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Is it important for young English language learners to read dual language text?
It can be helpful for learners to read texts in both languages. It can provide a quick reference to aid comprehension and fosters an appreciation of the languages. It can be used creatively as a shared reading teaching tool in a bilingual setting. However, it is not a necessary part of learning the language. Often young learners will read one language and ignore the other. Additionally, if the majority language is English, this tends to reduce the desire to read in a minority language. Controversially, English quite frequently becomes the favoured language of choice due to its dominance/status in environments where English is widely used.
AI technology can offer adult learners of English or multilingual families a supportive, fun and engaging environment in which to learn and practise their English. Schools can play an instrumental role in guiding those families through this process and therefore home-school collaboration is always encouraged. Let’s look at four different ideas for school staff to encourage their multilingual families to engage in an enjoyable language learning experience through AI.
I have been teaching English for over 20 years and in that time I have held various teaching titles; I had a different acronym depending on which country or school I was teaching in. Over the past 20 years, I have been an ESL, an EFL, an ESP, an ESOL and an EAL teacher. As you can see, ELT - English Language Teaching - comes with a whole host of acronyms. I will identify and describe them below.
*All terms below refer to students whose mother tongue is not English and who are learning English.
Many refugee learners arrive at their new school carrying far more than a backpack - they may also carry experiences of trauma, loss, and uncertainty. Their journey to the school gates might have come after experiences of war, separation from family members, or long periods without education. While schools cannot erase trauma, they can provide safety, stability, and belonging. For such learners, school becomes the first place where life and routine begin to feel predictable again.