Feeling the love from my PLN!

I realized something great today...I really do have a PLN! I'll admit I started this journey just going through the motions. Sure I'll get a twitter account (insert eyeroll), sure I'll start a blog (insert sigh), etc, etc. After a rousing #ellchat session tonight that left me feeling heard and inspired, I came to a great realization: I really do have a PLN; a network of peers in the ESLindustry that I am sharing with and learning from on a daily basis. When I found myself stoked to be free at the time of the weekly #ellchat today, I realized that my participation in my PLN is no longer an assignment (eyeroll, sigh) but a genuine interest (cheer). I have made real connections with people who I recognize and have become accustomed to interacting with. I'm sure I'll be keeping it up once the semester ends for my own personal and professional purposes.

My "cookbook" got favorited!

After finally finishing my creative writing blog I forced myself to take the plunge and put it out there in the twitterverse. I even stepped outside my #usdedu comfort zone and added some other groups I have been active in or lurking around. I was surprized to see that the blog immidiately got 100s of views (which I know is a dismal number in cyberworld but I was impressed nonetheless). Even more surprizing to me was that my twitter post on the cookbook was "favorited" by quite a few "strangers" on twitter. I put strangers in quote marks because I see no direct link to them through any of the groups I'm active with. The power of networking is truly amazing and EDUC 578 has shown me that in ways I may never have allowed myself experience.

The Cookbook is up!

Though it is still very much a work in progress, I am pleased to announce that Christina's Creative Writing Cookbook is up and running! The website is a compilation of creative writing activities I have been doing with my adult ESL students at USD's English Language Academy this semester. I call them weekly writing warm ups (www's). I create the prompts to use as a warmer once per week. Their purpose is to spend class time focused on writing fluency as opposed to accuracy and to  get students to write just for the joy of it. So far it has been quite a success. My class even demanded double www's this week! Check it out here. I'd love to hear your feedback.

A Student-Centric School...

“By keeping students at the center of one’s classroom, a teacher can encourage and inspire students to seek out knowledge and to strive for understanding at a deeper level. Through this process, students see a greater relevance for and a stronger connection to the subject at hand. Through student-centered instruction, our students can achieve independent minds and the capacity to make educational decisions and value judgments” (Brown, 2008, p. 5).

Materials

In a word: individualized. Not only is the curriculum unique but the pacing is individualized. Most people may immediately think computerized when the word individualized pops up. In my student-centered educational utopia however, this would not be the case. I love this quote from edutopia.com about the misconception about computer-based learning for transformation:

To implement computer-based learning in a way that transforms the classroom into a student-centric one, we must heed the right lessons from understanding disruption. Cramming computers in the back of classrooms or in computer labs as a tool for the existing classroom model or as a subject in and of itself won't do the trick. Instead, we must find areas of nonconsumption to deploy computer-based learning where it will be unencumbered by existing education processes. Once planted in these areas, it can take root, begin to improve, and, over time, transform the way students learn.

Though technology such as computer programs offering information taught to various learning styles would be available, I would encourage teacher-training on adapting to learning styles. Peer teaching cohorts would also be foundational to the system. What I mean by that is that students are given the choice and opportunity to study and master what interests them. The end result would often be teaching what one has learned or creating materials for a future student to study.

Teachers

In the student-centric model of education teachers step down from their role as “sage on the stage” and transition into a less (let’s admit it) egotistical “guide on the side”. As described on openeducation.net, “In the student centered classroom, the teacher is a coach and mentor, a support person who troubleshoots and problem solves when students need such help.” As much work would be individualized there would be need for a great shift in teacher’s paradigms from seeing their role as a sole distributor of knowledge to more of  a coach whose job is to encourage students to build their own knowledge.

Physical layout/Environment

Rather than rows of desks facing the teacher’s “stage” like this:

a student-centered class may look more like this:

However I would also encourage heavy peer-teaching. I firmly believe the adage that “The best way to learn is to teach.” We could showcase our students’ strengths and build confidence and encourage accountability by forming peer teaching groups where a student has the chance to teach where they excel.

Assessment/Grades

In student-centered learning curriculum and assessment are centered on meaningful performances in real-world contexts. The attached pdf “Characteristics of Effective Instruction: Student-Centered Learning” states that in student-centered classes “Students are empowered to use prior knowledge to construct new learning.” Since all students’ prior knowledge is unique, students would be judged by improvement for their own unique starting points not by where they fall into a class curve. In general, think projects rather than tests as the main medium of gauging student learning.

Now for the tough question…would I want to teach in a student-centric school? 

