Monday, June 30, 2008

Topic: Co-Teaching

Title: "Sharing Command of the Co-Teaching Ship: How to Play Nicely with Others.” Emily Sims. English Journal (May 2008), 58-63. A publication of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). The audience for the journal is secondary schools.

Summary: “Co-teaching is an excellent method of serving the needs of all students in the English classroom; however, lack of training, lack of planning time, and lack of choice in co-teachers can lead to disaster.”

The purpose of this experiment in co-teaching was to create “inclusive” classrooms of special ed and average students; one of the co-teachers was a special-ed teacher.

On the one hand, this article is a case study in how NOT to implement change. On the other, when the co-teachers worked well together, the system worked well. The author suggest the following if you are assigned to co-teach:

Both teachers have responsibility for all kids in the classroom.
Spend time with your co-teacher.
Be ready and willing to share.
It will take a while to get it right.
The relationship between the two co-teachers will be a model for your students.
Devise signals for each other that can be used during class.
Both teachers must be familiar with all materials being taught every day.
Both teachers must be aware of students’ special needs.
Attend all parent-teacher conferences together.
Use rubrics to standardize grading.
Find time to plan.
Work out the small stuff. If you can’t stand students sharpening their pencils, your partner needs to know.

Comment: Incredible that this co-teaching venture was launched two weeks before school with no training, planning or time for planning. A case study in how not to effect change. RayS.

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in recent American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Family Writing Project

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in recent American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.

Topic: Family Writing Project

Title: “The Family Writing Project: Creating Space for Sustaining Teacher Identity.” M. McKinney, S Lasley and R. Holmes-Gull. English Journal (May 2008), 52-59. A publication of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). The audience for the journal is secondary schools

Summary: Once a week families—parents, children, relatives—get together to write, using a variety of writing modes. Sets up a helpful relationship between family, students and teachers.

Comment: I’ve heard of family reading nights, but never family writing nights. Why not? Another one of those “why-didn’t-I-think-of-that?" ideas. RayS.

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Timed Writing Samples

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in recent American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.

Topic: Two Views of Writing

Title: “Moving to the Center: Disorientation and Intention.” M Wilson and M Niemczyk. English Journal (May 2008), 34-39. A publication of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). The audience for the journal is secondary schools.

Summary: “The timed writing test demands that Sarah summon what she currently knows, as if writing is simply the act of copying what is already in her mind.”

Donald Murray: “The writer does not write down words to photograph what is in his head, he uses words to set an experiment in motion.”

Comment: Real writers, in some types of writing, memos, etc., can write it almost right the first time. However, timed writing assessments are not memos. Real writers, when the writing requires thought, prepare, draft, revise and edit. In the SAT’s 25-minute timed writing assessments, the topics demand thought. Twenty-five minutes in the SAT would be good for memos. 25 minutes is not enough time to do the preparation, drafting and revision needed for thinking and writing.

I know this. What is a practical alternative to a timed 25-minute writing assessment? RayS.

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Classroom Policy

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in recent American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.

Topic: Classroom Policy

Title: “On the Margins in a High-Performing High School: Policy and the Struggling Reader.” JK Franzak. Research in the Teaching of English (May 2008), 466-505. A publication of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). The audience for the journal is all levels.

Summary: Studies official classroom policies in teaching literature and reading in high school and finds that “phantom policies,” policies believed by the classroom teachers to be policies, conflict with the “inscribed” (official) policies developed in the district office. The phantom policies, assumed by the teachers, controlled instruction. Example of a phantom policy: 9th grade must teach Romeo and Juliet and The Odyssey. With no evidence of the existence of such a policy, teachers believed that they were required to teach these two works of literature.

“Most apparent is the deeply ingrained belief that teachers do not formulate policies because policy originates outside the classroom as part of a political process.” p. 470.

“Since the inscribed [official] policies of the school did not acknowledge the existence of struggling readers, it was not surprising that the school lacked a means of identifying students who could use additional support in reading.” p. 495.

“The lack of adequate inscribed or phantom policy focusing on reading instruction meant that the teachers did not explicitly engage in reading instruction.” p. 497.

“The implication of the lack of inscribed [official] policy regarding struggling readers was clear. It was the students’ responsibility to adapt to the discourse of high school English.” p. 498.

The general conclusion of the authors is that teachers need to be involved in the development of the inscribed [official] policies.

Comment: Whew! “Policies” already. In my day they were curriculum guides, developed by teachers in the summer to be taken by teachers as suggestions for dealing with problems in teaching English. Teachers used those ideas and practices that they found helpful and, frankly, ignored the rest. The assumption was that teachers knew best how to teach. What comes around goes around. I predict that “policies” developed by administrators in the district office as a result of No Child Left Behind will be replaced by curriculum guides developed by teachers. Problems will still exist on how to help teachers who were not members of the summer workshop see the advantages of practices that will be good for kids, like the struggling readers in this study. RayS.

Monday, June 23, 2008

Writing Process

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in recent American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.

Topic: Writing Process

Title: “Diana Gabaldon ‘Worms’ Her Way to Success.” Jessica P. Morrell. The Writer (July 2008), 18-21. The Writer is a magazine by writers for writers. Its goal is to keep the writer’s spirits up.

