Category Archives: project based

Summary of the #PBLA in the Virtual Classroom discussion with Rabia Rashid


Written by - teslontario
Image source: teslontario

Post by Rabia Rashid and Vanessa Nino

On February 26, 2021 in our #teslONchat, we discussed PBLA in the virtual classroom. Our guest moderator was Rabia Rashid (@ra2ns2002). Rabia has more than 20 years of experience in the field of English Language Teaching (ELT). For five years Rabia has been teaching adults in the LINC and ESL settings. Currently, she is working full time with the Peel District School Board, she has a Masters of Education from the University of Toronto in Adult Education. As an educator, Rabia has taught learners of all ages, in the classroom and online. She is determined to change the mindset about teaching and learning in the evolving digital age, encouraging her students to use digital platforms for productive self-progression. She is a volunteer moderator with the TESL Ontario webinar team. You can also connect with Rabia through LinkedIn: Rabia Rashid – LINC/ESL Instructor – Peel District School Board

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Collaborative Video Projects: The Power of a Student Newscast


Written by - Mandeep Somal
Image source: Brenda Bernal

One way to promote student engagement is by providing students with real-world hands-on learning experiences. An excellent way to do this is through student-produced video projects.

In 2008, Mary Anne Peters, Julianne Burgess, Elizabeth Sadler, and Zachary Arlow created the LINC for Youth Photography Project and LINC for Youth Video Project at Mohawk College to help newcomer youth learn English in a collaborative environment. The foundation of these unique classes is grounded in multiliteracies theory, youth culture, and technology. At the College, I teach in LINC Youth Video Project (LYVP) with my teaching partner, Emily Imbrogno, and media technician, Zachary Arlow. LYVP is targeted to newcomers ages 18-25, with Canadian Language Benchmarks 4-5. LYVP has students create video projects on topics connected to newcomer youth experiences and interests.

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Cereal Box Book Report


Written by - Mandeep Somal
Cereal box book reports produced by Mandy’s students
Source: Mandeep Somal

In post-secondary, students are often required to work on culminating projects comprised of various assignments submitted at different deadlines throughout the term. My teaching partner and I wanted to bring the experience of a post-secondary culminating project into our classroom, but in a way that was both manageable and meaningful to our LINC students.

When doing major projects, my teaching partner and I are always looking for ways to optimize Portfolio-Based Language Assessment (PBLA) for all four skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing). As we focus on teaching our students English to prepare them for post-secondary education and the workplace, we find ourselves utilizing creative ways to incorporate PBLA with scaffolded learning. Thus, we came up with the idea of a cereal box book report.

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A Positive Group Volunteer Experience


Written by - Mandeep Somal
multi-ethnic volunteer group hands together showing unity
Image Source: www.bigstockphoto.com

While teaching a module about working in Canada, I found my students were a bit surprised when I told them that volunteer work was not only valuable to have on a resume, but also one of the best ways to gain work experience in Canada.  For many, “paid” work experience seemed to be the only valued work experience they had known.  So, when I mentioned to my class that employers like to see volunteer experience on resumes and hear about it in job interviews, students started asking how they could do it.

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Teach Writing with a Web Design Project


Written by - John Allan @mrpottz

a hand holding a mobile device with a web site on it
Created with ChatGPT.

One of my courses specifies that students create a presentation on an educational resource and present it to their peers.  The following is a model I’d like to share with you as a potential means of using a common theme with a final presentation as a way of promoting inquiry, research, collaboration, communication, planning, and writing within one term of instruction. The project comprises eight separate activities.  Each activity involves the students practicing language and social skills in a variety of ways.  These steps are detailed below in the section, Project Process. Continue reading →

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