Student Case Study: Student Centered Learning

    Jeremy Cooper was a pretty typical first grader. He was far more interested in playing with toys than he was learning math problems, and he often got up out of his seat during work time or turned to talk to his friends. Jeremy was not a troublemaker. In fact, he was one of the most well liked kids in class, and all of the teachers commented on how sweet he was. His teacher, Mrs. Walters, did not think anything of Jeremy’s behavior until she noticed he would often turn in incomplete assignments. She knew that this was largely because Jeremy was not staying on task, so she started to reprimand him for getting out of his seat and talking with his friends during work time.
     Over the next few months, things only got worse for Jeremy. He was behind in just about all of his subjects, and he had started to withdraw a little from his peers because he was embarrassed about being behind academically. Mrs. Walters was not surprised when she got a call from Jeremy’s mother, Marie. Marie was worried about Jeremy. She knew that something was wrong because Jeremy needed far more help staying on task than her daughter did when she was his age. Marie told Mrs. Walters that she worked with Jeremy on homework every single night. They practiced spelling words for the weekly spelling tests and ran math facts in addition to any assigned homework. Marie knew that, despite her best efforts to teach her son to become an independent learner, he was very behind grade level. She asked Mrs. Walters if she had noticed any changes in Jeremy, so Mrs. Walters told Marie about Jeremy’s recent withdrawal from his classmates. The two agreed that something needed to be done to help Jeremy. Mrs. Walters referred Jeremy to be tested to see if he qualified for special education services, and she contacted the principal, counselor, and school psychologist to set up a meeting for once the testing was completed.
     After testing, they were able to determine that Jeremy had ADHD (inattentive type). According to the school psychologist, this diagnosis often gets missed because it does not look like the most commonly thought of type of ADHD, which includes a hyperactive component. Because Jeremy had his mother and his teacher advocating for him and giving such detailed information, he could more readily be diagnosed. Because of his diagnosis, Jeremy qualified for an individualized education plan (IEP) that would be updated at least yearly based on his needs. The IEP included information about modified assignments, increased test-taking time, and priority seating. His mother did not want to put Jeremy on medication, so the strategies that were decided on were largely behavioral treatments.
     In addition to his IEP specifications, Mrs. Walters decided that her entire class could benefit from some sort of intervention that would help keep them interested in what they were learning. Her class had really loved the unit that they did on local plants, so she decided to take nature walks around the school’s campus with her class. She gave them each the task of collected natural items (leaves, rocks, grass, etc.) so that they could examine them once they were back inside. All of the kids loved being able to get out of the classroom, and having some extra time outside really seemed to help Jeremy focus once back in the classroom. Mrs. Walters also set up stations inside of her classroom where students could examine the natural objects that they had found. She broke her class into four groups, mixing the learning levels so the students could help each other. She found that all of her students performed better when they got to help each other, largely because teaching other is such a great way of testing one’s knowledge. She also decided to start chunking larger projects for her class, creating multiple due dates for pieces of projects to help all of her students learn to manage their time. Although she knew that this would especially benefit Jeremy, she also decided that this was a good practice for her to use with all of her students.
     By the end of the school year, Jeremy was almost back up to grade level when it came to reading, but he still struggled in math. His mother was very pleased with his progress, and she continued to be involved to make sure his IEP was fully up to speed. Although Jeremy still needed accommodations, especially when it came to time constraints, he was doing very well in school, and he was much happier now that he was keeping up academically with his classmates.

Student Centered Learning: Whole Cohort Activity

What is student centered learning?

At its heart, student centered learning comes down to shifting the focus from the teacher to the student. This means getting the student involved and invested in his or her own learning. This approach is often quite collaborative, allowing students to learn with and from one another. Ultimately, this alters the role of the teacher. Instead of being an all-knowing imparter of knowledge, the teacher serves to facilitate learning, teaching students how to learn, a skill that will serve them well for the rest of their lives. This approach allows the teacher to involve students more actively in their education, moving away from a basic lecture-style of teaching and more towards a hands-on, discussion based model.

Through student centered learning, students are given a more personalized, interactive education. This is especially relevant in the 21st century classroom where standards and test scores are being pushed on students and teachers alike. A student centered approach allows students to learn and retain material while learning to reflect on their education and think about their thinking. This thinking about thinking is referred to as metacognition, and although it may seem counter-intuitive, it is not a skill that most individuals possess unless they have been taught how to be metacognitive. Once students learn to reflect on their own thinking processes, they can "learn how to learn." This can be facilitated through student centered learning.

Additionally, a student centered learning approach allows students to share in the decision making process in regards to their own learning experience. Teachers may encourage students to share in the process by encouraging them to ask "Why", "What" and "How". "Why" is concerned with the relevance of the material to be learned while "What" is about students choosing what they want to explore. Finally, "How" requires students to choose or create their own product or performance. Allowing students to ask "Why," "What" and "How" empowers them to take ownership of the material and to practice leadership skills. A student centered learning approach also promotes "buy-in," which increases student involvement and self-confidence.

