First, I would just like to say that Huerta-Macías seems to present a bias towards alterative assessment because her daughter failed a multiple choice test. I agree with her in that alterative assessment is important, but because her child did not kow what "none of the above meant" doesn't mean the test is necessarily problematic. Had she raised concerns of reliability and validity, her argument would have been a little more convincing.
"Alternative assessment is different that actually testing in that it actually asks students to show what they can do." (339) Up until now, we have focused mainly on assessment in terms of a pen and paper test, and those different types of forms. I think many a time, both teachers and students forgot that there are alternatives to a test and just automatically go to that.
Different types of assessment include: observations (formal and informal), journals, portfolios, interviews, questionnaires, and conferences. It's important that the teacher decides how they will use the alternative assessment, what they are going to use it for, and why they are doing this type of assessment.
Of course, there are always going to be issues with alternative assessment. Parents could become upset because their children are not being given a pen and paper test because they may not recognize these alternative forms of assessment. Students could also become more anxious by this different form of testing or less anxious because they are not aware that they are being tested. Personally, I think alternative assessment has more benefits than repercussions.
Monday, November 14, 2011
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Practicum 11/7 -11/11
I'm sad, I was cut one day short of practicum work with my kids this week! They didn't have school on Friday due to Veteran's day. I'm really starting to feel attached to them, but I guess that comes with teaching.
I've been trying to focus on why my students are there, and why they want to learn English. It's always interesting to talk to them and get their perspectives. I was not able to talk too much with the 7th and 8th grade class because literally half of them were suspended for things like having weed in their locker or getting into a fight. Not exactly a good start to the week.
Talking with the 5th and 6th graders was insightful, I need to have more conversations, however to get a more clear answer. First, I started with basic generic questions.
"Why do you come to school?"
-to learn, to get a job, because I have to
"Do you like school?"
-answers varied from yes, very much so to I'd rather be playing soccer or video games
Then I continued on..
"Well, what about English? What do you think of learning that?"
-it's hard to understand sometimes, I have trouble with it
-I want to become a doctor, so learning English is a very good thing for me
-I want to get a good job someday, you know? I mean my dad does a good job of taking care of us, but he doesn't know English, so he has to work in a factory for a long time
-English is easy.
I plan to continue asking these kids more questions -- I can't ask them TOO in depth of questions because they're only 10, but so far so good. This will really help with my 345 paper.
I've been trying to focus on why my students are there, and why they want to learn English. It's always interesting to talk to them and get their perspectives. I was not able to talk too much with the 7th and 8th grade class because literally half of them were suspended for things like having weed in their locker or getting into a fight. Not exactly a good start to the week.
Talking with the 5th and 6th graders was insightful, I need to have more conversations, however to get a more clear answer. First, I started with basic generic questions.
"Why do you come to school?"
-to learn, to get a job, because I have to
"Do you like school?"
-answers varied from yes, very much so to I'd rather be playing soccer or video games
Then I continued on..
"Well, what about English? What do you think of learning that?"
-it's hard to understand sometimes, I have trouble with it
-I want to become a doctor, so learning English is a very good thing for me
-I want to get a good job someday, you know? I mean my dad does a good job of taking care of us, but he doesn't know English, so he has to work in a factory for a long time
-English is easy.
I plan to continue asking these kids more questions -- I can't ask them TOO in depth of questions because they're only 10, but so far so good. This will really help with my 345 paper.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Cultural Consiousness
Culture has always been defined in generic terms, but really, is very vast and complicated, kind of like the Grand Canyon. You can say that it's a big gorge found in the Southwestern part of the United States, but it really had to be explored intricately to truly describe it. It's the same with culture -- "In its broadest sense, it includes a wide variety of constructs such as mental habits, personal prejudices, moral values, social customs, artistic achievements, and aesthetic preferences of particular societies" (267). We can define it in a basic form, but don't have all of the in between details.
I think that the Color Purple is a very good way to explain culture to students. In an ESL context, students all understand that they all have their own background, or as the book states, their own cultural lens (the blue color). Their classmates of different cultures are the red color, who wear different lenses. Their lenses then overlap, causing the blue to see through the red or vice versa in order to better understand that other culture. Neither group has to give up their culture, they just simply mix together to form what Robinson calls "a third culture." The "third classroom culture" is the where all of the different cultures are seen and respected on the same level. This explanation is simple enough so that students in the classroom can understand, yet has a deep enough meaning that it really makes them aware of their cultural boundaries and differences.
With different cultures also comes cultural stereotypes. This is includes fashion and dress, food, religious identity, cultural norms and rituals, and languages.
After reading the article, I never realized how purposelessly stereotypical I was of the Asian culture (see, there I go again). I have grown a lot in college, especially when it comes to tolerance and stereotypes. I would never consider myself intolerant of other cultures, rather uneducated. It's good to realized these tings about myself as a teacher, so I can better myself for the future.
I think that the Color Purple is a very good way to explain culture to students. In an ESL context, students all understand that they all have their own background, or as the book states, their own cultural lens (the blue color). Their classmates of different cultures are the red color, who wear different lenses. Their lenses then overlap, causing the blue to see through the red or vice versa in order to better understand that other culture. Neither group has to give up their culture, they just simply mix together to form what Robinson calls "a third culture." The "third classroom culture" is the where all of the different cultures are seen and respected on the same level. This explanation is simple enough so that students in the classroom can understand, yet has a deep enough meaning that it really makes them aware of their cultural boundaries and differences.
