References: Anthology, Chap. 3 and Kuma Chap. 13
Chapter 3 in Anthology refers to the process of lesson planning on the part of English language teacher; it discusses past and present models of lesson plans and how to implement them in the language classroom. According to Farrell, "Planning daily lessons is the end result of a complex planning process that includes the yearly, term and unit plans. A daily lesson is a written description of how students will move toward attaining specific objectives" (pg. 30). Daily lesson plans, in my opinion, are something that we as pre-service teachers groan about; they take a long time to put together and especially at the college level, it is hard to write lesson plans when we are not in our own classroom in a specific school district with their own specific standards. I see daily lesson planning more as guidelines for learning; it is really important to not have adhere to that lesson plan and the times set down on it, because that can hinder the learning process. "After they (pre-service teachers) graduate, many teachers give up writing lesson plans" (pg. 31), and I can see why. If the school is not going to require us to write them every day, we probably will not. I do not know of many teachers who still write detailed lesson plans; they have told me that they write a general outline with the times and they just go from there. I feel that a successful lesson does not mean it is perfectly and exactly like one you wrote; some learning can be put aside for more important matters, but of course that depends on the school, as well. If you are hired at a school that wants a lesson plan from you every day, then that is what you must do to keep your job, but I have not heard of this happening a lot after the first year of teaching. I think they should observe us as much as possible and give constructive criticism instead of going solely by our lesson plans. Yes I do know logistically it is difficult, but if a school wants good teachers, they have to put the effort into it.
The generic lesson plan layout on pg. 33, "perspective (opening), stimulation, instruction/participation, closure, follow-up" is something that we see very frequently in teaching. The third phase, instruction and participation, obviously should be the longest and the most influential on the lesson. This is where the learning takes place, and also closure should be something very focused on in the lesson, as well, because it is necessary to make sure students know what they got out of that day's lesson. The day has been counterproductive if they feel they have not learned anything. Additionally, something I have been taught and have noticed in my observations is the idea of having an end product, something concrete that they can take home from school or from the lesson. At least then they have something to think about, and they have something that they use for studying for a quiz or exam in the future. "No teacher's guide can anticipate what problems might occur during a lesson" (pg. 34) accurately describes what I was talking about earlier; we cannot have rigid lesson plans in which there is no room for change of pace or any sort of change at all. At the same time, it is a delicate balance because we cannot allow too much freedom for the students, either; we have to find a way to keep them engaged with their work but make them feel like they have some control over their learning.
I think having closure or follow-up questions like "What do you think the students actually learned?" or "What changes (if any) will you make in your teaching and why (or why not)?" (pg. 35) are important for a teacher's daily reflection on the lesson. We have been taught in our Curriculum and Instruction classes that reflection is the basis for learning how to improve and hone our teaching skills; we need to write down what worked, what did not work, what activities the students liked or did not like, among a plethora of other things. Daily reflection is difficult to do unless asked in school; I do not know a lot of teachers who have the time for it. I think more like a weekly reflection would be more manageable; doing it on a Friday after school for example. I do not know what works best for other people, but I am the kind of person who likes to take one time out for something like that, and it is not every day that I can do it which makes this plan better for myself, at least.
Kuma Chapter 13, "Monitoring Teaching Acts", deals with the practice of 'monitoring' oneself through classroom occurrences and therefore 'monitoring' how we teach. There are two types of observation models he describes: product-oriented and process-oriented. Product-oriented models of observation "are based on the assumption that a description of teacher behavior is necessary in order to build a classroom behavior profile of the teacher" and "use a finite set of preselected and predetermined categories for describing certain verbal behaviors" (pg. 287). On the other hand, process-oriented models of observation "are based on the assumption that an interpretation of classroom activities is necessary in order to understand classroom processes and practices" and "focus on classroom input as well as interaction" (pg. 288). While both models have limitations, I think they both have their merit in classroom observation. Which model works for what teacher greatly depends on the type of teacher they are and what they want to accomplish by their classroom observations. It also depends on the focus of that particular unit or lesson that they are teaching; if they are doing something more hands-on or something that includes debate or discussion, they would be more inclined to use a process-oriented model. If they are teaching a lesson or unit that is more grammar-based or lecture-based that includes a lot of busy work or homework, then a product-oriented would be more appropriate in that case. I would think it is good to have a healthy balance of both in classroom observation and not to adhere to one model in particular, and I think that is what Kuma is trying to say by pointing out their limitations. Just like teaching methodology, there is no one perfect or correct answer to the way of doing classroom observation.
