Case Study Presentation
https://www.dropbox.com/s/vsa8r6t4z70t7b4/Case%20Study%20Week%2013.mp4?dl=0
Sunday, December 3, 2017
WEEK 12: Lives of Multilingual Children in Public Schools
The two stories that stand out the most to me are "The Girl Who Wouldn't Sing" and "Learning Silence".
These are two powerful texts that carry the same message. It
illustrates the innermost feelings of ELLs as they struggle to integrate
themselves into a new culture. In "The Girl Who Wouldn't Sing", we
learn about Kit and how she felt forced to give up her Chinese roots in
order to fit in and achieve the American dream. Her loss of identity
and culture hindered her ability to learn and contributed to a negative
sense of self. This story teaches us how not embracing a student's
culture can hinder their social and academic development.
"Learning Silence" is a poem told through the eyes of an ELL student. From this poem, the reader can learn about the importance of providing a welcoming classroom environment to an ELL's academic growth. In the poem, the little girl is feeling scared and unwelcomed in her classroom. The author states, " I hope Miss Barton will not curl her lip when she looks at me. I would gladly turn into Jane if some magic could transform me, make me blond and cute, instead of serious and scared with my sausage curls, my huge, terrified eyes, my long nose, my dark olive-toned skin."The little girl clearly feels disliked by her teacher and perceives that the reason is because she looks different from the other students. Here we have a little girl who has been thrown into a new school, where the people look different and have a different culture than her own. In a situation like this one, it is normal for any child to feel uneasy and like they don't belong. However, the worst factor that is contributing to this student's feelings is the teacher's attitude and behavior. This is causing the student to feel more unwelcomed. When teachers fail to create a classroom environment where the students feel safe and welcomed, the students are less likely to participate and take risks during the learning process. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance that teachers create a classroom environment where students feel like they are part of a community within the classroom and valued and respected. For ELLs, it reduces a lot of anxiety and allows them to focus on learning.
"Learning Silence" is a poem told through the eyes of an ELL student. From this poem, the reader can learn about the importance of providing a welcoming classroom environment to an ELL's academic growth. In the poem, the little girl is feeling scared and unwelcomed in her classroom. The author states, " I hope Miss Barton will not curl her lip when she looks at me. I would gladly turn into Jane if some magic could transform me, make me blond and cute, instead of serious and scared with my sausage curls, my huge, terrified eyes, my long nose, my dark olive-toned skin."The little girl clearly feels disliked by her teacher and perceives that the reason is because she looks different from the other students. Here we have a little girl who has been thrown into a new school, where the people look different and have a different culture than her own. In a situation like this one, it is normal for any child to feel uneasy and like they don't belong. However, the worst factor that is contributing to this student's feelings is the teacher's attitude and behavior. This is causing the student to feel more unwelcomed. When teachers fail to create a classroom environment where the students feel safe and welcomed, the students are less likely to participate and take risks during the learning process. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance that teachers create a classroom environment where students feel like they are part of a community within the classroom and valued and respected. For ELLs, it reduces a lot of anxiety and allows them to focus on learning.
WEEK 11: TONGUETIED
The stories for this week's readings depict the struggles that people
face when learning a new language and attempting to assimilate with
mainstream culture. People need to be more cognizant and sympathetic of
the hardships that immigrants face when they arrive to a new country.
It is even harder on immigrant children because they are less resilient
than adults, so they feel the pressure to assimilate even more than
their parents do. These children enter a new school where there is a
new language and a new culture, unlike their own. In addition, they are
expected to give up their native culture in order to fit into the
mainstream culture, which may not be so welcoming to them.
In the story "Wasicuia ya he? Do you Seak English?", what resonates the most to me is that despite the narrator's grim depiction of reservation schools, he was able to form a meaningful connection w/ teacher who engaged the students in a fun and interesting way through music. This is important because when teachers fail to connect with their students on a personal level, the students become unmotivated and disengaged like the students at the reservations schools. All teachers should try to get to know their students and incorporate their culture and learning preferences into the curriculum in order to make learning more meaningful to their students.
In the second story "The woman Warrior", it was hard to read about the challenges (including bullying) that the little girl had to encounter during her silent period. For ELLs, the silent period is the stage when they start to learn the new language and all they do is listen. They do not speak. I think that this period for ELLs is critical because it can affect the way they view their own culture and create mixed feelings about their own identity. ELLs should not be forced to speak or singled out during this stage. Being a member of the minority group and feeling the pressure to fit in can cause lots of anxiety and stress for these students. Moreover, if they have a negative experience during the silent period (such as being bullied for being different), it can affect their self-confidence and prolong the silent period.
