Reading Response for Class on 2/14

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

Emdin, Chapter 5 - Co-Teaching

The anecdote at the beginning of this chapter made me laugh- the teacher pretending to be a student only to reveal himself before the "ten minute rule" was up. This semester I have a professor who is continuously late, and I can't tell you the number of times I've heard my classmates say, "yeah, 15 minutes and I'm gone." I think Emdin makes a valid point, the different circles and communications between students when their teachers are present, when they aren't present, and in general. This is why his "co-teaching" strategy works so well! Students are allowed to communicate the material directly with their peers in their own "social circles." I have used this technique in previous classes and always benefitted. For some reason, it feels more relaxed to be getting information and responding to a peer.

When it comes to co-teaching in a instructional setting, in younger grades (not college) I found myself unsure of the three forms Emdin mentioned. Throughout my middle school and high school careers, I only had a single teacher who lead the class. I don't remember ever being in a class where there was a special education teacher, even though I believe that might be the most effective form of co-teaching. If there were enough resources, that would be incredibly valuable to students, especially students with special needs.

Later in the chapter, when peer-to-peer teaching is discussed, I found myself flashing back to all the students I tutored in high school for National Honors Society volunteer hours. It was always so easy to uncover why a student was struggling with material because I had been there a week ago. I think sometimes teachers struggle to help a student who's 'just not getting it' because they haven't been in that position in some time. Relying on peers to help can change this. Emdin talks about how students are afraid to speak up when they don't understand something in the classroom, but will easily converse with peers about problems. He also discusses students taking charge when they feel the material is not being taught properly. Although this seems like a hard concept to grasp, especially as a future educator, I think that having a student's direct feedback who help me frame the classroom's lesson and in turn, teach the student more effectively.

Christensen, Chapter 2 - Narrative Writing

To start, Christensen makes a great comment about narrative writing, stating it "seems self-indulgent" Students "can spend time reading narratives, but shouldn't spend time writing them." This is a very interesting concept to me. Why are writing and reading valued differently? What makes studying a form of literature any better than writing that form? To me, this seems completely backwards. In my experience, similar to what Christensen states, students enjoy writing and connecting with material that requires them to get personal and bring in their own lives. If they're engaged, they're more likely to learn.

Christensen discusses revision in the chapter and makes a valuable point, explaining that the process, rules, and guidelines must all be discussed prior to actual revision. This is especially true if you're using peer-revision tactics. She also mentions that students care more about their writing when they are presenting it publicly or reading it aloud. This follows something of the peer/coteaching model we saw above in Emdin's chapter, and is very similar to the model we used in class for our "Writing History" papers. I love reading my work aloud, especially narratives, because I get to check in that the voice in my paper matches my own personal voice. I also really enjoy hearing others read aloud. I find myself enthralled in their stories, more engaged than I would have been if I had been reading the words off a paper. Reading aloud brings words to life.

Finally, I found Christensen's mention of the "collective text" interesting. I feel like this is a great way to connect students, to form unity in a classroom, while teaching valuable literary skills. Christensen says, "this activity will help students empathize with each other." This is SO important! In a classroom, you are not only teaching academic skills, but life skills. You are not only making your students better learners, but better people. Connecting the two is, in my opinion, one of the most valuable things a teacher can do.

Gallagher, Chapter 5 - The Power of Choice 

Similar to Christensen, Gallagher's chapter focuses on getting students engaged in their writing, putting themselves into the texts they create. However, Gallagher states this is done when choice is given to the students: choice of topics, choice of form, etc.

I really enjoy reading Gallagher's textbook because of the different figures and dialogues she includes. There were many interesting graphic organizers included and examples of how students used them. This reminded me of the FED-ED-ED-CO Graphic Organizer my classmates and I used (and hated) in middle school. Unlike Gallagher's graphic organizers, ours was straight forward, cookie cutter, and very boring. Focus question-evidence-discussion, repeat, and so on until the conclusion. I plan on using much more engaging graphic organizers in my classroom one day.

I thought one of the most intriguing parts of Gallagher's chapter was the "explorations" section because it proposed so many different ways to connect writing to other topics that may be learned in other classes or even outside school. It also brought in the idea that if you have a student struggling with something (loss, bullying, change, etc.) they can explore these concepts through writing. I personally believe this could be incredibly valuable for a student.

Even when Gallagher shifts to the section on partial student choice, there are so many valuable topics and forms presented. I plan to use his strategies frequently in the classroom one day.