iPads To Translate!

Funded Aug 3, 2018

My English Language Learners have really embraced the use of the iPads that were made available through the donations from Donors Choose. They have been able to use them in the English class that I teach and in the multiple American History classes that I also teach. The iPads make a couple of helpful solutions available to my students. One of those is the ability for me to purchase versions of books in other languages. I did this with Unbroken. Students were able to read a version of the book in Spanish. I even had one student read it side-by-side with the English version for comparison.

Another helpful solution is the Google Translate app. The students are able to type in content and have it translated. They are also able to hold the iPad over the textbook or assignment sheets or computer screens and then Google Translate will convert English into whichever language was selected. Most of my students used this to convert English to Spanish and then back to English. We did have one problem as the Arabic language in Google Translate did not seem to make sense and created a little bit of frustration for the student. We are still working on a solution there. We have also used Google Translate to convert what I have said into Spanish and then what my students have said into English. While it isn't perfect, it has been helpful in bridging the communication gap.

I think the best part is having a student that has only been in the United States for a few weeks be able to see that we are willing to help him and work with him. I can only imagine how scary and difficult it can be to attempt to navigate a large high school when there is a communication barrier with your peers and your teachers.

Thank you again for your help in making this a reality. I will be continuing to look for ways that these can be used to help my students.”

With gratitude,

Mr. Brassard