SL Leading

When I was talking to the teachers about what type of activity I could lead, we decided to do something a little more fun and something the kids would enjoy.  I helped them all get ready for the project they were doing to make bags for Easter eggs.  I worked with them to make decorations, spell their names, and decide how they were going to decorate everything.  I personally got a lot of the project prepared and then worked with the students.  This activity was not the most educational thing, but the teachers thought it would be a great way to get all of the students involved and have fun with them.  It went really well and the kids really loved it.  They had a fun time choosing how to decorate their bags and deciding how they were going to do it.  While we were doing it we talked about Easter and why it is so important.  The students got the chance to learn a lot about the history of everything that happened.  One thing that was really good was that they all asked a lot of questions and we talked through them together.  We had a lot of really good discussion while they were still having a lot of fun.  This is how I hope my classroom will be one day.  I love the concept of including fun activities with meaningful discussions. The students also really helped each other out.  If one of them had a hard time cutting or tracing, someone always volunteered to help, which I thought was great.  I really enjoyed doing this project with the kids because I felt like they were really happy. 

SL Interactions

During the time I spent at the YWCA, I spent a majority of my time with two of the older students, Jocelyn and Christopher.  They were ten and eleven years old, so we had a lot of good discussions during the time we spent together.  Christopher and I played games like connect four and UNO a lot and we got to talk about certain things.  I found out that he had a younger sister in Miss Nancy's room and that they both go to the YWCA a lot.  He has fun there, but he wishes he could spend more time at home.  Hearing him talk about some of the things he had going on in his life made me feel for him and I always felt sad after I left.  He is Mexican and he said that even though most of the children there are African-American, he never feels like an oddball out or anything.  I learned that he really likes math and he is a quick thinker.  He also really enjoys the book series, Diary of A Wimpy Kid.  He likes to read books that are funny, but he hates to read the stuff he has to read for school.  I also spent a lot of time with Jocelyn and had fun with her.  One day we spent a lot of time just the two of us and she taught me how to make a keychain by braiding the string in this really cool way.  We made those together and talked.  She has three younger sisters that also go there and her family dynamic seems to be kind of chaotic.  By the stories she told, I feel that she has a lot more responsibility than a normal 11 year old should have.  Her sisters seemed to be constantly coming to her for something and I could tell that she is in charge and probably watches them a lot at home.  She really likes school, but she feels like kind of a loner there.  She is very quiet and kind of sticks to herself.  I felt that she did not really have a companion at the YWCA, she kind of just drifted.  I think this is probably what happens to her at school and I think it will probably end up affecting her school work.  Both of these kids were so nice and so welcoming to me that it made me appreciate them so much.  I think one thing that is different about the students that go there is that they seem to be willing to talk to anyone.  It is almost as if they need the human interaction and attention, which makes me feel very sad for them.  I don't think either Christopher or Jocelyn gets what they need from their homes. 

SL Observations

The first time I went to the YWCA I was really shocked.  I had no clue that this place even existed and I had no idea what the requirements to go there were.  Every time I went, I felt that it just made me very sad and I felt bad for all of the kids.  I know you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover, but the environment at the YWCA was very sketchy to me at first and I felt like I would never be able to leave my kids there if I had any.  I was surprised by the teachers there and felt like I did judge them.  After observing there for a few hours though, I realized that the teachers really care about the kids and they are truly trying to help them as much as they can.  I think that what everyone at the YWCA does is just really cool and I love the mission they have.  Every time I observed the kids they seemed like they were having a blast and that they were actually pretty happy.  I expected them to be sad and kind of different from the kids I am used to seeing, but they really seem to enjoy spending time there.  I am glad they have this safe place to go.  I feel really bad that I made so many initial judgments about it because it is so totally different than what I am used to.  I think the most important thing about the YWCA is that they really always have something going on for the kids and a lot of the time they work educational lessons into the activities.  I was also really surprised to see how pretty much all of the kids got along really well with each other.  I never saw anyone pick on another kid or bully anyone.  I was really surprised because I feel like there are clicks at any age and there seemed to be none.  All of the girls and boys treated each other well and all seemed to get along.  I think that really says something for the YWCA that everyone there shows respect for each other. 

