When I began this course, I didn't quite understand the concept of what "ELA" meant. Three months later, I now have a full-bodied idea of what English Language Arts is, it's importance and various ways it can be taught in the classroom. It's cross-curricular value in reading, writing and oracy is unmatched, I believe, by any other subject. One of the most important things I've learned within this course is that the Language Arts is essential to students' success.
My vision of the ELA classroom three months ago was one that was more general of the one in which I hold now. I knew that I wanted to keep my students interested, and that I wanted to integrate more "real life" examples from students' lives into the material that they were learning, but I didn't know how I wanted to do this. Basically, the difference between then and now is I had the message, I just needed a medium. I feel I have learned various techniques on how to deliver the material now.
For example, I now have ways that I can have the students represent their work and ideas. As they complete their assignments, I can have them create short picture slideshows or voicethreads to be presented in class and posted on the web. While they are thinking of ideas for a story, they can brainstorm visually using chart paper in "theme stations" as groups, or they can think of ideas for character development using the Garden Party idea and then using a writing prompt such as a fortune cookie to get them started.
Writing prompts such as the fortune cookie, and others that we brainstormed as a class are excellent ways to get the students off and running on any writing, not just stories. Reading a poem aloud and then asking the students to remember certain words with which they would use to write their own poems is a great prompt. If you have the students read their poem aloud when they are done, this can be seen as excellent practice for the students' oracy skills. The "Bare Bones" game is one that I can see working with my kids; having each student write a line, folding the paper up and passing it to the next student to write their own line and continue the story. The drama version of this writing game which Laura's group used during their lesson plan assignment is also an excellent way of getting students to write. Have a student come up and start the drama game by acting out a certain behaviour. Then have student after student come up and build on the story by picking up where the previous student left off and continuing it with their own motion. Daniel's group and their writing prompt of seeing what's inside the head of the character is another one that I will definitely be using in my classroom.
I envision my class using a lot of their oracy and group skills. I will have them do a lot of group work during brainstorming and even acting as a cross-curricular with ELA-Drama. All students will be expected to contribute ideas both orally and through written language as a class and during group work. I believe that when students are expected to speak to each other, this improves their oracy and social skills. Once in awhile I will have the students act out what they have written, as an example of alternative ways to express their ideas. This will also improve their oracy and help each student develop a deeper understanding of their work.
As for reading, I will have students read what interests them. The "Hunger Games", for example, or some other literary work that my kids will be interested in. I will try and avoid Shakespeare, however sometimes the IRPs and PLOs get in the way and it must be taught. I feel that even graphic novels would be acceptable, as they long as they are found as an appropriate resource within the PLOs. Even reading books like Robin Stevenson's series I would be very interested in trying out in my class. Anything that is fresh, appropriate and interesting to my students I will be trying to use in my classroom.
I can definitely see myself using Podcasts. Technology is becoming more and more prevalent in the classroom model and I think it would be unique and advantageous to integrate podcasts and voicethreads into the classroom. This would cause the students to become more engaged with their work because they are creating it on the computer, and they would be able to learn electronically from other students that have created voicethreads. Also, by posting their work online, this just gives students another forum to express their ideas and be proud of their work.
As for alternative assessment, I would have students read their work out loud or observe them as they acted out their stories or poems as a group. I would check for deeper understanding of the material or their oracy abilities.
I had the ideas before, now I have the methods to make it happen. I am a little bit more comfortable now with the idea of teaching ELA in the classroom, though I still have a long way to go. I'm excited to have gained knowledge of the various ways that the English language can be instructed, represented and assessed and look forward to putting these into action.
Monday 28 November 2011
Friday 11 November 2011
Writing and Representing in the Classroom
The English Language Arts classroom can be approached various ways. As a teacher, it's easy to introduce a topic, tell your students to write about it, and then have them hand their work in so you can "assess" it be marking it on a grade-point scale. This is not the way I envision effective Language Arts pedagogy. This is only one approach, among many others that I will introduce, that can be used to teach students about writing and representing. I believe teachers that will be the most effective are the ones who implement diverse ways of both teaching students language and having them represent what they've learned through creative and unique ways.