As stated previously, student centered learning shifts the focus from teacher to student. But it is an approach which is broad in scope with many applications. "The term student-centered learning refers to a wide variety of educational programs, learning experiences, instructional approaches, and academic support strategies that are intended to address the distinct learning needs, interests, aspirations, or cultural backgrounds of individual students and groups of students. To accomplish this goal, schools, teachers, guidance counselors, and other educational specialists may employ a wide variety of educational methods, from modifying assignments and instructional strategies in the classroom to entirely redesigning the ways in which students are grouped and taught in a school."

Student centered learning has many advocates. The following TED Talk video features student centered learning advocate, Shelly Wright.

As stated earlier, student centered learning can take many forms in the classroom. Each question below explains a unique aspect of students centered learning and offers suggestions for how those approaches can be implemented in the classroom.


How could you design the physical environment of the classroom, including technology, to be conducive to student-centered learning?

DIY Design : Having the students decorate the classroom themselves through artwork, writing prompts, or consigns gives the students a sense of pride and responsibility. By playing an active role in the design of their learning environment, it makes students feel that the classroom is their space.
A classroom, as we all know, is the proper place of learning, and of course, we have to consider many things if we want this classroom to provide the needs of learning of our students. We are now in the computer age and a new era of learning, and the 21st century classroom design is an ideal classroom to be modeled. It should be:

·         constant, ubiquitous connectivity
·         moving beyond just 4-walled classrooms
·         flexible, blended learning environments
·         imagining the future
·         students as designers of their environments
·         class size limits as fundamental to thinking about learning spaces
·         collaborative environments allowing global connections
·         studio-based learning
·         empowerment and autonomy of teachers and students to design spaces
·         connections to communities and access to tools
·         space for reflection and creativity
·         design based on pedagogy
·         bringing the real world into the classroom, and the classroom into the real world
·         empowering teachers to learn creative classroom management techniques

This information gave ideas on what really an ideal classroom for 21st century skills look like. Of course, it should be updated with technology so that learners may be able to adjust as early as possible with the changes happening nowadays. No matter what character a classroom has, what is really important is that it is conducive to learning and provides a great role in honing one's brain and personality.


What are some student-centered approaches or techniques that are based on or require collaboration?

Socratic Seminars : The goal of this student-centered teaching strategy is for students to collaborate with one another in order to understand the ideas and issues in a specific text. The students themselves lead the discussion within their group around the ideas and values set out in the text, rather than just giving opinions. This activity encourages communication and dialogue by having the students listen to the ideas and opinions of those in their group in order to make meaning and find common ground among themselves. A Socratic Seminar is not used for the purpose of debate, persuasion, or personal reflection, as the focus is on developing shared meaning of a text.

Jigsaw – Developing Community and Disseminating Knowledge :  This is a teaching strategy that is a way to help students understand and learn new information at the same time as developing their collaboration skills. The teacher asks a group of students to become ‘’experts’’ on a specific topic or subject and then they pass on their knowledge to another group of students. The teaching groups use on student from each of the expert groups. This method gives accountability to students for their learning as they are the one who will be responsible for teaching their peers. When the students know that they will use the information to create a product or lead class discussions, the strategy becomes even more effective.

Think, Pair, Share – Facilitating discussions in small and large groups : This is a discussion technique that allows students to respond thoughtfully to questions in written form. This then leads to students participating in meaningful discussions with their peers. Using this technique allows students to compose their ideas as they have more time and therefore it helps build their confidence and increase participation.

Town Hall Circle : This technique mimics a town hall meeting style and allows all students to share their perspective on a topic. It allows for students to be at the centre of their discussion and collaboratively share their opinions, thoughts and ideas. It encourages them to listen to others and help broaden their understanding of a subject.

Assigning of roles for group work : This is great way to structure group work, it prevents some students taking on too much responsibility whilst encouraging others to take a larger role than they normally would. It helps to distribute responsibility in a way that ensure accountability for all students in the group allowing them all to develop their skills.


How can you implement assessment so that it enhances student-centered learning?
Assessment can be a powerful tool in creating a more student-centered learning environment. Student-centered assessment provides a structure for students to assess their own work and their peer's work, in comparison to the more traditional way of assessment coming strictly from the teacher.

Self-assessment: A self-assessment takes the power away from the teacher, and instead empowers the student to assess their own strengths and weaknesses. An effective self-assessment could look like students comparing their work to a predetermined rubric, which could be produced either by the teacher or by the student. The self-assessment can be an effective tool in allowing students to reflect and revise their work before it is turned in.