The story "My Hawai'a" sheds light on the sad and unfortunate reality of how immigrants risk losing their own culture when they try to assimilate with the new culture. I think that it is important to maintain your identity and culture, while trying to integrate yourself into the new culture. Teachers should validate their students' cultures and make them feel respected, so that they can feel proud of who they are, rather than feel inferior or ashamed. When students feel inferior, they tend to give up their personal identity just to fit in.
In the story "Wasicuia ya he? Do you Seak English?", what resonates the most to me is that despite the narrator's grim depiction of reservation schools, he was able to form a meaningful connection w/ teacher who engaged the students in a fun and interesting way through music. This is important because when teachers fail to connect with their students on a personal level, the students become unmotivated and disengaged like the students at the reservations schools. All teachers should try to get to know their students and incorporate their culture and learning preferences into the curriculum in order to make learning more meaningful to their students.
In the second story "The woman Warrior", it was hard to read about the challenges (including bullying) that the little girl had to encounter during her silent period. For ELLs, the silent period is the stage when they start to learn the new language and all they do is listen. They do not speak. I think that this period for ELLs is critical because it can affect the way they view their own culture and create mixed feelings about their own identity. ELLs should not be forced to speak or singled out during this stage. Being a member of the minority group and feeling the pressure to fit in can cause lots of anxiety and stress for these students. Moreover, if they have a negative experience during the silent period (such as being bullied for being different), it can affect their self-confidence and prolong the silent period.
The story "My Hawai'a" sheds light on the sad and unfortunate reality of how immigrants risk losing their own culture when they try to assimilate with the new culture. I think that it is important to maintain your identity and culture, while trying to integrate yourself into the new culture. Teachers should validate their students' cultures and make them feel respected, so that they can feel proud of who they are, rather than feel inferior or ashamed. When students feel inferior, they tend to give up their personal identity just to fit in.
WEEK 10: Translanguaging in the 21st Century
Education, Multilingualism and Translanguaging in the 21st Century
This article sheds some light on the classroom practices of teachers and students in bilingual programs. While many people believe that learning a new language is facilitated through the student's home language, some believe in subtractive bilingualism (taking away the student's home language). This article educates us on the use of translanguaging as a resource in multilingual and bilingual classrooms. Translanguaging allows the students to make sense of the content by integration both languages. For example, a student can read and discuss a topic in one language, and then write about it in another language. This allows the student to become stronger in the weaker language. Essentially, using this practice would demonstrate that the student has processed and made sense of the content if he/she is able to write about it. Hence, proving that translanguaging can indeed promote a deeper understanding of what the student is learning.
Translanguaging works by allowing the bilingual student to use linguistic features of L1 and L2 to make better sense of what he/she is learning. To my understanding, the student is doing more than just code switching. The student is using both languages at the same time to gain knowledge and facilitate learning. Therefore, translanguaging is viewed as a resource in the classroom (a language resource) used for learning. I think that translanguaging is a practice that is evident in most bilingual and multilingual classrooms. The integration of languages is needed in order to promote second language acquisition and maintain the student's identity and home language.
This article sheds some light on the classroom practices of teachers and students in bilingual programs. While many people believe that learning a new language is facilitated through the student's home language, some believe in subtractive bilingualism (taking away the student's home language). This article educates us on the use of translanguaging as a resource in multilingual and bilingual classrooms. Translanguaging allows the students to make sense of the content by integration both languages. For example, a student can read and discuss a topic in one language, and then write about it in another language. This allows the student to become stronger in the weaker language. Essentially, using this practice would demonstrate that the student has processed and made sense of the content if he/she is able to write about it. Hence, proving that translanguaging can indeed promote a deeper understanding of what the student is learning.
Translanguaging works by allowing the bilingual student to use linguistic features of L1 and L2 to make better sense of what he/she is learning. To my understanding, the student is doing more than just code switching. The student is using both languages at the same time to gain knowledge and facilitate learning. Therefore, translanguaging is viewed as a resource in the classroom (a language resource) used for learning. I think that translanguaging is a practice that is evident in most bilingual and multilingual classrooms. The integration of languages is needed in order to promote second language acquisition and maintain the student's identity and home language.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)