The reason I think that listening comprehension is essential to reaching that reclassification is that intertwines all 4 domains. If we are great listeners we are able to process more information, and we’re able to speak, we’re able to read, we’re able to write. That’s one thing I really love about Listenwise is that yes, the focus is listening, but all other domains are integrated. The fact that Listenwise is now offering multilingual modalities within their platform is, number one, essential for California teachers because it is supported by the EL roadmap that highlights that primary language access is essential— it is an asset. The fact that they are able to see their primary language within Listenwise really allows them to have a deeper connection to the content that they’re learning, to the current events that are happening in the world.
Some of the challenges that I’ve faced when getting English learners to engage in classroom discussions or collaborative discussions is them not knowing what to say. So a lot of the time what we need is for students to have talking scripts or a speaking prompt so they know how to start. Once they know how to begin speaking to another person or engaging in dialogue, that’s really where the scaffold needs to be. One of the benefits of Listenwise specifically is that a lot of the audio are conversations or they are interviews, so students get to hear how to initiate a conversation, how to ask a follow up question, how to just continue to add on to the conversation and really get into the richness of language— instead of just “what’s your name? My name is Robin.”— and then that’s it. The speakers within the Listenwise audio continue to ask follow up questions, and just with that transcript as an additional piece that supports the language, then students are able to see how two people interact with each other and how they continue to build a conversation.
The reason I think that listening comprehension is essential to reaching that reclassification is that intertwines all 4 domains. If we are great listeners we are able to process more information, and we’re able to speak, we’re able to read, we’re able to write. That’s one thing I really love about Listenwise is that yes, the focus is listening, but all other domains are integrated.
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