I was practicing the audio component, for creating an E-book for one of my lessons. I was using one of my younger cousin's voices, I mimicked what she had to say, she looked at me in utmost confusion, she said, “...but Mandy, you are speaking 'badly'.” By “badly” she meant, I was asking her to do the forbidden! Speak as she calls it “Dialect.” O the horror!!
“It is the nature of the West Indian Creole-influenced language situation that is responsible ...for the language education problem at the ...school level.” (Craig (1999) 23).
Creolists have worked at gaining recognition for Creole languages as autonomous languages in their own right and not mere “broken” or “bastardised” versions of a European colonial language.
In our Trinidadian classrooms there is an existence of two codes, Standard English, the official of education and Trinidadian Creole. Whenever the Creole is used as a language of instruction, the result is almost always a negative reaction. It is believed that even though the official code receives attention in the teaching and learning scenario not enough attention is given to the Creole even though it is the native language of the majority of speakers.
It is not a question of whether which language is good or bad; right or wrong, it is our aim as teachers of literacy to give students the opportunities to use both codes BUT teach them to CODE SWITCH. They need to be aware of the uses of both codes; it is only then a balance can be achieved. I believe teachers’ language attitudes towards Creole usage in the classroom, need to be examined, in order to put an end to this stereotype.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Assessment
In an attempt to come up with suitable assessments for my lesson plans, I came across an interesting article: McKenna, M.C & Walpole, S. (2005) How well does assessment inform our reading instruction? The Reading Teacher. Vol.59 No.1 84-86
Assessment is commonly linked to “high-stakes" testing. The discourse seeks to contrast this view and the norm in the classroom to alternative forms of assessment that can work alongside other measures of assessment which would alert teachers from the onset to problematic areas of reading development; promote diagnostic assessment as an aid; offer progress monitoring and examine outcome measures.
The discourse helps one to realize that this (assessment) is a universal issue. It mirrors the reality of situations faced by teachers within the bounds of the classroom, where at times, a tug-of-war between teaching and learning occurs. The article purports the idea that alternative assessment can be used as a tool for monitoring and that there can be co-existence between assessment and instruction; it seeks to compliment to the core. It demonstrates that if the problem is identified from the onset a crisis can be avoided. Assessment should not simply be summative but a continuous process of monitoring.
As educators we are sometimes faced with the decision of whether we teach for assessment purposes or teach so that adequate learning among our students can occur. We are often forced to choose between the two. This is so mainly because of the inescapable high-stakes tests, for example;S.E.A and CAPE. As a result, one may view the alternative assessment as a detractor in attempting to accomplish this. As a result very little weighting is given to alternative forms of assessing in our classrooms in most instances.
It is my hope that I can now use all the new (Web 2.0) tools and information I have gathered in this course to not only teach literacy but to assess literacy in fun and interesting ways that would motivate my learners.
Assessment is commonly linked to “high-stakes" testing. The discourse seeks to contrast this view and the norm in the classroom to alternative forms of assessment that can work alongside other measures of assessment which would alert teachers from the onset to problematic areas of reading development; promote diagnostic assessment as an aid; offer progress monitoring and examine outcome measures.
The discourse helps one to realize that this (assessment) is a universal issue. It mirrors the reality of situations faced by teachers within the bounds of the classroom, where at times, a tug-of-war between teaching and learning occurs. The article purports the idea that alternative assessment can be used as a tool for monitoring and that there can be co-existence between assessment and instruction; it seeks to compliment to the core. It demonstrates that if the problem is identified from the onset a crisis can be avoided. Assessment should not simply be summative but a continuous process of monitoring.
As educators we are sometimes faced with the decision of whether we teach for assessment purposes or teach so that adequate learning among our students can occur. We are often forced to choose between the two. This is so mainly because of the inescapable high-stakes tests, for example;S.E.A and CAPE. As a result, one may view the alternative assessment as a detractor in attempting to accomplish this. As a result very little weighting is given to alternative forms of assessing in our classrooms in most instances.
