The Teachers

 

GWL's pilot program is connecting Robin Putney (El Sausal Middle School) and Funwie Nkwenti (Tassah Academy). Based on our interviews with both teachers we learned the following:

 

• Language is important - Funwie mentioned he has to interrupt his science lessons to explain language points, Robin needs more language specific resources to help her students learning English

  • We can help our teachers better understand English language development (ELD) students’ specific needs in the mainstream, content-based classroom

  • We can provide teachers with materials that are adapted to their students language needs

 

• Time is of the essence

  • Both our teachers mentioned how busy they are, and how much time they spend planning lessons

  • New standards are in place in California, raising expectations in the classroom, and challenging teachers to perform

  • Our curriculum fits with standards from both countries, and is adapted to be used over long periods of time, depending on the schedule of the teacher

 

• Culture makes a difference

  • "This project has changed my students' lives (biggest impact, I hope!), [in that] I think their view of the world has expanded.  The opportunity to discuss water issues would likely not have happened for them based on the flow of the normal science curriculum without the motivation to do this project." - Robin Putney, May 10th, 2015