Kuma instead suggests a observation tool that "offer[s] them open-ended possibilities and user-friendly procedures for self-observing, self-analyzing, and self-evaluating" (pg. 289), and I wholeheartedly agree with the sentiment. I know that I had a harder time doing classroom observations for my college courses when they were too specific on what they wanted; I really much preferred my one professor's way; she merely had categories like "instruction" or "assessment" and focusing on broader types like that instead of discussing one specific formative assessment or something like that, because honestly, one never knows what they are going to see in a classroom. An observer may not see a quiz being administered that day or a grammar lesson being taught; we should have a system that is more open to what our opinions and feelings are instead of being too narrow and specific. Something important in our own self-evaluation is having the opinion of our students in the equation, as well. We are teaching them, after all; why should not they have an opinion in their own learning process? I feel like when I was a student I never got to choose anything about my education; it felt amazing my senior year when I could actually go to my guidance counselor and pick two elective courses I wanted to take. We do not get that feeling of independence until we are in college, and I think that high schoolers deserve that opportunity to choose. I know that that is something I am a huge advocate of for my classroom. I want my students to be able to have choices in what they do for projects. I know I am always going to be learning from them, and so should other teachers, no matter how long they have been teaching.
Kuma's "M&M procedure" (macrostrategies/mismatch) is an observational scheme that is set up in three stages which are accomplished in ten steps. In Step 1, the teacher recruits another teacher to observe a lesson or unit, which I think is a step in the right direction. It is important to have a colleague evaluate you because it is less nerve-wracking than an administrator. In Steps 2 and 3, the teacher clarifies any lesson objectives with the other observing teacher, which is a useful step. I feel like a lot of observers walk in feeling a bit blind and lost when they come in the class, especially if it is not their subject area; something that is beneficial is also having someone in your content area observe you, but I know this is difficult if you are the only ESL teacher in the school, for example. In Steps 4 and 5, the observer watches the lesson or unit and then the teacher watches their video and asks themselves questions like "Are there learner-learner exchange of ideas? What part of my instruction has been successful or unsuccessful?" etc (pg. 293). I am not exactly sure what the obsession with being videotaped is right now, because we have to be videotaped for our methods class. I suppose it is beneficial to see yourself teaching, but it is so self-conscious. I always feel like I am going to see things I do not like about myself, and that these are little quirks that I cannot change. In a way, I prefer to know how I can approve, but at the same time, it is intimidating to have a camera in the room. I feel like I could not be myself.
Steps 6, 7, and 8 are mainly about discussing the teacher and learner acts and what can be done to change or improve their learning strategies. I think it is an excellent idea to include the students in this observational process so that they feel like have a say in what is going on in their classroom. I think it would be cool for them to watch the video as well so that they can point out anything you or the observer may have missed along the way. More viewpoints are always better in this process. Steps 9 and 10 are merely the implementation of these new strategies, and I think something that Kuma should include is another step. I would suggest that the same observing teacher come in again in a few weeks and see how these measures or strategies are being implemented in the classroom, and if they are, are they improving the classroom environment or hindering it? I think that would be very interesting to see.
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
11/10 Readings
References: Kuma, Chap. 12
Kuma, B. "Problematizing Cultural Stereotypes in TESOL"
Kuma's article on cultural stereotypes has a focus on how ESL teachers perceive their Asian students and either consciously or subconsciously place these stereotypes on them. As Kuma states in the article, "the TESOL profession is not free from cultural stereotypes that are particularly associated from Asia" (pg. 709-710). I always found it interesting that Korean, Japanese, and Chinese students are all lumped under the term Asian, because they are all very different cultures, but unfortunately racial stereotypes prevail in the situation because their external appearance defines what they will be called. "They a) are obedient to authority, (b) lack critical thinking skills, and (c) do not participate in classroom interaction" (pg. 710). It goes back to the idea of representation and cultural identity, and how students live up to this self-fulfilled prophecy of being the 'smart kids' in school, and this is perpetuated by the media as well which is something that is not always discussed. We as ESL teachers need to address that oftentimes media can affect views of different cultures. I know when I was in high school, I had a friend who was Korean, but was not a part of the honors crowd and never felt like he fit in with them because they were the 'smart kids' and he was not. It can really affect your social life in high school, and students of ESL backgrounds will have the same experience.
