Repurposing technology adopted during the Pandemic, Murray is breaking down language barriers in the classroom for teachers and ESL students.
Murray City School District is re-purposing cutting-edge digital classroom technology introduced during the pandemic to solve a different problem – language barriers. Huddly brand cameras were excellent for providing online instruction in the 2020-21 school year for home learners, as they offer AI-driven wide angle lenses and microphones that follow and capture video and sound as instructors move around the classroom.
But teachers at Murray High School are now repurposing them, pairing the camera’s amazing onboard microphones with Microsoft PowerPoint, Python screen scraping coding, and a large monitor. Putting PowerPoint in presentation mode and enabling translated captions, classroom instruction can offer and toggle different languages for English as a Second Language learners with the touch of a key.
The combination of these tools has revolutionized approaches to learning for some ESL students. For example, Mr. Connor Winder, MHS Physics Instructor and Mr. Colby Ford, MHS Biology/Zoology Instructor, began use of the technology in Fall of the 2023-24 school year. Both have witnessed incredible results, with multiple ESL students in elevating their performance, participation, and grades significantly.
In summary, this technology bridges language learning gaps, improves academic performance, elevates instruction and presentations for ESL students, and enriches 1:1 communication and support for teachers and ESL learners.
Background
Like other schools in Utah, Murray has seen a large ESL enrollment increase in recent years. According to the Utah Health Department, the state received 1869 refugees in Utah – that number has been trending up for several years. This means educators in Murray and other districts have a growing task of how to communicate with their new students, ensuring they are given equitable access to learning.
Huddly cameras feature 4K 150-degree wide-angle lenses with AI functionality that follow presenter movement. that allows them to follow the presenter’s movement. They also offer an embedded five-element beamforming microphone that captures clear audio from a distance of 20-30 feet.
