A very difficult task that most of the teachers face is communicating with the students in ways that demonstrate sensitivity to sociocultural and linguistic differences. First of all, most of the teachers aren’t fluent in the languages these students speak besides English. Teaching assistance is often need, and unfortunately not available all the time, due to the poor funding of the school. The teachers must come up with verbal and non-verbal communication techniques that encourage positive social interaction and support learning in their classroom. Most of the time this isn’t an easy task because the students must also participate.
In the classroom that I tutored in, a lot of the teacher’s assistants deal with students who have different sociocultural backgrounds. I’ve noticed the teachers purposely split up groups so that the students that don’t speak fluent English get explained the assignment in their native language then later on they go back to the teacher so the teacher can help them out in English. This was a very effective strategy that the teacher used.
Also, when the teachers would set up partner assignments they would put the students that fluently speak English with another student that would have trouble with English. This was also effective because the teacher could use the students that were fluent to help out the other students, which saved a lot of time.
Trying to deal with this problem myself, I would first try to get the students to “break the ice”. I would ask a lot of question about their background and sometimes ask them how to say some things in their language. I also could speak Portuguese and one of my students spoke Spanish and we would compare words because most of the words sound similar. I wanted the student to feel comfortable around me because I was once in their same position.
The very sad thing is the lack of teacher assistants they have, and I feel honored to come in and tutor this children that need it because there is only so much staff to go around. I can relate to this problem to Johnson. Coming from an area like these children do, the school budgets tend to be low and tight. Hiring these teacher assistants that are fluent in two languages can get costly. It sometimes isn’t fair because the rich schools get assistance and extracurricular activities that sometimes are unneeded, when these assistants can really make an impact on these children’s learning experience. They have the disadvantage because they don’t have what the other kids have, and it is really crucial for their learning.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Prompt #5
If I am the teacher of this classroom where I must work with families and the community I would most likely come through many challenges. First of all dealing with parents and having them participate in school an activity is difficult enough, you must convince them and tell them the importance of it. If the parents don’t speak fluent English this may make it a more difficult task. If they ever have to help the student with their homework they must first understand English, what the task at hand is asking, and then translating it so they understand it in their language.
Building a wider school community is helpful for the students. Trying to get this altogether can benefit the students future, but it must be condoned to all parents. Being this culturally competent teacher I must reach out to all different backgrounds that the parents of these students may have and try to convince them to participate. I could address these problems by maybe getting a translator or a teacher assistant to translate what I say so that the parents can understand so they may ponder whether or not to participate.
I could show respect by letting them know that it could be difficult because having a job and trying to learn the English language could be a tough task. I could also tell those reasons how this could benefit their child’s future so they don’t have to go through any struggles when they are older. Maybe having a few open house events could be beneficial because it could give the parents an overview of what goes on in the classroom and how the students are doing. If they parents show up to these they may be interested in helping out their child and building this community
The theorist that I could relate this prompt to is Lisa Delpit. Delpit was all about participation in the classroom and outside of it. She also talked about how students can be teachers. And I thought if the parents get involved then maybe they can teach me a thing or two about their background. I can become a well-rounded teacher and I could help out the students more efficiently. Participation is key and if these parents and the community participated this could influence a better future and a better learning experience for these students.
Building a wider school community is helpful for the students. Trying to get this altogether can benefit the students future, but it must be condoned to all parents. Being this culturally competent teacher I must reach out to all different backgrounds that the parents of these students may have and try to convince them to participate. I could address these problems by maybe getting a translator or a teacher assistant to translate what I say so that the parents can understand so they may ponder whether or not to participate.
I could show respect by letting them know that it could be difficult because having a job and trying to learn the English language could be a tough task. I could also tell those reasons how this could benefit their child’s future so they don’t have to go through any struggles when they are older. Maybe having a few open house events could be beneficial because it could give the parents an overview of what goes on in the classroom and how the students are doing. If they parents show up to these they may be interested in helping out their child and building this community
The theorist that I could relate this prompt to is Lisa Delpit. Delpit was all about participation in the classroom and outside of it. She also talked about how students can be teachers. And I thought if the parents get involved then maybe they can teach me a thing or two about their background. I can become a well-rounded teacher and I could help out the students more efficiently. Participation is key and if these parents and the community participated this could influence a better future and a better learning experience for these students.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Response to John's Prompt #1
After I read John’s response to prompt one I decided to write a response to this because his use of sensory detail caught my attention and I was interested in the rest of his response. He begins his response describing the building and how he is nervous to enter this building which he has no clue how his experience could be.
