The NATECLA #ESOLchat

The first #ESOLchat on Twitter took place at the end of March after lockdown was underway.  Teachers (and students) were suddenly having to adapt to huge changes very quickly with little time to plan and often few resources. At NATECLA we were keen to think about ways to support ESOL teachers and this was one which was easy to set up. Most chats on Twitter are regular (weekly, fortnightly etc) and usually last for an hour with a specific hashtag used to make them easy to find. Twitter chats are something that I am interested in as they are the focus of my doctoral research but I’ve been involved as a participant for a number of years and I think they have some real benefits. Twitter has many faults and can end up being quite a negative place at times but Twitter chats tend to be very supportive, collaborative spaces, and this has certainly been the case with the #ESOLchat so far.At the moment we are keeping the chats to a weekly event – on Mondays at 1pm – and although most people join in at the time you can add comments later or just take a look at the hashtag on Twitter. I’ve been making a Wakelet each week of the chats – this is a tool you can use to collate all the tweets together so people can catch up another way and see what has been discussed. I’ve added the links to the Wakelets at the bottom of this post but thought it would be good to pull out some of the themes that have come up so far. This is just a brief overview so if you have been involved and want to add your thoughts on things I have missed please feel free to add a comment!One of the themes that has come through from the start was that students were wanting to stay connected with their classes, and that although this was a real challenge for many, that both teachers and students have been finding different ways to do this. Some students are using their home language to help others, and many exchanges in the chats talk about a real sense of mutual support which is lovely to see. In the most recent chat some people noted that more students were managing to access lessons or make contact, so that was another positive. There is plenty of mutual support in the Twitter chat itself – people are encouraging one another and giving both practical tips and sharing reflections and thoughts on what is happening. One observation that has come through from some people is that having online team/staff meetings is a real benefit to those who work in voluntary settings or part-time, actually making it much easier for them to be part of a team.Adapting to teaching in new ways is an ongoing process and hearing how other people are getting on is really helpful.  It is easy to get bogged down in the technology and to try and have the ‘perfect’ online lesson. Helen’s comment here reflects what others have also said – as well as highlighting one of the perils of online tools such as Zoom!Lots of discussions have taken place about which tools are proving most useful and WhatsApp comes up frequently as being the most effective way to make contact with students. However, concerns are also raised about WhatsApp in terms of GDPR and if teachers are having to use their personal mobiles to contact students. People have been findings ways to deal with this – for example with some organisations buying mobiles or sim cards for teachers – so there are ways to address some of the issues. Just being able to share these experiences can be really helpful for others to take back to their own organisations and look at flexible ways of dealing with the situation.What is especially important at the moment is the acceptance that things aren’t ‘normal’ (whatever that may mean) and this has come through really strongly in the chats, both in terms of thinking about our own wellbeing and that of our students. Our previous post here on offline activities from Joanna was a great antidote to the focus on online learning at the moment and one that we can all benefit from. It can feel harder to switch off from work and study when we are online and juggling multiple responsibilities and the rollercoaster of emotions people are feeling has come through very strongly. For some students engaging fully (or at all) with their ESOL classes just isn’t a realistic option right now and for others the real issue of digital poverty is a major concern. These are now long-term issues to think about and last week’s chat raised lots of questions about how things will work into the next academic year.We will continue exploring all of these in the Twitter chats but also in various NATECLA forum style events which are currently being planned. We are also planning to publish more blog posts here on how people are adapting to the current situation, as well as looking for articles for our forthcoming edition of the journal. Feel free to get in touch with us via the contact page or via DM on the Twitter account.The #ESOLchat Wakelet collection – so far! 30^th March:  https://wke.lt/w/s/i7WvfT6^th April:  https://wke.lt/w/s/5z4zWe20^th April: https://wke.lt/w/s/E1ZWDD27^th April: https://wke.lt/w/s/gSQ6ni4^th May: https://wke.lt/w/s/P-nfCk11^th May: https://wke.lt/w/s/jCW9UTPlease let us know if you have more ideas for topics for the #ESOLchat; all are welcome to join in, whatever area of ESOL you are involved with and whatever your role.Diana Tremayne