Why did you start looking for a tool like This is School?  

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I started using it actually in my previous district and we had very limited resources; to find something that would work to give kids authentic experiences with the language, hearing other accents, other speakers, speakers who looked different from them - I knew we needed something beyond the textbook (which was actually the same textbook I learned from as a student!). 

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I knew there had to be something out there that could give me different points of view, different perspectives, speakers that look like my students, speakers who are their age…and then we found This is School!

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We discovered it initially at FLAVA and I immediately took it back to my department chair. Even when I moved districts, one of my first questions was “Do you use This is School? Because I would be lost without it!”

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It was everything I needed at that point and still is - and it keeps getting better.

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Was there anything else you compared This is School to, in terms of resources?

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It was immediately what I needed. There was power in the authentic listening plus reading, writing, speaking, and Nutty Tilez for vocab. It just struck me as having everything.

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It’s all in one package and goes right along with our curriculum.

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You mention your curriculum there - how does This is School work alongside this?

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I can pull any unit we’re teaching and there are just so many videos for all levels; whether that’s novices in French One, French Two, or all the way up to my AP students. This year I’m also teaching IB and This is School has a whole tab just for IB videos and resources!

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It’s all there and it correlates to each of the themes. It means we don’t have to do all of the hard work. This is School does it all for us.

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We often hear teachers comment on how much time it can take to introduce new resources.

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You’ve got to be prepared to dig deep, but once you know what’s there you can do so much - for example, I use the video transcripts for reading activities now. I just pull them and take them as the jigsaws and make them do it as a reading. Like there's so much I can pull or take and turn into comprehension.

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Even with new features you do have to take a minute but it’s so, so worth it. Speaking, for example, you can have your students speak directly into it and the kids actually like it! It has your rubric and you can score your students right there - done. 

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Have you seen any specific improvements in your students while using This is School?

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I would definitely say my students have improved their language skills, both speaking, writing, as well as their interpretive skills using This is School.  I've seen that success both on their AP scores and I've seen it just as French 1 students within the classroom.

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And this is a tool that they go back to! They find it fun and engaging, and it's something that they're willing to do outside of school. They want to keep playing Nutty Tilez, they want to improve on their vocab. They don't see it as work, but they see it more as a way to play with the language.

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They don't even realize they're learning at the same time, but they're learning. They're making leaps and bounds in their skills, both in writing, orally, and speaking. So I see gains in all the modes.

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This is School really promotes mastery learning. Students don’t get a wrong answer and just move on and not learn from it. It forces them to learn from their mistakes and they can have that essential lightbulb moment - “oh that’s why I was wrong, I get it now” - and they feel proud when they see that success.

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That’s really amazing, and it must feel great as their teacher too!

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I like them having that success because I'm like, yeah, you're getting it. And they're not feeling frustrated because it'll go back and show them, how did I mess up? Where was that mistake?

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They relate to it too because it's topics that are relevant to them, and it's usually young adults they’re hearing from so it's not just me putting on some video of something that they immediately dismiss. They want to know about a topic that's relevant to them with someone that looks like them.

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So there are absolutely gains. I actually had a parent email one time saying their kid would not put their phone down their whole car journey and it was because they were trying to beat Demon Dante - the ‘boss’ of Nutty Tilez - and isn’t that great? If your child is going to play Nutty Tilez for a whole road trip, they’re ultimately learning! 

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And what about the impact This is School has on your own time?

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I find it a total time saver when I'm looking for a unit for authentic videos where I am like, oh, I could go and spend hours searching YouTube, searching social media, looking for these clips and having to then preview them and everything when I know I could make one quick click onto This is School and I'm going to have so many options.

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I would spend hours before trying to find resources, then having to curate the activities, then differentiate them for the levels, all the things, and then finally go and use it. And even by the time I go and try to use it, the video may not even be available because the school blocks it or it's been taken down off of the site. But that’s just not the case with This is School.

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The video is not disappearing. The activities are made and then the grading is done for me. Why wouldn't I use it? It’s incredible.

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Do your students have a favorite part of the platform? We often hear Nutty Tilez…

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It’s Nutty Tilez but they love the grammar videos too.

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I know that's probably crazy to say about kids, but they actually love grammar because I think it's short and it's quick. As well as being quirky, it helps to build their confidence too. 

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They really love doing quick pop up grammar with George (aka Grammar Guy). Like, here you go. I know upper level, my AP kids, they're always asking “Can we just go in and review any grammar that we've forgotten from way back?” 

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I have kids who go on and do it during the summer on their own or the ones like I have a couple of overachievers who want to push themselves further, and they're asking me “Can I use This is School over the summer to teach myself more grammar and more concepts?”. Absolutely!

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Would you recommend This is School to other teachers? Why?

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I would 100 percent recommend this school for other teachers because it is a learning platform where students can be engaged with authentic videos from real native speakers from around your target language country. 

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You have all of your interactive activities already made for you; videos, listening activities, you have reading, you have speaking, you have writing and you have gamification all in one platform. 

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For me, I use it not only on days where I'm in class with my students, but I also find it something that I can confidently leave my students on a sub day and know that even if I'm not there, the learning is still happening. They're engaged with it.

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They like the activities and they actually see themselves improving and getting better, which you don't find them getting excited about other tools in that way. 

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So I 100% recommend it for authentic learning and interactions. I couldn't be happier with it and I would be lost if I didn't have access to it.

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