In the Grade 8 IRP, I found some specific PLOs that reflect exactly what I am talking about. First, I believe it's extremely important to teach students the importance of personal reflection through writing. Teaching a student how to "just write" anything that comes to mind, without thinking about grammar, societal or educational limits, can be very liberating. It helps the student make connections between life experiences, reflect on major issues and also establish personal beliefs. It gives a student their own "voice". They are not afraid of judgement because their writing will only be read by them, and no one else. In the classroom, to introduce this idea, I would have my students do a "free write" for 5 minutes. As assessment, I would ask my students if they felt comfortable representing their work through the sharing of their ideas, which would be presented visually on a communal poster. If they didn't, they would not be penalized. In the IRP, these PLOs fall under C1.
Another benefit of ELA is its obvious cross-curricular advantage in other subjects. Being able to read and write about material in other subjects is a must if the student is to become successful. The second thing that I believe must be included in the ELA classroom is the ability to think critically. In the PLOs, it is included that students must explore and respond to ideas through information writing. I would teach my students to read an article or story that covers a controversial topic, such as obesity, bullying or racism. Then I would have them write (represent) what their reaction is to the article, and what their thoughts are regarding the bigger issue addressed. However, I would also have them consider the source of the article. I would ask them whether they felt the article was biased or was influenced by other factors outside of the article itself. I would have them get into small groups of 4 and reflect on their thoughts on the article. As part of the representation side of the PLO, I would stage a debate. Each side of the class would be given a pro and anti side of the issue. For example, if the article was about obesity, one side would be for having healthier lunch options, and the other side would be against. This is an example of the students representing what they have learned through oracy, as well as showing critical thinking. This would reflect the PLOs, representing an example of being able to analyze, explain and persuade. As assessment, I would observe the students' responses during the debate. In the IRP, these PLOs fall under C2.
In my last example of a PLO that I believe is essential in ELA above all others, is the idea of imaginative and creative writing. Personally, I benefitted greatly from taking literary and creative writing courses in both high school and university. I truly feel that every student's educational and personal growth is enlightened by living in a reality that is not. Writing stories, poems, prose, or anything else that helps encourage the creative process is invaluable because it helps the student explore what he/she can do without limits. The PLOs identify that through imaginative writing students develop ideas and emotions indirectly by creating characters, settings, plots and anything else they can add to the story that will blur the line between what is real and what is fantasy. By doing this, students not only are able to experiment with different literary forms but can also make connections between their fictional characters and real life. The more my students write, the better they will get at the creative process. By writing imaginatively, they are also are given the chance to entertain the reader and themselves, and I think this helps to engage them considerably more in the material. Because it is their story, and they are now immersed in it, the students are much more likely to feel a personal connection to their work. An example that we used in our class works very well for this. During Robin Stevenson's guest appearance, we used brainstorming as a class to create characters and plot for the story. I would do the exact same thing with my class. I would have them brainstom characters, setting, plot, conflict, rising action, falling action, conclusion and other ideas they had that would make the story more interesting. Then I would give each student an hour to write their own story. As assessment, I would have students volunteer to read one or two of their stories to the classroom. I would have them do what we do in our class: each student reads a part of the selected story. As a representation other than classroom oral reading, I would have the students act out the story, with each student being given a part in the drama structure. This would take place in the following class. As assessment, I would observe the students as they read the story out loud as a class, and as they acted out the story in the drama structure. In the IRP, these PLOS fall under C3.
The reading that we have covered in class that most interested me in regards to writing and representing was "Structure and Freedom: Achieving a Balanced Writing Curriculum" by Mara Casey and Stephen I. Hemenway. The reason it drew my attention was because it was a case study that actively and critically looked at the results of the ELA educational system first-hand. I am not surprised at the results, however. As mentioned before, I believe effective teachers are the ones who find new methods for students to write and represent what they have learned. Page wanted a way to learn the basic material in the PLOs but by doing so through an unstructured process. She wanted an analytical writing program but one that gave her creative freedom. My response to this would be for Page to learn the basic writing formats through a variety of lessons that might include progressive teaching methods such as personal reflection or group reflection, where students would talk about their writing and help each other with ideas. Page could also start an online blog, helping her practice her writing. I would assess Page's work by reading her blog and presenting her with feedback. She could also benefit from one of our own class' examples, where we wrote one line of a story, folded it and passed it to the next student for them to add to the story. All of these ideas make writing and representing fun, while still sticking to the PLOs.
Ideas in class that we have done that reflect excellent examples of writing and representing that I will definitely be using in my classroom are reading out loud as a class, reading a poem and then writing our own using only words we can remember from the previous poem, the 'Bare Bones' story game, brainstorming with Robin Stevenson, the "Jigsaw" group discussion and reflection and finally the article group discussion, reflection and representation using chart paper.