Chapter Five

I thought that this chapter was interesting because it was a really new outlook on literacy that I hadn't thought of before.  When Probst said, "Teachers talk and students listen," I think it was something that made so much sense to me, but I hadn't considered it before.  When I think about all of my own personal classroom experiences, that is how most of them were.  It seemed like the teachers were always talking to us and we just listened and took notes.  I did not have a lot of times when my classes would have really deep conservations.  I was surprised to find out that "recitation is not discussion, interrogation is not conservation; the back-and-forth of question-and-answer is not the same as the give-and-take of egalitarian discourse" (46).  These are how so many of the classrooms that I have been in are.  I realized that most of my time spent in a classroom as a student was not spent in meaningful discussion.  Knowing this now, I know I really want to change this in my future classroom.  I am really hoping that I can have conservations in my classrooms that my students will learn and be able to talk openly.  He said, "the participants need to at least feel comfortable with one another" (48).  I think this is crucial because how the students feel around each other can either make or break how the feel in the classroom.  I don't want students to feel like they can't say what is on his or her mind because I think that is the worst thing for a classroom.  I think the ideas of annotated text and forced freewriting are really good ideas because they really get the students thinking and gets their thoughts flowing.  It is a good way to get their thoughts started and then they can expand on them in the classroom discussions. 

Blackboard Readings

I feel like after my practicum experiences I can really relate to a lot of what these chapters had to say.  I spent over 50 hours working at Kankakee Junior High where there is a lot of diversity and a lot of the students come from lower-class families and really fit the stereotypes these readings mentioned.  When Ladson-Billing described the teacher as giving her student "permission to fail," I really understood that concept (110).  In the classroom I was in there were certain students that it was very obvious the teacher had given up on.  The teacher was all over the students that didn't do their homework, but for a few certain students, she did not even say anything.  They had pushed her to her breaking point and did not care anymore.  She was so tired of trying to get them to do something that she quit.  I think this is a really common thing, but it is overlooked a lot.  The idea of thinking what does success look like for each individual student is important to remember (Ladson-Billing 112).  Success means something different for each student, but the teacher has to remember to have both overall goals for the classroom, but still keep individual goals.  This is one thing that the teacher I worked with was not so great at.  She seemed to only care about the students who were willing to put an effort in.  The problem with that is that the less attention the "trouble" kids get, the more the act out.  Even if they act like they want to fail, they really don't.  You have to keep pushing them.  I think that literacy knowledge is another thing that too many teachers do not take into consideration.  Knowing about Language Acquisition and how children learn and understand language at different rates is important to remember.  As Purcell-Gates explained, "Children do not behave in tat let us know that they have learned and are learning about written language" (125).  A lot of the time children do not understand the full concept of reading and using language because of their backgrounds.  Family life really effects what children learn when they grow up.  If a student is coming from a middle to upper class home where the parents engage in educational discussions a lot, the students have a much higher chance of coming to school with more background information on language.  It is important to keep in mind that parental education has an effect on the student's own education (Purcell-Gates 126).  I think a lot of teachers just expect students to all be on the same page when they get to school, but there are many advantages and disadvantages for each student. 

Chapter Fourteen

Even though I thought that this chapter was kind of repeating a lot of what the other chapters had to say about using technology in the classroom, I thought there were a lot of good points in it.  I think that a lot of students really feel like teachers don't understand all of the technology outside of school that they use for more than just social reasons.  A lot of students use technology to read and write and it is a lot more detailed than teachers think.  I really want my students to feel like they can express themselves through their writing any way they want to.  I think that if they want to use blogs that I can read that is great.  I was surprised when the student in the chapter said, "I don't learn about blogs from teachers.  They don't know they exist, or they think about what the media tells them" (215).  I agree with this statement and I think it could really be changed.  I really like the setup of this class for example.  I think that using the blog is a great way for anyone to express their feelings through writing and I really want to incorporate this into my own classroom one day.  Another idea that was in this chapter had to do with literature circles and podcasting, which I think is a really good idea.  So many language arts classrooms already use lit circles (I had them last semester) and it is easy to incorporate with any age group.  Adding the idea of recording the circles to make podcasts is a really cool idea.  So many students are always plugged into their ipods and listening to things, that it would be really convenient to help them study.  I like that it becomes "the students place to think, to play, and to push" (220).  Using technology to get students more involved in the classroom is really important because the teacher has to do it well.  That is one thing the chapter mentioned that I am worried about.  I feel like I have never been that good at technology, but I really want to keep myself up to date with all of the changes in the technological world so I can be current for my students.  I don't want to only know powerpoint and word because then the students feel like they can't connect with you. 

