The English Skills Development (ESD) program is a new project by Progress Through Innovation. It uses computers and multimedia tools in Computer Literacy Centers (CLCs) or Smart Class Rooms (SCRs) to make learning English fun for students.
The program started in 2023 as a trial in twenty-five schools that have Smart Class Rooms. ESD helps 4th to 6th grade students in Bangladesh get better at English. It uses fun and creative video lessons taught by ESL certified teachers. The lessons cover how to pronounce words, build vocabulary, learn grammar, and use English in everyday life. The goal is to teach English in a way that doesn't use the students' first language, giving them a strong base in English. This unique project was developed through a collaboration between ESL-certified teachers from the USA and experienced educators from Bangladesh.
The initial phase of the ESD project entails the creation of content in the previously mentioned areas. Progress Through Innovation has developed 32 video-recorded lessons, with each video representing an individual class session. These classes are conducted by Ms. Gazi Tahrima Maryam, an EGL-certified teacher from the USA. Furthermore, the PI team has crafted an attractive lesson plan and teacher's guide, meticulously aligning each video with its corresponding lesson in the PI curriculum.
Features:- Interactive and engaging video lessons led by ESL-certified instructors to enhance English proficiency for 4th to 6th graders.
- Comprehensive teacher training programs, including orientation and refresher sessions, to support effective classroom implementation.
- A unique curriculum focusing on real-life English usage, pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar without relying on the native language.
An ESD class takes place during one regular class period, which is about 20 minutes long. These sessions are scheduled in regular school hours. In each session, students watch one video. A local teacher, trained by PI, leads the entire session. They use a detailed lesson plan to help guide how they run the session and encourage student involvement and discussion. After the video ends, the teacher encourages students to talk about what they learned from the video. The goal is to get every student to participate in the discussion. The lesson plan offers specific tips to make sure this happens. Through these discussions, students work on understanding the main points of the lesson and think about how they can use what they learned in real life. The ESD classes are designed to help students in grades 4 to 6.
The expected advantages of this program are: (a) Creating a fun and interesting place for learning; (b) meeting the worldwide need for high-quality English education; (c) improving English skills for students in grades 4 to 6 with engaging video lessons and help from teachers, making it possible for students all over the country to learn English well and meet international levels; (d) bettering communication abilities by encouraging students to take part in discussions.
The ESD project is still in the initial phase of its development. Current activities involve: (a) improving the first 32 sessions based on feedback received from the implemented schools (b) enhancing teacher training programs; (c) expanding the project to additional schools equipped with Computer Literacy Centers (CLCs) and/or Smart Class Rooms (SCRs), which entails training teachers, distributing lesson plans, and tracking the program's advancement.
