Balance
is my larger theme in the next two newsletters. Let’s make sure we offer
Colorado students a
well-rounded, rich curriculum—not one narrowed by “what gets tested.”
In
AV#118, the topic is classroom discussion.
Let’s hope
the next generation will improve on our poor example. Too often in our “adult world” we shout and
hardly listen. Our classrooms can be a sanctuary
from this madness, a safe place where we encourage students to speak and listen
well. This expectation is, after all, central
to Colorado’s standards. Even if “not assessed,” this skill, this
characteristic, is important. True?
|
The
Colorado Department of Education’s guide for the (NOTE ALL THREE)
Reading,
Writing, and Communicating
standards lists four subgroups:
1 - Oral Expression and Listening
2 -
Reading for All Purposes 3
- Writing and Composition 4 - Research and Reasoning
|
|
-Colorado’s Academic Standards on
speaking and listening – pages 3-4
-Letter to
parents of my middle schools students on class discussions – pages 5-6
-purpose
of schools in America p.7
-Orwell: Animal Farm and Benjamin p. 8
-a healthy
democracy – the importance of better
speaking and listening skills p.9
-For
teachers & teacher evaluators
p. 10
|
Although the Colorado Academic Standards (above) for Language Arts speak
of FOUR components, we realize, do we not, that state tests do not measure the
first standard? Not directly anyway.
I do not find this odd–it is hard to imagine a state-wide test that
could measure speaking and listening—but I wish to “speak” about it. After all,
SPEAKING is my point here—how critical it is that students have a chance to talk,
to be heard during class time, to engage in a thoughtful dialogue with
classmates and with the teacher. Though
not assessed by the Reading and Writing portion of CSAP/TCAP over the past 15
years (and I can’t see how the new PARCC assessments will do it any better), it
is a clear expectation of a (con’t on p. 2)
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about:blankabout:blankabout:blank
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“Even among
gifted kids, the understanding of Shakespeare takes a good degree of
collaboration and conversation. … When do we sit down, with our play, and
analyze the characters, and figure out the author’s intent, and uncode his
humor? … Students learn from one another, and that conver-sation is the
richness of education—if we’re talking not about schooling but about
education.” - Kristin Kearns Jordan
(an Exeter alumna, founder of the Bronx Preparatory Charter School), “School
on a Hill: On the design and redesign
of American education,” Harper’s,
Fall 2001.
|
Every classroom at Exeter has a Harkness table, with a class of 12
students and ample opportunity for dialogue. The Harkness table places students
at the center of the learning process and encourages them to learn from one
another. For more on “the Harkness
philosophy” used by Philips Exeter Academy: http://www.exeter.edu/admissions/109_1220.aspx.
(con’t from p.
1)
good classroom and of a good teacher, and therefore one that needs to
be stressed—and measured in some fashion.
Are we doing it? How well?
“A voice is a human gift …. Powerlessness and silence
go together.” Margaret Atwood
You will find no answers here, just
questions—and an attempt to put the issue of speaking, listening, and classroom
discussion on the table. First I remind
you of (the seldom mentioned) state expectations in this matter–pages 3 and 4.
Second, I share the letter I wrote to the parents of my middle school students
ten years ago (Parker’s Core Knowledge Charter School)–pages 5 and 6, on the
importance of classroom participation (which usually counted as 20% of their
grade). Third, I quote Neil Postman on teaching our youth “how to argue,” how
to tackle the big questions, as among the most essential skills to foster a
healthy democracy. (An endangered
skill—wouldn’t you agree? ) If our schools are designed to prepare first and
foremost citizens (not workers-see
AV#115), the classroom has a special obligation to help each student learn to
take part in the “great American experiment.” Fourth, from Animal Farm, Orwell’s warning on the consequences when citizens do
not speak up. Fifth, a reminder of the “echo chamber” many of us live in,
making it all the more necessary that we focus on helping our students
communicate clearly, listen attentively, and learn how to engage in civil
discussions. Finally, a few resources for teachers and evaluators as we try to
ensure that we measure student engagement
when judging a teacher’s “performance.” Sadly,
teachers still speak of “putting on a good show” when the evaluator visits. Isn’t it more critical to see that students are engaged, speaking and listening
well?
