When I was teaching elementary and junior high school, there was no easy way to give students speaking-based homework. I had always wished there was some app, preferably one that could integrate into Edmodo (which I used initially) or Google Classroom, but I could never find a simple solution. Technology has improved a lot since…
Category: For Bilingual Teachers
The Problem with Points and Averaged Grades
Recently, I have been getting into the blog Grading for Growth. The blog is about alternative grading, which I believe can be incredibly useful in bilingual education. In short (though I suggest you read the blog), alternative grading focuses on feedback over grades. For bilingual students battling numerous challenges when learning through a non-dominant language,…
Writing Objectives for a Bilingual Lesson
When an additional language is brought in as a medium of instruction for a course (whether partially or fully), the first reaction of teachers is often this: “I don’t have enough time to teach everything.” In many classrooms around the world, teachers implement a coverage curriculum—that is, where the goal is to cover all of…
A Response to “Tips for Making Taiwan Bilingual”
On October, 10, 2021, the Taipei Times printed an opinion piece by Michael Riches titled “Tips for Making Taiwan Bilingual.” I would like to provide my response to some statements in the article. As Taiwan moves toward English-only instruction in 60 percent of elementary and high schools by 2024, with the goal of having a…