Hello. I am Lourdes Ghazal. I currently teach elementary school overseas. I lived and worked in Africa for more than a decade before moving to Canada. I was in La Loche, SK before moving to Kuwait in 2017. I am a registered nurse back in The Philippines and used to work in health facilities. I joined education later in my life and loved the change. As an educator, I welcome change. I view it as a path to tomorrow’s world. I admire those who light the paths, the trailblazers. I adapt to new ideas and practices which I think beneficial for teaching and learning. Technology is always a concept that will scare me, but I am willing to learn and use it for the benefits that it offers. I think communicating with parents through emails and sending electronic assignments to students is my very first encounter with online learning. Before that, I was also receiving and sending back assignments to my instructors in my undergraduate courses at the University of Regina.
“Victory comes from finding opportunities in problems.” Sun Tzu ” A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.
The pandemic brought remarkable advancement in technology and it impacted education as we all witnessed it. I remained in Kuwait for almost two years without any hint of what will happen in the future. With too much time on my hand, I decided to start my graduate studies. Since then, I started to use online learning technologies. I learned to use the university’s learning management system (LMS) and other online applications. Some of those technologies were not easy to use at the beginning. I have encountered difficulties especially learning to use those technologies. Another important aspect of challenges was the limitation imposed on the use of internet in my host country, Kuwait. Countless sites and web pages that were assigned to visit in my courses were restricted in the country. Fortunately, my graduate instructors were helpful and accommodating when I communicated my difficulties.
At the same time, our school transitioned to online learning. Teachers, students, and parents needed to learn and adapt to technology. We have encountered plenty of challenges which we all learned eventually. The learning curve was stiff for everyone. At that time, we all had no choice but to adapt and go with the flow of change. The first year back to face-to-face learning was equally hard. Everyone at school needed to adjust and re-learn skills in learning in the classroom.
It was indeed a trying time for all. However, we emerged victorious because we learned new knowledge and skills. Those knowledge and skills were not futile because we continued to use them today. We can easily switch to online if needs arise without disrupting teaching and learning. Technology will continue to evolve and we are ready to learn them, use them, and adapt them to our fast changing lives.

Welcome to my blended course prototype for French Language Arts – 2e et 3e année!

Course Overview

This course will be a blended course prototype that will align itself with French Language Arts class in a Grade 2/Grade 3 French Immersion split class setting and it will be ongoing all year long, with new lessons and activities being uploaded on Google Classroom weekly/bi-weekly depending on the needs of students. The main focus will be literacy development in French (i.e. reading, writing, and speaking) and course content will include pre-recorded lessons in French with some translation in English to ensure all students/families can follow along. Editable worksheets and interactive activities will be available to students to further their learning and help them improve their literacy skills. Furthermore, this course will complement our in-class lessons and will review the concepts we cover in French class which will assist students in improving their overall literacy skills in French. Moreover, this course prototype will also be set up so that if students were absent, missed a concept being taught, or are just needing to review they could access the lessons and course content on their own time and be able to complete the activities from home. Class instruction will take place in person (face to face) during class time in a synchronous setting and the online component provided on Google Classroom will be asynchronous and allow more flexibility to students when completing the different lessons/topics from home.

Course Rationale

French Immersion is centered around the goal of ensuring second language learners/students that have enrolled in the program from Kindergarten to Grade 12, will graduate from high school being fully bilingual in English and French; the program also emphasizes that students learn to appreciate the cultural aspects linked to French culture (Government of Saskatchewan, Bonjour Saskatchewan, 2023). All instruction at school from Kindergarten to Grade 2 is solely executed in French and English Language Arts is not introduced as a subject at school until Grade 3. From this point on, instruction is still carried out in French except for English Language Arts and once students move on to high school the required time of instruction in French decreases to accommodate instruction of additional subjects and electives. The end goal is incredibly rewarding and inspiring when you see students in Grade 12 fully capable of communicating in French and being able to carry out a number of tasks in both official languages.

As one can imagine, it can be challenging at times to ensure students receive all their instruction in French (with minimal translation) and that they are fully able to grasp the concepts being taught in class in an additional language. French Immersion Teachers are met with the task of providing instruction to their students that fits their needs and matches their language competencies in French. Students progress at their own pace and it is difficult to plan accordingly to all students’ language competency levels in French; some students pick up the content taught quickly while others require additional time to review and understand different topics. Therefore, an online course component where we can provide a blended learning opportunity for our French Immersion students could be beneficial to students encountering success within the program.

