Wiley/CCCSS Reading Response

Wiley focuses on the Jane Schaffer Method, consisting of a step-by-step, developed approach over a nine-week period that helps to prepare students on writing the five-paragraph essay. Her method is very beneficial to students as it “requires some, but not extensive, training; it is accessible and tightly structured; it is applicable to any number of students, regardless of ability; and it promises positive results in a short time”. She has a strict format for writing essays that she wishes to be adopted into the curriculum that consists of concrete details, supportive sentences and commentary, and topic and concluding sentences. She claims this format “replicates what is found in high scoring essays on district-wide tests and AP exams”. Teachers are looking for essays with a 1:2+ ratio with greater word counts and more commentary.

            Wiley warns us of this “formulaic writing” because of the fear teachers have that their students will gain too much dependence on th4e format. One teacher argued that Schaffer’s approach prevents individuality towards students being able to shape their own essays. Students proposed that the method be used in ninth and tenth grade and then dropped once they hit eleventh grade, allowing students to move beyond the constraints of what may be easiest and best for the teachers, but not so much for the students.

            When I was in high school learning how to properly write essays of good quality, I was taught the Schaffer Method. I hadn’t known that it was just a method and way of writing; I was convinced it was the only way an essay can be written. I agree that it has prevented me from branching out into different circuits of writing, as this way was what I was told would help me succeed in school. I believe it is very helpful as far as standardized testing goes, seeing as this type of structure is exactly what they are looking for. However, if teachers and educators are looking to encourage writing in students, I believe this is a poor approach. I concur with Wiley that students may become too attached to the format that they may not even know how to separate themselves from it when it comes to creative writing tasks and personal narratives.

            As a writer myself, I really enjoyed the chance to be creative and artistic with my writing once I hit college level English. Teachers seem to have dropped the restrictions of a “formulaic writing” basis and allow their students to be true authors with their work. I like that students have the freedom to speak their mind through their words and it is appreciated by their instructors, not disregarded by means of scoring.

Larson/Maier Image Response

Co-authoring in the Classroom

I chose this picture to depict Larson and Maier's article because it demonstrates co-authorship within a classroom. Maier would have a designated time within the classroom in which her students would participate in co-authoring. “They actively co-constructed the story while the teacher wrote by calling out words for her to insert into the story…the teacher functioned as primary author of her text and all students served as overhearers of the interaction as a whole, shifting frequently to co-author.” Through this process, the students not only get to create something magical to them as being a co-author, but are learning the basics of constructing a sentence. While they were constructing these stories, the students were noticing certain prefixes and suffixes that they had been learning about in class. I think this process of writing a story as a classroom whole is an excellent learning method for students as far as writing, reading, and comprehension. I love that it also allows them to use their imaginations and have fun with it.

Classroom Library

I chose this picture to show that it is very beneficial to have a variety of books within the classroom. Maier was known to have a large collection, about 6,000, in her room. She made books available to her students through “author and theme studies, guided reading, and read-alouds at a rate of 120 books per week”. The numerous different books allowed for kids to choose topics that let them read for pleasure, and learn to enjoy reading. She also allowed students to take home books of their choice if they wanted. This definitely is a factor of stimulating literacy within and without of the classroom. 

Author's Tea

This picture is a visual example of the “Author’s Tea” that is mentioned in Larson and Maier’s article. Maier’s first grade classroom authorship consisted of a “multilayered language process” that was comprised of “active and enthusiastic participation”, “co-participation in composing texts”, “publication of student texts”, “sharing of texts across activities”, and “composing decisions based on an understanding of the role of audience and purpose”. I think the idea of writing a story and having it published to read in front of an audience is an excellent way to promote literacy as well as increase the confidence and self-esteem in a child to be able to write. “For Maier and her students, writing was defined as those practices authors use to put words on paper (i.e. conventions, spelling, editing tools), and authorship was defined as the interactive thinking and composition practices authors use to construct text.” The students are perceived equally as authors rather than judged or separated based on their writing/reading ability. Maier mentions that “authorship is a key means of participation”. I like that there is no pressure on the student to have to read anything they aren’t comfortable with; just the fact of reading in general is what is motivational and beneficial to the student. I think it is also motivational to the students to see that their pieces are being published and/or displayed within a classroom.