Quote: In recounting her methods of writing, Dian Gabaldon uses the phrase, “…in the back of my mind.”

Comment: Ms. Gabaldon is referring to how she works on her writing while she goes about the rest of the business of her life. She is working on her writing in the back of her mind. Many writers have told how they compose mentally before they ever put pen to paper or fingers to keyboard. If you haven’t cultivated this process of working on your writing while you perform your daily chores, you need to practice it. Whenever I encounter a problem in my writing, no matter what I am doing, that problem is not far from my consciousness. I have even solved writing problems while half-listening to sermons in church. Ouch! RayS.

Thursday, June 19, 2008

Beginnings and Closings

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in recent American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.

Topic: Beginnings and Closings

Title: “The Opening Page of a story Must Grab the Reader: How Crucial Is the Last Page?” Richard Boich. The Writer (July 2008), 8. The Writer is a magazine by writers for writers. Its goal is to keep the writer’s spirits up.

Summary: A well-crafted first page will cause the reader to buy the book. A lack-luster ending will make the book forgettable and the buyers regretful that they bought it.

Comment: That’s a bit strong, but it’s worth remembering. RayS.

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Writing Process

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in recent American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.

Topic: Writing Process

Title: “How to Live with a Hero.” John D. MacDonald. The Writer (September 1964). Republished in The Writer (July 2008), pp. 22-23. The Writer is a magazine by writers for writers. Its goal is to keep the writer’s spirits up.

Summary: “John D. MacDonald (1916-1986) wrote 21 Travis McGee books.” In the final paragraph of this article, he talks about learning to write: “After more millions of words than I would care to estimate, I am still learning.”

Comment: I said it in my book, Teaching English How To…. and I say it again: I never stop learning to write. Each new piece of writing has some challenge that causes me to think about how to write it. Each new assignment for a professional article requires something different from all the other articles I’ve written. I think this advice is helpful for your writing students. Was it Hemingway who said we’re all apprentices in a task that no one masters—or something like that? RayS.

Monday, June 16, 2008

Speaking

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in recent American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.

Topic: Speaking

Title: “What Toastmasters Can Do for Writers.” John K. Borchardt. The Writer (July 2008), p. 37. The Writer is a magazine by writers for writers. Its goal is to keep the writer’s spirits up.

Summary: A pitch for Toastmasters, a non-profit organization that costs to join. Many people participate. The interesting idea in this article is the 7-minute pitch for your book or article to editors. Advice: Grab ‘em at the start. Get to the point. Another exercise: “Table Topics.” Someone asks a question. You have 15 to 30 seconds to prepare a one-to-two minute answer. Another exercise: 30 seconds to present your qualifications.

Friday, June 13, 2008

Finding Ideas for Writing

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in recent American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.

Topic: Finding Ideas

Title: “Find a New Perspective.” The Writer. Michele Acker (July, 2008), 28-29. The Writer is a magazine by writers for writers. Its goal is to keep the writer’s spirits up.

Summary: The author says you need to get out of your rut. Take a different way home. Shop at a store you have never shopped in before. Pay attention to what you see. Take a course or two or look at the programs on the History Channel, Discovery Channel or some channel you never before thought of viewing. Hang out at the mall or Starbucks and observe the people around you. Take day- or week-end trips. Helps keep the “creative fires burning.”

Comment: Worth a try. RayS.

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Recent Books on Writing

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in recent American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.

Topic: Review of Recent Books on Writing

Title: Naming the World: And Other Exercises for the Creative Writer. Edited by Bret Anthony Johnston. Random. 400 pages. Paper, $15. Reviewed by Chuck Leddy. The Writer (June 2008), 42. The Writer is a magazine by writers for writers. Its goal is to keep the writer’s spirits up.

Comment: Exercises in writing that will get you started writing. Well reviewed. I just ordered a copy from Amazon. RayS.

Title: Send: The Essential Guide to E-mail for Office and Home. David Shipley and Will Schwalbe. Alfred A. Knopf. 256 pp. Hardcover, $19.90. Reviewed by Erika Dreyfus. The Writer (June 2008), 44.

Comment: You probably think that you can’t learn anything about sending e-mails from a book. Based on this review, you can. The authors emphasize mistakes in taste to avoid and, frankly, how to stay out of jail. RayS.

Title: Old Friends from Far Away: The Practice of Writing Memoir. Natalie Goldberg. Free Press. 336 pp. Hardcover, $25. Reviewed by Steve Weinberg. The Writer (June 2008), 45.

Comment: Memoirs are a popular type of book these days. Consists of exercises to get you started. “Many of Goldberg’s exercises are not about writing per se, but about thinking.” “Excellent advice about structuring a memoir.” Has sections on great memoirists, great memoirs to read and guidelines and suggestions. In spite of the praise, the review is lukewarm. RayS.

Monday, June 9, 2008

Self-Publishing

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in recent American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.

Topic: Self-publishing

Title: “10 Things to Know Before You Self-Publish.” Michael T. Owens. The Writer (June 2008), p. 27. The Writer is a magazine by writers for writers. Its goal is to keep the writer’s spirits up.