Peer assessment: A peer assessment is when students give feedback to one another. Similar to the self-assessment, a peer-assessment should be based on a clear rubric and standards. This is a tool that allows for students to get a broad range of feedback on an assignment or project that is still in progress. Students can use this feedback to revise their work. It also allows them to interact and learn from their peers, which encourages student driven learning.

Process portfolio: A process portfolio is a student portfolio that documents student growth and learning. The purpose is to promote student reflection and to encourage students to have ownership over their work. Students should set their own goals for the portfolio and decide which pieces of work will go in it. This tool should not be used as a summative evaluation of the student's best work, but rather as a formative assessment within the classroom. Examples of progress portfolios can be found
here.



What student-centered approaches or techniques can you use to address differentiation?
       

Learning Stations : Having different learning stations/centers set up around the room not only allows for groups of varying academic levels to be working at the same time, but also allows for teachers to be flexible in their grouping. Whether its homogenous groups that all need to work on the same focus area or heterogenous groupings that allow for  a more equipped student to help a student who isn't as equipped. This grouping system allows for   differentiation such as tiered activities and assignments to be given without any student being any wiser.

Chunking: Breaking down assignments and activities into smaller more manageable parts allows for students to access the content no matter what level there are at. Each “chunk” of the assignment can allow for different types of participation. The first part can be a whole class collaboration such determining the topic of interest they have would like to research. The next part could be a small group collaboration such as an in class research team. The final part could be a independent assignment/self study such as an independent report based on group findings in their own words and context. This chunking allows for students to be able to take charge of their learning.

What student-centered approaches or techniques include physical movement as a central element?

Nature Walks : A small study of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder conducted by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign studied how the environment influences children’s concentration skills. The research found that the student’s scores on tests that measure attention and concentration improved after walks outdoors, even more so for children who took walks in natural settings than those who walked in urban areas. The researchers found that “a ‘dose of nature’ worked as well or better than a dose of medication on the child’s ability to concentrate.” Spending time outdoors not only allows children to move but also to observe and interact with their surroundings, all of which foster learning.

Brain breaks: It improves students' concentration and relieves stress. It helps the student focus on the task at hand. Students should take a brain break every 25-30 minutes of work. Brain break should last about 1-3 minutes long. Examples of brain breaks: dancing, stretching, chair aerobics, etc. When implementing brain breaks, you should set 'behavior expectations' (Tell the students to give their best and remind them that it was scientifically researched) Should set a time so you don't exceed the time limit and have a technique for students to resume work right after. (Example: 10 second count-down cue, a music clip for 10 seconds)

What are some student-centered approaches or techniques for reading?

Readers Theatre : This in an effective teaching strategy that helps students process certain experiences and dilemmas faced by characters in a text. For this activity, students are split into groups and are assigned a small excerpt of the text to present to their classmates. Unlike a more traditional approach such as presenting a skit of the plot, this activity requires students to create a performance that reveals an underlying message, theme, or conflict represented by the text. Performances can be silent or they can use voice in creative ways (composing a choral reading that emphasizes key phrases for example). Students may choose to use movement or remain static, holding their body position to create a frozen image, like a photograph. Readers theater encourages students to be creative in expressing certain concepts and ideas through the words of the text and helps students understand and interpret what they are reading, rather than just representing the plot.

Close Reading Protocol :  This technique requires students to focus on a text, reading and rereading it in detail in order to understand the purpose of the author, the meaning of the text’s structure and its vocabulary.  The purpose of close reading is to gain an in-depth understanding of the text.  Close reading is an effective technique for students to learn evidenced based skills, which require that answers to questions be objectively justified and present in the text itself.  Close reading can be implemented in whole group (full classroom) or small group classes (classroom divided into differentiated groups).  Students may be required to use different methods to highlight the texts content:  encircle the names of characters, use boxes around place names and highlight words they don’t understand.  They can be encouraged to extract the meaning of the words based on the context and do so as part of the class or group discussion.  This teaching method is best if introduced using shorter materials such as news or magazine articles, essays, short stories, or segments from a novel. Close readings can be combined with other techniques such as Readers Theater or Gallery Walk.

Here's a video in which a sixth grade teacher implements a close reading.  Note that the desks are arranged such that students can work in groups to promote the student-centered emphasis of the learning and teaching.

James Moffett and Betty Wagner suggest giving students the power to choose what they read as this makes for the best reading program and this should be started as soon as students learn to read and continued throughout their educational years. Another good idea from these authors is to allow the students to follow a subject that interests them in literature across nations and ethnicities instead of organizing literature assignments in advance that follow structured time periods to provide a more student centered approach.
Another technique that can be used in student centered reading is to empower students to take charge of their learning by having the student create reading comprehension targets, check their understanding of reading materials and track it daily, compare their reading comprehension to a standard and then celebrate their learning, possibly in a public setting. This allows the student to assess themselves and be accountable for their own progress and learning.


