A Challenge

Question: How do we need to change the standard English curriculum?

Answer/Quote: “Five hundred years after the Columbus expedition, discoveries can still be made. We know so little about the many cultures in our country and in the countries that share our  hemisphere.” P. 43.

Comment: The problem with multiculturalism is the tightrope between the American traditional tradition (white, heterosexual, Eurocentric and male) and the emergence of the many cultures now existent in America. Seems to come down to splintering the nation among the cultures and maintaining a unified American culture. We’ve had enough warnings about the problem. The solution won’t come easily. RayS.

 Title: “Golden Discoveries: Literature of the Americas.” Judith E. Petersen. English Journal (September 1992), 39-43.

Requirred Literary Titles

Question: What are the most frequently required literary works in public schools, 9-12?

 Answer: Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, Huckleberry Finn, Julius Caesar, To Kill a Mockingbird, Scarlet Letter, Of Mice and Men, Hamlet, Great Gatsby, Lord of the Flies.

Comment: FYI. RayS.

Title: “Stability and Change in the High-School Canon.” Arthur N. Applebee. English Journal (September 1992), 27-32.

AP English: Untracking High School Students

Question: What was the effect of opening students to AP classes in English who did not score very well in the SAT?

 Answer/Quote: “ ‘Opening up AP English to all students who were willing to commit to a rigorous summer and yearlong regimen of writing and reading allowed me to study firsthand what happens when students are given choices in their schooling. I discovered that students with combined SAT scores around 700 can learn with students whose combined scores hover around 1300, that students with SAT verbal scores of less than 500 can earn a  4 or 5 on the AP test; that students with SAT verbal scores as low as 300 can pass the University of California Subject A exam. I discovered that students of differing abilities can discuss sophisticated literature and can respond to one another’s writing in ways that lead to thoughtful revision. I discovered that giving students the chance to elect to work at the highest academic levels empowers them to see themselves as learners.’ ”

Excerpt from Joan Kernan Cone’s recent article in Kappan (“Untracking Advanced Placement English: Creating Opportunity Is Not Enough,” May 1992.)

Title: In “This World of English: Coming Untracked: One Teacher’s Story.” English Journal (September 1992), 13.

Comment: I am reminded by this teacher’s story about opening AP English to students whom the SAT suggested could not be successful of the way in which we (Conestoga High School, Berwyn, PA) allowed students to select the levels of their courses. At the AP level, we had guidelines that helped us to make a decision about whether students would be successful, including grade-point average, writing sample, teacher recommendation, etc. The criteria were flexible enough to allow students who demonstrated success in their classes, especially in writing, with teacher recommendation, to be accepted. The results were the same as suggested by the teachers in this article. RayS.

Evaluation of Student Writing

Question: What is a continuing concern with evaluating students’ writing?

Answer/Quote: “Alan Purves, in a recent article in Research in the Teaching of English (‘Reflection on Research and Assessment in Written Composition,’ February 1992) suggests that the claims we make about all writing assessment, including performance or portfolio methods, should be tempered by a recognition that ‘the fallibility of human judgment will always be with us.’ ”

Quote: “These new magical solutions still rely on personal judgments of quality, which are, as Pope noted nearly three centuries ago, problematic.”

Quote: “And, on the basis of these judgments, administrators label students as ‘remedial,’ ‘at risk,’ ‘proficient.’ Although the judgment may be…based on a single subjective rating of a single and perhaps unrepresentative task, the student is labeled and channeled.” P. 11.

Comment: Evaluation of students’ writing is subjective. Still, based on my experience in teaching in a community college, the assessment of students’ writing placed the students accurately into “remedial” and “proficient” classes. The difference in writing ability was significant from the “remedial” to the “proficient.” After all, the purpose of the distinction was not to label the students, but to provide the kind of instruction they needed at a level at which they could learn and succeed. It’s the purpose for making the distinction that counts. RayS.

Title: “This world of English: More Thoughts on Portfolios and Performance Assessment.” English Journal (September 1992), 11.

Theory

Question: Why is theory important?

Answer/Quote: “Theory has become a bad word among classroom teachers. In our minds it often is associated with ‘the ivory tower,’ naïve idealism, superciliousness, condescension, and the domination of high school teachers by their privileged university colleagues. We sniff when we speak of ‘theorists,’ as if we had gotten a whiff of a bad odor. But all reading and all teaching are grounded in theory. The only question is the extent to which one is aware or unaware of one’s theoretical base.” P. 100.

Comment: A recurring theme in articles in professional education journals is the degree to which teachers are aware of the theories under which they operate in the classroom. Ever take the time to analyze the theories that operate in your teaching of reading, grammar, writing and literature? Sure, you might use the occasion to justify your practices, but you’ll just be hiding the theories under which you really do operate. Time for an honest assessment. What are the theories that dictate your teaching? How do your theories differ from the school’s official practices? RayS.

Title: “Job and His Friends.” Ben F Nelms. English Journal (November 1992), 100.

Visualize

Question: How can teachers help students enhance whatever topics they are studying in class?

Answer/Quote: “whether we are studying nouns or folk tales, visual interpretations allow students an outlet to express themselves and to obtain a stronger grasp of the subject. Flexibility, organization, and explaining that that there is no right or wrong will enhance the subject and the day for both teachers and students. P. 87.

 Comment: Pictures are everywhere, on U-tube, in newspapers, on cell phone cameras. Asking students to visualize a topic is sure to cause thought, analysis and better understanding of the subject. RayS.

Title: “Just Let Me See It.” Beverly Gilbert. English Journal (November 1992), 80-81.

Media and the Middle Schooler

Question: Why should middle-schoolers be trained to use camcorders to express themselves?

Answer/Quote: “Middle schoolers are children of the media. If after school in the evenings, on weekends, their caretaker happens to be a televisions set wired to a VCR [or DVD player], the children bring new expressions to school….” P. 30.

Quote: “We need to help our students become media literate because many of them exercise their imaginations in the field now, and will continue to do so in the future. Middle school is a fine time to put a camcorder in their hands and let them begin to film, then to edit their film, and show it to an audience. We taped our plays, our skits, our oral reports, and special days whenever we could. Those tapes [CD’s DVD’s] became a record of our good times and allowed sixth graders to become accomplished film-makers.” P. 30.

Comment: Although most of the examples given by the author are designed to keep a record of “good times,” you also need to show students how to plan their recordings, the use of story boards, as well as how to edit their visual recordings and how to record the sound. Not as easy as it sounds. They also need to be shown how to plan and use slide shows and to plan and incorporate PowerPoint presentations [“Tell them what you are going to tell them, tell them and tell them what you told them.”] RayS.

Title: “Children of the Media.” Elizabeth D Nelms. English Journal (September 1992), 20.