I like his style of response because I felt as if I were walking through these hallways with the state of mind like his, which was nervous and out of place. I can relate because on my first day of tutoring I felt the same way because I didn’t know what to expect. The neighborhood around the school wasn’t very welcoming and my positive thoughts of this experience were going down the drain. I begun to think many negative thoughts, but then thought many students prior to me went through the same thing. He also didn’t have much experience dealing with children. I thought this was going to be a problem but after the first day was completed I enjoyed dealing with them because they are open-minding and interested in learning. Although we had different subjects to tutor and grade levels both experiences, I felt, were similar.
I like his style of response because I felt as if I were walking through these hallways with the state of mind like his, which was nervous and out of place. I can relate because on my first day of tutoring I felt the same way because I didn’t know what to expect. The neighborhood around the school wasn’t very welcoming and my positive thoughts of this experience were going down the drain. I begun to think many negative thoughts, but then thought many students prior to me went through the same thing. He also didn’t have much experience dealing with children. I thought this was going to be a problem but after the first day was completed I enjoyed dealing with them because they are open-minding and interested in learning. Although we had different subjects to tutor and grade levels both experiences, I felt, were similar.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Response to Mike P's Prompt # 6
I am responding to Mike P’s prompt 6 because he dealt with 6th grade students and tutored math; as opposed to Kindergarten and First grade reading like I dealt with. I wanted to compare and contrast the older to the younger students. He explains how there was a problem in multiplication and division in 6th grade students; this reminds me of my students that couldn’t add two simple numbers together. This could probably be a chain reaction to the future as we see in the students that Mike tutored. I that it was interesting that he mentioned factors outside of school that could affect the student’s math abilities. It could be true that if most of the student’s parents can’t speak English then they may not be able to do basic math.
He thought of a possible solution to this, and that was to encourage the students to practice this at home or seek help from a friend. I thought that this was a good idea because the more the practice outside of school, the more prepared they will be coming into class and being ready to broaden their math skills and gradually improve. Mike also mentions that most of the students don’t have the proper supplies at home to effectively complete their homework, which is a big issue and reason why they may not practice this at home. Overall, I think that Mike did a great job in mentioned key points that needed to be solved and what the students can do to benefit themselves to improve their math skills. I also liked how he mentioned it to Delpit and the communication because communication is key for these students to transfer what they need to know from their language to English so it could be taught efficiently.
He thought of a possible solution to this, and that was to encourage the students to practice this at home or seek help from a friend. I thought that this was a good idea because the more the practice outside of school, the more prepared they will be coming into class and being ready to broaden their math skills and gradually improve. Mike also mentions that most of the students don’t have the proper supplies at home to effectively complete their homework, which is a big issue and reason why they may not practice this at home. Overall, I think that Mike did a great job in mentioned key points that needed to be solved and what the students can do to benefit themselves to improve their math skills. I also liked how he mentioned it to Delpit and the communication because communication is key for these students to transfer what they need to know from their language to English so it could be taught efficiently.
Response to MJ's Prompt #2
In MJ’s response was very observant he mentioned that children with the same ethnicity and background would form ‘’cliques’’. I never came to realize that until after MJ depicted that, and I see it more a lot in my 1st grade class rather than my Kindergarten class. Some of the students at times speak their native languages to each other. It was important and necessary that MJ mentioned the percentages in the free lunches because it shows the poverty in the majority of the students. When he mentioned that almost half the school was in the English as a Second Language program, this was essential to the schools funding for teacher assistants. This means the more of these students the more assistance they would need in order to fulfill a better learning experience for these students.
When he says the students act as if they are at home with his family reminds me of the students in my classroom; they would interrupt the classroom and talk when it was not their turn, or get up to use the bathroom without permission. It was clear that manners weren’t used or taught outside of the classroom. I like how MJ related Johnson because it is true that the white people just ignore serious issues like this that reflect on the future of America. If problem can’t be resolved sooner than later, it will only get worse, and whites will always remain with the advantage academically and in society.
When he says the students act as if they are at home with his family reminds me of the students in my classroom; they would interrupt the classroom and talk when it was not their turn, or get up to use the bathroom without permission. It was clear that manners weren’t used or taught outside of the classroom. I like how MJ related Johnson because it is true that the white people just ignore serious issues like this that reflect on the future of America. If problem can’t be resolved sooner than later, it will only get worse, and whites will always remain with the advantage academically and in society.