I found it very interesting that the actual principles of Eastern culture are not as extreme as we perceive them to be; we as Westerners see them as being very conservative and very strict, and not a culture we perceive as being 'free', like we perceive ourselves to be. The Confucius saying described in the article sends a slightly different message, "the teacher does not always have to be more knowledgeable than the pupil; and the pupil is not necessarily always less learned than the teacher" (pg. 711). This seems like something we experience in Western culture and far more like our educational values; we learn from each other and not just the teacher as the source of knowledge. It seems like we should be more aware of these principles when teaching our students because then we will have insight into their culture, and therefore be able to relate with them more instead of feeling like we are very different. Something else that we seem to see incorrectly is their lack of critical thinking; I feel like we as American students pride ourselves in this aspect of our education, even though we have basically nothing to show for it. The entry from the New York 'Cyclopedia of Education' was basically appalling: "They have never invented anything. They have stumbled upon most of the useful practical appliances of life..." (pg. 712-713). Of course, this was a time when immigration was a fanatical issue; people from Korea, China, and Japan were coming here for a better life but American citizens were dealing with this and had an anti-Asian attitude, so that needs to be taken into account.
Kuma states, "Classroom behaviors of L2 learners are the result of a complex interface between several social, cultural, economic, educational, institutional, and individual factors" (pg. 714). True, there are a lot of individual factors to deal with any student, mainstream classroom or ESL classroom. It happens with African-American students all the time; there are stereotyped by Caucasian teachers and their language has to be altered to make themselves 'more white' as we discussed in class. I think students from all cultures face this when they come to the United States; they want to assimilate to the culture and want to talk like American students or people they see around them. We as their teachers have to understand their needs from the beginning and help them reach their goals, and ensure them that they can achieve them as we do with any student in general. We have to take into account all factors that go into their education and understand their cultural background and how they approach different issues. Obviously, this is an idealistic view, because we do not possibly have the time to do this with each individual student, but we can certainly try our best to address all issues in our classroom.
Kuma's Chapter 12, Raising Cultural Consciousness, has the same theme as his article: understanding culture and trying not to allow cultural stereotypes to permeate our judgment in the classroom. Culture "includes a wide variety of constructs such as the mental habits, personal prejudices, moral values, social customs, artistic achievements, and aesthetic preferences of particular societies" (pg. 267). Yes, in the past we have focused on what we call 'Big C' culture; the external appearances and stereotypes of other cultures. We did not perceive culture as values or internal beliefs. We have developed our L2 education to fit all the research that has been done in this area, and thankfully we have adapted and made our L2 education more relevant and practical for our students. Kuma states that "the overall objective of culture teaching...is to help L2 learners develop the ability to use the target language in culturally appropriate ways" (pg. 268). Unfortunately, this goal, in my opinion, has not yet been achieved in L2 education. We still have to lobby for better textbooks that include more relevant and practical material for our students; I know that when I was learning Spanish, these textbook activities were always boring or repetitive and did not teach us how to do anything communicative in the target language. With the advent of CLT in L2 education, I can only hope that these things are changing.
Robinson's theory of culture, the "Color Purple [which] is a productive, cognitive, perceptual and affective space that results from meaningful cross-cultural contact" (pg. 270), is something that I have never heard of before and seems like an intriguing concept, albeit a bit philosophical. I believe that we should get past our native speaker 'lens' as she calls it and be able to understand other cultures and their backgrounds and beliefs. I see myself as someone who is culturally aware, and I feel terrible when I have stereotypes about other cultures considering my line of work, but we are brought up and at first only know what our parents know, and all students feel the same way. They are brought up in a specific society with specific values and it is difficult to erase what we have been taught, but school is the best place to explore other people and their values. I know I learned more about my own culture from my international friends than I ever did from people from my own background; they saw things about me that I did not see and it was difficult to believe at first. When I took English 343 here, reading the list of American stereotypes was eye-opening. Some I already knew, but some were hard to accept; I remember thinking to myself, "No way, that is not me at all. Other people are like that, but not me", which is something that a lot of people feel. We just need to make sure our students understand that everyone is going through the same issues, even ourselves. Teachers being able to relate to their students can mean a great deal.
Kuma, B. "Problematizing Cultural Stereotypes in TESOL"
Kuma's article on cultural stereotypes has a focus on how ESL teachers perceive their Asian students and either consciously or subconsciously place these stereotypes on them. As Kuma states in the article, "the TESOL profession is not free from cultural stereotypes that are particularly associated from Asia" (pg. 709-710). I always found it interesting that Korean, Japanese, and Chinese students are all lumped under the term Asian, because they are all very different cultures, but unfortunately racial stereotypes prevail in the situation because their external appearance defines what they will be called. "They a) are obedient to authority, (b) lack critical thinking skills, and (c) do not participate in classroom interaction" (pg. 710). It goes back to the idea of representation and cultural identity, and how students live up to this self-fulfilled prophecy of being the 'smart kids' in school, and this is perpetuated by the media as well which is something that is not always discussed. We as ESL teachers need to address that oftentimes media can affect views of different cultures. I know when I was in high school, I had a friend who was Korean, but was not a part of the honors crowd and never felt like he fit in with them because they were the 'smart kids' and he was not. It can really affect your social life in high school, and students of ESL backgrounds will have the same experience.
