Rural P.E.I. students learning English virtually through pilot program
Program being offered to 17 high school students in rural communities across P.E.I.
An educational pilot program on P.E.I. aims to make learning English more accessible for students in rural parts of the Island by offering classes virtually.
The program started this September and offers English as an additional language (EAL) classes to 17 high school students living in rural communities on P.E.I.
Each student begins their school day by logging into a virtual classroom where they learn with classmates from four Island schools, Westile Composite High School, Kensington Intermediate Senior High School, Montague Regional High School and Souris Regional High School.
Janet Perry-Payne is the administrator of both the French and English as an additional language programs with the province and Public Schools Branch. She said normally students in rural parts of the Island would get face-to-face class time with a teacher three days a week. But, this program allows students to work with their teacher, who typically teaches from Charlottetown, every school day.
"With the increase in immigration to rural P.E.I. we want kids to have access to these courses," she said.
Perry-Payne said in some cases, there could be one student in need of an EAL class in a certain school, making it challenging to assign teachers to go and teach in their particular community.
"What we decided was if we can offer it online, then we wouldn't have to worry about that one teacher for example getting that school, but then we could reach kids in multiple schools at the same time," Perry-Payne said.
"We want to make sure those kids who need those language courses can actually get them on a daily basis and so far that's been working really, really well."
Face-to-face class time
Perry-Payne said the curriculum for the EAL classes has remained the same, but teachers had to make some adjustments to the way they teach the material.
"One of the things that our teachers worked really hard on is building the relationship with the students and making sure that they're all engaged," said Perry-Payne.
Stephanie MacNeill teaches the virtual EAL classes from her office in Charlottetown. She said the transition to online has been a lot smoother than she thought it would, especially since schools and students now have access to tools like video chat.
"That's really been the game changer is that face-to-face interaction. That's extremely important in language learning, the ability to have real communicative interactions," MacNeill said.
"It's a lot about just kind of figuring out how you can translate those teaching techniques into a technological format where you still get interaction, discussion that kind of stuff."
MacNeill said there are also a number of itinerant teachers — who travel from school to school — who offer students in-class instruction and assist with the program. She said she also travels to the four participating schools when she can to teach some lessons in person.
We want them to feel that this is good.— Janet Perry-Payne, Public Schools Branch
She said the program has also helped her students keep up with their studies over the past few months of the pandemic and has prepared the class to continue learning even if schools were to be shut down because of COVID-19.
"I am very confident that we could move seamlessly, the next day we'd be going because all my students know how to use the technological platforms."
Province to assess program
Currently the pilot program is being offered for four high school level EAL classes.
The program will continue next semester with the goal of adding an additional teacher. Perry-Payne said the hope is to have one teacher work with students in the western parts of the Island and the other work with students in the east.
She said there are about 2,100 students currently taking EAL classes on P.E.I. and she hopes this pilot program can become a permanent offering that can benefit more students.
Perry-Payne said at the end of the school year the province will evaluate the program, with help from students and school principals, and determine whether it will be brought back the following year.
"We'll talk to the students to make sure they're getting what they need and we really need their input in this. We want them to feel that this is good," she said.