Additionally, Grade 2 and Grade 3 instruction is heavily rooted in literacy development in the areas of reading, writing, and oral competencies in French. Exposure to phonemic awareness, daily modeling (i.e. proper sentence structure, proper pronunciation, reading strategies, decoding skills, etc.), and opportunities to practice new concepts are crucial in the development of an additional language. Moreover, French materials and resources are incredibly difficult to come across for second-language learners in Saskatchewan. Thus, an online component to accompany in-person class instruction allows French Immersion Teachers to set up a learning management system that can include resources, additional interactive activities, learning material, and assessment tools all in one place that all their students can access asynchronously on their own time to review concepts covered in class as well as allow students who are absent the opportunity to review missed concepts to help them become successful in their learning journeys in French Immersion.

Target Student Population and Demographics

This course is geared toward Grade 2 and Grade 3 French Immersion students in a split classroom setting. All students are second language learners and would have started the French Immersion program in Kindergarten and in some cases Grade 1. Level of competency in French varies from student to student and the needs of each child will also vary according to their skill set. Various students have adaptations in place and ROA’s (Record Of Adaptations) to help them find success in the classroom. Diversity is present as is with many classrooms in Regina Public Schools and this should be taken into consideration when planning (i.e. Socio-economic status – access to technology/internet; etc).

There are different expectations and different curriculums used for these two grade levels that also need to be considered:

Grade 2:

• Grade 2 French Immersion uses the Interdisciplinary Curriculum for instruction that is split up into 3 major components that guide teachers’ planning (eight possible authentic questions and Contexts, 49 outcomes, and 358 indicators); this curriculum focuses immensely on literacy development in French.
• By the end of Grade 2, students are expected to be reading at a level 12 (GB+ testing – equivalent to Fountas and Pinnell testing in English).
• All instruction is carried out in French; English Language Arts has not been introduced.

Grade 3:

• The Grade 3 French Immersion curriculum follows a more “traditional” format that divides outcomes and indicators into common subjects (i.e. French Language Arts, English Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, Health, Phys. Ed, etc.).
• By the end of Grade 3, students are expected to be reading at a level 18 (GB+ testing – equivalent to Fountas and Pinnell testing in English).
• All instruction is carried out in French except for English Language Arts; First time that English Language Arts is being taught to students in French Immersion.

Course Format

This course will take on a blended format where there will be instances that class instruction will take place in person (face to face) during class time in a synchronous setting and there will also be an online component provided on Google Classroom that will be asynchronous in nature and allow more flexibility to students when completing the different lessons/topics from home.

As mentioned previously in the “Course Overview” section, this blended course prototype is meant to create opportunities for French second language learners in French Immersion to review and practice different topics taught in French class. This could also be used in instances where students are absent and miss instruction on a given topic in French class and then access the course content later on Google Classroom to review concepts they missed from home or in their spare time.

Course Toolset

For this course, my “Major Platform/Learning Management System” will be Google Classroom.

The following learning material will be available/posted on Google Classroom:

• Powerpoint Presentation of concept
• Pre-recorded lesson of PowerPoint Presentation in French (with English translation included to help all students understand/follow along): will be created with Screencast-O-Matic and Lumi
• Both interactive and paper worksheets/workbooks (to be completed at home or in school if needing extra help/time):  created with both Word and Google Slides/Google Docs
• Boom Cards: created on BOOM Cards
• Quizlet activities: created on Quizlet
• Flip video: prompt available on Flip

• Formal evaluation – Quiz (summative assessment) to be

Learning Objectives:

By the end of this course, learners will:

• Have made improvements in reading in French
• Have made improvements in writing in French
• Have broadened their vocabulary in French
• Have improved their comprehension skills in French
• Be able to understand and reproduce (orally and in writing) simple and complex sentences in French
• Understand a variety of French content
• Be able to understand grammar rules and use grammar structure in French

(more precise definition and explanation of these outcomes are mentioned below with a link to the online curriculum in French; I have provided a brief translation/explanation of these outcomes in English)

Grade 2: Les programme d’études de la Saskatchewan – 2e année (2023)

Acquérir les connaissances linguistiques et les référents socioculturels 

Résultats d’apprentissage :

AP-AC.1

Utilise :

• les indices visuels;
• la morphologie;
• la syntaxe;
• la segmentation de la phrase;
• les syllabes;
• la graphophonétique;
• la sémantique pour négocier le sens et pour s’exprimer.