SOURCES :

Assigning Roles for Group Work. (n.d.). Facing History and Ourselves. Retrieved February 24, 2016, from https://www.facinghistory.org/for-educators/educator-resources/teaching-strategy/assigning-roles-group-work

Characteristics of Effective Instruction: Student Centered Classrooms. (n.d.). Iowa Core. Retrieved from http://www.iglls.org/files/classroom_brief.pdf

Hidden Curriculum. (2014, August 26). The Glossary of Education Reform. Retrieved from http://edglossary.org/hidden-curriculum.

Irish, B. What's the ideal classroom design for 21st-century learning? (2012, October 16).  Intel. Retrieved from https://engage.intel.com/message/97292#97292

Parker-Pope, T. (2008, October 17). A ‘Dose of Nature’ for Attention Problems. The New York Times: Well. Retrieved from http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/17/a-dose-of-nature-for-attention-problems/?_r=0

Pottsgrove School District / Pottsgrove School District Homepage. (n.d.). Retrieved February 26, 2016, from http://www.pgsd.org/

Student-Centered Assessment Resources. (n.d.). Students at the Center. Retrieved February from http://www.studentsatthecenter.org/resources/student-centered-assessment-resources 

Teaching Strategies. (n.d.). Facing History and Ourselves. Retrieved from https://www.facinghistory.org/for-educators/educator-resources/teaching-strategies

TEAL Center Fact Sheet No. 5: Differentiated Instruction. (2010). Retrieved from https://teal.ed.gov/sites/default/files/Fact-Sheets/5_TEAL_Differentiated_Instruct.pdf

Student-Centered Reading Activities by James Moffett and Betty Jane Wagner The English Journal Vol. 80, No. 6 (Oct., 1991), pp. 70-73 Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/818583?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents

How to Help Students Own Their Learning by MiddleWeb · 02/25/2016 Leaders of Their Own Learning: Transforming Schools Through Student-Engaged Assessment  By Ron Berger, Leah Rugen, and Libby Woodfin  Reviewed by Elisa Waingort. Retrieved from http://www.middleweb.com/28197/how-to-help-students-own-their-learning/

Persona Based on Inner City School

            As a student at McNair High School, Divine Wilkins has always felt like a bit of an outsider, but that is how most students at his high school feel. Like many of his classmates, he struggles to make it to school some days because he is not always well fed. His mother works two jobs to support their family, and his father has been in and out of jail for his entire life. Divine is the oldest of four children and is often expected to play the role of father at home, despite only being sixteen years old. When he is at school, all Divine really wants is a break from the burdens he is forced to take on at home. He loves to learn and is willing to work hard, but McNair High School is an environment that breeds both apathy and violence. Earlier this year, one of Divine’s best friends was murdered in a drive-by shooting just a few blocks from the school.
            Despite his circumstances, Divine does his best to be a good student. His goal is to become a journalist after graduating high school, but he is worried that he will not be prepared for college. Since the beginning of the school year, three of his teachers have quit, so he is concerned that he is not getting the education he needs and deserves. He understands why his teachers quit though. If he could, he would leave McNair High School too. He is tired of seeing multiple fights break out every day. Last semester, a girl in his class had to get her stomach pumped after a school bake sale because someone baked marijuana into the cookies that the home economics class made and didn’t tell anyone. She ate four of them, and she almost didn’t survive.
            Because Divine is a quiet student, he often gets lost in the shuffle. He gets left to his own devises by teachers because he is not actively making trouble in class. This leads to Divine goofing off with his friends instead of getting his work done. Divine feels simultaneously not challenged by the material he is learning and overwhelmed by everything he is expected to get done in such a chaotic environment. It is a difficult position to be in, largely because his teachers are spread so thin with students who need more attention than he does that he feels like he cannot ask for help or for extra work. One thing that Divine really enjoys is when the class gets to do independent work using the iPads provided by the school. Of course, this does not happen often because there are a lot of students and only a small supply of iPads, but on days they get to use this technology, Divine is at his happiest. He likes using sites like No Red Ink and Grammarly to improve his writing. If he finishes an assignment early, there is always more for him to do on sites like this. He also enjoys reading newspaper articles when he finishes his work. The iPad provides him a great way to pursue his interest during his free time in class.
            Divine’s family does not have Internet access at their house because they cannot afford it, so Divine often has missing assignments in classes that assign homework that requires the Internet. He often wishes that more of his teachers were aware of his circumstances, but he is embarrassed that his family has little money. He knows that many of his classmates are in the same situation, but he still feels bad about himself because of his family’s financial situation. When asked by teachers why his assignments are missing, he usually just shrugs and says he did not feel like doing it. He wishes his teachers would realize that he really does care and would do his work if he could. He does not want to make excuses though, so he just acts like he thinks he is too cool to do homework. Divine has been labeled by some of his teachers as a “lost cause” because they think he is completely apathetic towards his schoolwork. In reality, Divine would love to get his homework done. Although he does recognize on an intellectual level that the circumstances are beyond his control, he still somehow feels like it is his fault. He feels bad complaining about his circumstances because he knows that some other students in class have it worse than he does. One of his classmates, Jaylen, has Autism Spectrum Disorder, and even Divine can tell that the school barely does anything to help him. Divine imagines that Jaylen feels really overwhelmed by everything that goes on in the school. There are so many fights, and it is hard for even Divine to stay focused. Knowing that others have even more trouble makes Divine feel like his personal struggle is invalidated.
            Luckily, Divine has one teacher who has noticed that he really does care. His English teacher picked up on his natural writing talent, and she has encouraged him to pursue his dream of being a journalist. Not all of Divine’s classmates have been so lucky as to have a teacher act as a mentor. Divine’s friend M’Kyia wants to be a doctor, but she is failing most of her classes because, despite having an IEP, her needs are not being met by the school. Her teachers view her problems as behavioral rather than as learning deficiencies. Divine knows that M’Kyia really cares, but he has no idea how to help her because he has not yet even figured out how to help himself.
            As he finishes up his sophomore year, Divine is conflicted. He simultaneously cannot wait to get out of McNair High School and is terrified that he will never be ready to leave. He knows that he is underprepared for college, but he feels like there is nothing he can do about that. His one solace is that his English teacher is teaching him not only how to succeed in school even when his circumstances are terrible, but also how to advocate for himself and find his voice. She has been encouraging him to tell his other teachers why he does not get his homework done, but he has not yet followed through on her advice. He hopes he will be able to find the courage to stand up for himself and get out of the cycle of oppression in which he currently lives.
           
