Note: The September
2011 issue of English Journal
celebrates the centennial of the National Council of Teachers of English. The
articles consist of testaments to the value of the NCTE to practicing teachers
of English. Peter Smagorinsky in the final paragraph of his article, “NCTE
& Me: Reflections on the Council’s Role in One Teacher’ Life,” says well
what I have learned from my experiences
with the NCTE.
Quote: “I have always
been puzzled at the fact that, with all that NCTE has to offer, more practicing
teachers are not members. I taught in some highly regarded high schools in
which I was among the few members of large faculties to join and take advantage
of its resources. These resources have only grown more abundant and better with
each passing year as NCTE tries to serve its members and improve the quality of
teaching. I hope that my reflection on my own experiences with the Council
helps others to think about where they would be without NCTE and to persuade
colleagues of the possibilities that await them through their membership.” P.
116.
Comment: I began reading the English Journal
in 1956 in my first year of high school teaching. Because I wanted to learn
what was happening in elementary school, junior high and middle school, as well
as high school and college, I expanded my reading of professional journals in
English to include Elementary English re-named Language Arts, Voices
from the Middle, College English, English Education, College
Composition and Communication, Teaching English in the Two-Year College,
Research in the Teaching of English and added to the NCTE’s list of
journals those of the International
Reading Association, The Reading Teacher, Journal of Reading
re-named Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy and Reading Research
Quarterly.
That’s
a lot of reading, but I’ve learned to read for ideas and to find the
significant ideas in each article of each journal, and, believe me, nothing is
so exciting as discovering an answer to my questions about teaching English and
raising new questions. I’ve discovered pre-writing, the writing process,
writing to learn and teaching English as a second language in the pages of
these journals. Sometimes the writers reinforce my own ideas, more often
disagree with my ideas, but always I learn from ideas that I reflect on in
order to improve my teaching of English. And I have learned how to write and
publish in these journals, further refining my ideas.
Ideas.
They are my reason for reading professional literature. Ideas that cause me to
reflect about how to improve my teaching. That’s why I am a member of NCTE, the
National Council of Teachers of English. If you’re an English teacher, you
really need to belong to your professional organization. This blog, English
Updates, consists of selected ideas from the pages of professional
literature.
I have had as many as 250 hits a day.
RayS.
No comments:
Post a Comment