When I set out to discover more about teaching writing my first thought is that I need to find out what's really going on in my community. I want to interview a few teachers at my local high school. I have a friend who is a teacher and he has been helpful in the past when I needed an interviewee. In addition, I plan to ask him if he can connect me with a few other teachers. I would specifically like to speak with the English department head as well as a few teachers in other content areas. I would like to ind out what the curriculum is like. Are there specific requirements with regards to writing? Do they have working relationships where they look to each other for ideas or support? I would also like to know about accountability. Obvious student achievement is a clear indicator of what is happening in the class but if they have writing requirements how are they accounted for?
I have been so focused on the teaching aspect that I lost sight of the learning aspect. I have a thriving young teenager in my own home with a constant stream of music feeding into her ears. I'm hoping I can get her to detach from her numerous electronic devices, long enough to get some information from the other side of the spectrum. How often does she write at school? What class does she write most in? If she lists her classes according to most writing to least, how would she list them? What would the list look like? Will I be surprised? Is she surprised? My daughter is in some honors classes. If I ask a few of her friends would there information look different? I'm thinking about hosting a round table discussion with her friends to ask them all of these questions. If I compare their grades would there be correlations between higher writing instances with higher grades overall? Would this be a fair measurement tool? Grades take in many factors, not just writing so I want to be a little subjective here. I would of course gain their parents permission before beginning this process.
I'm excited about this aspect of my research. I have been looking forward to speaking with teachers. However, I am most excited to speak with students and finding out how writing is viewed and what part it plays in their learning.
I like that you're going to use your daughter for the project! It should be fun for her to help you with your schoolwork, and you can learn about hers at the same time! Sounds like a great opportunity to bond!
ReplyDeleteHey, Kyla!
ReplyDeleteI really love how you had a realization that you have a perfect source in your own home! Not only will it be a bonding experience as stated by others, but it will also be a great way for you to become more active with your daughter's schoolwork (though I'm sure you are always active). I am a little concerned when it comes to observing their grades. Asking the parents for permission is a start, but you might want to make sure that the kids wont feel uncomfortable being compared by their grades. Not that its not do-able, just try to exercise caution when dealing with teenage emotions. As you probably know (being the mother of a teen) it can be risky! Overall, your sources are very solid, and I think that you have a great topic!
Hey Kyla,
ReplyDeleteI agree with everyone else as well, I love the idea of working with your daughter and her friends and using a "round table" discussion. One of the reasons I really like this approach though is that you mentioned you've been forgetting the learning side by focusing so much on the teaching side. I think this is a really important point to keep in mind even when we have our own classrooms, no matter how well we teach if our students aren't learning and we cant measure that somehow, then our job wasn't done effectively. Students, especially if we know them outside of the classroom our a crucial source of what works and what doesn't and while research and expert advice is necessary, we should take advantage of the real students doing the work.