Schools Fuel Demand for High-Tech Language Labs — from edweek.org by Michelle R. Davis
When students of Spanish teacher Sean M. Boettinger put on their headsets in his Maryland high school’s language lab, their concentration heightens, he says. The up-to-date digital equipment, says the teacher, keeps them engaged with teenage-friendly electronics, allows them to get more Spanish listening and speaking practice, and, most important, blocks out distractions. “Particularly in classes that have a hard time paying attention, having those headphones on, and me being able to speak through that microphone directly into their ears with no outside noises, is a great focusing tool,” says Boettinger, who teaches at Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr. High School in the 134,000-student Prince George’s County district.