AP-AC.2

Utilise des organisateurs graphiques et textuels et des outils de référence pour négocier le sens d’un message et pour s’exprimer.

AP-AC.3

Utilise le vocabulaire de l’interaction et celui de ses activités quotidiennes pour exprimer ses sentiments et ses émotions.

AP-AC.4

Enrichit ses phrases simples déclaratives en démontrant un répertoire croissant de vocabulaire et d’expressions courantes ou idiomatiques.

AP-AC.5

Utilise une représentation visuelle du message pour l’aider dans son processus de négociation de sens et d’expression.

AP-AC.6

Se crée des modèles et des généralisations qu’il ou elle valide et ajuste pour découvrir les règles de la langue.

AP-AC.7

Démontre que les temps des verbes véhiculent une signification d’actions, de pensées et d’évènements dans le temps présent, passé et futur.

AP-AC.9

Distingue et utilise les règles de communication de base, y compris le vous pluriel et le tu singulier.

Grade 3: Les programmes d’études de la Saskatchewan – 3e année

Compréhension écrite 

Résultats d’apprentissage :

3.CÉ.1

Dégager le contenu de divers textes :

• le message dans une communication écrite illustrée de cause à effet, de problèmes-solutions et d’énumération;
• les éléments dans une histoire illustrée permettant de répondre aux questions suivantes : Qui? Où? Quand? Quoi? Comment? Pourquoi?;
• le sens global d’un court texte simple sans illustrations.

3.CÉ.2

Utiliser divers moyens (stratégies, conventions linguistiques et entrées en lecture) avant, pendant et après, avec l’aide de l’enseignant ou de l’enseignante, pour :

• se préparer à la période de lecture silencieuse personnelle;
• sélectionner un texte;
• comprendre un message ou un texte :
  • faire des prédictions;
  • établir des liens entre les éléments du texte et son expérience;
  • consulter des ouvrages de référence;
  • appliquer ses connaissances des conventions linguistiques;
• réagir à un texte à caractère narratif ou poétique / ludique en faisant part de ses gouts et de ses opinions personnelles;
• réfléchir sur son processus de lecture.

Production écrite

Résultats d’apprentissage :

3.PÉ.1

Rédiger :

• plusieurs phrases pour exprimer ses gouts et ses préférences, ou décrire un environnement ou un évènement;
• un court texte narratif dont les personnages, le lieu, le temps et la situation initiale sont présentés.

3.PÉ.2

Se servir du processus d’écriture, avant, pendant et après, avec l’aide de l’enseignant ou de l’enseignante, pour :

• établir les paramètres de son projet d’écriture, y compris l’intention d’écriture, la structure et les composantes du texte;
• produire un message;
• vérifier le contenu de son message;
• appliquer les conventions linguistiques à son écrit;
• planifier la présentation finale de son projet d’écriture;
• réfléchir à ce qu’il ou elle a produit.

Course Content

This course will be set up to support our French Language Arts class and it will be ongoing throughout the school year. There are 14 different topics that will be split up into 14 individual modules with some wiggle room regarding the time length we take to complete each module. Some modules may take a week or two to complete whereas other concepts that are a bit more complicated to grasp could take a few weeks to complete.

Each module will consist of the following setup:

• PowerPoint Presentation of the new concept
• Pre-recorded lesson of PowerPoint Presentation in French (with English translation included to help all students understand/follow along)
• Both interactive and paper worksheets/workbooks (to be completed at home or in school if needing extra help/time)
• Boom Cards
• Quizlet activities
• Flip video
• Formal evaluation – Quiz (summative assessment) to be completed in class as a whole group.

Here are the 14 modules we will cover in this course:

• La structure de la phrase (Sentence structure)
• La ponctuation (Punctuation)
• Les noms communs (Common Nouns)
• Masculin et féminin (Gender of the word – masculin or feminin)
• Les déterminants (Determiners)
• Singulier ou pluriel (Singular or plural)
• Les noms propres (Proper nouns)
• Les noms personnels (Personal pronouns)
• Être au présent (To be in the present tense)
• Avoir au présent (To have in the present tense)
• Les verbes au présent (Verbs in the present tense)
• Les adjectifs (Adjectives)
• Les prépositions (Prepositions)
• Les adverbes (Adverbs)

Assessment strategies

This course will use both formative and summative assessments throughout the year to monitor student progress:

Formative assessments:

• Worksheets/workbooks
• Boom Cards
• Quizlet activities
• Flip video response (will vary according to the prompt that goes with the topic)

Summative assessments:

• Formal evaluation – Quiz (summative assessment) to be completed in class as a whole group.

Considerations/Common Concerns

My class next year will be made up of a group of about 28-30 second language learners in Grade 2 and Grade 3 French Immersion. Each student will have their own level of competency in French and will therefore have their own needs. Some students may need to review certain concepts more times than others, while others will be ready to move on to additional activities after in-person lessons in class. In this type of setting, students will be able to work at their own pace and find a balance that works for them and determine their schedule to work from home. However, it is important to consider that in French Immersion – especially in the earlier years of the program – teachers are often translating to facilitate the comprehension of their students as well as broaden their vocabulary in French. Students could potentially encounter language barriers when completing their work at home on Google Classroom. Thus, it is essential that teachers planning to provide this type of blended instruction for a language class need to have certain tools in place – such as online dictionaries, pre-recorded lessons, etc. – to help their students navigate possible language barriers they might come across. It would also be a good idea to set some time aside throughout the school week, where students could come to check in with their teacher and seek guidance if needed in this type of instructional setting.

More precisely, teachers need to consider that in this type of setting, students will need a tablet, laptop, or computer with internet accessibility to log on to Google Classroom where they can access course material and complete interactive activities. Therefore, ensuring all students have access to the technology required to complete course content will be important seeing as we want equal opportunities for all students and if a household does not have access to a personal device at home, arrangements could be made through the school for them to borrow a school device (i.e. iPad, Chromebook) to use at home or additional time could be provided at school during moments of free time where they could access course content and complete activities.

 LINK TO ADDIE TEMPLATE

After having watched our ADDIE lecture, I started reflecting on my course prototype, what I wanted it to look like, and what purpose I wanted it to serve in my teaching. As I mentioned before in my introduction, I am a French Immersion Teacher and will be teaching a Grade 2/Grade 3 split classroom this year. I anticipate using what I prepare for this class with my future students and hopefully seamlessly integrate this content into my teaching in the fall.

I should start by explaining that French Immersion is centered around the goal of ensuring second language learners/students that have enrolled in the program from Kindergarten to Grade 12, will graduate from high school being fully bilingual in English as well as French; the program also emphasizes that students learn to appreciate the cultural aspects linked to French culture and other cultures (Government of Saskatchewan – Bonjour Saskatchewan, 2023). All instruction at school from Kindergarten to Grade 2 is solely executed in French and English Language Arts is not introduced as a subject at school until Grade 3. From this point on, instruction is still carried out in French except for English Language Arts. As you can imagine, it can be challenging at times to ensure students receive all their instruction in French (with minimal translation) but the end goal is incredibly rewarding and inspiring when you see students in Grade 12 that are fully bilingual and can carry out a number of tasks in both official languages.

Therefore, I am wanting to develop a course prototype for this assignment that aligns with our French Language Arts class/Literacy focussed lessons. I plan to use Google Classroom as my learning management system because it is used throughout my school division and students will have accounts set up that can be accessed at school as well as from home. The main focus will be literacy development in French (i.e. reading, writing, and speaking) and course content will include pre-recorded lessons in French with some translation in English to ensure all students/families can follow along. I have already envisioned adding editable worksheets and interactive activities students can engage with to further their learning and that will help them advance in their literacy skills. I foresee this course complimenting our in-class lessons so I believe this will be considered a blended course because it will essentially reinforce the material we cover in class which is essential in the success of our students mastering the French language and improving their overall literacy skills in French. I also hope to set up this course in a way that I can provide material to my students/families in French to help students become more literate in French; it is a challenge to gain access to material in French and most of our parents/families do not speak French themselves so a prototype of this sort can provide additional resources/material in French for them. However, this course prototype will also be set up so that if students were absent, missed a concept being taught, or are just needing to review they could access the lessons and activities/course content at their own time and be able to complete the activities on their own.

I am looking forward to sharing my learning journey with everyone and am excited to see what others are preparing for their course prototypes. Happy planning everyone!

Hello. I am Lourdes Ghazal. This is my first blog for ECI 834. This is a test.

Hi everyone!

My name is Valeska and I am a French Immersion Teacher for Regina Public Schools. I have worked for Regina Public Schools since I convocated from the U of R where I obtained my Baccalauréat en éducation française. Over the past 10 years, I have taught Grade 1 at École Wilfrid Walker School, Grade 2 at École Centennial School and I will be teaching Grade 2 and 3 at École Wascana Plains School this upcoming fall. I have always looked for ways to integrate technology into my teaching – even back when I was an intern, I made a huge effort to look for different bilingual apps and programs that would not only engage my students in their learning but also support the different topics we were covering in class. Once I started teaching, my passion to bring technology into the classroom only increased and I gained experience with different technology tools such as Smartboards, Mimios, iPads, and various other software/equipment. Throughout my grad studies, I have been fortunate enough to take two other Educational Technology courses (EC&I 830 and EC&I 833) with this current course being my third class relating to technology. Educators need to consider that “technology lets us better serve the diverse learning styles of our students and educate them for a wider range of intelligence” (Turkmen, 2006).

My first experience with online learning in the classroom was when we had to shift to online learning during the pandemic. This was the first time I had to familiarize myself with programs such as Google Classroom and embrace the idea of teaching my kiddos virtually. Having always taught early elementary students, I never really needed to set up a Google Classroom or set up login information for my students. Very quickly, I had to get accustomed to the idea of setting up virtual meetings/virtual lessons on Zoom and started preparing pre-recorded lessons and instructions with digital video editing programs (i.e. Screencast-O-Matic). I also had to quickly adapt and prepare digital worksheets that my students could access on their devices and then submit back to me to review. Additionally, many French Immersion Teachers went looking for online educational applications that students could access from home that provided reading material and promoted language development in French (i.e. Je lis je lis, Boukili, Boom Cards, etc.).

When we shifted to online learning during the pandemic, one of the biggest challenges that I encountered was related to my students’ competency levels in French. One of the key elements in the success of the French Immersion program is that students need to be immersed in the language in order to attain a high level of competency in French. Students need to hear and be exposed to French in different settings throughout the school day and this needs to happen regularly as well as consistently for them to grasp the language. Unfortunately, our virtual meetings did not provide our students with sufficient exposure to the French language for them to improve or even just maintain their level of French throughout those months when we switched to online learning. Another challenge I encountered during those months of online learning was when I prepared pre-recorded lessons and virtual instructions for worksheets. Trying to anticipate questions students might have relating to the work was very tricky and it was nearly impossible to create a pre-recorded video that would answer all my students’ questions. Ensuring students understood the different concepts they were being taught also became a difficult task to achieve because, unlike the classroom, we were not there with them to answer their questions while they were completing their work.

Nonetheless, there were also many opportunities for professional growth and collaboration with colleagues during these times as well. As much work as it was to learn how to maneuver all these different tools and programs, I feel this new knowledge made me a more complete teacher. Online teaching forced me to step out of my comfort zone and research new methods, resources, and strategies to help my students in their learning journeys. I felt like I was pushed to be innovative and try new teaching techniques that I probably would not have tried in the “traditional” classroom setting (i.e. Kahoots, Flip, etc.). Moreover, I loved how online teaching created a sense of community among colleagues when we were all learning together and encouraging one another. There was lots of sharing that took place during these months as well and every time we came across new applications or created a resource, we would share it with one another immediately.

I hope to be able to use the new knowledge I acquire through this course in my teaching with my students to engage them at school and enhance their learning. I believe it is important for us as educators to stay relevant with the various resources that are available to us and that we stay up to date with all the different technology that is continually evolving. I want to be the best possible teacher I can be for my students and staying current with technology will help me attain this goal. Furthermore, I align myself with John Dewey when he stated,

“If we teach today as we taught yesterday we rob our children of tomorrow”.

This is a test.