I’ll admit that it takes a lot of getting used to stepping out of the spotlight as a teacher. I often feel guilty in a class where there is so much student interaction going on I feel like more of a fly on the wall than focal point. But I always have to remind myself that when students are actively engaged in the process of creating knowledge they are connecting with the skill/material much more than when are passively consuming regurgitated knowledge.  It takes a great guide to build that kind of autonomy. I imagine teaching in a student-centric environment would be a little like watching your child roll away on a 2-wheel bicycle for the first time. There is the bitter-sweet pull at your heart that your hand is not needed any more, but the great joy in knowing you have helped someone fly their own ship. What could feel more rewarding than that?

Some great resources for building student-centric learning environments:

http://www.openeducation.net/2008/09/28/teacher-centered-vs-student-centered-classrooms/

http://www.edutopia.org/student-centric-education-technology#

http://www.publicagenda.org/discussion-guides/creating-student-centered-schools

Twitter inspired my lesson plans for this week!

Curricular freedom has to be one of my absolute favorite parts of teaching in the Adult English as a Second Language (ESL) field. When I realized that I had some space to fill in my course schedule next week, where did I go for inspiration? Twitter! I browsed recent posts from my “twuddies” (got it? twitter + buddies=twuddies. I’m putting it out there now) at #engchat, #ellchat and others in the ESL field.  In less than 5 minutes I came across a tweet with a link to an interesting looking article titled “Change of language, change of personality?” Check it out for yourself  here. In a nutshell, the article discusses the possibility of one’s personality shifting depending on the language they happen to be interacting in. My 620R students are rapidly approaching what I would deem proficiency so I thought this could be interesting topic for them to explore.  I also thought it would be fun for me to get to dig into their heads a bit about how they feel they are being represented as their English-speaking selves.  I created some discussion questions to lead into the article then we delved into it together.

Here were the pre-reading questions I created to lead into the text, beginning with interpretation/discussion of a Czech proverb:

"Learn a new language and get a new soul."

-Czech proverb

1.      What is your favorite word in English? What do you like about it?

2.      What is your least favorite word in English? What don’t you like about it?

3.      With whom do you feel most comfortable speaking English?

a.      native English speakers

b.      people who share your native language

c.       other non-native English speakers who do not share your native language

Which of these do you feel least comfortable speaking English to?

4.      When you speak English, do you feel like the language you use is more polite or more direct?

5.      What are some major differences between your native language and English?

6.      Can you think of any words or expressions in your language that are difficult to translate into English?

7.      Are there any words or expressions that you use a lot in your native language but do not use very often in English?

8.      How would you describe yourself using 3 adjectives?

9.      Would you use those same adjectives to describe your “English-speaking self”?

10.  So…do you feel like your personality in English is any different that your personality in your native language?

If so, how?

What do you think is the reason for this difference?

After reading I asked students to answer these 3 questions:

1.      What is the author’s question?

2.      What answer does he propose?

3.      Do you agree with his opinion?

I taught the class today and it went over really well! I am excited for our next class when I intend to expand on the topic by allowing my students to choose any other article related to bilingualism to read with guiding questions and then teach to their peer groups. The idea is that the students will be intrinsically motivated by a topic that pertains to their lives directly and then being given freedom to choose a sub-article of their interest. I’ll let you know how it goes!

Google+ Hangouts Rock!

So I had just had to share... I'm so excited about Google + hangouts! After our EDUC 578 meeting I called my dad and demanded to he get a gmail account so we could, well, hangout. Now the babies can see their grandparents any time! This is definitely my most favorite tech tool of the semester. If haven't tried it, you must! Here are some helpful directions on how to get a Google + hangout started.

Disruptive Innovation

Come on, who doesn't root for the underdog?

Our society loves to root for the underdog. This is what makes the idea of disruptive innovation so romantic…it’s the new, unassuming, little guy coming in and bowling over the established, cocky, big guy. Online textbook sale/rental sites are a good example of a disruptor in the world of education. For years university book stores happily plugged along, virtually without competition, ripping off students to no end (can you taste a hint of a bitter former-under grad in that statement?). Then along came companies like abebooks.com (a personal favorite) selling the very same textbooks for a fraction of the price (I’ve gotten required course material for $1 vs. $75 at the Torero store).

In the beginning one may scratch their head and think, “well that’s nice but there’s no way that company can make it selling books for a buck.” Right? Wrong! As Clayton Christensen, the creator of the term disruptive innovation states, “Characteristics of disruptive businesses, at least in their initial stages, can include:  lower gross margins, smaller target markets, and simpler products and services that may not appear as attractive as existing solutions.” What happened is that good old college book stores got too comfortable to the point of stagnation (this is what Christensen refers to as “sustaining innovation”), leaving themselves vulnerable to upheaval from the underdog. And what do you know? The little guy wins!

For all the chart lovers out there.