With different cultures also comes cultural stereotypes. This is includes fashion and dress, food, religious identity, cultural norms and rituals, and languages.
After reading the article, I never realized how purposelessly stereotypical I was of the Asian culture (see, there I go again). I have grown a lot in college, especially when it comes to tolerance and stereotypes. I would never consider myself intolerant of other cultures, rather uneducated. It's good to realized these tings about myself as a teacher, so I can better myself for the future.
Monday, November 7, 2011
Kuma Ch 5
Negotiation is always an interesting topic. It's something that comes naturally with your L1 and you don't even realize you need to learn how to negotiate until you begin to acquire a second language.
I remember being in Spain and having to learn the basics of having a conversation. Negotiation after all is learning to talk, correct? Wrong. After reading these chapters, I have come to realize that we negotiate far more than in just in conversation. Obviously it is important to be able to recognize errors in a conversation and fix them and use filler word to complete a dialogue, but where else do we see negotiation?
We see negotiation in reading. Every time a text is read and analyzed, negotiation occurs. Ideas are bounced back and forth between the reader making inferences and what the text actually says. Negotiation with texts also requires prior knowledge, whereas in conversation, the speaker just needs to understand the context of the situation and the cultural norms on how to fix an awkward moment. When a student reads a text, in order to obtain a deeper meaning, they have to connect back to prior readings and tap into other knowledge.
I would also like to address the issue of 'talk management.' Generally, IRF is associated with talk management. Talk management is defined as how learners "conduct their classroom conversation in order to accomplish their immediate educational goals." (115). Does that mean that talk management is only used in the classroom context? I think not. With that being said, the books states "that the teacher is the one who teaches talk engagement and facilitates negotiated interaction by providing linguistic and paralinguistic cues to students to enhance their learning potential." (118-119) Through the use of IRF, conversation can be continued, clarified and better understood resulting in better comprehensible input and output.
I remember being in Spain and having to learn the basics of having a conversation. Negotiation after all is learning to talk, correct? Wrong. After reading these chapters, I have come to realize that we negotiate far more than in just in conversation. Obviously it is important to be able to recognize errors in a conversation and fix them and use filler word to complete a dialogue, but where else do we see negotiation?
We see negotiation in reading. Every time a text is read and analyzed, negotiation occurs. Ideas are bounced back and forth between the reader making inferences and what the text actually says. Negotiation with texts also requires prior knowledge, whereas in conversation, the speaker just needs to understand the context of the situation and the cultural norms on how to fix an awkward moment. When a student reads a text, in order to obtain a deeper meaning, they have to connect back to prior readings and tap into other knowledge.
I would also like to address the issue of 'talk management.' Generally, IRF is associated with talk management. Talk management is defined as how learners "conduct their classroom conversation in order to accomplish their immediate educational goals." (115). Does that mean that talk management is only used in the classroom context? I think not. With that being said, the books states "that the teacher is the one who teaches talk engagement and facilitates negotiated interaction by providing linguistic and paralinguistic cues to students to enhance their learning potential." (118-119) Through the use of IRF, conversation can be continued, clarified and better understood resulting in better comprehensible input and output.
ENG 394 11/7
This week, I am particularly going to talk about motivation I see in the ESL classrooms. I was able to sit in on parent teacher conferences last week and really see how the teacher explains the grades and behavior of the students to the parents. It was really very insightful, and I'm glad my teacher allowed for me to come.
A problem I noticed multiple times with the ESL students that my teacher had to address to multiple parents was the issue of completing homework. The kids are very bright, but for some reason do not have the desire to turn in their completed work. It is interesting because they have three quarters to the entire homework done, but don't bother to turn it in, or forget it in their locker.
I have been paying particular attention to my students recently in regards to homework completion and motivation. I was talking to some other teachers during parent-teacher conferences and some told me that right now, school isn't a priority for the Mexican kids. The reason why they're not completing their homework is because they are more involved in being social (which brings up the issues of pregnancy, alcohol, etc.). They just don't see school as something that will be useful to them in the future. My teacher often catches kids passing notes in class when they're supposed to be reading. The notes almost always revolve around who is dating who, or kissing someone, or being angry with so and so because she likes so and so.
Now, there are some kids in my classroom who are so bright and very well motivated. Right now, I'm more interested in figuring out why my kids are learning English. Is it because they have to? Is it because they want a job? I can make small inferences from the papers they write (eg. one kid wrote a paper about how studying is good because it helps you get a job so you can buy a house), but need to observe more and ask more questions.
A problem I noticed multiple times with the ESL students that my teacher had to address to multiple parents was the issue of completing homework. The kids are very bright, but for some reason do not have the desire to turn in their completed work. It is interesting because they have three quarters to the entire homework done, but don't bother to turn it in, or forget it in their locker.
I have been paying particular attention to my students recently in regards to homework completion and motivation. I was talking to some other teachers during parent-teacher conferences and some told me that right now, school isn't a priority for the Mexican kids. The reason why they're not completing their homework is because they are more involved in being social (which brings up the issues of pregnancy, alcohol, etc.). They just don't see school as something that will be useful to them in the future. My teacher often catches kids passing notes in class when they're supposed to be reading. The notes almost always revolve around who is dating who, or kissing someone, or being angry with so and so because she likes so and so.
Now, there are some kids in my classroom who are so bright and very well motivated. Right now, I'm more interested in figuring out why my kids are learning English. Is it because they have to? Is it because they want a job? I can make small inferences from the papers they write (eg. one kid wrote a paper about how studying is good because it helps you get a job so you can buy a house), but need to observe more and ask more questions.
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