Chapters 3 and 4
offered a perspective on reading and textbooks that is distinctive to my own
experience in high school and middle school. In high school, my classes either
didn’t use a textbook, or used it all the time. Until college, this was all I
knew. College professors tend to use themselves as the main resource, and the
book as a supplement to them. I don’t think this works too well either,
especially when the students are asked to buy books that are sometimes hundreds
of dollars.
In my classroom, I would like
textbooks to be used as a reference. I have found that textbooks are great for
double checking my knowledge, but not so great at engaging me. To assist any
students who are similar, I will use secondary sources to help students
familiarize themselves with the topic. I won’t be using extra sources for every
topic, but I will be using it to help hammer home the main ideas and enduring
understandings of the unit. For example, in a unit on ecosystems, I may choose
to bring in a National Geographic magazine with a story on the Rhinoceros in
Kruger National Park and how they are struggling due to poachers. This will
emphasize the idea that ecosystems exit in a balance of a variety of factors.
Giving students many resources outside of their textbook will help
engage them, but they need the time and environment to do it. I wanted Daniels
and Zemelman to talk more about how to structure the classroom for it. I
imagine having some time on Fridays for students to explore the various
resources in groups so they can be social and discuss what they’ve read. In the
beginning of the year, this will be somewhat formal so students can learn what
they should be doing. After some time of modeling and scaffolding, they will be
on their own to have their conversations and explore what they want to. Resrouces
will include approved things that they bring from home, as well as the
resources I bring in from wherever I find them. Discussing readings helps them
understand it better and develop a stronger sense of the topic. After reading
these chapters, I believe I can definitely use outside sources in my classroom.
Hi Nick, I enjoyed your post about chapters 3 and 4 of D&Z. I was surprised to hear that your college professors tend to use themselves as the primary resource for information (as opposed to a book). For me, this was just the opposite. Maybe it was because I attended a different college for a year and a half, but I haven't experience this yet. I find my studies to continuously be textbooks dependent.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I suppose that from your experiences and from our reading, you have learned that using yourself as a resource is not the best option, and relying too heavily on the text is not the best option. Yet, relying to heavily on supplemental resources is not a good idea either. So, what do you think is a good balance?
I liked your idea about bringing in the National Geographic magazine. I think this would be very interesting. I also liked the idea of conversation about what they learned, but how will you make sure they stay on topic? I would probably use some type of worksheet with guiding questions.
For science, this idea of supplemental resources would be fairly simple to implement! There is so much information about various topics, that I am just as confident as you that it will work in the classroom!
I agree with you, Nick. Up until college, textbooks were either used all the time (as the sole reference material) or not used at all because the teacher didn't trust them. It was in college that my professors begun to selectively pick and choose textbooks which they then dedicated time to teaching and utilizing. For the most part, all my teachers have made it a point to bring in secondary sources to relay and relate to our in class discussions.
ReplyDeleteIn your studies, what do you think your resources will be? You say that you will utilize textbooks as a reference point for your students. Does that mean you will teach them a certain subject matter *then show them it's utility within the textbook, or will you *begin with the textbook and slowly move and branch out from there? And from that point, what types of secondary sources do you think you will utilize?
I can see myself straying away from textbook material and prompts heavily through my first few years of teaching. While the school and district will most probably make me pull my lessons from them, I feel that I will more than likely have to research and refine my articles and secondary sources for my students (rather than rely on the textbooks).I don't trust them myself, but I do know they have a purpose somewhere (somehow).
I love your idea about giving them time on Fridays to allow them to find their own things to talk about. I think it is awesome to get them social about it too. Getting them to talk about what they have found will make sure that they understand what their articles are finding. You might need to walk around the room a bit though to make sure that they are staying on track with what they are being social about though because it can be really easy to go off track and they may not want to pull themselves back. After they find things in their groups are you going to have them share them with the whole group?
ReplyDelete