Hamilton East School recently hosted students from Peachgrove Intermediate and Woodstock Primary School ata skills training day for student ambassadors who are part Digital Bridges project.
The 16 ambassadors hail originally from Somalia, Thailand, India, Macedonia, Cambodia, Kiribati, and Tonga, and are the face of DigiBridges project, which aims to improve understanding and communication of children with English as a second language (ESOL) through the integration of mobile technology.
Project facilitator, Pippa Wright, says the new batch of DigiBridges ‘ambassadors’ were chosen based on their ESOL background.
“While they’re quite experienced in English, their understanding is not good,” says Pippa.
Hamilton East School teacher, Jude O’Neill, describes ESOL students as often being on the “fringe” of communication and understanding, which prevents them from participating fully at school and in the wider community.
Texting is seen as a positive and relevant way of growing the ambassadors' comprehension and communication skills. At the skills day, each ambassador was supplied with a cell phone and given lessons on how to text, take pxt, and store images. A frantic texting session followed as the ambassadors tested their new found skills by texting each other, and the DigiBridges teachers.
Four mainstream classes across the three schools are involved in DigiBridges, with an inclusive class approach to the use of cell phone technology being crucial to the success of the project.
Peachgrove Intermediate teacher, Frances Pallensen, says incorporating the cell phones into lessons has been a matter of “trial and error” but she is finding inventive ways including using them for the ICTPD Riverside Cluster project called ‘Our Place, Our City.’
“The kids will text each other to find out what playgrounds there are and what’s happening in each other's area,” says Frances.
To prevent interminable beeping and rogue use of cell phones in class, Frances limits the cell phones to one day a week, where she encourages her four DigiBridges participants and other class members to communicate via text.
Early in Term 2, ambassadors will start using the cluster’s Learning Management System (LMS) as well as the cell phones to communicate. The LMS will allow for more in-depth communication between the ambassadors and Digi Bridges teachers.
A positive spin-off from DigiBridges is the friendships being formed between the participants. Last year, a friendship was forged between a Tongan girl and Somali girl. Jude O’Neill doubts the unlikely pairing would have happened if it had not been for DigiBridges.
“As part of DigiBridges they have to talk to each other. The friendships prove the project works in terms of communication. Once they break the initial barriers (shyness), they’re off. Culture doesn’t get in the way,” says Jude.
And after the day’s first face-to-face session, blossoming friendships look likely too for this year’s DigiBridges ambassadors.
