Listening and Talking in the Classroom

Reading Reflection Number Five asks us to dive into the idea of students’ learning, viewing, and listening skills. As Tompkins alludes to in detail throughout the chapters, viewing and listening skills are often taken for granted in the classroom. These skills (and quite often we forget they are skills) need to be developed and nourished in a learning environment so that they can allow further understanding in the classroom and in the “real world”. For this posting I want to stay away from educational jargon, and avoid simply restating what the text presents more brilliantly and clearly then I could ever imagine. Instead, I want to reflect how the ideas presented in the chapters and in module 5, and whether they are being used effectively or ineffectively at Columbia International College’s Learn English and Explore Canada Summer Camp.

Note: Full Disclosure – I am the camp’s Assistant Camp Director...so I have some familiarity with the institution – and perhaps some bias as well!

And as any good writer would do, I need to begin with some hypocrisy...some of that educational jargon that I wanted to avoid must be explicitly drawn forth in order o provide a foundation and basis for my thoughts. Please bear with me.

Aesthetic Listening: This type of listening is performed when individuals listen for enjoyment. That seems relatively simply – something that we can wrap our heads around, because it would seem we do this pretty much all the time. It is only when we dive into other types of listening that we discover the depths of “listening skills”. Moving forward...

Efferent Listening: This type of listening is used to understand a message. Now the example I am about to give borders (and probably infringes) more extensively on viewing skills, but it remains valid. It is very possible to listen and view the movie Inception for the wonderful action scenes and cinematography. This is suspect would fall into the Aesthetic Category. But to try and understand the movie – to listen for comprehension – to understand the complexities of the dream-world – to discover Leonardo’s plan to plant an idea into one man’s mind – this I suspect would fall into the Efferent Category.

And if we can agree that Critical Listening is designed to aid (encourage) the evaluation of a message, then we can utilize critical listening to help figure out if anything in Inception, actually has any form of impact on our social world (that being said I still don’t know).

I look at the summer campers that we have at Columbia – and I wonder how these listening skills are being used, how effectively the activities and lessons created for them are even improving these different listening skills.

In a classroom we can teach aesthetic, efferent, and critical learning skills by means of different classroom activities and assessments – and we can do this overtly and covertly. For example we can encourage development of these learning skills by (fig. 8.2):

Aesthetic: encouraging the use of listening centres, watching students perform a play (or readers theatre), and by encouraging guided conversation.

Efferent: listen to oral oral reports, book talks, participate in writers groups, perform mini-lessons specifically on the types of listening, and having students share their projects.

Critical: Listen to debates and political speeches, view commercials and other advertisements, and by evaluating the themes and arguments in different types of literature.

These ideas merely scratch the surface of how to induce these learning skills – but they provide some good starting points. Relating it to my summer camp experience thus far, I first have to ask what I think is an obvious question: Since we only see these students for three or four weeks, can we really access these skills and improve upon them in such a short amount of time? My initial thoughts are...maybe not, but I think we would be doing a disservice to the students if we didn’t give them the opportunity to try. Our program is very diverse in that we offer three hours of ESL lessons in a classroom setting each day. These lessons are loosely based on the Ontario curriculum, and focus more so on developing their conversational English and practicing it in social settings. Students have the opportunity to go into the community and experience conversation with Canadians (at the grocery store, in the park, and while on different excursions). I believe these types of interactions would be examples of Efferent Listening. Aesthetic Listening is encouraged when we take the students to watch a movie or have them listen to English music, poetry, and (some) literature. For these types of activities students can appreciate the English language as a form of communication – they don’t necessarily have to try to understand it in all circumstances – just gain more exposure to its use in our culture. Critical listening may not occur quite as frequently – but it does happen (and often not when we expect it to). I have already had multiple conversations with students concerning discipline – where they are forced to evaluate what I am saying. In addition, I have had conversations with students concerning medical issues, transportation information, and scheduling/procedural instructions – where they must evaluate what I am saying in order to provide an intelligible response – in English!

