, and local residents. What was most evident to them was the desire for education for all but especially for the youngest citizens. The leadership team have been tenacious in assuring the Toussaint L’Ouverture Academy is academically rigorous and teaches and assesses in both English and Haitian Creole. Despite challenges with securing curriculum, scope and sequence, and assessments in Haitian Creole, the school leaders have been steadfast in their approach to supporting the teachers’ professional learning, working closely with Haitian community organizations and advocating for continued support of the dual language program. The students are performing well both academically and socially. The teachers and consultants are credited for putting in countless hours creating the entire curriculum and transadapting it into Haitian Creole.
Academic Achievement and Cultural Pride
Students who are enrolled in the prekindergarten Haitian dual language program tend to outperform their monolingual peers in letter recognition in English and Haitian Creole. Another highlight is that native Haitian Creole speakers in the dual language program are acquiring English at a faster rate than native speakers who are enrolled in a sheltered English immersion (SEI) program. Also, the social–emotional wellness, self-esteem, and confidence of the students are healthy and strong due to the consistent validation of their culture.
Currently the Toussaint L’Ouverture Academy enrolls approximately 60 students ages four to eight in grades K–2, with 22 students projected to enroll next school year. The program has added a grade level each year to accommodate its students. There are seven teachers in the English and Haitian Creole program. In May, the students and staff participated in the district’s Virtual Haitian Heritage Month Celebration. The month is dedicated to celebrating the rich culture of Haiti and the many contributions Haitians and Haitian Americans have made to the community. The students’ artwork; dancing; science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) projects; and dual language speaking abilities were featured.
In addition, parents gave testimonials about why they enrolled their children in the program and how it has been beneficial to their children. This school is educating our nation’s next generation of biliterate and bilingual citizens, opening up a world of academic and economic opportunities for them. Appropriately, the school’s mascot is an owl, a bird that symbolizes intelligence and wisdom. TLA is serving as a model for others wanting to establish native-language instruction and English for the communities they serve. The Toussaint L’Ouverture Academy embodies linguistic social justice by elevating the Haitian Creole language and providing students with the opportunity to learn English in an environment that dignifies their home language and culture.
Ayanna Cooper, EdD, is an advocate and writer and the owner of A. Cooper Consulting. She is author of And Justice for ELs: A Leader’s Guide to Creating and Sustaining Equitable Schools (Corwin). She is the editor for Language Magazine’s Pass the Mic, a series that highlights experiences of traditionally marginalized educators and the students they serve.
Connecticut has become the latest state to pass legislation requiring that reading instruction be based on the science of reading. According to the state’s recently enacted budget bill, every school district in the state is required to focus its reading curriculum on the science of reading by 2023, despite opposition from some educators and parents.
In the past three years, eleven states have enacted laws designed to expand evidence-based reading instruction in grades K–3. Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Mississippi, and Texas require teachers to teach or states to provide curricula based on the science of reading.
Known as the Right to Read act, the Connecticut bill also calls for $12.8 million in spending to ensure that school districts can hire reading coaches to prevent students falling behind and establishes a Center for Literacy Research and Reading Success that will oversee the state reading curriculum for students in grades pre-K–3.
School districts will need to implement one of the five approved methods of teaching by July 2023 and schools will have to inform the literacy center biannually about which program they are using. In theory, districts will have the option to submit a waiver to use a different teaching model, but any such model would have to be approved by the education commissioner and advisory council, which makes the option unlikely.
The bill received bipartisan support, but many educators and parents raised concerns about requiring districts to implement reading models approved by the literacy center, which has yet to be established and the directors of which are yet to be appointed.
“In its current form, this bill furthers a color-blind approach that does not acknowledge that students’ lived experiences, interests, and local context combined with excellent differentiated instruction are the factors that contribute to successful reading,” argued Ivelise Velazquez, a district leader in New Haven of Puerto Rican heritage with 27 years of experience as an elementary teacher, reading teacher, director of reading, and district leader.
In her testimony, Velasquez asked, “Who are the researchers and private entities behind the Center for Literacy Research and Reading Success? If this center will have approval rights for the curriculum and methods of instruction that we use in each district, shouldn’t we know who they are, what racial and cultural assets and beliefs they draw from, and shouldn’t we know precisely what they mean by ‘the science of reading’?”
“As an educator, I feel this bill will severely limit the options for students who need reading instruction. While the science of reading has options that support students, making it the required only option is detrimental. This reading instruction may not work for every student. There are many important components to reading and schools need to have options in supporting students. School districts should not have to apply for an exception to use other programs that support their students. Not everyone needs extensive instruction in phonemic awareness; some need instruction in comprehension, fluency, and vocabulary,” East Haddam resident Nicole Hendry wrote in her testimony opposing the bill.
