Henry and Staples
If I spoke my first dialect at all times, people would have a different thought about my literacy. They might would think that I held “literacy for stupidification”. Both articles discussed students using their own personal dialect, or rather their home dialect. The Henry article quoted that teachers “reprimanded” students for using their first language in school. Once again, this depends on the context of the situation. If students are discussing literature, they need to be aware of using some/most of the academic language. I think that it is even acceptable to intertwine the “home” language with the academic.
The Staples article identifies several different literacy practices – reading, writing, speaking, and listening; all of these literacy’s are affected by “actions, values, attitudes, culture, and power structures.” Even the research shows that we have to teach students where they are. Students have to have the teacher’s influence; we have to make learning relatable. Henry used diary writing to make the girls relate their life experiences to different literary works.
We have to teach our expectations too. Students are not going to readily share and relate life experiences if we do not encourage them to do so. An approach such as the Directed Reading Thinking/Listening Activity is one that helps students to make these connections. The purpose of this activity is to encourage students to engage in active reading comprehension skills. Students are to make predictions about things that they have read, basing them on what they have read and their own life experiences. It is through poor teaching that students “passively comply and regurgitate” information. Sadly, this has come to the forefront of teaching because of the emphasis put on the EOG’s and EOC’s for our students. If we, as teachers, were able to create “actively engaged” learners, then maybe they would not have to be bored by regurgitating information.
I like how both articles encouraged using “peer conferencing”. This helps to make students accountable for their own learning. I often tell my students that when you can teach someone else to do/practice a skill, then you have it mastered. Students need this accountability, which in return will also keep them actively engaged in the learning process, whether it is math skills or literacy skills.
Angela Steele
Comments (3)
I completely agree with you about having our students spit out the information we "teach" them in order to pass the test. We are all pressed to teach to the test the last few months of school we loose our students to boredom. But eventhough we are teaching the test, we need to find ways to engage our students through discussion and interesting text. Unfortunately again, I am pressed to use a basal text instead of high interest reading material that students are interested in. Perhaps if teachers had more of a choice of what to teach...our students would develop more voice.
Posted by jennifer wagoner | June 14, 2010 3:16 PM
Posted on June 14, 2010 15:16
Angela,
“If I spoke my first dialect at all times, people would have a different thought about my literacy. They might would think that I held “literacy for stupidification”. Hilarious and true for me as well! I do love your one liners’. When I write, people see me as smart or arrogant, but, as you can attest to, when people here me speak, they think I am a Valley Girl because I say “Like, Like, Like,” and other such dumbisms. I too understand the importance of knowing how to switch from my cool kid tone to future professor, but I will argue that students can only learn this ability by first embracing their own dialect, and feeling that there dialect is then respected before they can learn to do so. You have a very interesting post.
William Byland
Posted by William Byland | June 14, 2010 7:47 PM
Posted on June 14, 2010 19:47
I think you are right that home language should be intertwined with school language especially for students who are still becoming familiar with English. Expectations are so important! I try to have high expectations for my students. So many teachers let students get by with unacceptable work because it is easier than making sure the work is done to the highest standard. I have taught children that did not have high expectations the year before last and it makes it very hard on the students, parents and me. I am not a lazy person and I do not want my students to become lazy. I like peer conferencing and try to use as much as I can in my classroom. I think it is important to make sure that procedures have been taught before you let the students conference with each other.
Posted by Ashley Caldwell | June 15, 2010 4:12 PM
Posted on June 15, 2010 16:12