Last semester, in my EAF 228 class, we spent a lot of time focusing on Freire and the banking system. Whenever I think of the banking system, I picture a gumball machine. You put your money in, you watch the ball spiral down the tube, then it spits out at the end. It does this over and over again.
This proposed method of problem posing seems a lot more logical when it comes to teaching, especially learning a foreign language. A major focus of this chapter as well as these 2 teaching methods is testing. I like that problem posing allows for students to compare their own achievements to their own personal pasts rather than to that of a state score. I found myself both agreeing and disagreeing with the paragraphs Wong wrote about high stakes testing. I do not feel that test skills will always present themselves spontaneously. The students may be engaging in some sort of activity to bring them to certain skills, but they will not be aware that they are test taking skills unless the teacher tells them or guides them to that point. They need to simply be made available and relevant. Secondly, Wong says rather than teaching to the test, teach beyond it. I was thinking about cross country in high school. Every race was 3 miles long, but we were always told to train three times the distance! In the beginning, it makes the unattainable goal seem much more achievable.
While memorization is a usual tool and skill that one can possess, it is useless unless utilized properly. Wong stresses that learning a language is more than memorization. It is comprehension and active participation on the student's part. The chapter later addresses ZPD again. The same issue and concept arise. A teacher cannot force their ESL student to comprehend a language; they can guide them to reach their maximum potentinal but cannot essentially instill it in their brains.
I agree with your assessment that sometimes teaching beyond could make the "unattainable goal seem much more achievable." When a teacher teaches beyond the test, beyond making sure that s/he covers the materials in the syllabus, it makes the class more interesting and even better--more relevant. Sometimes it's not enough to cover the course material or know how to not fail a foreign language test; it's more helpful if communication--no matter how basic it can be--is achievable in that foreign country.
ReplyDeleteI agree with everything you've said here. I liked your connection to running and how you have to teach beyond the test. I also experienced that, though it was in Taekwondo classes in high school. This chapter definitely had a lot of great points about problem-posing and how teaching can be a great way for the teacher to learn along side their students.
ReplyDeleteYou are absolutely right about guidance as well. We, as ESL teachers, cannot force a student to learn what we are teaching. All we can really do is guide and try to keep them interacting with the material so they can learn through their own interactions.
Katie,
ReplyDeleteI also read Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed in 228 last semester. Reviewing some of his ideas that were present in this chapter, I think it is a very good text to study when thinking about language learning. A lot of times last semester, it seemed really vague to me and I wasn't really sure how it connected with education, or at least the general way we view education. I think it connects well with the idea of ZPD.