**
I
taught at the Emma Willard School (Troy, N.Y.) in the mid-1980’s. Yes, smaller classes than in most public
schools. But to foster discussion, we
can break up a class of any size into groups of 3-6 students.
Sammie
writes: “Today in English class we discussed poems by Emily Dickinson. Poetry
is one of the many different types of literature we read in English III. Right
now we are focusing on tone and what different things contribute to it. Instead
of just talking about the tone, today we split up into groups and were told to
create an oral explication in which we describe how each line in the poem
contributes to the tone. … By talking in small groups and then sharing with the
whole class, one can delve deep into the purpose of the author and the
situation of the speaker.”
From Colorado Department of Education
Colorado Academic Standards
Oral Expression and Listening
(general guidelines from six grades –
12, 9, 7, 5, 2, and K)
Concepts and skills master:
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Prepared Graduates:
-Collaborate effectively as group members or
leaders who listen actively and respectfully pose thoughtful questions, acknowledge
the ideas of others, and contribute ideas to further the group’s attainment
of an objective
-Demonstrate skill in inferential and evaluative
listening
|
Twelfth Grade
1. Effective
speaking in formal and informal settings requires appropriate use of methods
and audience awareness
2. Effective
collaborative groups accomplish goals
Ninth Grade
1. Oral
presentations require effective preparation strategies
2. Listening
critically to comprehend a speaker’s message requires mental and physical
strategies to direct and maintain attention
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A
warning – “Who is talking to whom?”
“Speaking and
listening—essential preliteracy
skills—are also declining. Sitting in any Starbucks, you can easily witness
this—parents regularly checking their phones, reviewing messages, texts,
etc.; small children sitting quietly in their strollers with iPads. Who is
talking to whom? …. I find this ironic as we
aggressively roll out the Common Core State Standards, which include
significantly increased linguistic demands for all language skills—especially listening and speaking for all
grade levels.” Dennis Terdy –
40-year career as teacher, administrator, consultant, Education Week, 6/11/14.
|
Seventh Grade
1. Formal
presentations require preparation and
effective
delivery
2. Small and
large group discussions rely on active
listening
and the effective contributions of all participants
Fifth Grade
1. Effective
communication requires speakers to express an opinion, provide information,
describe a process, and persuade an audience
2. Listening strategies are techniques that contribute to understanding different situations and serving different purposes.
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At what
grade can we begin to foster good discussion?
As
early as possible!
Lisa Hansel writes: “we learn how to
build knowledge before children can read.” For support, she quotes
approvingly from Common Core’s “Standard
10” for grades K-5: “Children in the early grades (particularly K-2)
should participate in rich, structured conversations with an adult in
response to the written texts that are read aloud, orally comparing and contrasting as well as analyzing and
synthesizing….”
(http://edexcellence.net/articles/how-to-improve-my-brother%E2%80%99s-keeper-emphasize-a-content-rich-curriculum) |
Second Grade
1.
Discussions contribute and expand on the ideas of self and others
2. New
information can be learned and better dialogue created by listening actively
Kindergarten
1. Oral
communication skills are built within a language-rich environment
2.
Communication relies on effective verbal and nonverbal skills
3. Vocal
sounds produce words and meaning to create early knowledge of phonemic
awareness
From Colorado Department of Education
Grade Level Expectation: Seventh Grade - Concepts
and skills students master:
2. Small and large group discussions rely on active listening and the
effective contributions of all participants
Evidence Outcomes - Students
Can:
a. Engage effectively in a range
of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with
diverse partners on grade 7 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’
ideas and expressing their own clearly. (CCSS: SL.7.1)
|
COMMENT
AREN’T THESE 3 BULLETS GREAT?
THE WORRY
BUT ARE WE MEASURING THIS?
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i. Come to discussions prepared, having read or
researched material under study; explicitly draw on that preparation by
referring to evidence on the topic, text, or issue to probe and reflect on
ideas under discussion. (CCSS: SL.7.1a)
iii. Pose questions that elicit elaboration and
respond to others’ questions and comments with relevant observations and ideas
that bring the discussion back on topic as needed. (CCSS: SL.7.1c)
iv. Acknowledge new information expressed by
others and, when warranted, modify their own views. (CCSS: SL.7.1d)
b. Analyze the
main ideas and supporting details presented in diverse media and formats (e.g.,
visually, quantitatively, and orally) and explain how the ideas clarify a
topic, text, or issue under study. (CCSS: SL.7.2)
c. Delineate a speaker’s argument and specific claims, evaluating the
soundness of the reasoning and the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.
