Paulo Freire, in his book, Pedagogy of the Oppressed, describes what he terms the “banking” concept of education. Freire is referring to the tradition of ‘teacher knows all and will kindly fill the empty vessels that are his or her students. I have often said of students that I am just as concerned about the student that doesn’t not question my knowledge, reasoning or authority at all as I am about the student who rebels simply because I am the source. Upon reading his explanation for this term, I was struck with frustration. While I was quite good at filing the necessary information to get either an A or B on a test, I could never retain the information. I have since realized that the reason was that I didn’t internalize those facts and make them mine by incorporating them into my own thoughts, with my own voice, through my own conversations and communications with others engaged with the same material. Morrell, like many of the authors cited in this series of blog posts, Ernest Morrell, in Critical Literacy and Urban Youth, reflects this sentiment in seeking to make connections to students and their lives, particularly when there is much to be ‘critical’ about in their lives. Students, instead of learning what must be random facts for many of them, are inspired by questions about their lives and their communities they have probably entertained for much of their reflective lives. By beginning with those relevant questions, Morrell’s students can create nothing like internal filing systems; they create Wiki’s, networks of information they’ll retain because each bite is connected to real and motivated learning. Lynn Astarita Gatto had similarly inspired her students with the engaging project of creating a butterfly vivarium. So many of our authors have tried to discover where their students might want to go but as yet could not, then created an environment through which, with skilled facilitation, they would achieve their goals. Carter Forshay inspired students who had been through uninspiring volumes of seemingly context-free ditto exercises through music and stories his students could relate to and James Paul Gee sought to realize how new literacies of the computer and the internet might empower students to be teachers just as teachers become most humble students. These exchanges were also reflected in attempts to invite students’ home languages into the classroom in an effort to validate them and bridge from these home languages, not to a singular, correct form of English, but rather a common English.
In closing, I’d like to thank those educators who have read these posts and contributed commentary. While I have held these philosophies for some time, trying to exercise them in what sometimes seemed to me like fits and starts, I have been lapse in researching the successes of notables in the field through which I might have reflected more deeply on my own practice. As this exercise, as well as my adventure back to grad school has shown me, despite possessing ideas on the dangers of educators becoming sealed away in their classrooms, juggling so many balls they have little time for a ‘big picture’ view, I am guilty nonetheless. Having thus been reintroduced to community, I will endeavor to remain connected, to share my own successful experiments in bringing students in by connecting curriculum to their lives, their identity and their interests as well as seeking help from colleagues as well as researchers discovering the evidence and direction I’ll need to improve upon my practice.
Thanks again.
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Assessment
In his article, “Language, Culture, and the Assessment of African American Children,” Asa G. Hilliard III argues that assessment must accurately reflect the educational philosophy of the teacher, the goals and objectives of that teacher for his/her students. This being the case, how can this be fair to those students who find themselves growing up outside ‘the culture of power,’ outside the culture of people who grow up fluent in “Standard English”?
Hilliard argues that assessment often does not reflect the ideals of educators, and that educators must be prepared to consider and perhaps even teach about a system that assesses students not on their ability but “the words they speak” (Hilliard, 2002). When one culture and language is set as the basis for all worthy knowledge, vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar and by default, even intelligence, it will inevitably create the self-fulfilling prophesy of poor results on standardized assessments found in many areas where Standard English is not the standard. I wonder in how many other cultures of the world this dynamic of subtle oppression has played out. And once again, I wonder what is to be done? Supporting the notion that grammar is grammar regardless of the dialect, Rebecca Wheeler writes, "We know that the most effective way to teach Standard English to speakers of a non-mainstream, stigmatized dialect is to use an ESL technique - Contrastive Analysis. In Contrastive Analysis, the practitioner contrasts the grammatical structure of one variety with the grammatical structure of another variety (presumably the Standard) in order to add the Standard dialect to the students' linguistic toolbox (Fogel & Ehri 2000; Rickford 1999; Taylor, 1991; Rickford, Sweetland, Rickford 2004; Sweetland, ms.; Wheeler & Swords, 2006). This approach, as I have suggested in previous posts, is an ideal way to bridge from a students prior knowledge as well as validate a student’s home language. Indeed, the research is robustly clear: "teaching methods which DO take vernacular dialects into account in teaching the Standard work better than those which DO NOT" (Rickford, 1996)" (Wheeler, 2006). Isn't this approach possible in other areas? How much ‘non-standard’ English can be brought into the English Language Arts class? I suppose the emphasis of the class should lean toward Standard English as a 'common language,’ but, getting back to the original question, how should assessment be addressed so as to address a ‘child’s aptitude and not the words she speaks’? Beyond explicitly teaching ‘the big picture,’ as Hilliard calls it, of historic denigration of non-standard forms of English, I am not sure what else should be done. Thoughts from the blogosphere?