          Sadly, Divine’s story is much happier than many of the tales I heard at McNair High School. Many of the students with whom I spoke seemed very downtrodden when it came to education. They told me about teachers walking out and just never coming back. They told me that school lunch was sometimes the only food they ate in a day because their families could not afford to feed them. They told me about being labeled as “bad kids” because they acted out and that hardly anyone ever bothered to ask why they acted they way they did. They told me that they felt like all there was waiting for them after high school was prison. They told me about fights that lead to blood being smeared down the hallway. They told me about friends who had been murdered and friends who had killed themselves. They told me about their former assistant principal being arrested right in front of them. They told me that their principal was being investigated on charges of embezzlement. It felt almost insensitive to ask them about being digital learners when the ability to be learners in any sense of the word was actively being taken away from them. I did ask some of them about their technology use, and I learned that many of them have had very little opportunity to become technologically literate. Many of the students told me that they only have Internet access at school, and most of them do not have smartphones. Those who do have smartphones largely use Kik (a messaging application) and Snapchat (a photo sharing application) to communicate with their friends. Some of them told me that they did not even have an email account until they were told they had to make one for English class. It seemed so odd that these teenagers were so cut off from technology. It made me think about the inherent privilege I have in my life. Growing up, I never had to worry that I would not have the resources to complete a project for school. I never had to fear that I would not have anything to eat. In the entire time I was at my high school, there were two fights; both of them lasted for under a minute, and no one was seriously injured. If I ever acted out of character or was rude to a teacher, no one assumed it was a behavior issue, but instead, teachers asked me what was wrong and sought to help me. I grew up in a relatively affluent, white, suburban school. The fact that I never even had to think about these things is the perfect illustration of privilege. I never want to make the mistake that it sounds like some of the teachers at McNair High School make with these students. They are assuming that privilege is inherent and is something that we all share. They discount the circumstances that these students are in, and they assume that defiance and incomplete assignments are the fault of the students. This assignment has really opened my eyes to the realities of inner city schools, especially when it comes to how socioeconomic status affects every aspect of education. These are the students who need the most resources to combat the circumstances that life has thrown them. This activity left me with one big question. If these are the students who need the most, why is it that they are receiving the least?

Planning for English Language Learners

            Although I do not yet know the grade level I will be teaching next year, I am likely to be an elementary school teacher. Because elementary school spans five years, I will assume that I will be a third grade teacher for the purposes of this assignment. I am not yet a teacher, so I have relatively little experience with lesson planning. I decided to talk with a few teachers and parents that I know to get an idea of what third graders are learning. One of the parents I spoke with told me about a unit in which the children are learning about the structure of a story (i.e. beginning, middle, and end). This seemed like a unit that I would enjoy teaching, so I decided to go with that.

            Next year, I will likely be teaching a unit on story structure to my third grade class. Each student will be required to write a short story with a distinct beginning, middle, and end and add some supplemental illustrations. Students will be evaluated on structure, creativity, and spelling/grammar.