(CCSS: SL.7.3)
21st Century
Skills and Readiness Competencies - Nature of Reading, Writing, and Communicating
12th grade - Use
of skilled communication in group settings creates collaboration and
understanding. (p. 26)
10th
grade - Skilled communicators can speak to both sides of an issue because they
look at topics from multiple
perspectives. (p. 29)
8th grade - Skilled communicators
must be open to the ideas of others. (p. 33)
7th grade – 1) Skilled
communicators demonstrate a balance between listening and sharing.
2) Skilled
listeners recognize that others have important ideas. (p. 36)
INQUIRY – key to good discussions
Colorado’s Description of
Postsecondary and Workforce Readiness
(Adopted by the State Board of Education, June 2009)
Postsecondary
and workforce readiness describes the knowledge, skills, and behaviors
essential for high school graduates to be prepared to enter college and the
workforce and to compete in the global economy. The description assumes
students have developed consistent intellectual growth throughout their high
school career as a result of academic work that is increasingly challenging,
engaging, and coherent. …
How These Skills and Competencies are
Embedded in the Revised Standards
Three themes are
used to describe these important skills and competencies and are interwoven
throughout the standards: inquiry questions;
relevance and application; and the nature of each discipline.…
Inquiry Questions – Inquiry is a
multifaceted process requiring students to think and pursue under-standing.
Inquiry demands that students (a) engage in an active observation and questioning
process; (b) investigate to gather evidence; (c) formulate explanations based
on evidence; (d) communicate and justify explanations, and; (e) reflect and
refine ideas. Inquiry is more than hands-on activities; it requires students to
cognitively wrestle with core concepts as they make sense of new ideas.
(Written almost a decade ago…)
TO the parents of 7th grade Language students,
and 8/15/2005
to the parents of our several new 8th
grade students
A note from Mr. Huidekoper on reading, class discussion, and
student participation
Getting as many students as possible
involved in classroom discussions is an important goal for our school and for
me as a teacher. The Core Knowledge
curriculum guide includes speaking and listening as a central component of the
Language goals: students are expected to
“participate civilly and productively in group discussions.” The Language standards for Colorado and for
Douglas County[1]
emphasize reading and writing skills, but they also make specific reference to
classroom discussion. Language Standard
5 states: “The student demonstrates the ability to communicate orally for a variety of purposes … applies knowledge
of situation (e.g. formal presentation, informal discussion), audience and
purpose when presenting orally.” I
imagine our school’s commitment to class sizes of no more than 22 is done in
part to help nurture such discussions, and to be sure each student has the
chance to contribute.
I have deeply enjoyed many wonderful
literature discussions in my classroom these past four years; a few times
classes have approached the ideal one looks for in a “Socratic seminar,” where,
as I will discuss further on, students are engaged in a thoughtful, earnest,
and open-minded look into the text and what it means. Such classes are a real source of
satisfaction; I am so grateful to be in a setting where such discussions are
possible. Nevertheless, I write this in
part to explain the approach I often use, as I hope this rationale will help
more students become involved in such discussions. And I write because I have seen some students
hold back; at least during the first part of the year, they do not participate
as much as they could. A talk with a
parent made me realize an explanatory note might help, in order to clarify the
kind of discussions we try to have in Language class.
I believe we want our middle school students
to be actively engaged in thinking about the characters and how and why they
change in our stories, plays, and novels, in exploring the various kinds of
conflicts these characters experience, and in trying to understand the author’s
purpose. The reading skills of our
seventh and eighth graders will be stronger as they look for such elements in
the literature. Students can and should
demonstrate this engagement not only in their writing and/or on quizzes and tests,
but also in classroom discussions about the stories or plays, and in talking
about the literature with others.