In the same way we require our students to listen, we also encourage them to talk. Their opportunities to do so are ever-present. We encourage talk in the ESL lessons, during their science/art/sports/computer activities, on their evening trips, and during their excursions to Bark Lake and Eastern Canada – situations where they are off campus and pressed into speaking the English language. While our students may not use the ideas presented for elementary students quite as explicitly or comprehensively as Tompkins discusses, we do encourage it somewhat similarly. For Aesthetic Talk we ask students to: prepare stories to tell, perform reader’s theatre (loosely), read parts of a script, describe objects, and encourage them to use props, facial expressions and gestures, and always seek clarification.  Likewise for Efferent Talk we have students: conduct interviews, participate in debates, explore topics in depth, seek facts and opinions, and attempt to persuade others towards their reasoning. When presenting their ideas students are instructed to rehearse, organize, use note cards, and support their opinions with facts or anecdotes. These activities are performed one-on-one, in small groups, and in front of large audiences. What makes the students’ experiences unique is that while they are doing this, we are looking to see them think in English, which for someone like me – who only speaks one language – is really taken for granted. I am learning so much on a daily basis from these kids. By observing the instructors, and having conversations with students, I am learning good (and not so good) strategies that I can apply as a junior teacher. The 18 dollars an hour suddenly seems worth it!

In chapter ten of the text Tompkins explores the positive connections between Visual Arts and Language Arts. She explores the benefits of learning and teaching language through Drama and the reasons behind it. I discussed Reader’s Theatre in my 5.1 forum post so I won’t rehash those points again; instead I want to use this space to advocate once again for improvisation as a learning tool in the classroom. I am not exaggerating when I say that my one-year education in the Second City Improvisation Program was perhaps the most enjoyable “formal” learning experience of my life (although I shouldn’t call it conventional, but I did pay for it, and we did have instructors, so...). I realize drama and improv are different, but both involve exploring language in front of an audience, and both require performing that encourages students to be active in an uncomfortable (for most) setting. During our online meeting for this course Zoe mentioned discomfort as a positive when learning – this idea really struck me. For some reason I hadn’t thought of this before. In any event, improv can be used in a classroom to unite the students, to explore different genres/tones/moods/expressions, and give students the opportunity to “play” characters that have come up throughout the year – and think like they do, act like they do, be them. I encourage PEOPLE of all ages to get into improv on some level – because I know the benefits – especially to younger students and adolescents – can have lifelong effects.

Thank you.

Readers Theatre

Reader’s theatre is something I tried in earnest, teaching Shakespeare’s work in ENG 2D. I don’t know how successful I was, because after reading the information provided in Module 5.1, and on page #419 of Tompkins’ text, I realize how much more I could have done with it. One of the concepts that I rarely enacted was having students pre-read the material. Sometimes I wonder if I just had them read certain acts just to get them over with. Perhaps I encouraged their lackluster approach to the Twelfth Night by the way I was teaching. Thinking how junior students can benefit from this reading strategy – knowing what I know now, and after completing the Second City Improvisation program – is striking. I think the possibilities for all readers, especially weak readers, are enormous. First, roles are picked by the teacher and are ability driven. In other words, teachers have the chance to put students in positions to succeed, something that might not be possible having them read silently at their desks. Also, audience members have the opportunity to interpret the text in multiple ways: once by reading the text, and then again watching how others interpret it orally. Based on my reading and limited experience, it seems that students really enjoy activities of this nature that one might consider “outside the norm”. It gives students the opportunity to explore their creative sides, by experimenting with different voices and (restrained) gestures. And finally weak readers have the added benefit of practicing their lines beforehand to help ensure their reading fluency and expression.

I believe that this strategy is beneficial, and appeals to all students. The added bonus is that boys appear to respond positively to this strategy. After teaching high school English, and coaching a variety of age-groups (in a variety of sports), I recognize the importance of grabbing the attention of males early when it comes to evoking a longing for literacy. I think Reader’s Theatre accomplishes this partly because it gets boys to break out of their shell during the learning process. I was perusing a few websites and came across one that presents some information that seems fairly credible -   http://www.freereaderstheater.com/literacy-instruction-for-boys.html. The information - compiled by Dianna Cleveland – alludes to the idea that boys typically enjoy reading activities that are social and reading activities that allow active participation and instruction. In my experience, boys seem to have short attention spans when it comes to literacy. However, some of the strategies/modifications to Reader’s Theatre that Tompkins brings forth should help counteract this. My favourite idea presented is having students position themselves around the room – when it is their time to speak they really have the opportunity to command the room. This strategy keeps the audience alert because they must turn their heads (and bodies) with the flow of the script. There is no excuse for keeping your head on the desk!!!

All that being said, what really brings Reader’s Theatre off the page is the works selected to be used for this strategy. Besides Shakespeare..., I think works that have a variety of characters would be beneficial. Students enjoy the opportunity to ‘play’ someone else – and I believe they would have fun playing characters that can be interpreted in multiple ways. Moreover, I think works that elicit strong tones and moods should be encouraged. I think certain plays, poems, and short stories that provide these attributes would be very effective for reader’s theatre. I would love to hear some specific titles that others in the class have found to work well in Reader’s Theatre.