Hilliard, Asa. "Language, Culture, and the Assessment of African American
Children." The Skin We Speak. Edited. Lisa Delpit and Joanne Kilgour
Dowdy. New York: The New Press, 2002. Print.
Wheeler, Rebecca. "“What do we do about student grammar – all those missing –
ed’s and -s’s?” Using comparison and contrast to teach Standard English
in dialectally diverse classrooms ." English Teaching: Practice and
Critique . 5.1 (2006): 16-33. Print.
Hilliard argues that assessment often does not reflect the ideals of educators, and that educators must be prepared to consider and perhaps even teach about a system that assesses students not on their ability but “the words they speak” (Hilliard, 2002). When one culture and language is set as the basis for all worthy knowledge, vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar and by default, even intelligence, it will inevitably create the self-fulfilling prophesy of poor results on standardized assessments found in many areas where Standard English is not the standard. I wonder in how many other cultures of the world this dynamic of subtle oppression has played out. And once again, I wonder what is to be done? Supporting the notion that grammar is grammar regardless of the dialect, Rebecca Wheeler writes, "We know that the most effective way to teach Standard English to speakers of a non-mainstream, stigmatized dialect is to use an ESL technique - Contrastive Analysis. In Contrastive Analysis, the practitioner contrasts the grammatical structure of one variety with the grammatical structure of another variety (presumably the Standard) in order to add the Standard dialect to the students' linguistic toolbox (Fogel & Ehri 2000; Rickford 1999; Taylor, 1991; Rickford, Sweetland, Rickford 2004; Sweetland, ms.; Wheeler & Swords, 2006). This approach, as I have suggested in previous posts, is an ideal way to bridge from a students prior knowledge as well as validate a student’s home language. Indeed, the research is robustly clear: "teaching methods which DO take vernacular dialects into account in teaching the Standard work better than those which DO NOT" (Rickford, 1996)" (Wheeler, 2006). Isn't this approach possible in other areas? How much ‘non-standard’ English can be brought into the English Language Arts class? I suppose the emphasis of the class should lean toward Standard English as a 'common language,’ but, getting back to the original question, how should assessment be addressed so as to address a ‘child’s aptitude and not the words she speaks’? Beyond explicitly teaching ‘the big picture,’ as Hilliard calls it, of historic denigration of non-standard forms of English, I am not sure what else should be done. Thoughts from the blogosphere?
Hilliard, Asa. "Language, Culture, and the Assessment of African American
Children." The Skin We Speak. Edited. Lisa Delpit and Joanne Kilgour
Dowdy. New York: The New Press, 2002. Print.
Wheeler, Rebecca. "“What do we do about student grammar – all those missing –
ed’s and -s’s?” Using comparison and contrast to teach Standard English
in dialectally diverse classrooms ." English Teaching: Practice and
Critique . 5.1 (2006): 16-33. Print.
More Doors to New Literacy
More than ever, educators will need to identify and create opportunities and environments that encourage general tendencies and skills in old literacies to blossom in all the directions required of the 21st Century. Girls, still quite often influenced by traditional gender roles, need to be encouraged to engage with the various literacies of the internet. Luckily, as women tend, in general, to be more interested in cooperation and relationships over competition, these new “literacies of the internet” provide some new and enticing doors to fluency.