It is my hope that I can now use all the new (Web 2.0) tools and information I have gathered in this course to not only teach literacy but to assess literacy in fun and interesting ways that would motivate my learners.
Friday, July 23, 2010
"Photo-take-outing easy guide"
Aim…snap…flash…PICTURE TAKEN! Seems simple, right? Yes but this process is very wrong.
Taking a picture is not as cut and dry as it may appear; there’s an art involved in doing so in order to obtain the “perfect photo”.
Kodak. com offers some helpful tips that everyone should know when attempting to take a photo. Below is my interpretation of such.
1) Take the picture at the same level of the object. – If the object is a child who is 2' tall, do not stand at your height 5’ 7” and look down to take the picture; simply bend your knees and stoop to the level of the object being photographed.
2) Be wary of your back ground – your background should be plain enough not to detract from the real focus of the picture.
3) When taking pictures outdoors it is wise to use your flash- this aids in minimizing the appearance of shadows.
4) Get as close as possible to the object being photographed- do not stand too far from object.
5) Some objects are better photographed in a vertical direction.
6) Before snapping your picture be certain you have the correct focus.
7) The rule of thirds- this relates to what part of the image the human eye is readily drawn to. It provides a background for photos and allows the photo itself to relay a story.
8) It is wise to know the distance your flash can go up to, so you would be aware of how close you can stand to the object being photographed.
9) Pay attention to the light. The darker the object, the more light may be necessary.
10) You dictate the position, style, line up of your photo. Step out from the mundane “form a line and say cheese pictures”; instead a semi-circle may be more suitable.
11) MY OWN RULE: Most importantly, HAVE FUN DOING SO! ENJOY THE TASK!
Now that I’m aware of all these useful tips, I am armed with camera in hand and ready to be the best “photo-take-outer” I can be!
Taking a picture is not as cut and dry as it may appear; there’s an art involved in doing so in order to obtain the “perfect photo”.
Kodak. com offers some helpful tips that everyone should know when attempting to take a photo. Below is my interpretation of such.
1) Take the picture at the same level of the object. – If the object is a child who is 2' tall, do not stand at your height 5’ 7” and look down to take the picture; simply bend your knees and stoop to the level of the object being photographed.
2) Be wary of your back ground – your background should be plain enough not to detract from the real focus of the picture.
3) When taking pictures outdoors it is wise to use your flash- this aids in minimizing the appearance of shadows.
4) Get as close as possible to the object being photographed- do not stand too far from object.
5) Some objects are better photographed in a vertical direction.
6) Before snapping your picture be certain you have the correct focus.
7) The rule of thirds- this relates to what part of the image the human eye is readily drawn to. It provides a background for photos and allows the photo itself to relay a story.
8) It is wise to know the distance your flash can go up to, so you would be aware of how close you can stand to the object being photographed.
9) Pay attention to the light. The darker the object, the more light may be necessary.
10) You dictate the position, style, line up of your photo. Step out from the mundane “form a line and say cheese pictures”; instead a semi-circle may be more suitable.
11) MY OWN RULE: Most importantly, HAVE FUN DOING SO! ENJOY THE TASK!
Now that I’m aware of all these useful tips, I am armed with camera in hand and ready to be the best “photo-take-outer” I can be!
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
What about writing?
Reading and writing go hand in hand!
“Mastery of content is not only demonstrated through reading but through writing." Integrating writing with reading enhances reading comprehension because the two are reciprocal processes.” Knipper and Duggan in “Writing to learn across the curriculum: tools for comprehension in content area classes” offer a repertoire of writing strategies that content area teachers can put into practice throughout the reading process to strengthen students' comprehension and extend their critical thinking. Such as learning logs, journals and fast writes. Writing to learn engages students, extends thinking, deepens understanding, and continues the meaning-making process.