Writing and representing are two topics that are essential to a student's personal and academic success. By encouraging my students to reflect and share through the English language, I will be helping them to prepare for their own journey through life.
In the Grade 8 IRP, I found some specific PLOs that reflect exactly what I am talking about. First, I believe it's extremely important to teach students the importance of personal reflection through writing. Teaching a student how to "just write" anything that comes to mind, without thinking about grammar, societal or educational limits, can be very liberating. It helps the student make connections between life experiences, reflect on major issues and also establish personal beliefs. It gives a student their own "voice". They are not afraid of judgement because their writing will only be read by them, and no one else. In the classroom, to introduce this idea, I would have my students do a "free write" for 5 minutes. As assessment, I would ask my students if they felt comfortable representing their work through the sharing of their ideas, which would be presented visually on a communal poster. If they didn't, they would not be penalized. In the IRP, these PLOs fall under C1.
Another benefit of ELA is its obvious cross-curricular advantage in other subjects. Being able to read and write about material in other subjects is a must if the student is to become successful. The second thing that I believe must be included in the ELA classroom is the ability to think critically. In the PLOs, it is included that students must explore and respond to ideas through information writing. I would teach my students to read an article or story that covers a controversial topic, such as obesity, bullying or racism. Then I would have them write (represent) what their reaction is to the article, and what their thoughts are regarding the bigger issue addressed. However, I would also have them consider the source of the article. I would ask them whether they felt the article was biased or was influenced by other factors outside of the article itself. I would have them get into small groups of 4 and reflect on their thoughts on the article. As part of the representation side of the PLO, I would stage a debate. Each side of the class would be given a pro and anti side of the issue. For example, if the article was about obesity, one side would be for having healthier lunch options, and the other side would be against. This is an example of the students representing what they have learned through oracy, as well as showing critical thinking. This would reflect the PLOs, representing an example of being able to analyze, explain and persuade. As assessment, I would observe the students' responses during the debate. In the IRP, these PLOs fall under C2.
In my last example of a PLO that I believe is essential in ELA above all others, is the idea of imaginative and creative writing. Personally, I benefitted greatly from taking literary and creative writing courses in both high school and university. I truly feel that every student's educational and personal growth is enlightened by living in a reality that is not. Writing stories, poems, prose, or anything else that helps encourage the creative process is invaluable because it helps the student explore what he/she can do without limits. The PLOs identify that through imaginative writing students develop ideas and emotions indirectly by creating characters, settings, plots and anything else they can add to the story that will blur the line between what is real and what is fantasy. By doing this, students not only are able to experiment with different literary forms but can also make connections between their fictional characters and real life. The more my students write, the better they will get at the creative process. By writing imaginatively, they are also are given the chance to entertain the reader and themselves, and I think this helps to engage them considerably more in the material. Because it is their story, and they are now immersed in it, the students are much more likely to feel a personal connection to their work. An example that we used in our class works very well for this. During Robin Stevenson's guest appearance, we used brainstorming as a class to create characters and plot for the story. I would do the exact same thing with my class. I would have them brainstom characters, setting, plot, conflict, rising action, falling action, conclusion and other ideas they had that would make the story more interesting. Then I would give each student an hour to write their own story. As assessment, I would have students volunteer to read one or two of their stories to the classroom. I would have them do what we do in our class: each student reads a part of the selected story. As a representation other than classroom oral reading, I would have the students act out the story, with each student being given a part in the drama structure. This would take place in the following class. As assessment, I would observe the students as they read the story out loud as a class, and as they acted out the story in the drama structure. In the IRP, these PLOS fall under C3.
The reading that we have covered in class that most interested me in regards to writing and representing was "Structure and Freedom: Achieving a Balanced Writing Curriculum" by Mara Casey and Stephen I. Hemenway. The reason it drew my attention was because it was a case study that actively and critically looked at the results of the ELA educational system first-hand. I am not surprised at the results, however. As mentioned before, I believe effective teachers are the ones who find new methods for students to write and represent what they have learned. Page wanted a way to learn the basic material in the PLOs but by doing so through an unstructured process. She wanted an analytical writing program but one that gave her creative freedom. My response to this would be for Page to learn the basic writing formats through a variety of lessons that might include progressive teaching methods such as personal reflection or group reflection, where students would talk about their writing and help each other with ideas. Page could also start an online blog, helping her practice her writing. I would assess Page's work by reading her blog and presenting her with feedback. She could also benefit from one of our own class' examples, where we wrote one line of a story, folded it and passed it to the next student for them to add to the story. All of these ideas make writing and representing fun, while still sticking to the PLOs.