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Prompt #4
As a tutor I am aware that where I am teaching there is a diverse group of children in the classroom. I also notice that there are social cultural factors that do affect the learning of these children. The difficult part of this is coping with the students that may not always comprehend what I am trying to do or have difficulty maintain focus on the activities. As a “rookie” in this field I try to put myself in their shoes and imagine what they are going through at a young age.
If I came into this thinking that I could just tutor the students and it will all work easily I would have had a difficult time in completing my duty. I understood the diversity and differences and individually tried to apply my time and knowledge to each student because of their different backgrounds. A couple of my students spoke Spanish at home which made it difficult at times for them to understand my directions and what I wanted them to do. I tried to remain patient and calm; this helped because the students gradually became better at the activities they needed to do.
The area of my elementary school wasn’t as bad as these children have to deal with. The parks and buildings are old and tarnished. There is a lack of teacher assistants and after school activities. This can relate to when Kozol talks about the importance of money and funding properly. If these areas would have more money I believe that students can focus more on school then their lives outside of it, and have better academic opportunities. All these students are different and may have better lives than others. Comparing my life to a majority of these students childhood is different also. I lived in a peaceful middle-class environment where I would never have to worry about anything outside the classroom.
This also can relate to Carlson when he says “no one speaks from nowhere, and no one speaks from everywhere”. I interpret this as that everyone has a background where they came from, and everyone has difference. Contrary to that, no one can say they have dealt with all kinds of differences because you can’t put yourself in everyone’s shoes. It is difficult to say that you have dealt with the same problems as everyone else.
There were challenges in trying to get the students to cooperate and at times I would get frustrated if they kept repeating their errors. Then I came to realize there is only so much the teacher can do in school with every student individually. The students probably get a limited amount of help at home and have different sociocultural backgrounds and their parents maybe ELL’s. An advantage to this was that my parents didn’t speak English when I was younger and they eventually learned it later on. This made me understand where the students came from and how to cope with them. I had some misconceptions on the students who spoke a language besides English. I thought that they would have difficulty understand the readings, but one of my most productive student spoke English and Spanish so it contradicted my misconception.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Response to Mike M's Prompt 3
In Mike’s response to prompt 3 he clearly states the importance of assessing students at their rate of learning. This reminds me when in my classroom the teacher would group students based on their ability to learn, and what they have learned so far. I like how Mike starts off by stating that this is indeed essential to teaching. Mike gave some examples of techniques to efficiently assess the students, which was relevant to what my teacher in the classroom I tutored used. I found it helpful that he mentioned these techniques because it gives the reader knowledge of what can be used in the classroom.
Shor really emphasized on equal participation, as Mike explains in his prompt. This is key to Shor’s theory and his beliefs in teaching. I also like when Mike adds in the statement that Shor said when he explained how there is a need for structure and openness. This is in fact something I believe is true; in my classroom the teacher had a variety of day-to-day lessons so the students were interested and it worked. When I read about how in Mike’s class they would separate the students by their academic capabilities this reminded me of my classroom and how the teacher would organize the students. I can also relate to when he said it was difficult to make sure the students were on the same page.
Overall, I found the methods Mike mentioned about Shor to be relevant to my experience and how my teacher used these methods. He mentioned key points of Shor and his main focus and goals as a teacher, which was helpful in letting me understand his experiment and how Shor related to it.
Friday, April 2, 2010
Prompt #3
The students at the school I tutored at were diverse. The teachers needed to be culturally competent in order to work with the students so they can comprehend what is going on in the classroom and be up to par with all the students. At times it gets difficult to deal with students who have English as a second language. I have noticed the teacher had to keep track of who was at what level of reading and writing when assessing the students, the teacher separates the students into groups based on their reading level. Also students who needed the extra help were using advanced technology to improve their skills; for example they used hands on computer programs that allowed them to learn from the programs. The goal of the teachers was to assess the student’s individually rather than a whole so it would be fair for the English Language Learners. Also why being put into they would put the teacher assistants that were bilingual and fluently spoke both English and Spanish, were with the students who were still learning the language of English. I feel that this benefited the students because if they were struggling they could have someone there to translate it to them rather than the teacher trying to tell the student numerous times in English. I think it is great to have these teacher assistants but it is inconvenient when it comes to the number of them. There is only a few in the school and it is tough for them to go from class to class all the time. The students are “ranked” then the teacher assesses them based on that. Teachers would test the lower-level students on basics of reading such as the sounds of letters. When assessing the higher students the teacher would have them read a short story by themselves.