Writing across the curriculum can bring about the positive results. By applying different writing strategies to the classroom situation students can become more engaged with the subject matter. They tend to understand the information and concepts more deeply, students can remember ideas longer and apply that learning in new situations. Teachers can use writing to prompt thinking, to facilitate discussions, to enhance concepts, to assess both formatively and summatively, and for reflection purposes. Some strategies include: “fast writes” which help students organize and state what they are thinking at the moment; “journals”, which either simple or complex, can also help in this area. Dialogue journals can be a great way to increase fluency in writing and work with the class content. “Learning logs” are similar in that they are done during class time and may not necessarily be graded.
The concept of writing to learn is indeed an important one. Through the use of the strategies by teachers, students who exhibit difficulty reading and writing can interact with expository text in a more meaningful way. Writing is just as important as reading!
“Mastery of content is not only demonstrated through reading but through writing." Integrating writing with reading enhances reading comprehension because the two are reciprocal processes.” Knipper and Duggan in “Writing to learn across the curriculum: tools for comprehension in content area classes” offer a repertoire of writing strategies that content area teachers can put into practice throughout the reading process to strengthen students' comprehension and extend their critical thinking. Such as learning logs, journals and fast writes. Writing to learn engages students, extends thinking, deepens understanding, and continues the meaning-making process.
Writing across the curriculum can bring about the positive results. By applying different writing strategies to the classroom situation students can become more engaged with the subject matter. They tend to understand the information and concepts more deeply, students can remember ideas longer and apply that learning in new situations. Teachers can use writing to prompt thinking, to facilitate discussions, to enhance concepts, to assess both formatively and summatively, and for reflection purposes. Some strategies include: “fast writes” which help students organize and state what they are thinking at the moment; “journals”, which either simple or complex, can also help in this area. Dialogue journals can be a great way to increase fluency in writing and work with the class content. “Learning logs” are similar in that they are done during class time and may not necessarily be graded.
The concept of writing to learn is indeed an important one. Through the use of the strategies by teachers, students who exhibit difficulty reading and writing can interact with expository text in a more meaningful way. Writing is just as important as reading!
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
E-books.
I read this article given to us by our lecturer. I found it quite insightful…So, I decided to BLOG about it by doing an overview of said article.
An overview of the article “Using E-Books to Promote Vocabulary Development”
Higgins, Norman and Laura Hess
“The effectiveness of any instructional program depends on how it is used, for what purpose it is used, and with whom it is used.” (Higgins, Norman and Hess)
This statement is fitting especially when it comes to the use of e-books. “Most electronic books can read whole stories, phrases and individual words aloud”. Many of these e-books have “added multimedia enhancements...to promote reading achievement”.
Several investigators have sought to compare the effects of print and e-books on reading achievement. Matthew 1997 reported that “children who read...electronic books performed significantly better on story retelling than a matched group who read printed books, but there were no differences...on a story comprehension test.”
Lipson and Wixson (1996) provide guidelines for promoting vocabulary development, which includes:
• relate an unfamiliar word to a known synonym
• use the unfamiliar word in a different context, and
• ask the reader to define the unfamiliar word in his/her own words
It remains to be seen if these guidelines can be implemented with e-books as well as the effects of doing so.
The authors used these guidelines in their study in conjunction with “the animation features of e-books” to determine the effectiveness of selected vocabulary-building activities on learning and retention of unfamiliar words.
To conduct the investigation the authors used a third-grade class of 10 boys and 12 girls. 6 boys and 5 girls in the control group and 4 boys and 7 girls in the experimental group using “The New Kid on the Block: Poems by Jack Prelutsky” (1993).
Results of the investigation.
The results confirm the effectiveness of supplemental vocabulary instruction together with the animations in an e-book yet the author question their practicality and efficiency. They concluded that the supplemental activities are not difficult to implement and the efficiency could be improved if the same results would be attained when the adult worked with more than one child at a time. Further research must be done on the correlation between effectiveness of activities and number of children participating at the same time.