Ideas in class that we have done that reflect excellent examples of writing and representing that I will definitely be using in my classroom are reading out loud as a class, reading a poem and then writing our own using only words we can remember from the previous poem, the 'Bare Bones' story game, brainstorming with Robin Stevenson, the "Jigsaw" group discussion and reflection and finally the article group discussion, reflection and representation using chart paper.
Writing and representing are two topics that are essential to a student's personal and academic success. By encouraging my students to reflect and share through the English language, I will be helping them to prepare for their own journey through life.
Monday 24 October 2011
Podcasting in the Classroom
Using new techniques in the classroom I think is a great way to keep your students interested in the material. One of these is podcasting, which provides an entirely new way of delivering educational information through voice recordings. After thinking about what kind of podcasts I will use in my classroom and browsing around, I have come upon a few that I feel would be effective in a lesson plan.
The first is the 'Poem of the Day' podcast. It can be used to supplement a poetry unit or a writers' workshop. The link, which can be found here: www.sonibyte.com, contains audio recordings of many famous poems, such as works by Emily Dickinson, Ezra Pound and Langston Hughes. Once on the website, you can browse to find a poem that would be suitable to your class.
The second podcast that would be ideal for an ELA middle years classroom is 'Bookwink'. This podcast, found here: www.bookwink.com, contains video booktalks that are designed to get your students excited about reading new books. The booktalks are 3 minutes long and vary in grade level. You can choose a book talk designed for Grade 6's or you can choose one that is designed more for older students in Grade 8. As you browse the site, you can also find lists of books that are similar to the ones talked about in the videos.
Besides the idea of podcasts, voicethreads are another resource that intrigue me. I had never heard of a 'voicethread' before I began this program and I first heard about it in our Info-Tech class. The reason it really hit me as a good idea is because it's so interactive. The kids can create their own voicethreads in a story they made up, and this will definitely cause them to become much more engaged since it's themselves who are their own work, essentially.
If I was doing a unit on storytelling or story writing, I would use this voicethread as an example of what I wanted: http://voicethread.com/#u13101.b125699. It's an example of a seventh-grade class creating stories about their year, with pictures. I would show the voicethread to my students and then ask them to write a story about something memorable in their year, complete with characters, setting, plot, etc. This would encourage the students to use their imagination and create a story from real-life experiences. Finally, they would produce a voicethread of their own to show the class on the final day of the unit.
The last link I came across that looked interesting from an ELA-perspective is the 'Great Book Stories' voicethread, found here: http://greatbookstories.pbworks.com/w/page/10034606/FrontPage. This is a wiki space designed to access voicethreads about books, and give users a chance to share their stories and books they really liked. The website is a great resource for people to learn about new books that would interest them, and to provide a communal dialogue around the world of literature. The reason I think this would be so great for students is because the website also provides voicethreads about book reports. So my students could find a fun new way of doing a book report that was assigned to them by creating a voicethread about it and sharing it in class.
I think we have only scratched the surface in how technology such as podcasts and voicethreads can help teachers and students alike. The idea that both of these advancements can help breathe new life into the world of English Language Arts is one that is both exciting and refreshing.
The first is the 'Poem of the Day' podcast. It can be used to supplement a poetry unit or a writers' workshop. The link, which can be found here: www.sonibyte.com, contains audio recordings of many famous poems, such as works by Emily Dickinson, Ezra Pound and Langston Hughes. Once on the website, you can browse to find a poem that would be suitable to your class.
The second podcast that would be ideal for an ELA middle years classroom is 'Bookwink'. This podcast, found here: www.bookwink.com, contains video booktalks that are designed to get your students excited about reading new books. The booktalks are 3 minutes long and vary in grade level. You can choose a book talk designed for Grade 6's or you can choose one that is designed more for older students in Grade 8. As you browse the site, you can also find lists of books that are similar to the ones talked about in the videos.
Besides the idea of podcasts, voicethreads are another resource that intrigue me. I had never heard of a 'voicethread' before I began this program and I first heard about it in our Info-Tech class. The reason it really hit me as a good idea is because it's so interactive. The kids can create their own voicethreads in a story they made up, and this will definitely cause them to become much more engaged since it's themselves who are their own work, essentially.
