While reading this article I had that overwhelming "When am I going to get it all done?" feeling. I kept picturing the girls in my classroom (2 black, 2 white, and 3 hispanic) and questioning whether or not I give them enough time in an environment that allows them to freely "discover" their voice. All but one of my girls are very quiet, usually compliant, and content to fall behind the scenes in classroom conversations. The fact is, all seven of these girls deal with stuff that 8 and 9 year olds in a "normal" world wouldn't even know about. As an adult that genuinely loves and cares about them, I really want to give them the literature that reflects their life and help them work through some of the discord that is present in their lives.
In the article, Henry states that in the traditional model of teaching and learning the students are passive compliers and regurgitators of knowledge. The girls in this study were definitely not passive nor were they simply regurgitating what they read. These girls were synthesizing new information and using this to make evaluations about themselves, characters in the book, and real world situations. They felt safe to discuss, explore, and be "real" with one another. The conversations continued no matter how taboo the topic and the girls were able to write without the stumbling block of Standard English, hence they wrote something.
The most important piece that I took from this article was the last paragraph on page 244: "Students come to class with real-life questions that a teacher cannot always predict, and that students who may be labeled as "low" or "poor" readers are constantly reading the world and anxious for spaces to express their heartfelt views." How can I meet test requirements and still make sure that all of my students, no matter what, have the opportunity to debrief about what is happening in their life and in the world?
Cherrita Hayden-McMillan
Comments (8)
Don't you wish that you could just close your door and listen to your "gut"?! My guess is that if we did a little more of that the test scores would follow. Making connections with the kids in our classroom so that they know we care is so important to their performance. Our schools have become driven by the numbers recently, but I think we are due for a shift back toward the center where there is more balance. At least I hope so.
Posted by Jayne Thompson | February 22, 2009 10:16 AM
Posted on February 22, 2009 10:16
I used to feel the same way as you do! I worried about the test scores but at the same time I knew that the kind of teaching I wanted to do would go farther for them than any type of test preparation I could give them. I always made sure that they knew how the tests worked because it was a hoop that they had to jump through, and as their teacher I had to get them ready for it. However, I made sure that my students knew that read wasn’t like an end of grade test and unfortunately so many of our students think about reading in this way. I truly believe that if you are teaching the right way, using the right materials and always keeping in mind that your ultimate goal is to create life long learners, your test scores will be where they need to be. I know it’s a tough think to take without proof but I think and believe it can happen. When I go back to teaching in the fall I think I just may collect some data that begins to show this because all teachers need to know that what they are doing for their students is the right thing to do.
Posted by Amie Snow | February 22, 2009 12:59 PM
Posted on February 22, 2009 12:59
Thank you for bringing that point in the last paragraph to my attention again! I had somehow skimmed over it and it really hadn't penetrated until I read it again. What a powerful statement: that students are "constantly reading the world" and looking for spaces to "express their heartfelt views." Many times we may think that a low-performing student doesn't have interests anywhere else. We may think, "oh, he's not engaged in the classroom activity, so he must be disengaged in the rest of his world." I'm guilty of this myself, and I'm sure many other teachers are as well. The vision I got when thinking of a child looking for a place to share their views made me so sad. If they can't find it at school, and perhaps can't find it at home for whatever reason, then what is happening to their voice?
Posted by Christy Rivers | February 22, 2009 2:34 PM
Posted on February 22, 2009 14:34
Cherrita,
I have a group of girls similar to your group. I also want to give them material that is relevant to their lives. I wonder if there is a book list for minority girls in primary grades? It's something to look into. I try to give them things that they are interested in. But I don't think I am reaching enough. A book about kittens is interesting to them, but it doesn't really reflect what is going on in their lives.
Posted by Sarah Feinman | February 22, 2009 4:49 PM
Posted on February 22, 2009 16:49
I did a little looking...and this is what I have found so far...
http://www.hcpl.net/booklists/AfricanAmericanChildrens.htm
This list is just for girls in general: http://www.randomhouse.com/rhpg/promos/greatbooks/booklist.html
Posted by Sarah Feinman | February 22, 2009 4:53 PM
Posted on February 22, 2009 16:53
Cheritta,
I can imagine your frustration with test scores, but I am thinking back to one of the FDN classes I took addressing the higher order thinking skills of Bloom's taxonomy. The girls in the article, like you said were not regurgitating the information, they were taking the information to examine the circumstances and evaluating and applying the material to situations in their life. I feel this is an example of the students demonstrating how they can evaluate the material, which I believe is the highest. There is a good link that shows bloom's taxonomy and examples of student assessment:
http://fic.engr.utexas.edufiles/HigherOrderThinkingSkills(FIC).pdf
I feel that if students can demonstrate higher order thinking skills during reading groups, their skill level has the potential to transfer to various material and content.
Posted by Elizabeth Griffin | February 23, 2009 8:38 PM
Posted on February 23, 2009 20:38
Hey Cheritta. It certainly is hard to "teach" everything we are suppose to teach and be able to take time to find out what is going on with your students. Perhaps, try using some of this real-life meaningful literature to teach and reach all of these students. That way, you are accomplishing both tasks. Hope this helps.
Posted by Whitney Gilbert | February 23, 2009 10:54 PM
Posted on February 23, 2009 22:54
It's all a balancing act, isn't it Cherrita? I think you colleagues here have given you some good feedback about their own strategies.
I appreciate your comment about the girls' ability to transgress standard English to find their voice. I like that you made that connection from our previous readings!
Posted by Alecia Jackson | February 26, 2009 9:38 PM
Posted on February 26, 2009 21:38