            I have four ELL students in my class, each at a different stage of language acquisition. The five stages of language acquisition are as follows:

·      Stage 1: Preproduction – At this stage, students have a limited vocabulary of around 500 words or so. As the name implies, students at this level are not yet producing language on their own but rather parroting what they hear. At this stage, listening comprehension activities are very valuable to students.

·      Stage 2: Early Production – Students at this stage are just beginning to produce their own words rather than just repeating the words of others. They have a limited vocabulary of around 1000 words. Students can produce short, simple sentences. Using pictures to as aids is helpful at this stage.

·      Stage 3: Speech Emergence – At this stage, vocabulary expands to around 3000 words. Students begin to be able to do content-specific work with the aid of the teacher. At this stage, students begin to be able to string together short stories based on personal experiences.

·      Stage 4: Intermediate Fluency – Students at this stage are now able to speak in more complex sentences and may begin writing more. Their vocabulary spikes to 6000 words, and they should become more willing to talk in class because they are more confident in their language usage. It is important to note that written work will still have a large number of errors at this stage.

·      Stage 5: Advanced Fluency – It takes 4-10 years to reach this stage. At this point, students have near-native academic fluency. They will still need support in areas like social studies and writing, but they will likely no longer be in an ESL or other support program.

In my class, I have students at Stage 1, Stage 2, Stage 3, and Stage 5. For this particular assignment, each of them will receive some sort of modified assignment, but each will still have the goal of understanding story structure.

My student at Stage 1, Antonia, just moved to the United States from Mexico. Other than saying hello to me when I say hello to her, she does not speak much if at all. She does actively listen in class, and she is able to comprehend some of what I am saying. For this assignment, instead of writing a story, Antonia is to draw a story with a beginning, middle, and end. Her finished product will look somewhat like a wordless comic strip. Because Antonia is in Stage 1, listening and understanding is already quite the task for her. If she is able to grasp the idea of beginning, middle, and end, I will be able to tell from her drawings. Antonia’s assignment will be evaluated on structure and creativity, but there will be no words, so spelling and grammar will not be part of the evaluation criteria.

      Roberto, another student of mine, is in Stage 2. I know little about his background, but I know he was born in Puerto Rico. For his assignment, Roberto will also be asked to draw a story in a comic strip-like fashion, but he will be asked to add some basic dialogue (e.g. Hello!, How are you?, etc). This will give Roberto a chance to practice some conversational English. Like Antonia, Roberto will be evaluated on structure and creativity. Despite having some words, Roberto will receive on praise and corrective feedback on his writing. It will have no effect on his evaluation.

            Amir, a boy whose family is originally from Egypt, has lived in the United States for most of his life, but his family speaks exclusively Arabic at home. He is in Stage 4 of language acquisition. For this assignment, Amir will draw a comic strip-like story, but instead of stopping there, he will summarize each box of the comic strip, telling the story both through pictures at words. Amir will be evaluated on structure and creativity, and he will receive praise and corrective feedback on his writing. Hopefully this assignment will make him feel more confident in his command of the English language.

            Finally, Nina is in Stage 5. Her family has lived in the United States for her entire life, but they speak Spanish at home. They are first generation Americans. Nina is nearly fluent in English, but she still needs some help with her grammar when it comes to writing. Her assignment will be the same as the original assignment, which is to write a story with a distinct beginning, middle, and end and include supplemental illustrations, but her evaluation criteria will be slightly different. Structure and creativity will be most heavily weighted, and spelling/grammar will be worth fewer points, but will still be evaluated. Nina will receive praise and corrective feedback on her grammar to help her continue to improve and become even more fluent.

            Each of these students will still be able to gain an understanding of the lesson’s content (i.e. story structure) and be active participants in class. These modified assignments will give the students confidence as they move forward. Antonia, Roberto, Amir, and Nina will each receive the help they need to understand their modified assignments in addition to praise and corrective feedback once their assignments are completed.

Standards and Objectives of ELL Programs

For this activity, we were to compare and contrast two ELL programs used in schools. I looked at ESL Pullout and Two-Way Dual Language. When you are done reading, take a look at my Mind Map outlining the major differences between these two types of programs.

ESL Pullout

            This method, primarily used with elementary school students, involves students spending a large part of their day in a mainstream classroom and being pulled out for specific, ESL instruction. This instruction can be one-on-one or in a small group setting, and this method can be used with student who have little to no proficiency in English. This method can be used for as long as the student needs it to. The goal of ESL Pullout is for the student to end up fluent in English. There are a few major advantages of this method. First, when students are pulled out of class, the small groups they work with are generally much smaller than a mainstream classroom. This allows teachers to get to know their students both as people and as learners on a deeper level than is achievable than in a larger class setting. Additionally, this provides a safe space for ELL students to practice their English skills without feeling judged and to form bonds with other students who are in the same situation that they are.