Chapter Eight

I thought that the information in chapter eight was really interesting for a lot of reasons.  I don't have really any experience working with English Language Learners and I did not have a lot of background information on the troubles they experience in the classroom.  I had no idea how hard it really is to adjust in an English classroom.  I knew it would be hard, but it makes me feel even worse for these students that are trying to adapt.  One point that Danling made that I thought was a really good one was the ideas of knowing words and concepts.  If an ELL does not know what the word photosynthesis means, trying to understand the concept of it is even harder for them (107).  I think that a lot of teachers overlook this because they are so concerned with their students only knowing the vocabulary.  Another thing that I think all teachers need to try to remember is that these students are coming from so many various backgrounds that have to be taken into account.  These learners feel connected to others that speak their native language and tend to segregate themselves.  I feel like I have experienced this many times in my life and not even in the classroom setting.  When I was in Mexico this year the workers would start to speak Spanish with each other, but if we came up to them, they would switch back to English.  However, if we asked a question that they weren't sure about they would discuss it with each other in Spanish.  I feel that a lot of students in particular want to talk in the language they are most comfortable with because it assures them that they going to say the right thing.  The thing I thought was one of the most important things was something that Carol Jago pointed out.  She said, "Too often teachers address a question to the class and call on students with the first hands up.  Speaking on demand can be extraordinarily difficult in a second language" (118).  I think that this applies to so many students, but I can see how it can be even worse for ELL's.  Teachers have to give the students time to think about what they want to say in front of the whole class.  ELL's especially need time to make sure they are saying the right thing in a language that is native to them.  I think that so many teachers need to realize how important this is because it can really affect their class participation. 

Chapter Seven

As an English education major I feel like I see how important vocabulary is for the students, but I don't think too many others understand it.  So many students learn a word and it's definition only for the way it will be used on a test and then forget about it.  When I read in the chapter about how important the link between vocab and concepts are, I feel like it really clicked.  There is no way a teacher can teach an entirely new concept to the class without first teaching the vocab it includes.  Allen said, "Teaching concepts requires building the conceptual base and adding levels (vocabulary words) to the concept (92).  Knowing how to use the words you are learning is so important, and is something I think a lot of people take for granted.  Vocab words usually end when students enter high school, but this is the time to really improve their vocab.  When I was in high school I had the same English teacher my sophomore and senior year and I am now so grateful that I did.  She had a game called "Stump the Amster" and we would have to bring in words from the dictionary to try and stump her, but then she would turn our lists into spelling and definition tests.  My vocab expanded so much because of those two years and even though at the time it seemed annoying, I am so glad she made us do that.  I really believe that more secondary English classrooms need to keep the vocab going strong in the classrooms.  I really liked the classroom map strategies that were mentioned in this chapter like the "Context Plus" and the "Concept Circles".  I feel like these strategies are great to use in junior high/high school classrooms to help the students before the concepts get too intense.  I am always worried that I won't have any good tools to help my students, but I think these will be really great.