This Connecticut Literacy Model was created in the years leading up to the state’s school-funding trial, where one of the focuses was on high school students who were graduating without knowing how to read and write.
The bill will also require the state Department of Education, in coordination with center officials, to create a list of reading assessments used by districts starting in the 2022–23 school year to identify children who are reading below proficiency in grades K–3 and to provide guidance to districts regarding how to administer the tests.
Several other states (Alaska, California, Louisiana, Tennessee, and New York) currently have science of reading–related laws under review.
Large room locations in VR applications offer more opportunities for pair and group work and allow teachers to take advantage of proximal audio for sound management. Source: Immerse
Over the last year, we have all learned a lot about using technology to engage and interact with others. Educators have learned, survived, and thrived using a variety of online tools. From collaborative office suites that allow for interactive project work to the ubiquitous Zoom classroom, teachers have figured out ways to keep bringing language education to students no matter where in the world they are. As we prepare for a future that incorporates more functional technology, there is no better time to begin using immersive virtual reality (VR) technology for language education. Using VR provides numerous opportunities for language educators to support all the needs of language learners. From initial introduction to concepts to creative fluent production with peers, the VR classroom is perfect for language learning.
360 VR Versus Immersive Virtual Reality
There are different types of VR currently available, ranging from extremely inexpensive to impressively unaffordable. However, just like computers and smartphones, there are a range of VR devices that are accessible, affordable, and easy to use—making them a good fit for classroom educators. Last year, I wrote about practical applications using inexpensive off-the-shelf 360 VR, which (unlike full immersive and interactive VR) provides great opportunities for receptive experiences.
Much like a doctor observing patients through a one-way mirror, 360 VR allows the user to explore as an unnoticed observer: watching, listening, and learning, but unable to interact with the environment around them. On the other hand, fully immersive virtual reality is best for active experiences. With immersive virtual reality users can fly on the back of a dragon, climb the tallest mountain, or simply high-five their friends because they feel fully present inside the virtual space.
Fully immersive VR uses a VR headset device, also known as a VR head-mounted display. This helmet-like device features a viewing interface that lets the user see and experience the digital world projected around them. Most VR headsets incorporate a full sound system that allows the user to experience ambient sound in various locations, enhancing the sense of being present in a new space. VR headsets also incorporate microphones, making it easy to talk to others or use voice controls to navigate the platform. Finally, VR headsets come with handheld controllers. They look and feel in some ways like divided game controllers, freeing the hands to move independently. The controllers allow the user to access joysticks, buttons, triggers, and grips, engaging with virtual objects and others in the virtual space.
From playing ultimate frisbee in zero gravity to watching a movie with friends next to a campfire, interactive and immersive virtual reality creates entirely new ways to engage with others.2, 3 In a future that will incorporate more modalities of teaching—including hybrid and blended learning—immersive virtual reality creates new opportunities for improved connectedness, social interaction, and conversation.
Supporting Research
Immerse VR for language learning (while still quite new to some teachers) is rapidly growing in adoption and use. A small but growing body of research indicates that VR can have an immediate impact on language learning, retention, motivation, and anxiety. Several studies provide some early evidence for the efficacy of using immersive VR for language learning.
In a study involving 213 students of English as a foreign language in Japan, learners working with game-based simulation VR demonstrated better long-term control over vocabulary words compared to students in the control group (Franciosi, Yagi, Tomoshige, and Ye, 2015). Learners working with VR also indicated that they had more fun learning, felt more comfortable practicing, and used more of their vocabulary in VR compared to working with traditional exercises (Alfadil, 2020). A study from Taiwan with 448 students indicated that those engaging with VR learning “improved their phonological, morphological, grammar, and syntax knowledge, and virtual world learning assisted in the development of a more complex and higher level of thinking” (Chen, 2016). Research with 274 students at a technical university in Taiwan showed that VR learning had a significant impact on student self-efficacy and intrinsic motivation and lowered student test anxiety (Chen and Hus, 2020). Finally, in a recent action research study with students from Japan developing presentation skills, VR learning had a demonstrable impact on student anxiety and confidence (Saito, 2021). One participant in the study said, “Because of the virtual world, it is easier to immerse yourself in a created situation. That helps us speak confidently.”