            The standards for this program are as follows:

1 Standard 1: English language learners communicate for social, intercultural, and instructional purposes within the school setting.

2 Standard 2: Students communicate and understand information and ideas necessary to succeed in language arts.

3Standard 3: Students communicate and understand information and ideas necessary to succeed in mathematics.

4Standard 4: Students communicate and understand information and ideas necessary to succeed in science.

5Standard 5: Students communicate and understand information and ideas necessary to succeed in social studies.

These standards leave much room for interpretation. They seem to be lacking in substance and could definitely use some fleshing out. With more substance, they could be solid standards.

Two-Way Dual Language

            This program involves taking two groups of students, one whose native language is English and one whose native language is something else, and grouping them together in one classroom where they are taught in English and the other native language. For example, if the second group’s native language were Spanish, then ideally, half of the instruction would occur in English and half would occur in Spanish. The idea behind this program is that it produces bilingual students who are not only proficient conversationally in each language, but also academically. One of the main strengths of this approach is that students can help each other in their non-native language, and both groups of students get to spend part of the day in the language in which they are most comfortable. Of course, the end goal is to achieve a native level of comfort in both languages, but that takes time. Ideally, this program would begin as early as elementary school and would continue all the way through high school. When a new language is started early, students have the best chance of achieving fluency.

            The standards for this program look very similar to something you would see for a foreign language program. At the heart of this program, the students are, in fact, learning a foreign language while continuing to receive instruction in their native language. The standards are as follows:

6)   Communication: Communicate in a Second Language

i)              Interpersonal Communication: Students engage with their peers, discussing feelings, thoughts, and opinions.

ii)             Interpretive Communication: Students can understand written and spoken language on many different topics.

iii)           Presentational Communication: Student is able to share information and ideas via public speaking or writing, also on many different topics.

7)   Cultures: Students will become knowledgeable about cultures other than their own. They will have a true understanding of the culture on a deep level rather than just a cursory understanding.

8)   Connections: Students will connect what they are learning to other disciplines. This is particularly important because they will be learning about other disciplines in their non-native language. Students will also gain access to a new view on the world that is only accessible to them through their newly acquired language.

9)   Comparisons: Students will draw comparisons between their native language and culture and the language and culture that they are learning. This will enhance their understanding of both language and culture on a conceptual level.

10)                  Communities: Students will participate in a multi-lingual community in their school, forging connections due to their newly acquired language. Students will also learn to use what they have learned outside of school for personal enjoyment, such as watching a television show in their non-native language or communicating with a pen pal.

Cultures and Languages in Education: Part 3

To wrap up this activity, I created a Prezi that really ties everything together. It is a visual representation of what I talked about in my last couple of posts. This is actually my first ever Prezi, and I am pretty proud of how it turned out. Take a look!

http://prezi.com/8dzpry0i8jrr/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy

Cultures and Languages in Education: Part 2

5-Step Plan: Mexico

In North Carolina, the largest population of ELL students is Spanish-speaking students from Mexico. In order to promote cultural understanding and personal growth of my elementary school class, we will have a unit dedicated to Mexican culture across the curriculum.

What: This unit will cover history, geography, literature, and vocabulary. The unit will begin with students learning to locate Mexico on a map, after which they will learn the major cities, types of terrain, and native plants and animals. Students will take a virtual tour of a Mexican home during class via a Skype interview with a colleague of mine who lives and works in Mexico City. During the tour, students will be asked to make notes of similarities and differences between their own homes and the home they see. After that, we will start our unit on conquistadors and the ‘discovery’ of America. However, instead of focusing on the conquistadors that made it to the United States, we will learn about both those who were in what is now the United States and those who were in Mexico. We will look at the paths different conquistadors took and discuss why they went to different places. While all of this is taking place, we will be reading a different story by a Mexican author out loud in class each day. Students will take turns reading aloud. We will then discuss the stories and how they may have been different if they had been written by an author from another place. Throughout the unit, three students each day will be assigned a Spanish vocabulary word to bring home and define the next day. They will also be asked to draw a picture that shows the definition of the word. Words will range from colors to classroom objects to seasons to animals. Each day, the students will teach the rest of the class their word, we will hang the students’ drawings in our classroom as their Spanish vocabulary grows. At the end of the unit, parents will be invited to a “Spanish Lesson” where there will be multiple stations that parents can attend. One station will be by our Spanish word wall. Students will teach their parents the Spanish words. Another station will be a story station where students will read short stories by Mexican authors out loud to their parents. The final station will be a map of Mexico where students can teach their parents about the geography and history of Mexico.