Thank you.

A Football Alliteration Poem

February Football

On a frosted field in February,

Football fever is found.

Foul fanatics find fantastical fervor;

Fixating on one formidable football.

Foes feasted their focus forward,

The fugitive ball fumbled furiously.

Filthy feet forced it free from feeble fists,

Fitted full-fledged in a fight for its forfeiture.

A fatty fiend found himself in the forefront.

With the football floating frantically

He fluttered face-first to the field...

His fingers fetching the familiar formation.

Fifteen to fourteen – a final finished.

Flashy fests, fiestas, and festivals formed.

The fearsome football, forever remembered,

On that frosted field in February.

Ontario Curriculum Documents

I have a number of different problems in life; some are humorous, others frustrating, and for whatever reason some problems combine together to create incredibly fortunate circumstances (bare with me). The first problem is that I work on a ten inch notebook, and the stigmatisms in my eyes often do not cooperate to produce optimal vision. The second is that I my cousin and his wife have a habit of taking advantage of the fact that I am a single twenty-seven year-old male. I am constantly helping (doing) their yard-work, making errands for them, and am frequently used as a punching bag for their two young children. BUT...they are both elementary teachers. And with that being said I have the fortune of chatting with them on a nightly basis about all things life – and many things relating to education. It has also enabled me to obtain hard copies of The Ontario Curriculum Grades 1-8 guides. As my good friend’s father says, “there is more than one way to skin a cat” (and for the record I do not condone that behaviour...). These circumstances are how I have arrived on my living room floor with six different Ontario Curriculum guides flagging the grade six expectations. Immediately one can observe many similarities that encourage easy and frequent use of these documents, but also the frequent implementation of authentic assessment (we’ll get to that later). Let’s start with the easy-to-observe similarities. The newly revised documents are colour-coded, come with easy-to-identify headings, overall and specific expectations, and different strands that are to be focused on. The benefits of the “easy-to-observe” similarities are fairly obvious for two reasons. First, people work well with anything that is organized. And second (and more specific to education), it provides teachers with guides to break down learning objectives – and does so in a way that encourages organization from the teacher as well.

            A second group of similarities are those which I have yet to give a clever name to. The extraction of specific learning skills from a broader group of overall expectations dominates the documents. The numbered overall expectations break down how subjects are taught and learned, while coinciding specific expectations dive into the learning goals/concepts that pave the way for successful learning attainment (yikes that was a bit wordy). I wonder, since the expectations are laid out so clearly, would it be useful to put the curriculum expectations on the board during lessons for transparency and to highlight to students what they are intended to learn.

The documents also include “helpers” (poor word-choice), such as teacher prompts and guiding questions, that clarify any concerns educators may experience. In addition, subject-specific glossaries are included in the back few pages of the documents. This is helpful to teachers when providing clear and quick definitions to students. I think above all, the curriculum documents are intended to address the needs of students while providing an effective ready-to-implement guide for teachers. On page 23 of the Language curriculum guide it states, “Teachers should ensure that all students have ample opportunities to explore a subject from multiple perspectives by emphasizing cross-curricular learning and integrated learning.” Obviously there is added pressure to link different subjects together at the primary level, more so it seems than at the secondary level. Learning how to create this cross-curricular learning is something I look forward to partaking in and utilizing.

 In order to reach these expectations, teachers must provide authentic assessment that illustrates a students’ learning. There is an ample supply of educational jargon that teachers have added to their arsenals: assessment as, for, and of learning; diagnostic and formative assessments, and evaluations. But how do we know what works for students, versus what works for us? How do we get students to show their learning in ways that mimic real-world contexts: whether it be reading, writing, viewing, mathematics, or otherwise. The following is a list of assessment strategies, some of which I have used, others observed, and others that I have only read about (in no particular order).

Portfolios, conferences (many types), checklists, observations, anecdotal notes, reports, speeches, rubrics, running records, KWL, graphic organizers, standardized testing (EQAO comes to mind for obvious reasons), mind maps, peer editing, self-assessments, case studies, rating scales, oral reports.

Obviously (need to stop using that word), some of the above are the exercises that go along with the assessments, but I still find some value in adding them to the list. For some people all of these may stand out, and for others they could be foreign. The three that I want to examine more closely are ones I suspect to be quite common in Junior Education.

