Service Learning

I am excited to get started on our service learning project for this class. The children at the YWCA were all so polite and well-behaved, and I know it will be an enjoyable experience to work with them, not only for me but for them as well. I think that students, especially teacher-ed students, should be required to do some service-learning projects and get the valuable experience that comes with participating in something so important. As we read in the articles for today, these service learning projects are beneficial for the students, for those that the services are directed towards, and for the teachers as well. In my high school I was required to complete 24 hours of service learning in order to graduate. I recall many students complaining about this requirement, but I really liked being able to help out in my community and reach out to those who needed my aid. Even though this service learning project will be shorter than the one I completed in high school, I believe that it will still give me ample time to connect with the children and share some of my knowledge with them. I hope that the kids can learn from me, and I know that I will certainly be able to learn from them as well.

Chapter 5

This chapter’s discussion of the importance of talking, both in class and outside of class, is one that I can agree with but that I have always struggled with (at least inside the classroom). I am the type of person that hates being rejected or being wrong, so I rarely volunteer answers in class for fear of being incorrect or even being ridiculed by my peers. I know there are plenty of other students out there who, like me, simply do not speak up in class because they just can’t seem to make themselves open their mouths and allow words to flow freely. Some may be shy as well, in which case forced literary discussions may not help much, but for the most part many students that are unable to speak freely in a class have no confidence in what they have to say. A couple of literature courses I took at the University of San Diego had as participation as a component, of which 30% of my grade depended on whether or not you volunteered an answer or your opinion every day. When I saw these requirements, my heart sank, as I realized that I would probably get a bad grade in the classes due to my fear of speaking up in class. Knowing how important it was for me to succeed in school, however, I was able to muster up as much courage and confidence as I could in what I had to say, and every class period I would say something, even if it was just to pose a question that sprang up as I was reading a particular text.

                Now, I am not suggesting that all English teachers force their students to participate or risk getting a bad grade in the class. I am merely portraying how those requirements helped me to find my voice in the classroom. Teachers should be able to come up with their own unique ways of involving their whole class in discussions, whether it be through whole-class talks or group work as illustrated in the chapter. As teachers it will be our duty to make certain that every one of our students has the skills necessary to succeed in life, and making sure that they can speak their mind articulately is one of them.

BLadson-Billings Article

The readings for today both discuss the different variances in literacy that is apparent today and in modern-day schools. I particularly liked the first article by Ladson-Billings, especially the parts about teachers needing to demand success from all of their students. More often than not, at least what I think goes on in the classroom, is the teacher does not want to use up even more of his/her precious time to work with a student that may be written off as a “slacker” or “failing.” These students need extra care and attention from their teachers, but as they are passed from class to class merely because no one wants to deal with them anymore, the problem takes on a life of its own. Educators of course have a hard enough job as it is just running their classrooms and what have you, but they still have a duty to fulfill to their students. Their duty is to demand the very best out of their students, and not to settle for anything less. That may mean going the extra mile to mold a lesson to fit their style of learning, or taking them aside and having an actual discussion about why that student may not seem to be putting forth a lot of effort into the class. When students know that they are cared about, they will want to try harder in their classes, and prove to their teachers and themselves that they are capable of success.

Chapter 14

This chapter’s concern for technology in the English classroom and finding unique ways of integrating said technology comes to me at a perfect time because I happen to be taking Instructional Technology right now, and we discuss many of the things described in the chapter. In my class, we went in-depth with such activities as blogging, discussion boards, digital story-telling, and many of the other ways that technology can be utilized in any content course. The chapter we read for today was more detailed on podcasts and wikibook, which we did not talk about as much in my education class. The section of the chapter addressing the use of podcasts and how it benefitted both the teacher and the students was vastly informative for me, since I never thought of the ways that podcasts could be used in the classroom. In fact, I was kind of unsure of what exactly podcasts were, but now that I have a clearer vision I think that I will be able to make use of this type of technology in my future English classroom. Another technology-related activity that I would love to use in my classroom is the book trailer. I know how creative kids can get, and how much they love going to the movies and watching various TV programs. The book trailer will allow the students to share the book they read as well as dabble in movie making and inventing their version of a movie trailer. As the shy girl in the chapter exemplified, book trailers are a way to let the quiet student speak out in a unique way. These activities are remarkable, as I myself have never done any of these things in my high school or middle school classes, and I will be sure to allow my students to share in these new, creative ways of learning so as to further their literacy and increase their motivation to learn.

Chapter 8

I particularly was interested in today’s chapter because, as someone who just decided to minor in ESL, I know that I will need to utilize many of the techniques that the writer’s were talking about. I especially liked how the writer’s were highlighting the differences between other languages and English, and that teachers need to focus on directing their teaching to adhere to the expectations of their foreign students. I feel like too many teachers teach the same way to all of their students and don’t consider their students’ differences or make adjustments accordingly. ESL students most definitely need to have their teachers adjust lessons to help them keep up with the class, and when I have ESL students I know that I will try and account for all of their differences and learning styles.

Other points of interest from this chapter were the writers making note that students of course need to practice English as much as they can in order to become fluent, but that they also need to continue to speak and read in their native language to acquire better English and learning skills. Being able to read a book in their native language before reading it in English helped many students, as we read, and talking to students about certain topics or lessons in both languages further aided these students in the learning process. As someone who can only speak English, I would find it hard to allow my students to write and speak their native languages in my class, but I know it is something that will help them immensely. I would have to go past my comfort zone, something that these students would be doing everyday so at least I would be able to know what they are going through. That way, they will be learning and I in turn will be learning about them and their native cultures.