 

 

Williams Reading Response

As a future educator myself, my teachers have always been huge role models to me. I would always find myself studying them and paying close attention to their methods of teaching and compare that to my goals as a teacher. I think most of society views teachers as helpful and a mentor or confidant. Williams mentions "70 different identities" teachers have played in students' lives. Some that were listed were friend, motivator, cheerleader, and coach. I think the majority of the views people have of teachers are positive. One in particular that stuck out to me was "mother". I can't even count how many times I accidentally called my teacher "mom" when I was younger. Some teachers would get mad over the incident, but I think it's sincere in a way. I think it's a level of trust that the student has for the teacher that they see motherly features within them. These types of roles affect my conception of who I'll be as a teacher because they show me distinct qualities I definitely don't want to bring into the classroom as well as important aspects I want to be sure to include. This article really opened my eyes to the kind of teacher I want to be and how I wish to be perceived by my future students.

In Class Quickwrite (9/5/13)

Rodriguez had many unique and interesting literacy cycles that I found I actually can relate to. He struggled with some anxiety over his schooling and I definitely still deal with that to this day. I am constantly worrying if my work is accurate or good quality. He also got very impatient when he needed help with his homework. He would go to his parents for guidance but when they struggled to even understand the material, he would forget it and go off to figure it out on his own. I can relate since I really hate to be dependent on other people. If I know I am capable of figuring something out on my own, I will take the necessary steps to get there. Rodriguez also mentions how he was so eager about learning and how he would come home wanting to tell his parents everything he learned that day. I was always so excited to learn something new and I always had it in my mind that my parents knew nothing about what I had learned, so I loved the idea of coming home and basically teaching them what I had been taught. For Rodriguez, it had gotten to the point where he would end up correcting his parents grammatically on what they would say. One difference for me was that even if my parents didn't know anything about what I had just learned, I still wouldn't shut them out completely when it came to asking for help or telling them about my day. Rodriguez and I definitely have some similarity within our literacy cycles.

Book Club Choice

I chose to read Wondrous Words: Writers and Writing in the Elementary Classroom because I feel like not many students are really excited to write or do many writing assignments. I, myself, haven't always been too fond of mandatory writing assignments; I feel it's so much more rewarding when you can write whatever you choose. However, I'm interested to read this book and learn about the different techniques that will get students more interested in writing. I believe it will be a challenge as a teacher to come up with fun and interesting ways to get the kids involved and wanting to write, but I'm hoping this book will teach me some new methods.

Rodriguez Reading Response

I was so intrigued by Rodriguez’s article. His journey through his schooling was really mind-opening and inspiring. Reading that he first entered a classroom struggling, barely able to speak English, to a graduate student who was always so anxious of his schooling and was overly eager to learn was so inspiring. It’s so encouraging as a future educator to read that his earliest teachers were nuns who made it their mission and ambition to help him achieve success. Rodriguez mentions that his primary reason for his success in the classroom was that he “couldn’t forget that schooling was changing him and separating him from the life he enjoyed before becoming a student”. Schooling was a whole new world for him in which it gave him new interests and passions in life that separated him from the “real world”. He was too impatient to ask for help from his family members that he would hide himself in closets reading library books and studying on his own to gain as much knowledge about the subject as possible. I notice that I tend to do the same thing at times. When I ask for help from someone who doesn’t particularly understand the problem either, I get impatient as well, watching them try to figure it out with me, that I just take the thing and spend hours trying to figure it out on my own. I wouldn’t necessarily say it was a helpful method, as group interaction can help you gain multiple points of view about things. Although reading over and over through chapters in books can be extremely educational. For example, I thought it was very interesting that Rodriguez read books by modern educational theorists and saw himself within the text. He talked about the “typical case” of a lower-class student who is barely helped by his schooling. He then relates himself to the “scholarship boy” he reads about in Hoggart’s The Uses of Literacy. Hoggart mentions that the “scholarship boy” must move between environments, (at home and in the classroom), which can be stressful towards their schoolwork and studying habits. For example, Rodriguez notices early on the cultural differences between the two environments in which the house may be too noisy for studying. The “boy” has to mentally restrain himself to be able to get his work done. I recognize that kind of strategy in myself, especially to have been living with 17 other girls. Rodriguez mentioned a lot of tools he used and learned about from personal experiences that truly have opened my mind and will be put to further test throughout my own schooling. An important aspect I took out of this article was a very motivational message: “without the extraordinary determination and the great assistance of others, (at home and in school), there is little chance for success”. This just reminded me that it’s okay to ask for help and that I won’t always know the answer to every problem I’m faced with. I really enjoyed reading the different obstacles Rodriguez has overcome to achieve such successes.