Wiki’s and Blogs provide wonderful opportunities for collaboration. Whether in class or, in many cases, from their homes, students can communicate and work together using new literacies that are quickly changing traditional means of public expression. In working on a class project in poetry, I wanted students to post the drafts of their poems onto our class Wiki and then have peers comment. Each student was given a color that would identify him or her, so I could really deliver the message of what constructive feedback was and encourage each student to do so. By revising their comments where necessary, I was able to teach them how effective real collaboration can be. In the end, many students expressed their appreciation for the guidance of their peers.
A colleague of mine had students post ‘high interest’ reading selections from the internet and then required they read and comment on at least three. In addition to encouraging the many ‘non-readers’ to develop reading as a good habit, this project, as it came from the students, would do wonders in bringing the class on board. The class could examine which selections were the most popular and why. What would the answers to these questions suggest about the class and how did they feel about this? Projects such as these also provide a bridge from the tendency to appreciate cooperation over competition and from the skills developed in the traditional literacies of reading and writing to expression in new literacies that increasingly demand fluency. They allow a greater access to a much broader swath of learning styles, opening the traditionally narrow sense of traditional education that frankly left many feeling unintelligent.
In addition to collaboration, students interested in and engaged via seeking to understand relationships are finding avenue to fluency in new literacies via such platforms as role-playing games and My Space or Facebook. Many girls who had once been seen as uninterested in computers, are now "now in the majority" in playing popular role-playing games like "The Sims" (Williams p303). While many girls did not seem to be attracted to video game violence, The SIMS focused attractively on relationships by SIM-ulating human interaction in a number of different scenarios. And while, to be honest, I have not thought to use either Facebook or MySpace in the classroom, I recently spoke with an English teacher who wanted to use My Space for a project on Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet (she was complaining about the large number of internet sites blocked by her district!). She wanted to her students to form groups, choose characters from the play and then create MySpace pages for each. Each character’s page should reflect their personalities, interests, and ‘recent events,’ all of which would be discovered as the students read through the play. Students interested in relationships would have an engaging time visiting and commenting on the sites of other characters in the group, inspiring students to really get ‘into the heads’ of their characters and reflect on how the characters should interact.
And while this entry dealt primarily with how educators might invite more girls into developing fluency in ‘new literacies’ of the internet, it must be said that the main thrust of my argument is that educators attempt to discover the incentives for all of their students to explore and develop such fluency by exploring as many possibilities as they can.
Wiki’s and Blogs provide wonderful opportunities for collaboration. Whether in class or, in many cases, from their homes, students can communicate and work together using new literacies that are quickly changing traditional means of public expression. In working on a class project in poetry, I wanted students to post the drafts of their poems onto our class Wiki and then have peers comment. Each student was given a color that would identify him or her, so I could really deliver the message of what constructive feedback was and encourage each student to do so. By revising their comments where necessary, I was able to teach them how effective real collaboration can be. In the end, many students expressed their appreciation for the guidance of their peers.
A colleague of mine had students post ‘high interest’ reading selections from the internet and then required they read and comment on at least three. In addition to encouraging the many ‘non-readers’ to develop reading as a good habit, this project, as it came from the students, would do wonders in bringing the class on board. The class could examine which selections were the most popular and why. What would the answers to these questions suggest about the class and how did they feel about this? Projects such as these also provide a bridge from the tendency to appreciate cooperation over competition and from the skills developed in the traditional literacies of reading and writing to expression in new literacies that increasingly demand fluency. They allow a greater access to a much broader swath of learning styles, opening the traditionally narrow sense of traditional education that frankly left many feeling unintelligent.