If I was doing a unit on storytelling or story writing, I would use this voicethread as an example of what I wanted: http://voicethread.com/#u13101.b125699. It's an example of a seventh-grade class creating stories about their year, with pictures. I would show the voicethread to my students and then ask them to write a story about something memorable in their year, complete with characters, setting, plot, etc. This would encourage the students to use their imagination and create a story from real-life experiences. Finally, they would produce a voicethread of their own to show the class on the final day of the unit.
The last link I came across that looked interesting from an ELA-perspective is the 'Great Book Stories' voicethread, found here: http://greatbookstories.pbworks.com/w/page/10034606/FrontPage. This is a wiki space designed to access voicethreads about books, and give users a chance to share their stories and books they really liked. The website is a great resource for people to learn about new books that would interest them, and to provide a communal dialogue around the world of literature. The reason I think this would be so great for students is because the website also provides voicethreads about book reports. So my students could find a fun new way of doing a book report that was assigned to them by creating a voicethread about it and sharing it in class.
I think we have only scratched the surface in how technology such as podcasts and voicethreads can help teachers and students alike. The idea that both of these advancements can help breathe new life into the world of English Language Arts is one that is both exciting and refreshing.
Thursday 6 October 2011
Getting Started: A beginning teacher's views on IRP's and ELA students
When I read this topic it really hit home. I feel like the question of whether an IRP helps or hinders you as a beginning teacher is a very personal one that I can answer, at least in my opinion, with honesty and experience.
What I went through in China as a beginning ESL teacher with no training I feel is an excellent example of beginning teaching with no IRP. I had no idea even what an IRP was, let alone be given one to work off of as a framework. I was given five days of classroom management training and team-building, and literally three days later I was standing in front of a classroom of 25 high school students who had no idea how to speak English. I was told earlier that day that I would be teaching the four Ancient Civilizations for two weeks. No IRPs, no curriculum, no textbooks, no library and no resources. If this isn't the opposite of starting with a B.C. curriculum IRP package I don't know what is. I have experienced first-hand what it feels like to begin teaching with no IRP, and it isn't fun.
So, I strongly believe that as a beginning teacher IRPs are absolutely invaluable. I have gone through and browsed the Grade 8 IRP in the past few days. I am blown away by how advantageously detailed it is regarding vast amounts of information that is (and I know this from my days in China) so incredibly relevant to hands-on teaching in the classroom. I love the fact that right at the very beginning it gives you the aim of what the course is supposed to provide for Grade 8 to Grade 12 students so you as a teacher get an idea right from the start of the general direction of the course, what to look for in student's progress and how it relates to the outside world. I wish I had this in China, just any idea of what I was supposed to be doing or working towards would have really helped me.
Other aspects of the IRP that I believed would have really helped me are the curriculum organizers because it would have given me an idea of what the purpose of each aspect of ELA is and how the students' thinking process should be around the content provided. Another area of the IRP which I believe would really help me as a beginning teacher is the 'Key Concepts' section. This provides a framework for the teacher to know what to look for and the reason that the material is being given. I believe it even gives the teacher an idea of how to assess the student because it lists the projected student abilities, and these projections give the teacher a good idea of whether a student is "on pace" developmentally during the year.
Other valuable aspects of the IRP are the timeframe because it gives a beginning teacher who has never done this before an idea of how to time manage her classroom, helping them plan their lessons in the most time efficient way possible. Also, being a support worker who has worked with disabilities, I really found the section on inclusion to be very helpful. Many teachers, not just the ones who are just starting out, would find trying to teach a class with a student with a disability something they don't have a lot of knowledge in. Inclusion is a topic that needs to come to the forefront because more and more students are being seen in the classroom as having a right to be there, so we as beginning teacher's must think progressively and educate ourselves on how to teach everyone. So the IRP section on this will help give an idea on how to do this.
Finally, I believe one of the most important factor of the IRP for me as a beginning teacher are the PLOs. I never had these in China and it would have changed everything. I would have known what I needed to teach each and every class, how I could assess them and how I would distribute the material evenly throughout the term. I even love the fact that the IRP explains what a PLO, something I never learned until halfway through the school year. By having PLOs, the beginning teacher is given the macro-view of the lesson and also is given a micro-view as seen in the lesson objectives. I understand the two are not the same, PLOs are more based on what the students will learn for the unit or topic, lesson objectives are more what you want the students to gain from a single lesson. However, PLOs being provided means these give an idea on which to base your lesson objectives on.
