Navigating the realm of online education used in Tenafly High School, two prominent programs emerge: NoRedInk and Membean. Both are used in the English department from Advance Placement students to CPB students. In this digital era, personalized learning has taken center stage, allowing students to engage with a curriculum tailored to their specific needs and pace. But which of these programs is the most useful for students?
Difference in Teaching Methods
NoRedInk harnesses powerful adaptive learning algorithms that give its main strength to train students in grammar. Whenever teachers see a collective of students having issues with a certain device in grammar, they can assign students to improve their skills in that field. However, NoRedInk doesn’t introduce students to any new vocabulary and solely focuses on grammar. In contrast, Membean’s adaptive learning provides a personalized journey, and its strength lies in strategically introducing and reviewing new vocabulary words. Membean’s algorithm allows students to build on words that they already know with a diagnostic test, allowing every student to start at a different level. Rather than having teachers make students complete lessons, a Membean session is done by how much time is spent learning the words.
Use in the Real World
NoRedInk’s personalization ensures engagement by connecting grammar skills to the learner’s world, similar to those used in the SAT. According to Method Learning, grammar makes up almost half of the Reading and Writing section in the upcoming digital SAT, meaning using NoRedInk would give students an edge in learning difficult grammar skills to use in the test earlier on. On the other hand, Membeam utilizes a different strategy for individualization. While it also considers a student’s proficiency, it helps people of all ages integrate more vocabulary into their writing. According to Infercabulary, vocabulary not only improves one’s reading comprehension but vocabulary also helps communicate ideas. The combination of NoRedInk and Membean would be ideal, but using both programs may be overwhelming to students.
Student Opinions
Seihyun Lee (’25) favors Membean more than NoRedInk. “Membean teaches me something meaningful, like the words that I never knew,” Lee said. “I already know all of the grammar rules, so what’s the point [of using NoRedInk]? I would like to expand my vocabulary.” Lee is confident in his grammar skills and would much rather learn more words to increase his skills in reading comprehension. However, Mark Sung (’25) believes NoRedInk is more helpful in the long run. “I feel that Membean is a very monotonous activity,” Sung said. “[With NoRedInk],I get to actually learn practical grammar skills rather than useless vocabulary words that are not really applied to my real life. I feel that NoRedInk makes me a better writer and helps me use certain devices.” The use of NoRedInk will be more beneficial for Sung because it will help him increase his skills in writing, especially since he is currently taking AP Language.
The choice between NoRedInk and Membean depends on what students want to improve on. Whether it is learning grammar or vocabulary, both are equally important when it comes to learning the English language. In the end, it should be the students who act as the judges on deciding which program should stay and go.
