Getting kids to learn a language is one of the most beneficial things that parents can do for them. There’s already considerable research on the benefits that come from language learning on the brain. For instance, one cross-sectional study on 100 children between 5 and 7 found that bilingual kids scored significantly higher on IQ tests than their monolingual peers.
Even with auto-translate tech becoming commonplace, it’s always an asset to natively understand another language. It’s an investment that they’ll come to appreciate with time, especially in college or when they’re older and traveling the world.
However, learning a language isn’t easy. That’s an understatement if learning is to happen online. If kids are to successfully learn, then the process needs to be both fun and effective. Let’s examine how this can be done.
Think Beyond Tutor Language Skill
If you run an ed-tech platform, it’s natural to prioritize language skills when hiring tutors. After all, if you’re offering Mandarin lessons, you might initially prefer the native speaker from Guangzhou. George from Texas might also speak the language at an expert level, but odds are, you’re going to pass him over.
While hiring native speakers is always a good idea, it’s not the only thing you want to pay attention to. While the native speaker may have a stronger grasp of the language, George might have spent years working with kids. If you’ve ever taught kids anything, you know how valuable a skill it is to be able to connect and relate to them.
For an eight-year-old, sitting through a 45-minute online session can either be the most dreadful experience or the most enjoyable. It all depends on the tutor’s overall skill set. Storytelling, using music, songs, and mini games, is going to be invaluable to keep kids engaged.
The best tutors know how to use a child’s interest as a tool for learning. So if they really love dogs, they might create dialogue or stories on the same theme. Thus, don’t get fixated on the tutor’s language skills alone.
Ensure Online Learning Doesn’t Feel Clinical
This is particularly important if you are targeting younger children. You’d be amazed at how much of a difference color and cartoon characters can make. If you haven’t yet created a website, ensure you customize it in a manner that makes kids find logging into their profiles fun.
Thankfully, as Hocoos notes, it’s incredibly easy to create customized websites via templates and AI assistance. You just answer some questions about your needs and preferred aesthetics, and the AI does the rest. It’s fascinating stuff, and you want to take advantage of these tools to make a kid-friendly portal.
Of course, the one disadvantage of online learning is that it can eventually feel disconnected and removed, even with a relatable tutor. According to Nadia Helal, an English teacher at LaSalle College, Montreal, live interaction with peers and teachers does provide more opportunities for speaking, listening, and immediate feedback. It also creates a greater sense of accountability to help students stay focused on language targets.
If learning a language online, then Helal recommends having an accountability partner to help. If your kids are young, that accountability partner is obviously going to be the parent. This brings us to our third point.
Teach Parents how to be Good Facilitators at Home
Many tutors think that as long as they pass on good insights and correct mistakes, they’re doing fine. They forget that many kids are still new to the whole “life” experience. If you don’t tell them how to prepare outside of lessons, they’re going to do what they want.
This is why it’s critical that a portion of the lesson plan is devoted to educating the parents. One qualitative study from Indonesia found that parental influence, in the form of modeling, facilitation, reinforcement, and encouragement, was critical in motivating language learning.
Of course, this is not going to be possible all the time. You’re going to run into parents who place all responsibility on the child and the tutor. If that’s the case, you can pitch the idea of taking extra lessons or spending a portion of the session on drill work. It’s going to be challenging, but young kids need that guided practice. If their parents go hands-off, that responsibility will fall to you.
All things considered, attention span is the name of the game when teaching kids anything. If you can’t hold their attention and captivate them, your insights are just going to fall on deaf ears. They might make some progress if their parents hound them, but your best efforts come when you can tap into their natural curiosity.
