Ron's ESL Online Class
(Web Enhanced Language Learning)

Planning for the Web Enhanced Online Language Learning class centers around student involvement and what they can gain and experience from this unique learning environment, where the teacher facilitates. Understanding this learning concept will help you understand the reasons behind the effort and time that must be invested to create a place where students become responsible for their own learning. Think constructive learning.

If we want students to be responsible learners, then it is our responsibility, as teachers, to teach them how to do that. Many of our students have a limited educational background and possess limited learning skills. I always see myself as teacher teaching them a life skill that they can take with them, wherever they go. Learning English, therefore, becomes the secondary objective in this class.

When you look at the lessons and the different activities students are involved in, keep in mind what is trying to be achieved. My main goal is to prepare students for the future so that they can continue to be successful at the different learning levels in their life. Learning how to learn is the key to this class because once they understand this, they will be able to continue learning in an effective and successful way.

This is my final semester with our ESL program. I will be transitioning to the high school program in the spring. I have been with ESL for more than 20 years and I feel like I'm losing a good friend. (more to come)

This class is a goal oriented class where anyone who is involved with this class is working on goals. The goals of this class are diverse and are desingned to address the varied different components of this class. The major components that we want our students to learn are the same as in any other ESL class; Reading, Writing, Listening, Speaking, and Technology. Students need to be proficient in these areas if they are to continue learning and graduate to their next learning level. The difference is in how we accomplish these goals.

I believe that a highly interactive learning environment, where students become responsible and involved with their own learning, increase their chance of reaching the class goals, and their own. So my goals are to provide activities that would help me accomplish the major class goals. Examples include: student goals, students giving dictation, working in teams, team presentations, homework, weekly quizzes, maintaining a class notebook, class and individual projects, maintaining a list of new words learned, etc. As you view the various pages, one can see the different activities which the students are always involved in. There is hardly any idle time, which requires students to become organized with their time in class and at home.

Students must also commit themsleves by stating two goals they want to complete during the semester. These are short term goals that can be achieved if students put in the time and effort. Teaching our students how to set goals and then to achieve them are lessons we need to teach. They are constantly reminded through periodic goal reviews by having them state where they stand in relations to their stated goals. Adjustments are made and, eventually, most of the student meet or exceed their stated goals. I believe our student's goals should be a part of our everyday teaching and should be monitored accordingly along with our classroom goals of teaching English.

Recognized by CASAS as a "Promising Practice" class.