I can relate the ELL’s experience to John Kozol. He says that it is essential that everyone knows how to read and write. He also says literacy is the basis to education; he does make a great point with that. It is difficult for the teacher to assess their students as a whole when several of them cannot read and write in English. He also explains how people, who can’t read, can’t use their rights freely and can’t make choices out of free will; they always need assistance. This is in fact true and is portrayed in this school because the lack of teacher assistants that help ELL’s translate and help with school work. If these students cannot read or write in English, and without assistance, school and life with be difficult for them.
I can relate the ELL’s experience to John Kozol. He says that it is essential that everyone knows how to read and write. He also says literacy is the basis to education; he does make a great point with that. It is difficult for the teacher to assess their students as a whole when several of them cannot read and write in English. He also explains how people, who can’t read, can’t use their rights freely and can’t make choices out of free will; they always need assistance. This is in fact true and is portrayed in this school because the lack of teacher assistants that help ELL’s translate and help with school work. If these students cannot read or write in English, and without assistance, school and life with be difficult for them.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Promt #2
One of the tasks of this prompt was to describe the linguistic, ethnic, and sociocultural characteristics of the students in the classroom that I am tutoring. Some the students I am tutoring are bilingual. I’ve noticed at times while I was tutoring the students they would be speaking Spanish towards each other. I could also tell that they speak other languages at home because some of the students still have accents that are distinctive. I can tell that the students have picked up on both languages quickly because they are first grade students that have conversations in both languages.
The facts on Infoworks show that the majority of the students are on the poverty level. The students are roughly 40 percent efficient in math and reading and the rest aren’t. The English language learners test scores aren’t great, when it comes to reading 9 percent of them are efficient and the rest aren’t. When it comes to math proficiency 16 percent of them are efficient. Those are very low statistics. It is difficult for someone who is learning English to get high test scores but with the hard work and dedication they should start to improve.
The cultural capital that they bring is great; although they come from non-wealthy backgrounds they have the knowledge to be fluent in two languages. Many middle-class children with opportunities for a better education have difficulty in learning a new language. Although this maybe requires more work for the students and teachers to teach them English it could pay off in the long run. Also when students understand both languages well, they could go on to learn a third language in the middle and high school grade levels if the opportunity is given. This is excellent for the future of these children because knowing more than one language fluently is great to put on job applications and chances are they can get a better job. Many schools and companies need translators when dealing with students or clients that aren’t fluent in English. Having someone who could do help translate will benefit schools and companies.
This will strengthen our society and our democracy. Many people think that Americans are lazy and are incompetent. If a majority of the people living here are bilingual, it shows you that Americans are well-rounded. Students like these; with the right discipline and opportunities can improve the way people view Americans. At times people viewed America as a melting pot that just accepting anyone to live here without having to know the language. With students like these, Americans can have an all new outlook.
I can relate this to Paulo Freire because he was efficient at teaching a new language. He would use his method of pedagogy; this is when people would question the way things are, not just accepting it. If the students followed this path they could learn more languages the way he taught them. He was a very efficient theorist. If students now questioned their work as Freire taught things could possibly be different. He was known for teaching languages rapidly and efficiently.
The facts on Infoworks show that the majority of the students are on the poverty level. The students are roughly 40 percent efficient in math and reading and the rest aren’t. The English language learners test scores aren’t great, when it comes to reading 9 percent of them are efficient and the rest aren’t. When it comes to math proficiency 16 percent of them are efficient. Those are very low statistics. It is difficult for someone who is learning English to get high test scores but with the hard work and dedication they should start to improve.
The cultural capital that they bring is great; although they come from non-wealthy backgrounds they have the knowledge to be fluent in two languages. Many middle-class children with opportunities for a better education have difficulty in learning a new language. Although this maybe requires more work for the students and teachers to teach them English it could pay off in the long run. Also when students understand both languages well, they could go on to learn a third language in the middle and high school grade levels if the opportunity is given. This is excellent for the future of these children because knowing more than one language fluently is great to put on job applications and chances are they can get a better job. Many schools and companies need translators when dealing with students or clients that aren’t fluent in English. Having someone who could do help translate will benefit schools and companies.
This will strengthen our society and our democracy. Many people think that Americans are lazy and are incompetent. If a majority of the people living here are bilingual, it shows you that Americans are well-rounded. Students like these; with the right discipline and opportunities can improve the way people view Americans. At times people viewed America as a melting pot that just accepting anyone to live here without having to know the language. With students like these, Americans can have an all new outlook.