Overall, the IRPs are absolutely invaluable. They give a beginning teacher the framework on which to structure their entire teaching pedagogy on. Teaching can be incredibly intimidating, but having an IRP, that helps teacher's deal with everything from key concepts, timeframes, PLOs and assessment, is something that will be seen as extremely beneficial come day one.
As far as today's ELA students, I feel like they are a new generation not just in age but also in the way they process school material. I believe that the old days of teaching Shakespeare may be short-lived. Students are increasingly exposed to social media, electronics, television and a vast other selection of short "clips" of information that is causing their attention spans to shorten. The question is, "How do we deal with this as teachers?"
Students are more interested in material that they feel they can relate to. This has never been more true than right now. How they will learn is if we include them actively in class discussions, group activities, and presentations. Let's get them involved; give them the power and freedom to digest and share information with the people around them.
There are some perfect examples from class that I believe will work with students in the Middle Years' ELA classrooms. The first was the "talking circle", in which we went around and only the student holding the "talking stick" could talk. The way we could use this in the ELA classrooms is read a story to the students or have them read the same story. Then you bring the students into the circle and each student can share their thoughts on the story. I believe this will work because you are integrating every student; each person feels they are a valued part of the group. Another example from class that would work is "Jigsaw", which sees the students form an intial group and talk about a specific topic. Then, have the students split up and form a separate group, each member a different "expert" on their previous group's topic. My idea for this in the ELA classroom would be to have the students form an intial group discuss an element of ELA, such as composition. The other groups would be other elements such as essay writing, speeches, active listening and poetry. After, have "experts" from each of these groups join each other and share what they have learned. Finally, the last teaching strategy that I believe would work in the ELA classroom that we learned in class is "group reading" or reading a poem as a class. First, have a student read a poem out loud and ask if other students want to read, as well. Try and get as many students to individually read the poem out loud while the other students listen. Once everyone that wanted to read has had a chance to, tell the class that everyone will be reading the poem together. Get the whole class to read the poem in unison, creating a communal effect that includes every student, making them feel that they are part of the group and causing them to become more interested in the content.
If we can grab their attention in the classroom with inclusion strategies that will help create a connection between them and the material being taught, how ELA students learn may just change for the better.
What I went through in China as a beginning ESL teacher with no training I feel is an excellent example of beginning teaching with no IRP. I had no idea even what an IRP was, let alone be given one to work off of as a framework. I was given five days of classroom management training and team-building, and literally three days later I was standing in front of a classroom of 25 high school students who had no idea how to speak English. I was told earlier that day that I would be teaching the four Ancient Civilizations for two weeks. No IRPs, no curriculum, no textbooks, no library and no resources. If this isn't the opposite of starting with a B.C. curriculum IRP package I don't know what is. I have experienced first-hand what it feels like to begin teaching with no IRP, and it isn't fun.
So, I strongly believe that as a beginning teacher IRPs are absolutely invaluable. I have gone through and browsed the Grade 8 IRP in the past few days. I am blown away by how advantageously detailed it is regarding vast amounts of information that is (and I know this from my days in China) so incredibly relevant to hands-on teaching in the classroom. I love the fact that right at the very beginning it gives you the aim of what the course is supposed to provide for Grade 8 to Grade 12 students so you as a teacher get an idea right from the start of the general direction of the course, what to look for in student's progress and how it relates to the outside world. I wish I had this in China, just any idea of what I was supposed to be doing or working towards would have really helped me.
Other aspects of the IRP that I believed would have really helped me are the curriculum organizers because it would have given me an idea of what the purpose of each aspect of ELA is and how the students' thinking process should be around the content provided. Another area of the IRP which I believe would really help me as a beginning teacher is the 'Key Concepts' section. This provides a framework for the teacher to know what to look for and the reason that the material is being given. I believe it even gives the teacher an idea of how to assess the student because it lists the projected student abilities, and these projections give the teacher a good idea of whether a student is "on pace" developmentally during the year.
Other valuable aspects of the IRP are the timeframe because it gives a beginning teacher who has never done this before an idea of how to time manage her classroom, helping them plan their lessons in the most time efficient way possible. Also, being a support worker who has worked with disabilities, I really found the section on inclusion to be very helpful. Many teachers, not just the ones who are just starting out, would find trying to teach a class with a student with a disability something they don't have a lot of knowledge in. Inclusion is a topic that needs to come to the forefront because more and more students are being seen in the classroom as having a right to be there, so we as beginning teacher's must think progressively and educate ourselves on how to teach everyone. So the IRP section on this will help give an idea on how to do this.