Summary: If you are going to self-publish, the author of this article thinks you need to be prepared for the experience. Some of his advice: Major media outlets won’t review your book; your book cover will be extremely important; not many sales of your book will come from bookstores—better to use events, such as festivals, conferences and conventions; strangers will buy your book more than friends; book signings will be sparsely attended; giving away your book is standard practice and “…knowing you were involved in every aspect of the book’s creation will give you an enormous feeling of pride and accomplishment.”

Comment: Having self-published my book Teaching English, How To…., I would like to share my experiences. Like any published book, writing it is hard work, requiring two, three or even more years. The greatest burden, I found, was the editing. After you submit the book, you will pay dearly for every change you make, even a comma, and you soon decide that shoddy editing will be acceptable. Not true. Writing the book is half the job: marketing the book is the other half. As the author of the preceding article suggests, you will take pride in having participated in every phase of book publishing, except, of course, for the binding. My only real reward for writing the book was that I had written it and shared my experience in teaching English with others. I wish I had had my book when I began to teach English. RayS.

Friday, June 6, 2008

Free Lanacing

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.

Topic: “Niche” Free Lancing

Title: “Find Good Pay in a ‘Hidden’ Niche.” Brian Hill. The Writer (June 2008), 41-42.

Summary: The author suggests that there is a lucrative market in writing business plans. He says that when entrepreneurs write business plans, they have the following problems: “Lack of clarity; grammar, spelling, punctuation and mathematical errors; incompleteness; wordiness; disorganization/lack of focus.” A good writer can do it for them.

Comments: I am always amazed when someone comes up with a new idea for making money through writing. I always respond by saying, “Why didn’t I think of that?” I never do. Sigh! RayS.

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.

Topic: Children’s Literature

Title: “Captivated at a Young Age.” Jeff Reich, Ed. The Writer (June 20008), p. 6.

Summary/Quote: “Among the many books I fondly recall [from my childhood] is The Little House, the simple tale by Virginia Lee Burton about a happy house in the country that becomes sad and neglected as it is slowly engulfed by urban sprawl. In the end, the great-great-granddaughter of the original owner discovers the house, moves it back to the country and brings it back to life.

“Written in the early 1940’s, Burton’s story and illustrations won her a richly deserved Caldecott Medal. I’m sure that my love of reading today can be traced back to The Little House and other books of my childhood. And that illustrates one reason well-written children’s books are so essential to a life well-lived—they make reading fun and enjoyable and thus create life-long readers.”

Comments: I remember reading The Four Story Mistake to my daughters when they were growing up. As I read, I became a child again, seeing the world as a child sees the world. Some adults can renew themselves as they read children’s books to their children. RayS.

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

On-Line Writing Course

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.

Topic: On-line Writing Course (College)

Title: “Six Lessons in E-Learning: Strategies and support for Teachers New to Online Environment.” Anjanette Darrington. Teaching English in the Two-Year College (May 2008), 416-421. A publication of the National Council of Teachers of English.

Summary: Teacher used to working with real classes in real classrooms is assigned to teach an online writing course. She learned six lessons: 1. “Students are not as tech-savvy as the media portrays.” 2. “Teachers have to work harder to create classroom community in virtual spaces.” 3. “Teaching online takes more—not less—time.” 4. “Smiley face icons are poor substitutes for real smiles.” 5. “Student satisfaction is a key concern in online courses.” 6. “Online courses may be good for the university’s budget, but not necessarily mine.”

Comment: Another article that makes this particular journal worth its cost. A short article packed with specific suggestions on how to resolve the many problems in conducting on-line courses. Many of these ideas will have to be found in the article itself. Go to www.ncte.org. This article is an example of the usefulness of reading professional literature. RayS.

Monday, June 2, 2008

Literature and Personal Experience

The purpose of this blog is to share interesting ideas I have found in American professional publications dealing with the teaching of English at all levels, elementary, secondary and college.

Topic: Students’ Work Experience (Secondary/College)

Title: “Class in the Class: Sharing Bukowski’s Class with Community College Students.” Carlos Hiraldo. Teaching English in the Two-Year College (May 2008), 408-415. A publication of the National Council of Teachers of English.

Summary: The author tries to make use of community-college students’ work experience in interpreting the literature they read. Emphasizes the works of Charles Bukowski.

Comment: This an example of an idea I encountered in reading the article which really does not summarize the author’s intent or the complete article. But the idea intrigued me. Many students in community colleges either work or have worked and I like the thought that their use of this experience could be a valuable asset in interpreting the literature they are reading.

I remember vividly one experience I encountered when the class in a community college was reading James Merrill’s “Laboratory Poem,” dealing with the treatment of laboratory animals by scientists unconcerned for the feelings and pain of those animals. Two students in the class had worked in such laboratories. I won’t repeat what they said, but it reinforced the meaning of the poem, created a better understanding of the real world of the poem and sparked a discussion by the entire class on the feelings of the scientist engaged in working with the animals, the actual focus of the poem.

I think we need to do a lot more with using the experiences of our students in interpreting the literature they read. RayS.