Who: The teacher will be responsible for administering and running the unit. This is a class of third grade students, so some of their work can be independent, but they will still need some help, especially when looking up the definition of their Spanish words. Parents will need to help students look up their words, so the teacher will sent home newsletters before, during, and at the end of the unit letting parents know what we are doing and inviting them to our “Spanish Lesson.” The “Spanish Lesson” will be overseen by the teacher and a few parent volunteers.

When: This will be a three-week unit at the beginning of March. Each day, students will learn about Mexico and, starting in the second week, read one story in class. The virtual tour will take place on the third day of the unit. Additionally, vocabulary words will be assigned each day, so by the end of the unit, there will be at least 40 new words. The “Spanish Lesson” will take place on the last Friday of the unit at 9am and will last for an hour and a half.

Where: All instruction will take place in the classroom. The only part of this unit that will take place outside the classroom is the vocabulary word homework assignment which is to be completed at home.

How:

1) Before the unit begins, teacher will send home a newsletter explaining the unit and inviting parents about the “Spanish Lesson.” Teacher will ask for three parent volunteers to help run the “Spanish Lesson.” Teacher will continue to send home newsletter updates throughout the unit.

2) Teacher will explain the unit to the class and introduce Mexican geography. The first set of vocabulary words will be assigned to three students, and this will continue each day of the unit. Starting on day two, students will begin teaching the class their assigned vocabulary words. The word wall will begin on day two. The virtual tour will also take place on day two.

3) Students will begin learning about conquistadors at the beginning of Week Two. This unit will end with the making of maps of where the conquistadors went. The map-making project will take up days one and two of Week Three. Each day, beginning on the first day of Week Two, the class will read one story by a Mexican author out loud.

4) The final two days of the unit will be setting up and practicing for the “Spanish Lesson” for the parents. Students will be able to teach the material to their parents by the end of the unit.

5) “Spanish Lesson” will begin at 9am on the final Friday of the unit. Teacher will run the event with the help of the above mentioned parent volunteers. Each parent will help run one of the three stations. Once the lesson is done and parents leave, teacher will discuss the day with students and wrap up the unit by telling the students how much their parents learned from them.

5-Step Plan: Egypt

The second largest population of ELL students in North Carolina is Arabic-speaking students, most of whom are from Egypt. To bridge the cultural gaps, this unit will focus on the value of collectivism rather than rewarding students for individual achievement.

What: Because Egypt is a collectivist culture and students from Egypt may not be used to the high value Americans place in individual achievement, we will do a two week unit where the students are rewarded collectively for their achievements. This will be a cross-curricular unit, and it will involve a lot of group work and students teaching each other. For example, in math, students will be split into groups to complete each day’s assignment. When the first group finishes, those students will be split between the remaining groups so they can help each other finish the work. This will continue until all of the groups are done. The entire class will be rewarded for their hard work by getting ten extra minutes of playtime if the whole class finishes before the end of math. In English, we will read a short chapter book during this unit. Every day, we will read a few pages out loud as a class. Everyone will read at the same time, which will give non-native speakers a chance to practice their English without feeling like everyone is listening to them. Additionally, students will be given homework that previews what we will be discussing in one of our subjects. The homework will be something relatively general. For example, if we are learning about different animals native to North Carolina, the homework would have pictures of a few different native animals. Students would be asked to tell the teacher about a time that they saw one of these animals. If they have never seen one, they can ask a family member to tell them about one of the animals. This helps celebrate the idea that experiences that students have had are just as valuable as scientific facts. Students will be invited to share their stories at the beginning of class the next day. As a “grade” for the unit, students will be given a collective score each day (i.e. “All 20 of you did your homework! 20 points!”). If, by the end of the two weeks, the students get a total of at least 300 points (a very attainable goal), the students will get to have a small party on the last day of the unit. The party will include candy provided by the teacher and an episode of “The Magic School Bus.”

Who: The teacher will be responsible for running the unit and assigning points. This is a class of third grade students, and although the students may need some teacher involvement, much of this unit will rely on the students working together to teach them the value of collectivism. Parents will be kept in the loop via the class’s weekly newsletter.

When: This will be a two-week unit in December, right before winter break. This unit will lead up to the end of the semester.

Where: All instruction will take place in the classroom. The only part of this unit that will take place outside the classroom is any homework assignments that the kids must complete at home.

How:

1) Before the unit begins, teacher will send home a newsletter explaining the unit.

2) Teacher will introduce the concept of collectivism to the students and will explain the difference between that and individualism. 

3) Students will begin group work in math, group reading, and the above-mentioned homework assignments right away. Students will be rewarded points based on the group’s performance. The teacher will add up the points at the end of each school day.

4) Students will be invited to share their homework each day. Students will not be required to share, but instead will be encouraged.

5) At the end of the unit, the students will be rewarded for the number of points they received with a small party. The teacher will provide candy, and the class will watch “The Magic School Bus.”