It was an odd night. We started out with the literacy orientation (gotta come up with a better name) in which we introduced the literacy faculty to all the 620 students and went over the expectations for the program and answered questions. We went much longer than we usually do, but I believe it’s time well spent. Grad school is stressful and students carry a lot of worries and questions. Having a forum for everyone to hear the same message is important. I think it’s good to know that the faculty is there to support the students as well.
After the orientation, we did a brief intro activity to the movie. We brainstormed aspects of our own dialects. It was fun, but I’m not sure it was a good use of time. I’m unclear as to what the learning outcome was for that activity. We then watched the movie American Tongues. Unfortunately we didn’t really have time to discuss the movie. There are things said in there that really need to be discussed in some depth. We need to explore the attitudes and belief systems that are embedded in the way we view different accents and dialects. We did start doing that after the movie when we had everyone revisit their anticipation guide and discuss any shifting ideas, but then we moved into discussing the midterm paper (which is stressing people out).
We began working on the midterm paper by breaking down the question and asking students to begin brainstorming which authors they could use to answer each section of the paper.
Then it was on to the prereading for next week.
Once again we got caught in rushing through the material.
So next week, I promise, we’ll be spending lots of time discussing the readings and the movie. The two classes really go together – one is about linguistic variation and one is about cultural variation – but you really can’t separate the two. So I’m ok with the fact that we’ll discuss the two together. AND for those of you stressing about the essay, these two weeks of readings (and the movie) will help you answer big sections of the essay. Which leads me to the next promise. We’ll be spending lots of time in class workshopping the essay.
I also want to make it really clear that the essay is a FORMATIVE assessment. I use it to see if there are areas that we need to revisit. If an essay reveals that a student is missing an key understanding, we’ll revisit it and the student will have the opportunity to rewrite the essay (see the syllabus for details).
Also, I’m really pleased with the way the annotations have developed. They also serve as a formative assessment, but it’s also a learning tool. As we write an annotation, it forces us to really distill the article to it’s most essential pieces. And that brings about clarity of understanding. So it’s writing to learn. They really are what Bean calls “microthemes.” I’m also seeing the annotations as a way to develop professional voice as well. Strong annotations carry an authoritative voice. They say “I know what I’m talking about.” I want my students to have that confidence. It’s wonderful to see it come about.
One last thing. I know people are also stressing about the literacy artifact review presentation. We’re setting that aside for the time being in order to focus on the essay. I don’t like doing too many things at once. I’ve learned that when I do that, the quality of learning suffers. So we’ll return to it in a few weeks and will really concentrate on it. There will be class time devoted to it. Please, just hang on to your notes and don’t worry.
Thanks also for the comments last week. They are really helpful. I’m so glad that the Olson piece made sense after discussion. I will definitely keep it as a reading next time I teach the class. I’m also thrilled that everyone is coming to see themselves as able to take on a difficult reading and not give up.
October 16, 2008 at 3:35 pm
Tonight’s class was definitely different. I thought that the orientation and the buffet was really nice and helpful to meet all of the literacy professors. However, the teaching certification requirements still confuse me. I would like further clarification on what exactly the teaching experience requirement is. I have heard several different answers and neither matches up with prior responses. I thought the movie was interesting and comical at points. However, I wish we could have spent more time on working or clarifying questions about the midterm paper. I feel as though I am still confused on what the paper is really asking for or in which ways to answer these questions. I am hoping we will receive additional assistance this upcoming class on Monday.
October 17, 2008 at 8:06 pm
I agree with Jessi!
I am feeling really stressed out by the midterm paper and I wish we had time during the last class to discuss the assignment questions- they are very compact! I am glad that we’ve been doing the annotations throughout the semester though, I really think those will guide me as I start writing my outline and first few paragraphs. I’m glad we’ll be discussing the essay further on Monday though! I also liked the literacy orientation and I think it came at just the right time- I was starting to worry about the order of my courses too! It was nice to have a lot of my questions answered.
October 18, 2008 at 11:05 pm
While completing the annotations for this week, it really helped to reflect upon the video that we watched. The video was definitely an eye-opener for me in the aspect of dialect discrimination, especially the way it could translate in the relationships between students and teachers. Despite different dialects, there are various reactions upon hearing them. It was interesting to hear the other reactions of the public upon their thoughts of certain dialects. The movie provoked thoughts about how lessons on culture are essential in growing youth so that even dialect discrimination does not start.
I am interested in talking about the midterm with my group and the class so that I can brainstorm a little more confidently.
October 19, 2008 at 6:48 pm
I agree with the comments posted so far! The midterm is really confusing and I do not feel confident in my ability to answer these questions. The annotations will be helpful, but I have been thinking about these questions for a week now, and still have no idea where to even begin. With regard to the last class, I like the fact that we were able to meet all of the professors; there are some new faces since I completed my undergrad at Fisher, and it is nice to get to know some of them. I wish we had time to discuss the movie. There were some comments made and some issues brought up that I felt really deserved to be explored further. I know we will discuss it in class this week, but I feel there is a kind of disconnect from the movie now; we have been away from it for a week, and I wasn’t able to write down the comments I wanted to discuss, so I am afraid I won’t really remember them on Monday. Maybe in the future, the orientation could be a two part event. One night could be devoted to an overview of the program and there could be a question and answer session. A second night could be devoted to watching American Tongues and then discussing the film. Just a thought…
October 19, 2008 at 9:27 pm
It was really nice to learn more about the masters program and am seeing the support that the professors at Fisher are willing to give. It has been and will continue to be appreciated very much. Grad school has proved to be very stressful and busy. It is good to know that our professors understand how we are feeling. The movie that we watched was very interesting. I have always known that there were biased people around but have never been exposed to the views that were seen and heard in the movie. It sickens me that we still have people living in our world that can have views like these. I was glad to have touched on the midterm essay but am so unsure about it. I hope that by the end of our next class that I will feel more comfortable about it.