My guess is many of our students discuss
these stories with their family—and THAT IS GREAT. Our hope, however, is that they will also
take part in discussions in class, where their ideas can be articulated and
clarified. It cannot be emphasized
enough how much every student who plays a constructive, active role in class
discussion helps his or her classmates gain new perspectives on and insights
into a story. As a result, each
student’s understanding of the literature becomes stronger. Sometimes the thoughtful contributions from
classmates cause a student to rethink his or her view of a character, of the
tone of the work, or of the theme. It is
a pleasure to watch such re-examination take place in the classroom, to see
students discover new ways of seeing the story through these discussions.
For
all of this to happen, however, students need to take the risk of offering
their insights and sharing their interpretation. Some are hesitant to do so. Of course a teacher can be a factor; please
know that I ask myself what I am doing that might discourage participation, and
know that I try to make all students feel their comments are welcome. But perhaps the hesitancy comes from the way
this approach feels somewhat new, and even uncomfortable, at first.
You will note that my emphasis here is on what comes from the class and
one’s classmates, not on what I contribute.
This is where some students may find it an adjustment from some classes
they have had when they were younger. In
talking about the literature I often try to ask questions and then to invite
responses from as many students as possible.
But on hearing Billy or Sarah’s comments, I tend not to say, “That’s right,” or “That’s inaccurate.” Instead I often nod, noncommittally, and then
ask the next person for his or her view.
I hope new students and parents can see the reason for this
approach. I think returning students
better understand how it might be an appropriate style to use at this age level
(as it will be through much of their literature discussions in high school and
college). The chief benefit in this
structure is that students become involved in what Junior Great Books calls
“shared inquiry.” … Perhaps the most well-known and
well-respected organization that has been teaching this strategy to teachers
and parents for decades is the Junior Great Books (JGB) Program. I hope that by
sharing some of the language and principles of the JGB Program, I can help
provide further rationale for this approach with young students. (JGB, in fact,
believes this style can work powerfully with elementary grades as well.)
Borrowing key elements from the
Junior Great Books Program
JGB articulates the “Shared Inquiry” approach in this way. (The following is lifted directly from the
JGB web site. See www.greatbooks.org - for more information.)[2]
“… The success of shared inquiry
depends on a special relationship between the leader and the group. (Leaders) do not impart information or
present (their) own opinions, but guide participants in reaching their own interpretations. You do this by posing thought-provoking
questions and by following up purposefully on what participants say. In doing so, you help them develop both the
flexibility of mind to consider problems from many angles, and the discipline
to analyze ideas critically… In shared
inquiry, participants learn to give full consideration to the ideas of others,
to weigh the merits of opposing arguments, and to modify their initial opinions
as the evidence demands. They gain
experience in communicating complex ideas and in supporting, testing, and
expanding their own thoughts. In this
way, the shared inquiry method promotes thoughtful dialogue and open debate,
preparing its participants to become able, responsible citizens, as well as
enthusiastic, lifelong readers.”
I hope this helps explain why student comments, be they brilliant or
bizarre, might get the same nod from me, before we turn to listen to someone
else. I hope you can appreciate the rationale to this approach. I believe it can help us foster honest and
thoughtful discussions, and help each student meet CKCS goals for oral
participation. I hope your boy or girl
will soon feel comfort- able with this approach, and will offer his or her
thoughts on a regular basis. We hope
students will see how much more exciting and meaningful the classroom can be
when they all know they have an important role to play to communicate their
thoughts about the literature. Put
another way, I hope all will know they have a vital role in “pulling their oar”
in our journey together.
I am truly excited about the year
ahead—and the good discussions we will have!
Thank you so much for all your
help. Mr.
Huidekoper
**
Argument – the All-American sport!!!
From Neil Postman’s The End of Education
I quoted from Postman
extensively in AV#114 – on the purpose of education—and do so again here. I love one of his suggestions for a more
uplifting view of the purpose of schooling, which places argument as central to
the American story. In a state with such
feeble social studies standards (AV#76-“Colorado scores an F on our history
standards,” 3/5/11), we would do well, I believe, to take note of the way Postman
connects our roots as a nation with what we owe our students: a place to engage in thoughtful discussion.
“America was
the first nation to be argued into existence.