1.     Reports: I have enjoyed success using reports in the classroom because you can utilize a number of different types exercises and assignments that serve as assessments of learning all while exploring the nature of a particular topic. I have used this format predominantly for summative assessments – the clear goal being that the student has had multiple opportunities to show his or her learning previously, and in this final report. The final report was for students to invent a product or service, write a report, create a three minute oral presentation, and investigate marketing strategies for said invention. While I would obviously adapt this model for primary grades – I believe in giving students the opportunity to showcase their knowledge and learning in ways that best suit them. I can use checklists to identify presentation skills, speech patterns, inflection, etc. for the oral component. I can use a rubric (developed with class participation) to assess the report component, and can even use peer assessments throughout the process to show students where their peers think they may be off-track. I believe in exercises that allow students to participate in the entire writing/creative process: research, drafts, referencing, editing, and producing polished finished work. I believe these types of collaborative assessments could work effectively in the Junior Grades.

2.     Portfolios: Unfortunately my use of portfolios at the intermediate and senior level was lacking. It’s not that I didn’t not student improvement, or highlight how far a student had come over time, but I didn’t do this in the explicit way that would be necessary at the Junior level. The section in Tompkins text (pages 165-168) gave some great insight into the usefulness of this assessment strategy. It would be overly redundant to recite her ideas completely, so I will provide my thoughts on what I have seen. While volunteering earlier this year, I was allowed to peruse students’ portfolios. I was intrigued to see what had been selected by the students for entry, and found it quite refreshing to note that not every piece of work had been graded. I believe that a portfolio (while showing obvious signs of strength and areas of weakness unique to each student) should be a collaboration of students’ work that they can be proud of. I believe students may produce greater results when they “know” it could be entered into their portfolio. Finally, I was encouraged to see such a diverse eclectic array of pieces inside the portfolio. And even more encouraged to read figure 4-14 – and note that many of those artifacts were in the portfolios I viewed.

3.     Conferences: I know in writing you are supposed to save the “best for last”, and “leave on a high note”, and “leave the reader craving more”, but I believe in authenticity. And if I didn’t i wouldn’t have written this blurb and instead would have copied and pasted to make this entry fit the clichés. So with that being said, I want to touch again on conferences – something that has been addressed in previous reflections. I want to acknowledge how frequently I have come across this: Tompkins book, in my supplementary readings, and in teaching and observing all grades. It seems that this assessment strategy is applauded for its purity. A teacher interacting with a single student or group of students to find out what they know. I also think it has been found to be so effective for so many because there isn’t one tried and tested type of conference that works best. It is one strategy that a teacher can mold to a form that works best not just for him or herself, but most importantly for the student.

Thank you. 

