(Note: font formatted like this on this page are facilitator comments.)
In July of 2001, twenty ESL teachers participated in formative field tests of ESL/CivicsLink. Teachers in general expressed satisfaction with the material and usability of the site. They offered valuable feedback for improvements, which were later incorporated into the site and helped to form these guiding principles.
Teachers need to familiarize themselves with the ESL/CivicsLink features (Units, Portfolio, Community Space and Resources) as well as know how to navigate the site. The Orientation unit incorporates lots of hands on practice and will familiarize teachers with all of the features and navigation they will need to know as they go through ESL/CivicsLink. For this reason, a walk through of the Orientation unit should be a principal feature of the training day.
This piece is challenging because all participants must, to some degree, define their own incentives for use. Certainly, trainers can suggest reasons for using ESL/CivicsLink and/or help participants define its potential value in their programs. You may want to ask teachers what they see as possible reasons for using ESL/CivicsLink. Write down responses on the flip chart. In the case of ESL/Civics, some incentives for use could include:
Teachers in the field tests expressed particular enthusiasm for the wealth of resources available to them within ESL/CivicsLink. Teachers who have used it in the field tests and implementation phase, want to use it again. Ultimately, however, the impetus to use ESL/CivicsLink comes from users.
While discussing incentives for use, it's important to stress that ESL/CivicsLink is for teachers, not their students. It has been formulated as a teacher's professional development tool. Each unit does provide a classroom application section, but the chief focus is on a teacher's own learning. Hopefully this is an incentive in itself.
This "incentives" thread should run throughout the training day. As participants progress through the day's activities, facilitators should help them (collectively and individually) define incentives for use. If participants do not leave the training with a strong sense of ESL/CivicsLink's value and potential, they will be much less inclined to integrate it into their programs and/or tackle roadblocks that arise.
There are three implementation models available for using ESL/CivicsLink: independent, facilitated, and study group. Those choosing the independent model complete the units on their own after a brief (1 day ) review of the materials. No specfic assistance would be provided thereafter. In the facilitated model, teachers receive a brief (1 day) review of the materials and then are assigned one facilitator who would assist in any way possible. With the study group model, teachers receive a telelephone walkthrough of the Orientation unit. Teachers would then meet in a group once a week to discuss their progress and problems.
Most people think of technology-related learning as an individual activity. Participants should be made aware that this is not the case with ESL/CivicsLink. ESL/CivicsLink ascribes to social constructivist learning. The discussion boards within the Community Space serve as a community building tool for teachers and allows them to share their experience, knowledge and questions. Many of the projects have also been formulated as collaborative endeavors. Putting participants into pairs or small groups can help to foster future communication and collaboration. Participants should be encouraged to continue their collaboration via the Community Space and Projects as they begin to use ESL/CivicsLink after the training.
This request is challenging, largely because programs vary. What works in one place may not work in another. In an effort to help folks establish their OWN implementation steps, refer to the three implementation models in the Handouts section.
Each of the units within ESL/CivicsLink provides a sample lesson plan based on the unit topic. Teachers are also encouraged to create their own lesson plans in the "Apply What You've Learned" section. In addition, each unit contains two projects. The projects give teachers an opportunity to consolidate and expand on the work they have done in the units. Teachers choose one project to do. Some training time should be devoted to reviewing a sample lesson plan and projects (these were completed with teachers during the implementation phase). Participants should be encouraged to share their lesson plans and projects with others in their group. A brief overview of how this is done should be included in the training: