WICKED PROBLEM PROJECT

Students learning English as a Foreign Language often have little exposure to English outside of their time in class. In order to build fluency, they must have frequent opportunities to interact with the language. However teachers can have several large classes and fluency building print materials are limited.

Working with CBA, an EFL school in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, we decided to use the platform Quia.com to give students the opportunity to access additional materials, resources, and activities outside of class time. These materials are designed to build fluency in the English language learners.

Technological Pedagogical Knowledge (TPK)
At CBA, in addition to the level tests, each student will be required to complete a certain number of timed readings successfully in order to advance to the next level of English at the institution. By using the Quia platform, students will be able to easily access a variety of timed reading materials which will help them to build fluency. Because the reading materials will be available online, the students will have access to them anytime they have access to the internet, not like a book or other material that must be used only in the classroom during school hours and shared with other students. This will allow them to complete the necessary number of timed readings to build their fluency and advance to the next level of English.

Technological Content Knowledge (TCK)
Students learning a foreign language need frequent exposure to that language outside of the classroom setting. In Bolivia, students learning English at CBA have little exposure to English apart from the 1.5 hours they spend in English class each day. By using the Quia platform, students will be able to access English reading materials at appropriate levels of difficulty any time they have access to the internet.

Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK)
When students read L2 materials word by word, the larger meaning is often lost or forgotten as students decode each word. By using timed readings, students are “forced” to read at a more rapid pace. This pace allows the reader to read for better overall comprehension even if he is unable to decode each and every word. The readings available on the Quia platform have a timer built into the webpage. Students are able to see the timer and pace themselves accordingly. They are also given multiple opportunities to read each text combining the extensive reading (ER) and repeated reading (RR) methods for building fluency in L2 learners.

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DESCRIPTION OF NEED OR OPPORTUNITY
APPLICATION OF TPACK
IMPLEMENTATION
FINDINGS AND IMPLICATIONS