I am fortunate enough to witness a lot of literacy activities and interactions at my field placement. A specific time is set aside for individual reading, research using informational texts or the internet, journal entries, group reading as a whole, and smaller group reading work with my CT. Various discussion techniques are seen throughout a normal week in this third grade classroom, but once I completed last week’s readings on talk within the classroom, I realized that not much of the interaction is “Response-Centered”. While it is obvious that my CT is interested in what they have to say in regards to a text, and often asks for their predictions throughout a story, it does not seem to me that the students pick the agenda for their discussions. The McGee article stated that response centered talk arises from children’s reasoning and problem solving and that it involves letting “just the students talk to each-other”. In order for successful response-centered talk to take place in my classroom, this would be the area where the most work would be required. Very few, if any, discussions that occur in my classroom allow the students to discuss literature amongst themselves. It is rather seen with one on one questions posed from their teacher, with a few students replying to each. (A positive point to address, however, is that almost every student will participate at least once or twice throughout at lesson.)
I am not trying to imply that all of the literature discussion that takes place within their classroom is negative. As we had discussed in class last week, sometimes regular discussion benefits certain students as well. For example, there are certain children in my classroom that seem very comfortable with their routine of discussion, and enjoy participating to the group as a whole. Almasi states that “students involved in discussions not only learn how to interact socially and develop communicative competence, but they learn to take responsibility for their own learning”. I agree with this idea; although I feel that response centered discussion is one of the most positive ways to address talk within a classroom, I feel that through whole group discussion students are still able to act as tutors to each other when interpreting. I often see this in my field placement. My class works very well together and is a very close knit community; therefore, when someone has an idea about a text or is making a prediction, they all seem to focus and actually take in and process what is being said.
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Jackie,
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like your field placement is providing you with some very enriching literacy experiences. I think it's great that your CT does so much with various texts and text purposes (for example, using informational text and the internet for researching). This should be one of our goals as teachers, as well. I think it's good that you note the difference between the response-centered talk we have been discussing in class and the type of talk that is happening in your field placement. Although response-centered talk is not generally happening, I like that you noted that your CT has a system for ensuring full student participation -- this is crucial. Perhaps the discussion-centered lesson plan you implement in your class will "inspire" the CT to do more activities like this in addition to the great things she is already doing. I can see your point when you say: "In order for successful response-centered talk to take place in my classroom, this would be the area where the most work would be required. Very few, if any, discussions that occur in my classroom allow the students to discuss literature amongst themselves." As we talked about in class, discussion and response-centered talk is not natural or easy for students or teachers. We need to be willing to teach our students how to participate appropriately in this kind of talk, and also be willing to be facilitators, releasing our role as the dominant speaker and questioner. I can see you realize this, and the fact that you know your students' talk and participation styles so well makes me confident that you will do a great job with your discussion lesson as well as literary discussions you will facilitate in your own future classroom.