Selecting the Right Applications
Immersive VR offers many exciting opportunities. However, as with any new technology, educators must consider their interests and those of their learners, their level of comfort with technology, and the amount of time they have available for exploration and world development. There are hundreds of different applications available for gaming, social interaction, world building, and learning. For teachers who want to customize and fully design their virtual experiences, there will be a significant time commitment for development. Several social and chat apps allow users to create custom scenes and locations, which may be of interest for educators who enjoy coding. Off-the-shelf apps are a great option to save time—if they provide the appropriate features for collaboration, classroom management, and language practice. Prebuilt apps require less development but may vary in level of control and functionality, requiring some investigation before use. Applications designed specifically for facilitated synchronous learning will also vary in functionality, collaboration support, and customizability.
When selecting a VR application, educators should consider:
What does this application do that I cannot currently do with my online classroom?
How does this application improve or enhance the teaching and learning experience?
What changes and adjustments will I need to make to my lesson to ensure it is a productive learning experience?
How will the application provide new and exciting extensions of my current learning experiences?
Practice and Conversation in VR: Considerations and Outcomes
Virtual reality is a natural substitute for the face-to-face classroom, making the job of importing a lesson plan a straightforward process. Many of the pedagogical methods and practices from the classroom will translate well into virtual reality (Davila, 2020), allowing educators to use a variety of instructional strategies that promote communication and interactions. Learners can accomplish everything in VR, from role-play to speaking onstage to debate; one of the most exciting things about immersive VR is its social and interactive component.
When planning a lesson for VR, consider the objectives to achieve. Plan for presentation and practice activities that will help students successfully use language by the end of the lesson, and consider which virtual applications offer appropriate environments for success. Productive activities like surveys, interviews, mingle activities, role-plays, presentations, and debates are all appropriate for virtual reality learning. When selecting VR applications, consider productive needs and check to ensure the application’s features, environment, and audio tools are functional for those needs.
Take time to consider pair and group noise management—like when planning a face-to-face lesson. Many VR applications use proximal audio, meaning that moving closer to (or farther away from) others will have the same effect as it would in real life. In a physical class, we consider proximity to create isolated working groups, spacing groups far enough away from each other to work peacefully—although everyone will hear the lively background chatter. Educators should consider some of the same classroom mechanics for pairing and grouping learners when teaching in virtual reality. Review the size and space available in a virtual location to ensure high levels of interaction with reasonable sound clarity are possible.
Of course, educators using VR have new ways to manage the volume in VR learning experiences. Depending on the immersive VR application selected for learning, one can mute students or place students in private pairs, where only the teacher can listen in. While teachers can use social or gaming apps for interactive practice, audio control will vary. Applications specifically designed for immersive VR learning will offer more facilitation tools to teachers, allowing for easy classroom management with the click of a few buttons. Teachers who are exploring immersive virtual spaces should take time to learn more about the control mechanics and audio features to ensure that their group and pair activities are easy to optimize. Authentic contexts can help develop a more accurate understanding of skills and concepts (Abdallah, 2015). In VR, teachers can leverage the situated immersive contexts to support learners. Virtual reality spaces can redefine what it means to learn English when teachers and learners explore contexts.
Situated contexts support self-efficacy by allowing learners to create strategies to manage real-world challenges. VR applications designed specifically to support facilitated language instruction will have many well-crafted locations (or scenes) with common contextual environments for language practice. The imaginative potential creates entirely new possibilities for language educators to engage and inspire learners.
The potential social benefits of VR cannot be overstated. In the last year, multiple sectors have begun to explore collaborative, interactive, communicative virtual reality to help people connect, restore a sense of community, and foster collaboration and interaction (Howcroft, 2020; PWC, 2020). For language educators, immersive virtual reality creates unique opportunities to support collaboration, interaction, and fluency development.
Conclusion
Educators have demonstrated unparalleled levels of creativity over the past year as they continued to teach under the strains of a global pandemic. The coming year will only test teachers’ strengths further as the world comes to terms with the size and shape of a new normal. A return to normal does not mean leaving technology behind. Thanks to the advances in virtual reality technology, teachers can educate students in a fully virtual environment, using pedologically sound lesson plans and research-informed practices.
Initial studies into the efficacy of virtual reality learning are promising and merit further investigation.
Learners are showing signs of improved confidence and ability when using VR. The adding of contexts and situations not normally available in the classroom gives teachers opportunities to prepare students for using language in a variety of contexts—beyond the classroom and into the real world, no matter what it looks like.
Sara Davila is the head of efficacy and learning for Immerse. Sara is a learning and language acquisition expert with over 20 years of experience in instructional design, teacher development, and 21st-century pedagogy. At Immerse, Sara brings research and practice together to develop next-generation learning experiences in virtual reality.
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