The Declaration of Independence is an argument, and it was composed as
such. Tom Paine’s The Rights of Man
is an argument…. All Supreme Court decisions are arguments, some deeply
embarrassing ones—for example, the Dred Scott decision, which calls to mind the
Lincoln-Douglas debates, our best-known and possibly most skillfully crafted arguments….
“Of course, all the arguments
have a theme that is made manifest in a series of questions: What is freedom?
What are its limits? What is a human being? What are the obligations of
citizenship? What is meant by democracy? And so on…. But which ones are the
right answers? We don’t know. There’s the rub, and the beauty and the value of
the story. So we argue and experiment and complain, and grieve, and rejoice,
and argue some more, without end…. All
is fluid and subject to change, to better arguments, to the results of future
experiments.
|
It is
telling that a book titled Crucial Conversations - Tools for Talking When
Stakes Are High is a best-seller. Authors Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron
McMillan, and Al Switzler no doubt address a need Americans feel—to learn how
to communicate “in a relationship, in your career, at home” in order to avoid
“getting stuck”—and worse. As skillful
as we may now be with fast and witty text messages, we are still in need of
face to face dialogue to express our emotions, settle conflicts, and move
forward.
|
“This, it seems to me, is a fine and noble story to offer as a reason
for schooling: to provide our youth with the knowledge and will to participate
in the great experiment; to teach them how to argue, and to help them discover
what questions are worth arguing about; and of course to make sure they know
what happens when arguments cease. No one is excluded from the story. Every
group has made good arguments, and bad ones. All points of view are admissible.
The only thing we have to fear is that someone will insist on putting in an
exclamation point when we are not yet finished.” (pages 72-74)
In the chapter
“The American Experiment” Postman notes that schools today are “reluctan(t) to
include patriotism as a ‘value,’ they reflect a tendency throughout the
country, a certain uneasiness about where patriotism might lead. There is
certainly more emphasis, these days, on loving one’s self than on loving one’s
country, which means, I suppose, that Philip Rieff was prophetic when he wrote
about ‘the triumph of the therapeutic.’”
Postman
acknowledges the danger when “love of country is too easily transmogrified into
a mindless, xenophobic nationalism….” But, he goes on to say:
“in steering clear of patriotism,
educators miss an opportunity to provide schooling with a profound and
transcendent narrative that can educate and inspire students of all ages. I refer, of course, to the story of America
as a great experiment and as a center of continuous argument.
“There are many
ways to unveil this story, and good teachers, at every level, can think of
several if they believe the story is worthwhile. … as students progress from
elementary school to high school to college, the study of the American
experiment in freedom of expression must deepen, the arguments considered must
increase in complexity, and the documents containing them must be more various….
it should be emphasized that the
arguments are not finished; that today they are pursued with the same passion
they once were….
“Is it too much
to say that the arguments are the energy and the glory of the American
experiment? Is it too much to hope that our young might learn to honor the tradition
and to be inspired by it?” (pages 131-136)
(My next newsletter, on CIVIC EDUCATION in Colorado, will connect to
Postman’s theme.)
Orwell: Animal Farm and Benjamin
“For George Orwell, politics … started and
ended with personal responsibility.” (The Economist, 7/13/02)
Colorado
State Standards – History- Civics:
Concepts and skills students master:
Compare how various nations define the
rights, responsibilities, and roles of citizens.
Inquiry Question: What
roles of citizens are the most important?
When I teach Animal Farm, I hear Orwell urging
my students (and future citizens) to SPEAK
UP!
Benjamin, the
donkey, often makes “cynical” remarks.
But he is largely silent. He
seems to mistrust Napoleon, but he won’t say it. “About the Rebellion and its results he would
express no opinion” (47). He is no
Boxer, no blind follower, yet he seems unwilling to use his intelligence. “Benjamin could read as well as any pig, but
never exercised his faculty” (50).
Merely an observer. “Benjamin was
the only animal who did not side with either faction. He refused to believe
that food would become more plentiful or that the windmill would save work”
(65). Emphasized again 15 pages later:
“Only Benjamin refused to grow enthusiastic about the windmill…” (81), while
the other animals become obedient slaves to the new leaders. Even after the terror—the slaughter of pigs,
hens, sheep, “guilty” of crimes against the state— when “they had come to a
time when no one dared speak his mind, when fierce, growling dogs roamed
everywhere,” Benjamin is asked to read the revised Sixth Commandment (“No
animal shall kill another animal without cause”). But he will not. He “said that he refused to meddle in such
matters” (98).