I found it very interesting that the actual principles of Eastern culture are not as extreme as we perceive them to be; we as Westerners see them as being very conservative and very strict, and not a culture we perceive as being 'free', like we perceive ourselves to be. The Confucius saying described in the article sends a slightly different message, "the teacher does not always have to be more knowledgeable than the pupil; and the pupil is not necessarily always less learned than the teacher" (pg. 711). This seems like something we experience in Western culture and far more like our educational values; we learn from each other and not just the teacher as the source of knowledge. It seems like we should be more aware of these principles when teaching our students because then we will have insight into their culture, and therefore be able to relate with them more instead of feeling like we are very different. Something else that we seem to see incorrectly is their lack of critical thinking; I feel like we as American students pride ourselves in this aspect of our education, even though we have basically nothing to show for it. The entry from the New York 'Cyclopedia of Education' was basically appalling: "They have never invented anything. They have stumbled upon most of the useful practical appliances of life..." (pg. 712-713). Of course, this was a time when immigration was a fanatical issue; people from Korea, China, and Japan were coming here for a better life but American citizens were dealing with this and had an anti-Asian attitude, so that needs to be taken into account.
Kuma states, "Classroom behaviors of L2 learners are the result of a complex interface between several social, cultural, economic, educational, institutional, and individual factors" (pg. 714). True, there are a lot of individual factors to deal with any student, mainstream classroom or ESL classroom. It happens with African-American students all the time; there are stereotyped by Caucasian teachers and their language has to be altered to make themselves 'more white' as we discussed in class. I think students from all cultures face this when they come to the United States; they want to assimilate to the culture and want to talk like American students or people they see around them. We as their teachers have to understand their needs from the beginning and help them reach their goals, and ensure them that they can achieve them as we do with any student in general. We have to take into account all factors that go into their education and understand their cultural background and how they approach different issues. Obviously, this is an idealistic view, because we do not possibly have the time to do this with each individual student, but we can certainly try our best to address all issues in our classroom.
Kuma's Chapter 12, Raising Cultural Consciousness, has the same theme as his article: understanding culture and trying not to allow cultural stereotypes to permeate our judgment in the classroom. Culture "includes a wide variety of constructs such as the mental habits, personal prejudices, moral values, social customs, artistic achievements, and aesthetic preferences of particular societies" (pg. 267). Yes, in the past we have focused on what we call 'Big C' culture; the external appearances and stereotypes of other cultures. We did not perceive culture as values or internal beliefs. We have developed our L2 education to fit all the research that has been done in this area, and thankfully we have adapted and made our L2 education more relevant and practical for our students. Kuma states that "the overall objective of culture teaching...is to help L2 learners develop the ability to use the target language in culturally appropriate ways" (pg. 268). Unfortunately, this goal, in my opinion, has not yet been achieved in L2 education. We still have to lobby for better textbooks that include more relevant and practical material for our students; I know that when I was learning Spanish, these textbook activities were always boring or repetitive and did not teach us how to do anything communicative in the target language. With the advent of CLT in L2 education, I can only hope that these things are changing.
Robinson's theory of culture, the "Color Purple [which] is a productive, cognitive, perceptual and affective space that results from meaningful cross-cultural contact" (pg. 270), is something that I have never heard of before and seems like an intriguing concept, albeit a bit philosophical. I believe that we should get past our native speaker 'lens' as she calls it and be able to understand other cultures and their backgrounds and beliefs. I see myself as someone who is culturally aware, and I feel terrible when I have stereotypes about other cultures considering my line of work, but we are brought up and at first only know what our parents know, and all students feel the same way. They are brought up in a specific society with specific values and it is difficult to erase what we have been taught, but school is the best place to explore other people and their values. I know I learned more about my own culture from my international friends than I ever did from people from my own background; they saw things about me that I did not see and it was difficult to believe at first. When I took English 343 here, reading the list of American stereotypes was eye-opening. Some I already knew, but some were hard to accept; I remember thinking to myself, "No way, that is not me at all. Other people are like that, but not me", which is something that a lot of people feel. We just need to make sure our students understand that everyone is going through the same issues, even ourselves. Teachers being able to relate to their students can mean a great deal.
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