Finally, I believe one of the most important factor of the IRP for me as a beginning teacher are the PLOs. I never had these in China and it would have changed everything. I would have known what I needed to teach each and every class, how I could assess them and how I would distribute the material evenly throughout the term. I even love the fact that the IRP explains what a PLO, something I never learned until halfway through the school year. By having PLOs, the beginning teacher is given the macro-view of the lesson and also is given a micro-view as seen in the lesson objectives. I understand the two are not the same, PLOs are more based on what the students will learn for the unit or topic, lesson objectives are more what you want the students to gain from a single lesson. However, PLOs being provided means these give an idea on which to base your lesson objectives on.
Overall, the IRPs are absolutely invaluable. They give a beginning teacher the framework on which to structure their entire teaching pedagogy on. Teaching can be incredibly intimidating, but having an IRP, that helps teacher's deal with everything from key concepts, timeframes, PLOs and assessment, is something that will be seen as extremely beneficial come day one.
As far as today's ELA students, I feel like they are a new generation not just in age but also in the way they process school material. I believe that the old days of teaching Shakespeare may be short-lived. Students are increasingly exposed to social media, electronics, television and a vast other selection of short "clips" of information that is causing their attention spans to shorten. The question is, "How do we deal with this as teachers?"
Students are more interested in material that they feel they can relate to. This has never been more true than right now. How they will learn is if we include them actively in class discussions, group activities, and presentations. Let's get them involved; give them the power and freedom to digest and share information with the people around them.
There are some perfect examples from class that I believe will work with students in the Middle Years' ELA classrooms. The first was the "talking circle", in which we went around and only the student holding the "talking stick" could talk. The way we could use this in the ELA classrooms is read a story to the students or have them read the same story. Then you bring the students into the circle and each student can share their thoughts on the story. I believe this will work because you are integrating every student; each person feels they are a valued part of the group. Another example from class that would work is "Jigsaw", which sees the students form an intial group and talk about a specific topic. Then, have the students split up and form a separate group, each member a different "expert" on their previous group's topic. My idea for this in the ELA classroom would be to have the students form an intial group discuss an element of ELA, such as composition. The other groups would be other elements such as essay writing, speeches, active listening and poetry. After, have "experts" from each of these groups join each other and share what they have learned. Finally, the last teaching strategy that I believe would work in the ELA classroom that we learned in class is "group reading" or reading a poem as a class. First, have a student read a poem out loud and ask if other students want to read, as well. Try and get as many students to individually read the poem out loud while the other students listen. Once everyone that wanted to read has had a chance to, tell the class that everyone will be reading the poem together. Get the whole class to read the poem in unison, creating a communal effect that includes every student, making them feel that they are part of the group and causing them to become more interested in the content.
If we can grab their attention in the classroom with inclusion strategies that will help create a connection between them and the material being taught, how ELA students learn may just change for the better.
Monday 26 September 2011
Broadening our views on ELA in the classroom: It's more than you think.
I have to admit I spent the last week being confused as to what exactly "ELA" means. I basically knew that the literal translation was "English language arts" but other than that I was feeling lost as to how to explain it. Over the last week I have been thinking a lot about what english language arts means to me, how it has played a role in my life through the years, and how it can be "taught" in the classroom.
Personally, I was lucky to have had a father that read to my sister and I every night before we went to bed until we were about 10-years-old. I took part in speech competitions until I was 16. I enrolled in Advance Placement English courses from grades 10-12. I entered poetry contests and attended workshops. I grew up in classrooms with "word walls", where the walls of our grade-school classrooms were lined with "important" words that we, as a young generation, would need to know. Having these words staring at us every day helped cement them into our every day vocabulary whether we liked it or not. There's no doubt that our spelling benefitted, as well as our conversational skills. I understand the importance of a primary language in someone's life.
I just feel like there's much more to the term "ELA" than people think.
For the middle years' ELA development I envision a lifestyle where EVERYTHING is ELA-related. Yes, there will be books assigned for readings. There will be reflection essays assigned for these books. There will be speeches written and delivered in front of the entire class. There will be projects handed out where students need to learn about an author or a public figure, create a powerpoint presentation, and present this to the class. I envision self-assessment. Where the students will tell me what they deserve on an assignment based on their english language skills. I will make the ultimate assessment, however. Self-assessment will help the students be critical of their strengths and weaknesses, highlighting what aspects of ELA they need to improve.