Chapter Four

I thought that this chapter was interesting because I think that the term "understanding" is such a confusing one.  When a teacher asks her class if they understand most everyone is going to say yes even though more than half of them truly do not.  There is no way to define understanding and I believe that is where a lot of the confusion in the classroom comes from.  I think that a lot of the times students are embarrassed to admit that they don't understand and too many times they just pretend that they do.  It's so upsetting to me that students are too ashamed to say that they don't understand.  I liked when the author said, "If we observe ourselves and our students in the act of understanding deeply, we might generate a far more useful definition of comprehension" (34).  I think it is obvious to see when a student truly understands something and it is a very cool sight to see.  In my practicum hours, I watched the students and you could just see it on their faces when something clicked.  I think that more teachers have to be willing to spend the time and I believe that when they see the true understanding their students have, it will be extremely worth it.  When teachers see the students understanding things in their own element then "we can use their own language and insights to contribute to a new definition of understanding" (33).  If the teacher is willing to connect to the students I think they will notice the effort and really appreciate it.  I like the idea of making the dimension of understanding chart with each individual class because I think it will really get everyone on the same page.  The students need to feel equal, but this way they will feel like the teacher understands their needs. 

Chapter 6 & Reading Strategies

I really enjoyed this chapter by Teri Lisene because I felt that it was really relevant to YA literature and the changes that have been occurring within it.  I have always loved YA literature and it is one of the main reasons that I want to teach junior high language arts.  I feel that YA lit can help a child through almost anything.  Just like everything else in our world, YA lit is starting to change too.  Lisene said, "The new YA literature differs in both form and structure" (63).  The books address hard-hitting issues that teens want to read about.  The books talk about sex, drugs, families, friends, and everything else.  Reading a book about something that is going on in your own life can be a really important thing for a child to experience.  A lot of kids can feel like they are alone in the world and simply reading a book can help them with that.  I think that the censorship laws on YA lit are crazy.  Some people are concerned that these topics are not appropriate for teenagers (Lisene 75).  However, the more realistic the books are, the more the kids are interested in them.  The authors are not stepping down and continue to write their stories that include controversial topics.  I think that this is the best thing that can happen.  I have loved to read for as long as I can remember and my parents never tried to censor my books.  Looking back now, I really appreciate that.  YA books can act as an escape for kids that might be struggling and I don't think sugar-coating the topics that can be talked about would be helpful to anyone.  So far this has been my favorite chapter because I feel really passionate about YA lit.  I have written two research papers on book censorship in schools and I feel like this topic is so important to be informed about. 

The reading strategies that were addresses in Jim Burke's book also seemed to be very helpful tips for the classroom.  I particularly enjoyed the section on Silent Sustained Reading (SSR).  When I was in junior high SSR was my favorite part of the day and I thought it was the perfect way to start class.  When I was observing in an 8th grade language arts classroom last semester, the teacher also used SSR.  It was evident that the 10 minutes the kids had to read really made a difference.  They were much calmer after the time and more relaxed and ready to learn.  Burke said, "SSR is considered one of the most effective means of improving students' reading capacity at any grade level" (4).  I definitely want to implement this strategy in my future classroom.  One other strategy I thought was really important was to "Create the Conditions for Effective Learning".  I have always been a naturally quiet person and I think it really says a lot if a teacher makes me feel comfortable enough to talk freely in class.  I want my students to feel like they can say anything they want and not feel like they are being judged or think their response is dumb.  I want to "foster an environment in which students feel secure enough to make their individual voices heard" (Burke 16).  I think this is one of the most important strategies because children have to feel comfortable in their classrooms. 

Chapters 3 & 16

I felt that both of these chapters held a lot of information that is extremely relevant to the literacy issues that are happening in the schools today.  So many students today are interested in literacy, however it just might not be what the curriculum teaches.  Donna Alvermann reported, "It's almost ironic that, at a time when young people are becoming credible consumers of mass media and popular culture, curriculur standards move further from real-life engagements with media more traditional approaches to teaching and learning" (19).  More than ever students are finding their own means of literacy through the internet, video games, cell phones, blogs,  etc.  However, schools are not acknowledging that times are changing and that students are not the same as they used to be.  I think that this point is really important.  The chapter mentioned that it is getting harder and harder for students to just sit in class for a lecture and then take a test.  The Institution of Old Learning (IOL) is now something that needs to remain in the past, not something we should center the entire curriculum on (26).  It is time for advocates of IOL to recognize that newer approaches to literacy are in fact beneficial to the students. 

