Think Piece #9

Chapter 11 was about using the internet and technology to help instruction. I believe the internet has opened hundreds of doors to engage each and every student. It can offer support to students and adults of all ages. “Electronic text allows for the seamless incorporation of the audio-visual features. Graphics, audio and video can be inserted to add depth to text or to act as the text itself. The inclusion of these features can make the text interactive” (p 224). Personally, I am a visual learner so if I see words and pictures on a computer screen, I will be more apt to be engaged and interested.

Chapter 11 talked about Web Quests. I have had two experiences with Web Quests. First, during my student teaching experience at a Pittsford middle school, my cooperating teacher and I created a Web Quest for our eighth graders to practice their clothing vocabulary. They had to shop online at given French stores in Paris (we gave them the websites) and they had to describe what they bought. They were also given budget. Other activities included listening to an advertisement (in French), writing what they heard, and reading advertisements online and explaining what clothing is on sale. The students loved it! We met in the computer lab for three days and they had the freedom to complete the Web Quest on their own, at their own pace and in whatever order they wished.

My other experience with the Web Quests was when I created one for a technology class I took at St. John Fisher. I had my own website and linked the Web Quest to it. I had a lot of fun creating the website and the different activities. The theme of my Web Quest was that students were given a free trip France and there was some important information they should learn before they leave. They had to watch a video I put together from my pictures from my study abroad trip and then complete different activities based on the major monuments in Paris. I have yet to use this with students but I can’t wait to try it out soon. Check it out at:

http://keep3.sjfc.edu/students/lml09333/e-port/french.html

The chapter also talked about teachers having their own websites. I think technology has been extremely helpful to strengthen the home-school communication because so many families have computers and can easily check teacher’s websites. When I have a full-time job, I plan on creating a website and keeping up with it. I want to have somewhere my students can go to get the week’s agendas, homework, and helpful links. I also plan to post PowerPoint presentations or any notes I have for the week so if students are absent, they can stay up with the work. I think teacher websites are great to post pictures or videos of what students are doing in class as well. I think the students would feel proud and excited to show their parents their teacher’s websites display of their work.

Think Piece #8

I always enjoy reading about multicultural instruction and multilingual instruction because I can easily relate it to my French classes. “If young children’s new language writing develops in ways similar to that of native language speakers, then instructional contexts known to benefit early writing for native English speakers might also benefit children who are learning to write in English” (p 293). To me, this is common sense. If the student can write in their native language, the capability to write in the new language clearly exists. The student needs the instruction and guidance along the way. We all didn’t just “know” how to write, we were helped by our parents and teachers. ELL students need the same instruction.

Teachers must also have some basic knowledge of how a new language is learned. I can relate to this because I learned French as my second language. I understand how time consuming and difficult it is to do so. I tend to teach my students the same way I learned- a way I know worked for me. For example, I am very visual and always try to introduce vocabulary in a consistent way. For example, I want to try to incorporate reading, writing, listening and speaking as often as I can.

I really liked the different activities explained in Chapter 14. The activity “Daily News” is a great way to incorporate current events in the classroom and because it benefits all students, not just ELLs. Dialogue Journals are also a good idea to include because students get to choose any topic they want to write about. I believe some students express their ideas and emotions better in writing because they are not face to face with the teacher. ELL students also get to practice the days and dates of the week. Conversation between the teacher and student is extremely important. I also think teachers should make a point to ask/show interest about student’s lives outside of school. Lastly, the TREE Persuasive Essay was explained. I’ve never heard of this, but I really liked the acronym because it explains what should be included in the essay.

At the end of the chapter, Fitzgerald states that seeing through the student’s eyes is very important. Understanding your student’s culture and home life helps you get a better idea of who your students are as a whole. If something isn’t working with the instruction, the teacher must ask themselves, “How can I change my instruction, what can I do better?” not, “What is my student doing wrong?”. Language and culture effects each of us and all cultures must be acknowledged and respected.

Since I have yet to have my own classroom, I have had the opportunity to sub in dozens of different classrooms this year. In one of the elementary schools, students had created a wall with expressions of their identities. Each student created a coat of arms and drew what makes them who they are today. Each drawing included ideas such as family, friends, culture, language, interests and hobbies. I asked the students about the wall and they were very proud to show me and talk about their different characteristics of who they are.

Think Piece #7

For this week’s think piece, we were to read Gerald Campano’s Immigrant

Students and Literacy. I didn’t really enjoy this book.  It was not an easy read and although you learn best through experience, reading all of his experiences didn’t help me much.  I think the overall point of this book was to stress the importance of incorporating culture into the classroom and showing respect and acceptance for all cultures, especially those different than our own.

 One story from Campano’s book that I enjoyed was Ma-Lee’s Story of Migration: “I want to be part of both cultures.”  It was a story of a student who was extremely quiet in class and rarely spoke voluntarily.  She left an essay on Campano’s desk one day.  I really was impressed with her last words: “I feel about culture is difficult for me and maks me confused.  I don’t know what to be But think I want to be both cultures” (p66). 

Ma-Lee’s feelings towards the American culture may be like many other young immigrant students, but teachers are unaware of this because they don’t take the time to talk to them and figure and the student out.

I have not had much experience with immigrant students, growing up in my own school or as a teacher.  My main experience with incorporating culture into the classroom is through my teaching of my content area—French. I teach more than vocabulary and grammar, I incorporate the French culture—holidays, fashion, foods, traditions, etc. I think this shows my students that even though people live differently than us, it doesn’t make their views wrong.  All cultures should be embraced and respected.

One experience I did have with ELL students was when I subbed for an ELL teacher one day for 3^rd and 4^th grade students.  Each student had a booklet of his or her writing from Kindergarten up until this year.  At first, the “writing” was more drawings, but as time progressed, the students began to form sentences.  The stories were about the student’s personal lives—what they liked to do, what they had done the previous weekend, etc.  It is a great memoir of their lives and it has helped make the writing authentic.

Another point that I agreed with Campano on was: “From the very first moment we begin teaching, we bring our life histories to bear upon our practice. Our presence in the classroom is ineluctably animated by our own experiences as learners, our implicit and explicit notions of what constitutes knowledge, and what it means to be an educated person” (page 91). It is evident that our teaching styles reflect who we are as people and our past experiences.  I know I have learned a lot from my past teachers and tend to incorporate their techniques and beliefs into my own style.  It is also about more than teaching-- for example, the traditions my parents have taught me will be continued into the future because I have grown accustom to them and respect them.