I can relate this to Paulo Freire because he was efficient at teaching a new language. He would use his method of pedagogy; this is when people would question the way things are, not just accepting it. If the students followed this path they could learn more languages the way he taught them. He was a very efficient theorist. If students now questioned their work as Freire taught things could possibly be different. He was known for teaching languages rapidly and efficiently.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Promt #1
The school that I am tutoring at is called Eddy Avenue Elementary. The neighborhood is in an urban setting. There are many playgrounds and apartments in the area. It seems like a tough neighborhood to grow up in because the lack of big houses and nice playgrounds. There was graffiti and it looks like most of the signs and parks were vandalized. This neighborhood looked like there needed a lot of work done to it to make it look like a more welcoming environment. The school building looked fairly new and didn’t look at bad as most buildings in the area. The classroom also looked nice with up-to-date materials and a good amount of laptops for the students to use. I can tell the school has either just been established or just recently renovated.
The space of the school isn’t bad, there are two schools fit into this once building. There are big hallways with plenty of space and the classrooms are adequate in size. They use the space well. The rug where the students sit when most of the teaching is done is in the front, the tables are in the back and the computers are in the corner and the desk is in the other corner. I like how it’s spaced out because the main priorities are in the front and the computers and the desk that aren’t as significant are in the corners of the classroom.
The school looks and feels like a good learning environment with bright colors on the walls and many pictures in the hallways. The friendly teachers contribute to this feeling. I noticed that the staff tries to build bonds with the students because the staff, such as the reading coaches knows many students name as well as the principle. The students always give a warm welcome to the principle when he enters the classroom. It seems like respect, and good manners are valued in this school and in the classrooms. The teachers are always advocating why it’s important to respect the staff and why it’s important to be well-mannered to fellow classmates and teachers. I notice the respect the students have towards the teacher because they remain silent when she was speaking and they always asked to either use the bathroom or to get something from their backpack. Also in the morning announcements they always have their pledge and mission statement that relates to respect.
This school is related to Kozol because the facts he states in “Still Separate, Still Unequal” because the majority of the students are either Hispanic or African-American. There were students that I was tutoring that complained about the parks and how they weren’t so great and how they were scared to play there. It reminded me about the eight-year-old who also complained about parks and how Kozol had things she didn’t and how his things are clean. This area is relevant to the ones that Kozol explains.
The space of the school isn’t bad, there are two schools fit into this once building. There are big hallways with plenty of space and the classrooms are adequate in size. They use the space well. The rug where the students sit when most of the teaching is done is in the front, the tables are in the back and the computers are in the corner and the desk is in the other corner. I like how it’s spaced out because the main priorities are in the front and the computers and the desk that aren’t as significant are in the corners of the classroom.
The school looks and feels like a good learning environment with bright colors on the walls and many pictures in the hallways. The friendly teachers contribute to this feeling. I noticed that the staff tries to build bonds with the students because the staff, such as the reading coaches knows many students name as well as the principle. The students always give a warm welcome to the principle when he enters the classroom. It seems like respect, and good manners are valued in this school and in the classrooms. The teachers are always advocating why it’s important to respect the staff and why it’s important to be well-mannered to fellow classmates and teachers. I notice the respect the students have towards the teacher because they remain silent when she was speaking and they always asked to either use the bathroom or to get something from their backpack. Also in the morning announcements they always have their pledge and mission statement that relates to respect.
This school is related to Kozol because the facts he states in “Still Separate, Still Unequal” because the majority of the students are either Hispanic or African-American. There were students that I was tutoring that complained about the parks and how they weren’t so great and how they were scared to play there. It reminded me about the eight-year-old who also complained about parks and how Kozol had things she didn’t and how his things are clean. This area is relevant to the ones that Kozol explains.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Intro
Hello,
My name is Matt Cavaco and this is my first year, and second overall semester at Rhode Island College. I am a Health and Physical Education major. I enjoy school and the Service Learning Program. When I'm not in school I enjoy playing soccer and a variety of other sports. I also enjoy hanging out with my friends on the weekends. See you in class!
My name is Matt Cavaco and this is my first year, and second overall semester at Rhode Island College. I am a Health and Physical Education major. I enjoy school and the Service Learning Program. When I'm not in school I enjoy playing soccer and a variety of other sports. I also enjoy hanging out with my friends on the weekends. See you in class!
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