What in the World?
The question that comes up for me after our recent readings is how do we do all that we need to do for all of the children we teach? It seems like an overwhelming task faced with mounting hurdles. I’m not only talking about the differences that our children bring with them (culturally, racially, socio-economically), I’m also talking about doing what we know we need to for our children under mandated guidelines set up by our local, state, and federal policies. Our hands are often tied by how our schools are run. How do we combine cultural discourse with classroom practices and governing policies? Our jobs as educators is to teach our children how to read and write, do math, learn social studies and science, explore the arts, think critically, work cooperatively, and the list goes on. To do this effectively, recognizing and valuing the differences among our students is vital. The research we have read definitely supports this idea.
At one of the schools where I work, we have a number of Hmong students. The school provides ELL services for them and has also welcomed their culture. The children have performed their traditional Hmong dances wearing beautiful traditional dress. They also have provided food from their native country. Even though this helps the students to share the Hmong culture with their peers, this does not help with their challenges of literacy. Most of our Hmong students are not reading “on grade level.” They struggle with most aspects of literacy: basic reading skills, vocabulary and comprehension of material, written expression and grammar.
What I want to share with our ELL teacher is the practice of reading, writing, and speaking together that Annette Henry describes in “Speaking Up and Speaking Out.” Have students respond to literature by writing in dialog journals and participating in discussion groups to talk about what they have read. It is important for them to speak in their native language as well as English. This serves two purposes. They can easily communicate their ideas in Hmong and also build vocabulary and understanding in English. For those students who struggle with writing, it is beneficial for students to dictate some of their journal entries to a teacher or in a recorder so that they can share some ideas without the difficulty of writing.
In school, daily, I see the shifting of discourses in students. We have students who act a certain way at home and have a particular identity (male dominant, care-giver to younger siblings, oldest and leader). Then they come to school, and their identity shifts (struggling reader, poor speller…). They quickly learn that rolls change depending on your environment. Their identity changes and in response, they have to act a different way. If they don’t make the shift, they get to hear the sage words, “You might act like that at home, but you’re not going to act like that here at school.” At times, it seems we willingly accept and understand cultural diversities more than socio-economic differences. We don’t always recognize socio-economic levels as differences. We just expect these students to conform, behave and do the work. We need to recognize their difficult challenges as they navigate through different expectations, language, experiences and prejudices.
As teachers and schools are beginning to understand the unique challenges that students bring and are providing inclusive and nurturing classrooms, we are still faced with the restrictions placed on what we have to teach. Our curriculum and materials are mandated by our local and state governments. As we are trying to meet the needs of a diverse population, we are told that all children must be on the same academic levels at the same time (on the same day). Our book lists are approved by local agencies. We don’t always have the freedom to choose appropriate books for our class nor do we often have the resources. What in the world are we to do?
I do believe there is strength in numbers. As teachers, we need to join forces at the local and state level to communicate our concerns, our needs, and our knowledge about children (all children) and how they learn. We need to make our voices heard to effect the changes that are needed for our students.
Susan Hines
Comments (4)
Susan,
I truly understand your plight. It has been one of mine for several years. After earning National Boards, I became a more reflective teacher in my daily instruction. When I looked back on all that I did to meet the needs of all my learners- struggling readers through AIG, I am amazed at what the state expects as average. My cheery students who love school b/c it provides them with love and encouragement, a place to better themselves, are told each year through a test produced by the state (basically in fifth grade all inference and drawing conclusion type questions) that they are not up to par. I get so frustrated with this scenario because it happens year after year. We all know that one test is not the best way to assess the knowledge of students. Also why are we using a state developed assessment, when we are competing for jobs in a global society? I believe that a more national standard test would give us better assessment data. Our teens are preparing for colleges in other states and jobs not only nationally, but also internationally.
I have a little boy this year that has a very low IQ, barely above being handicapped. He is working to the best of his ability. He will never be able to pass a state normed test. In the past two years as his reading teacher I have seen him grow to a third grade reader- still two grades behind- but he started at a preprimer level in fourth grade. No conventional test will look at his growth and see that this student has worked hard and praise him for this progress. Hopefully we will see the swing of the pendulum again back to growth being measured- instead of teacher achievement based on test scores of children. Most teachers I know really try to be the best for their students. I agree that teachers should rally for change in this bureaucratic system of education. I wished that policy makers and leaders would try to teach children for a month. Maybe then they would have a more clear understanding of what is needed (and those needs change daily) in the classroom. Please let me know if you do know of something that we can do to bring about some much needed change. I love my job of teaching children and want to be the best teacher I can.
Amy Reep
Posted by Amy Reep | June 20, 2010 9:55 PM
Posted on June 20, 2010 21:55
Dear Susan,
We do need to make our voices heard as teachers. We are the ones on the "front lines" fighting each day for our students while trying to provide them with the best education possible. Often times I'm afraid, as I'm sure many of us are to speak up and talk about our needs as teachers. We are afraid of backlash from those who hold more powerful positions and those who have the ability to replace us. I think that's why we keep silent and don't voice our opinions. We have people who may have never even been in the classroom dictating what they think we should use to teach our students and telling us how to teach it. We know what works and what doesn't and we need to speak up and stop being afraid. We need to do our "homework" and have research to back up what we already know to be true about practices and curriculum that we use each day. Finding solutions to fix these problems is key to our students' success!
Reshawna Greene
Posted by Reshawna Greene | June 20, 2010 10:16 PM
Posted on June 20, 2010 22:16
Susan,
You are right; we don’t always recognize socio-economic levels. I have seen the difference in my classroom, but didn’t realize it was because the students are coming from different discourses. Now, I think I will be able to meet the needs of my students better. Also, we do need to make our voices heard. Hicks had stated that, “the writing of educational theory and research can help to change things.” Like ReShawna said we need to do our homework and have research to back it up. Before starting my masters, I didn’t realize the importance of doing research in the classroom. I think Hick’s research can be an inspiration for us. I like how she is using a hybrid theoretical discourse. It lets us see a more realistic view of what is going on and we can make connections to our own situations. As Hicks has said when researchers don’t include the histories of the students, it can become too generalized. When I have gone to workshops that are presented with just theory, I have a hard time seeing how I it can be used in my classroom. If you tell me a story of how one teacher used it realistically, then I will be able to see how I could use it in my classroom.
Trish Edwards
Posted by Trish Edwards | June 21, 2010 5:42 PM
Posted on June 21, 2010 17:42
Susan,
What is great post! I totally agree with you that it is so difficult to teach the children when there are so many mandates and restrictions on what is to be taught at a specific time. I feel that I have to spend time making sure the right posters are hanging up and that the right papers are in order rather than spending time preparing for my students. I’m not suggesting that there are no expectations or standards, but policymakers have to understand that every child is not going to learn the same thing on the same day at the same time. We have to do what’s best for the children!
Laura Corbello
Posted by Laura Corbello | June 22, 2010 5:21 PM
Posted on June 22, 2010 17:21