I was shocked when I read that 7,000 students drop out of school each day.  That number seems impossible to me.  It really gave me hope to read about the one student who believed "one teacher motivated her because the teacher refused to believe the stereotypes" (244).  The teachers have to be willing to put in the time for each student.  I think this is where a lot of teachers go wrong in the schools.  So many teachers get burnt out and stop caring about each individual student, instead caring only about overall grades and averages.  When Jackson said, "teachers must first work smarter" I think that is right on (246).  It all starts with the teachers and I feel that too many people forget that.  Another point I thought was great was "confident teachers use strategies that empower adolescents" (247).  I think the best thing a teacher can do is to get his/her students to want to learn.  That is my biggest goal for when I have my own classroom.  When the students want to learn their initiative is so much greater. 

Chapter Ten Response

I thought that this chapter had a lot of really useful ideas that I will be able to implement in the classroom one day.  I think one of the things I am most worried about when I am teaching is that I will not have enough diversity in my lesson plans to keep things entertaining, but I felt that Jim Burke gave me a lot of really great ideas.  I like how he gave advice for all eight roles that will help make up the "New Middle [class]" (Burke, 2007, 152).  I have a few strategies that he listed that are my favorite because as I student, I feel like I would have personally really liked if my teacher had done these:

1.  "Establish a threaded discussion online..." (Burke, 2007, 153).  I think that a lot of times students really appreciate the time to think through their thoughts and write them down carefully.  Instead of always putting the students on the spot in class to respond to questions I think it is a great idea to have discussion forums.  Burke implemented this in his own high school classes and found great results.  He said, "It was as if all cylinders of the students' brains were lighting up as they told their stories through an experience I designed" (Burke, 2007, 163).  I think a lot of the quieter students will really benefit from the forums where they can write everything they are thinking instead of trying to spit it out in class. 

2.  "Focus on design when creating presentations" (Burke, 2007, 159).  In today's world more than ever, appearance is so important.  The students are going to feel much better about turning something in when they feel confident that it looks the best it can.  I feel like I never really learned how to do much on powerpoint and that most of my technology skills are not so hot.  It is so important to keep them up to date with everything so they don't fall behind. 

3.  "Bring speakers into the class from the work world so students hear what people in different fields must know and how they are expected to work" (Burke, 2007,157).  I think this is really important because so many kids think they are never going to be using the things they are learning in school again.  Having workers from various fields come and talk about all of the different skills they have to use in their jobs will really show the students how important it is to be well-rounded.  I think this is one of my favorite tips because I personally find it so much more interesting to hear real life accounts about the real world and I think students would really benefit from this also. 

I think that this article about the new "flat" world is really relevant to our world because there are so many changes for all of us.  If we as teachers are current on the changes in the world then we will be able to better prepare our students. 

Chapter One Response

I thought that this chapter in Adolescent Literacy was extremely informative.  Until I read this chapter, I had no idea how much of an importance is placed on Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) in the schools.  It seems that the goal close the achievement gap in schools is never-ending.  As a future educator, one of the most important things to me is the happiness and successfulness of the students.  When I read this chapter, it was really sad to see how many school administrators are only concerned with the test scores their students get.  Beers gave one example of this when he was talking to a principal that said, “NCLB demands what?  That we close the achievement gap.  How do you know when that’s happened?  Kids pass the damn class” (Beers, 2007, 3).  Hearing the principal talk like this was surprising because the students need to feel like they are worth more than a test grade.  Reading about Derek and Collin really made the situation real.  I was sad for these two boys because both of their feelings were hurt due to test scores.  Derek has been “focused on the huge progress he had made and, until that moment, had felt good about that progress” (Beers, 2007, 2).  He was happy with his progress, but it still was not good enough.  I think that this mentality in the schools is going to cause the students to give up all together.                                                                                                                     

I was surprised to find out how many different shifts in literacy there have been.  Beers explained, “Literacy is a set of skills that reflect the needs of the time.  As those needs shifts, then our definition of literacy shifts” (2007, 7).   In today’s world I think the most important thing to realize it that the students need more from literacy than just getting their school high- test scores.  It is up to us as teachers to individualize literacy for each student and classroom.