An overview of the article “Using E-Books to Promote Vocabulary Development”
Higgins, Norman and Laura Hess
“The effectiveness of any instructional program depends on how it is used, for what purpose it is used, and with whom it is used.” (Higgins, Norman and Hess)
This statement is fitting especially when it comes to the use of e-books. “Most electronic books can read whole stories, phrases and individual words aloud”. Many of these e-books have “added multimedia enhancements...to promote reading achievement”.
Several investigators have sought to compare the effects of print and e-books on reading achievement. Matthew 1997 reported that “children who read...electronic books performed significantly better on story retelling than a matched group who read printed books, but there were no differences...on a story comprehension test.”
Lipson and Wixson (1996) provide guidelines for promoting vocabulary development, which includes:
• relate an unfamiliar word to a known synonym
• use the unfamiliar word in a different context, and
• ask the reader to define the unfamiliar word in his/her own words
It remains to be seen if these guidelines can be implemented with e-books as well as the effects of doing so.
The authors used these guidelines in their study in conjunction with “the animation features of e-books” to determine the effectiveness of selected vocabulary-building activities on learning and retention of unfamiliar words.
To conduct the investigation the authors used a third-grade class of 10 boys and 12 girls. 6 boys and 5 girls in the control group and 4 boys and 7 girls in the experimental group using “The New Kid on the Block: Poems by Jack Prelutsky” (1993).
Results of the investigation.
The results confirm the effectiveness of supplemental vocabulary instruction together with the animations in an e-book yet the author question their practicality and efficiency. They concluded that the supplemental activities are not difficult to implement and the efficiency could be improved if the same results would be attained when the adult worked with more than one child at a time. Further research must be done on the correlation between effectiveness of activities and number of children participating at the same time.
Monday, July 5, 2010
A bit about (concept) mapping it out!
Concept maps have always held a certain measure of appeal to me. I remember as a child being taught to construct essays by firstly creating “a map” of my ideas. This has stuck with me; so much so, that I often employ this concept as an aid in helping my students become more efficient writers.
Concept maps are indeed very intricate tools. They are visual representations of connections among concepts. Concept maps can be used as a valuable learning strategy to aid in the enrichment of thinking and learning skills in our students. Apart from the obvious use, that is, using Concept maps to present ideas, the article; The Theory Underlying Concept Maps and How to Construct and Use Them by Joseph D. Novak & Alberto J. Cañas Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition has shed a measure of new light on Concept maps to me. It made for a very interesting and insightful read.
Concept mapping permits a conversion in the ways in which learners as well as teachers can map out the information that they that they have come across. The idea of Concept mapping is not solely limited to that of an activity used merely to brainstorm but it may assist students in navigating through complex domains of knowledge. Concept mapping tools can be engaged as a “hands-on” approach in the classroom to enhance the learning process. Teachers’ may also use concept maps as a resource for providing information about students’ understanding.
The implementation of new approaches to teaching or learning has often been met with some measure of resilience. This at times result in the use of “sticking to what we know” that is, traditional forms. We as educators must not be afraid to try out new ideas, new approaches and see what works best for our students.
Concept maps are indeed very intricate tools. They are visual representations of connections among concepts. Concept maps can be used as a valuable learning strategy to aid in the enrichment of thinking and learning skills in our students. Apart from the obvious use, that is, using Concept maps to present ideas, the article; The Theory Underlying Concept Maps and How to Construct and Use Them by Joseph D. Novak & Alberto J. Cañas Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition has shed a measure of new light on Concept maps to me. It made for a very interesting and insightful read.
Concept mapping permits a conversion in the ways in which learners as well as teachers can map out the information that they that they have come across. The idea of Concept mapping is not solely limited to that of an activity used merely to brainstorm but it may assist students in navigating through complex domains of knowledge. Concept mapping tools can be engaged as a “hands-on” approach in the classroom to enhance the learning process. Teachers’ may also use concept maps as a resource for providing information about students’ understanding.
The implementation of new approaches to teaching or learning has often been met with some measure of resilience. This at times result in the use of “sticking to what we know” that is, traditional forms. We as educators must not be afraid to try out new ideas, new approaches and see what works best for our students.
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