Benjamin shows concern for Boxer,
the ever-trusting horse (“Comrade Napoleon is always right”) laboring overtime
for his new master, but when the powerful old plow horse takes a bad fall and
is no longer indispensable, a van comes to take him away. Only now, too late, does Benjamin find his
voice.
“… they were
astonished to see Benjamin come galloping from the direction of the farm
buildings, braying at the top of his voice
It was the first time that they had ever seen Benjamin excited—indeed,
it was the first time that anyone had ever seen him gallop. ‘Quick, quick!’ he
shouted. ‘Come at once! They’re taking Boxer away!’”
And while the other animals have grown so blind that at first they
accept the story that the van is there merely to take Boxer to the animal
hospital for treatment, it is the donkey who now cannot stay silent:
“‘Fools!
Fools!’ shouted Benjamin, prancing around them and stamping the earth with his
small hoofs. ‘Fools! Do you not see what is written on the side of that van?”
And now, at last, he will read:
“‘Alfred
Simmonds, Horse Slaughterer and Glue Boiler, Willingdon. Dealer in Hides and
Bone-Meal. Kennels Supplied.’ Do you not understand what that means? They are
taking Boxer to the knacker’s!’”
Benjamin had always
understood. But he had never spoken
up—until it was too late.
**
With a parable or fable like Animal
Farm, a teacher finds it appropriate to speak of a story’s “lesson.”
Especially when we read Orwell himself state:
“Every line of
serious work that I have written since 1936 has been written directly or
indirectly, against totalitarianism…. Animal
Farm was the first book in which I tried, with full consciousness of what I
was doing, to fuse political purpose and artistic purpose into one whole.”
So it feels right
to ask our students what kind of people Benjamin represents, and what is Orwell’s message—on totalitarianism,
a citizen’s responsibility, and silence.
And before ending the unit on Animal
Farm, it feels right to ask students to respond to this great quote from Canadian
poet and author Margaret Atwood:
“A voice is
a human gift; it should be cherished and used, to utter human speech, as fully
as possible. Powerlessness and silence go together.”
A healthy democracy - and our ability
to argue in a way that that is civil and respectful
Many point out the danger of living in our own “echo chamber,” where we
avoid hearing different points of view. The
Washington Post’s Ruben Navarrette voiced this concern nicely in his
column:
“People feel they
have enough conflict and confrontation in their lives, and so what they expect
from media outlets is a kind of intellectual cave they can crawl into to seek
refuge from things they don’t disagree with….
“… joining you in
your cave will be some lovely folks who won’t fight, judge, or criticize you
for what you believe – because they believe the same things you do. And to pass
the time, you can all sit around and make fun of those people outside the cave
who think differently. Of course, that won’t be easy because you haven’t taken
the time to understand what those people think and why they think it.”
(The Denver Post, “In the media echo
chamber, agreeing to agree,” Oct. 14, 2013)
Liz Joyner made a similar point in her commentary, “Civil discourse
that doesn’t taste like broccoli”:
“… Bunkered up at
home with information sources that serve us as a virtual amen chorus for
everything we want to believe, we can’t seem to tolerate the people we used to
share town meetings with.
“In The Big Sort: Why Clustering of Like- Minded
America is Tearing us Apart, Bill Bishop documents how, in nearly all
aspects of life, we’ve become less connected to those who don’t share our
views—in the churches we go to, the clubs we join, the neighborhoods we live
in. ”
In Joyner’s opinion, this leads to a breakdown in communication—to any
kind of polite exchange of different points of view:
“With neighbors
no longer engaging across the aisle, there’s little to mitigate the human
tendency toward tribalism. Once we’ve demonized each other, the simple act of
talking is tantamount to negotiating with evil.” (The
Christian Science Monitor, June 16, 2014)
You ask: OK,
but how is this relevant to K-12 education?
Because it calls on schools to be the antidote, to create classrooms
that are a sanctuary, a place where students learn to hold civil conversations.
To experience anything but an “echo
chamber.” To LISTEN to different points of view. (See
the next page for suggestions on how to manage “Difficult Dialogues.” Believe me, I know how hard this can be!)