Knowledge of Learners

One of the strategies of learning (or perhaps more relevant - investigating) any topic, skill, theory, or philosophy (etc.) is to ask yourself what you already know - diving into the idea of preconceived notions and previously learned concepts. This strategy is explicit here in our reading questions. We all have a foundation to build from, and Tompkins' text and accompanying ideas will no doubt help to broaden our knowledge and "open our minds" (plagerism: The Matrix!) to new concepts and ways of thinking. From a child's point-of-view I believe there are negative connotations that come with the subject "Language Arts." This is unfortunate because the art of language is so beautiful and can be so powerful that there really are no boundaries to what you can do with "words". Children as we know learn in many different ways. The idea of multiple intelligences - and I believe Bloom's taxonomy - help encourage educators to use different teaching styles to cultivate student learning by building students' interest in a given topic. The days of Language Arts being about opening a reader and reciting passage after passage while answering a few given questions, are over. Children are eager to be taught in different ways. We need to embrace the world of social media, invest time in podcasts, video blogs, and explore how Language is used differently by different people in different circumstances. I think this relates greatly to the question of how teachers can adapt instruction for culturally and linguistically diverse students in the classroom. Touching on reading reflection #1 slightly, it is important to do more than add a few culturally specific books to the class library. Have students Investigate song lyrics, locate journal entries from a variety of authors relating to a variety of relevant topics, and have students explore how twitter, myspace, instagram, and others are being used effectively (and uniquely) by a diverse group of "explorers". If we use these forums to help investigate and teach the four cueing systems that Tompkins describes, we may find students are learning what we want them to without  them even knowing it (which is - for a lack of a better word - cool). The opportunities for students to improve their understanding and competency of listening, speaking, reading, writing, viewing (I wonder if this is the most neglected one?), and visually representing skills is boundless. One of the problems I have seen in the education system (especially with the advent of new technology) is teachers using new-age tools just for the sake of it. I wonder if some (including myself) have used new technology for the wrong reasons and in the wrong way? Some of the items that come to mind include, Powerpoint, electronic games, video blogs, and (I plead guilty to this last one) different types of creative movie building. It is imperative as educators to learn about how these mediums are best utilized, and therefore can be used effectively by students. I have done some digging to find some resources from the World Wide Web that could be effective in supporting the teaching and learning of language arts. Grammar Ninja is a resource at www.kwarp.com/portfolio/grammarninja that is interactive fun approach to teaching Grammar. It is in a game setting that, from my experience, elementary students enjoy (especially on a Smartboard). This resource can help children improve their understanding of the basics of the language, and help them understand the meaning and proper usage of words. Teaching novels is another area of language arts that needs some retooling. www.squidoo.com/teachingnovels gives teachers (who can then pass this knowledge on to students) information that may make the art of reading longer works more enjoyable and beneficial. Students need to pick the right book, be asked the right questions, be able to relate to the book, and find support for the ideas and themes through supplementary works. This resource can help guide everyone in the right direction.  Another resource that I have seen in practice (while volunteering) is CorkboardMe. I would love to investigate this further, but when used interactively it empowers students to contribute when questions are posed, topics discussed, and brainstorming ensues. It also allows students to visualize how other students are learning as well. These skills are all imperative in the writing process as well. I was exposed to a web resource that is easy to use and helps teachers monitor student created blogs. The one I am thinking of escapes me, but I found a similar one - www.edublogs.org that appears to work similarly. Once again this resource gives students the opportunity to practice their writing skills in a format (medium) that I believe encourages and facilitates their participation. The fifth resource I would like to share is something outside the box. I have had some tremendous experience participating in the Second City Improvisation program (in Toronto) and recognize the value these skills can have on the development and broadening of language skills. There are a ton of resources on Improvisation online (and ofcourse students can learn by performing, and through writing reflection activities). www.childdrama.com/warmups is one website that offers game ideas for teachers to use. I would consider this a stretch myself if I hadn't seen the value of this firsthand. Is improvisation taught explicitly at the Junior level currently? My cousin teaches grade 7 and mentioned that he implements it when it is advantageous to do so. The last task that needs "tackling", is how to improve my students' reference skills in a grade five setting (as an example). I probably won't be able to hit the nail on the head in this concept, so I am going to speak to what I feel strongly about. Grade five students are so impressionable, and in my opinion are at the age where they are branching out in terms of where they are getting their knowledge. This is important, and is something teachers must take advantage of. We must learn about the different texts that our students are reading, and help them to decide for themselves (which may seem like an oxymoron), whether what they are reading is the most valid source of information. My grade five students would spend a large amount of their time making connections to real-life situations, but also different texts that have thematic relevance to the ideas I want them to find connections to. I want my students to find joy and excitement in referencing different ideas to support something current. In order to do this I will need to pull from some of the resources I have discussed previously, plus many more. .

Personal Parody Poem

Reflections (and reluctant admissions) from a teacher’s first day on the job: the seatbelt unbuckled, taking the blindfold off.

My name is Brent, and I thought I knew everything.

I had a new shirt, new shoes, and a new job – and I spent the previous three days at the cottage. I wasn’t worried.

But every day I look back and wonder –

Why did I park in the wrong parking lot?

Why did I commit to coaching two teams in the first 15 minutes of the day?

Why did I write September 4, 2008 in red chalk...RED CHALK!?!

Why didn’t I have those three kids on my attendance list?

Why didn’t I think that awesome “get-to-know-you” activity would work? It has been a riot ever since.

Why did I sleep through name pronunciation 101???

Why did I need to photocopy 10 extra course outlines?

Why did my neck turn so blotchy, my face so red, and my leg so shaky?

Why did it have to be so hot?

Why did I choose THAT short story for my diagnostic assessment?

Why was my 75 minute lesson plan finished in under an hour?

Why did I eat lunch at my desk instead of the staffroom?

Why did they let a single 23 year old Phys-Ed major teach HHS 4M – “Individuals and Families in a Diverse Society” (Actually this one is a bit of a stretch we had a lot of fun!)?

Why didn’t I take that kid’s cell phone away?

Why didn’t I get a map, a bus schedule, or ANYTHING, for my new city that would have allowed me to give advice to students trying to get around Ottawa?

And after receiving thousands of resources from the most understanding and passionate colleagues imaginable, why didn’t I ask Mr. Risk for one more...that one opinion article he said was so good but wouldn’t open on my computer?

Why didn’t I know then what I know now?

Why don’t I know now what I will know in 10 years?

I was a young teacher then, and I am a young teacher now, diving into a brand new world of education at the elementary level. I am confident that I will find success because of who I am, what I stand for, and how important this profession is to me. Never again will I pretend to know everything. I will continue to grow and learn. And I will never spend three days at the cottage over Labour Day weekend again (but maybe two)!