The article "Our Way" by Vivian Vasquez was an interesting and thought provoking article. As I read through the article, first I totally related because I used to be obsessed with Power Rangers when I was younger. As I am older now, I can push the different symbols of the t.v. show further than I could as a child. But as an adult, it is always good to remember that students view TV, movies, and music in a different light than we as an older generation do.
One of the hardest things with critical literacy is when to push. Vasquez has a difficult time interacting with the t.v. show. First she is fed up and stops forbids discussion or drawings. Then she attempts to discuss the show but on her terms, not theirs. THIS is my problem! I hear things in my classroom. And I see things in my classroom and somewhere in the back of my head, I realize that this would be a great opportunity for a critical discussion. Then the "buts' come in. But I am so far behind and I can't take the time. But I would have no idea what to say to them and I have no idea what I would want them to gleam from this discussion on a modern critical issue. I feel Vasquez had it slightly easier but children are often more open with adults than teenagers. My eleventh graders are often secretive and therefore the opening to discuss certain topics never happens for me.
But I think that the quote I put as the title is extremely important. "Nothing is significant unless you give it significance." My students will never understand the importance of what they are saying or dig deeper into texts or their own worlds unless I show them. The only problem now is how do I do that. It is hard as a young teacher, I am very close to my students' ages, it is hard to see the line. As a young, new teacher the students are testing my boundaries and not often paying attention to what I have to say. Once I develop that skill, I'm set for phase two: digging the tunnels of critical literacy.
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5 comments:
I think the realizations you share in your post push to the next phase actually. What's so interesting is the way in which you are imagining and considering the position from which you teach. Understanding this position is what will help you to create the spaces for critical literacy practices. In a way, you have an edge in that you aren't as distant from the experience of being their age so how do you use that to access your students' powerful literacies?
Thanks
vivian
It seems as though a lot of teachers struggle with this. Sometimes the conversation is worth being a day or so behind -- when the students can benefit from the lesson at hand, it proves worth the time taken away from the curriculum. One way to defray this is by assigning homework which covers the topic you wanted to discuss in class; while the students will not be verbally
discussing things, they will have the opportunity to write their thoughts on paper and you can better understand where they are coming from -- if that type of thing is possible in your classroom.
S.A.D. - wow, you know, your comments hit upon some of the basics of what good teaching has to be. a person can spout educational theory until their lips fall off, and one can analyze situations and try to apply solutions, but often, a pivotal barrier is lack of comfort for students (AND TEACHERS!!!!) in the classroom. teaching is a very close interaction that can only yield fruit if both teacher and student feel secure physically and emotionally. can anyone think of the last time that they shared or were receptive to ideas from someone with whom you did not feel close to in some way?
i also enjoyed reading your blog, S.A.D., because it reminds me of some educational theories that i still remember from an au course a while back. abraham maslow's hierarchy of needs (http://honolulu.hawaii.edu/intranet/committees/FacDevCom/guidebk/teachtip/maslow.htm), like many theories, sort of states the obvious; before education of any type can take place, basic physiological and psychological needs MUST be met. it seems that while both your and the students' physical needs were being met for the most part, their may have been a bit of emotional distance between ya'll. i can definitely relate to the story you tell about seeing things every day (shoot! every 5 minutes!) that would make great segways into a critical literacy discussion but feel too uncomfortable for one reason or another. it's a crappy feeling, but one that, with time, you and I can hopefully overcome.
briefly on a completely other side of this emotional distance problem is the fact that it's damn hard to try to get to know students when they're in a 9 week coure or when you only see them for a semester, 45 minutes a day (or however long your classes are), etc. it's especially hard if they're chronically absent. how are we (teachers and students) supposed to feel close and build community if the instances that we see and bond with each other are scarce?! arrgh!
I completely understand how you're feeling with the challenges of getting critical literacy to be part of the classroom. I am also working to figure out how to deal with similar questions. For example, how should I approach the things students say, how can I encourage students to examine the way a text is constructed... Also, I understand the feeling of trying to balance the content area curriculum with critical literacy. I liked seeing how you began to deal with these issues. It's true what you said, that students won't fully understand the content if it does not become significant to them, so it's important to make that happen. I'm struggling with the same things in my classroom, so I appreciate reading how you are coming to terms with these issues.
I really like how you acknowledge that you are so close in age to your students and this does make the line far less clear in discussion. But it is also an advantage because you are so close in age that you can have a better understanding of things that they face in their lives because you were there not that long ago which gives a very different perspective than older teachers have.
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