Here’s an ideal to look to. In John
Wain’s biography of Samuel Johnson, we learn that “the Club played a central
part in his life.” A group of men who met weekly or every other week for years,
it gave Johnson
“friends he
might talk with rather than merely
admirers to talk at… the atmosphere
was one of frank and free competition in the exchange of ideas; but there was
no throat-cutting. It was a circle of men who liked and trusted each other….
The range of topics discussed, and the knowledge and experience which
collectively these men brought to bear on them suggest that they thought of debate and discussion as part of the essential
business of their lives. So, of course, does every sensible human being.
But most human beings do not live in a social setting which permits of debate
and discussion, on any level high enough to extend their minds and add to the
stock of their thoughts. Moving about incessantly as we nowadays do, we are
nearly always with strangers, and settled, purposeful talk is best conducted
among people we know well.” (Samuel Johnson – John Wain, p. 235)
Perhaps the classroom—from
elementary grades through college—can aim to be such a “club” for our
students. We can hope. Perhaps their
generation might learn to speak and listen to each other with greater respect
than they see in our example, when they click on the TV and watch us behave
like….
Another View, a newsletter by Peter Huidekoper,
represents his own opinion and is not intended to represent the view of any
organization he is associated with.
Comments are welcome. 303-757-1225 / peterhdkpr@gmail.com
Addendum - For teachers and those evaluating teachers
|
The Colorado
Teacher Quality Standards – Standard 1
Element
B: Teachers demonstrate knowledge of student literacy development
in
reading, writing, speaking and listening.
|
1.
From the Center for Teaching -
“Difficult Dialogues”
For
most teachers, leading classroom discussion on difficult topics is a perennial
challenge. Part of the challenge lies in the fact that we never fully know
which issues will be “hot buttons” for our students. Conversations can become
heated very quickly, and before long, it can feel like the class is careening
out of control. This guide seeks to help teachers feel more confident leading
difficult dialogues by encouraging reflection on how such discussions connect
with larger learning goals, and by providing specific strategies and resources
that teachers can use to create more productive conversations in their
classrooms.
Have
the class establish and agree on ground rules for discussion. Clarifying expectations about class
discussions early on can prevent contentious situations later. Discussion ground rules might include:
Always
use a respectful tone. - No interrupting or yelling. - No name-calling or other
character attacks. - Ask questions when you do not understand; do not assume
you know what others are thinking. - Try to see the issue from the other
person’s perspective before stating your opinion. - Maintain confidentiality (what is said in the
classroom stays in the classroom.
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2.
Teaching Literature
Analyze teacher-student discussions. Observe and or record (with
the teacher’s permission) one classroom discussion of literature in a high
school or college. Make a list of all the questions the teacher asks during
the discussion, as well as the sequence of the interactions between teacher
and student by labeling the teacher question as a “T” and a student response
as an “S.” How would you characterize those questions? To what degree are
these questions “open” or “closed?” What was the “uptake” in response to
questions—students’ response to the questions? What levels or kinds of
interpretations are involved in answering these questions? To whom are the
questions addressed? How many students participate in the discussion and how
often? Are there instances of a string of “S’s” in which students are
interacting with each other? What prompt elicited that string of “S’s?” What
does the teacher seem to want students to know or learn from the discussion?
3. Elberly Center – Teaching Excellence &
Educational Innovation
From “Discussions”
- (Some sections adapted from Davis, 1993; Brookfield and
Preskill, 1999)
Discussions can be an excellent
strategy for enhancing student motivation, fostering intellectual agility,
and encouraging democratic habits. They create opportunities for students to
practice and sharpen a number of skills, including the ability to articulate
and defend positions, consider different points of view, and enlist and
evaluate evidence.
While discussions provide avenues for
exploration and discovery, leading a discussion can be anxiety-producing:
discussions are, by their nature, unpredictable, and require us as instructors
to surrender a certain degree of control over the flow of information.
Fortunately, careful planning can help us ensure that discussions are lively
without being chaotic and exploratory without losing focus. When planning a
discussion, it is helpful to consider not only cognitive, but also
social/emotional, and physical factors that can either foster or inhibit the
productive exchange of ideas.
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