But ELA is a culture. It's everywhere. It's being practiced when the students are chatting on their way to school in the morning. It's there when they are reading the motivational posters along the hallways, or reading directions to the cafeteria. It's in the music they listen to, and then sing at the top of their lungs in the shower. It's in the mindless advertisements they are subjected to during their increasingly lazy lifestyles of MTV and TMZ.
I want to take the idea of ELA and modernize it in the classroom. Middle years' students are becoming increasingly indifferent to sitting in a classroom and suffering through the "chalk and talk" method. We need new ways of teaching to keep these kids interested.
Why not integrate the MTV lifestyle into the classroom? Have them go home and critique a television show. Have them write a critical essay on the social benefits and downfalls of 'Jersey Shore'? Answer questions such as, "Why is this show so popular? How does this reflect on society as a whole'?
Making some of the subject matter about their interests will automatically revive them.
When I was teaching ESL to a high school class in Wuhan, China, I found multiple ways of keeping the kids (somewhat) interested in the lesson. I would bring my guitar in and play them three songs every Friday. I would print out the songs and give each student a copy of all three so that they could follow along. This began to act like a reward. I would tell the kids that if they worked hard during the week they would get to jam out on the Friday.
Other ideas are making interactive computer-lab-based research assignments where the kids have to research a topic (we did famous canadian figures) and write a report and present it on bulletin board to be hung in the hallway.
The list can go on and on. Bringing music into the classroom and getting kids to critique the lyrics, while thinking about the social message behind them, is a great way to get your students thinking about the english language and the way it's used in song.
I believe the world of teaching is changing. Now, more than ever, we need to relate our students to our material, and living and teaching in their world is the way to do it.
Personally, I was lucky to have had a father that read to my sister and I every night before we went to bed until we were about 10-years-old. I took part in speech competitions until I was 16. I enrolled in Advance Placement English courses from grades 10-12. I entered poetry contests and attended workshops. I grew up in classrooms with "word walls", where the walls of our grade-school classrooms were lined with "important" words that we, as a young generation, would need to know. Having these words staring at us every day helped cement them into our every day vocabulary whether we liked it or not. There's no doubt that our spelling benefitted, as well as our conversational skills. I understand the importance of a primary language in someone's life.
I just feel like there's much more to the term "ELA" than people think.
For the middle years' ELA development I envision a lifestyle where EVERYTHING is ELA-related. Yes, there will be books assigned for readings. There will be reflection essays assigned for these books. There will be speeches written and delivered in front of the entire class. There will be projects handed out where students need to learn about an author or a public figure, create a powerpoint presentation, and present this to the class. I envision self-assessment. Where the students will tell me what they deserve on an assignment based on their english language skills. I will make the ultimate assessment, however. Self-assessment will help the students be critical of their strengths and weaknesses, highlighting what aspects of ELA they need to improve.
But ELA is a culture. It's everywhere. It's being practiced when the students are chatting on their way to school in the morning. It's there when they are reading the motivational posters along the hallways, or reading directions to the cafeteria. It's in the music they listen to, and then sing at the top of their lungs in the shower. It's in the mindless advertisements they are subjected to during their increasingly lazy lifestyles of MTV and TMZ.
I want to take the idea of ELA and modernize it in the classroom. Middle years' students are becoming increasingly indifferent to sitting in a classroom and suffering through the "chalk and talk" method. We need new ways of teaching to keep these kids interested.
Why not integrate the MTV lifestyle into the classroom? Have them go home and critique a television show. Have them write a critical essay on the social benefits and downfalls of 'Jersey Shore'? Answer questions such as, "Why is this show so popular? How does this reflect on society as a whole'?
Making some of the subject matter about their interests will automatically revive them.
When I was teaching ESL to a high school class in Wuhan, China, I found multiple ways of keeping the kids (somewhat) interested in the lesson. I would bring my guitar in and play them three songs every Friday. I would print out the songs and give each student a copy of all three so that they could follow along. This began to act like a reward. I would tell the kids that if they worked hard during the week they would get to jam out on the Friday.
Other ideas are making interactive computer-lab-based research assignments where the kids have to research a topic (we did famous canadian figures) and write a report and present it on bulletin board to be hung in the hallway.
The list can go on and on. Bringing music into the classroom and getting kids to critique the lyrics, while thinking about the social message behind them, is a great way to get your students thinking about the english language and the way it's used in song.
I believe the world of teaching is changing. Now, more than ever, we need to relate our students to our material, and living and teaching in their world is the way to do it.
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