Presenters: Emmaline Rawlinson, College of Education, Elementary Education
Authors: Emmaline Rawlinson and Addison Solt
Faculty Advisor: Chizu Matsubara, College of Education, Elementary Education
Institution: Dixie State University
Students Helping English Language Learners (SHELL) Program at DSU is a unique tutoring program that assists international students develop socio-culturally appropriate conversation skills and become acquainted with American culture. According to numerous theories in Second Language Acquisition, these two elements are imperative to enhance learning in an academic environment. Based on the knowledge from ESL endorsement courses, the tutors have instructed the international students purposefully in-person as they focused on helping them to succeed at DSU. However, due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic less international students have been able to attend DSU physically because of travel restrictions. The tutors believe that as the world changes during this pandemic, they must adjust their way of teaching accordingly. This presentation will explore how SHELL tutors will continue to teach language and culture through remote learning. To develop an effective remote learning plan, various information will be collected from professors, students in the SHELL program, other professionals, as well as appropriate research articles. In addition, with the implementation of qualitative research methods, this research will help to provide tutors new teaching strategies that can be exclusive to remote learning. In conclusion, the tutors are excited to continue researching how culture can be taught in the current pandemic.