In addition to collaboration, students interested in and engaged via seeking to understand relationships are finding avenue to fluency in new literacies via such platforms as role-playing games and My Space or Facebook. Many girls who had once been seen as uninterested in computers, are now "now in the majority" in playing popular role-playing games like "The Sims" (Williams p303). While many girls did not seem to be attracted to video game violence, The SIMS focused attractively on relationships by SIM-ulating human interaction in a number of different scenarios. And while, to be honest, I have not thought to use either Facebook or MySpace in the classroom, I recently spoke with an English teacher who wanted to use My Space for a project on Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet (she was complaining about the large number of internet sites blocked by her district!). She wanted to her students to form groups, choose characters from the play and then create MySpace pages for each. Each character’s page should reflect their personalities, interests, and ‘recent events,’ all of which would be discovered as the students read through the play. Students interested in relationships would have an engaging time visiting and commenting on the sites of other characters in the group, inspiring students to really get ‘into the heads’ of their characters and reflect on how the characters should interact.
And while this entry dealt primarily with how educators might invite more girls into developing fluency in ‘new literacies’ of the internet, it must be said that the main thrust of my argument is that educators attempt to discover the incentives for all of their students to explore and develop such fluency by exploring as many possibilities as they can.
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Gender, Motivation and New Literacies
When it comes to the new literacies of the internet and technology, the common belief is that boys tend to be more adept than girls. And while it is important for educators to recognize that gender is socially, not biologically constructed, it is also important not to deny the powerful cultural dynamics of gender. Bronwyn Williams, editor of the Literacy and Identity Department at the University of Louisville in Kentucky, further emphasizes that “looking at how the culture at large constructs expectations of gender identity is important examining and understanding the forces at work on individual boys and girls and how they adapt or oppose such forces…the cultural power of conventional gender roles seems inexorable.” And so, educators must be sure to create opportunities that reflect the tendencies of both gender roles.
Typically more competitive than girls, boys have been perhaps most highly motivated by video gaming. This, however, seems to translate into a myriad of related skills that develop with the organic dynamism of their youth, helping them achieve fluency that is both automatic and instinctual. And while girls are pulling ahead in the traditional literacies of reading and writing, “they lose ground in other ways, particularly development of skills in alternative and computer-based literacies” (Sanford, 2005). As James Paul Gee suggests, the demands on younger generations are increasing as they are expected to compete with an increasing global population of educated workers. Basic skills will no longer be enough for our children to survive as they may have in the past. Now they need to achieve high degrees of innovative and creative fluency in many literacies in order to stay afloat in a world of 'new capitalism.' How are educators to help create those opportunities for girls? What are the motivators that will encourage ‘the cultural power of conventional gender roles’ to draw in those not attracted to the competitive nature of video games?
Sanford, K (2005). Gendered literacy experiences: The effects of expectation and
opportunity for boys’ and girls’ learning. Journal of Adolescent and Adult
Literacy, 49, 302-315.
Williams, B. T. (2007). Girl power in a digital world: Considering the complexity
of gender, literacy, and technology. Journal of Adolescent and Adult
Literacy, 50:4, 300-307.
Typically more competitive than girls, boys have been perhaps most highly motivated by video gaming. This, however, seems to translate into a myriad of related skills that develop with the organic dynamism of their youth, helping them achieve fluency that is both automatic and instinctual. And while girls are pulling ahead in the traditional literacies of reading and writing, “they lose ground in other ways, particularly development of skills in alternative and computer-based literacies” (Sanford, 2005). As James Paul Gee suggests, the demands on younger generations are increasing as they are expected to compete with an increasing global population of educated workers. Basic skills will no longer be enough for our children to survive as they may have in the past. Now they need to achieve high degrees of innovative and creative fluency in many literacies in order to stay afloat in a world of 'new capitalism.' How are educators to help create those opportunities for girls? What are the motivators that will encourage ‘the cultural power of conventional gender roles’ to draw in those not attracted to the competitive nature of video games?
Sanford, K (2005). Gendered literacy experiences: The effects of expectation and
opportunity for boys’ and girls’ learning. Journal of Adolescent and Adult
Literacy, 49, 302-315.
Williams, B. T. (2007). Girl power in a digital world: Considering the complexity
of gender, literacy, and technology. Journal of Adolescent and Adult
Literacy, 50:4, 300-307.
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