"If you want to improve teaching, the most effective place to do so is in the context of a classroom lesson."
In the fall of 2011, I will be starting my students teaching, and one of my biggest fears, besides being mistaken for a student, is that my lesson plans will fail dismally or worst of all I won't be able to think of one to fail with in the first place. This chapter in Jago's Classics in the Classroom was titled "Lesson Design for Classical Literature" and it dealt with my lesson planning fear head on.
One of Jago's peers stated that teachers should be teaching teachers how to teach. Seems pretty simple, but in the beginning of this chapter, Jago discusses how teaching is the only profession that eats its young. If teachers are supposed to be teaching teachers how to teach, how can this statement be true? Unfortunately, many teachers are too busy to help out the newbies in the school and so many teachers are left on there own. One idea that I really like and could help with me learning from other more experienced teachers is the Writing Project institutes. I can definitely see myself attending one at some point in my career. (I think there might be a project at Kent State).
Another big problem with being a first year teaching is the lesson plan. Jago talks about Japan's lesson studies and how the step by step process is very effective. If we used this program in the States teachers wouldn't be on there own for lesson plan. Jago quotes from James Stigler who explains that many new teachers believe they must come up with something entirely new and different when it come to lesson plans, but he believes that, "There's nothing wrong with going out and doing the standard practice, providing that you have a means of improving it over time". I find this statement not only reassuring and comforting, but also very practical.
Another reassuring statement was that, "teaching is an organic process, deeply dependent upon relationships between students and their teachers, students and the content, students and one another". This is reassuring because if when I first start out teaching I don't get a lesson plan perfect the first time, I can remember that teaching is an "organic" experience and over time with lots of practice and learning from my mistakes I can make something really useful and wonderful for my students.
Lesson plan for Homer's Odyssey - "I always find that the more I know, the better able I am to make the reading comprehensible for my students". so true, I mean how can we expect to teach that which we don't know. I love to read and so it's not too big of a deal to read and re-read the great books I'll be teaching in my class, but reading is also time consuming....thank goodness for audio books :) The bullet point I thought was really useful was:
The concept of always having students take notes as opposed to just handing out papers with the information on it, is a great idea. These students will need to take notes in college anyway, and so it's good to learn it early and learn it well. The various charts of names and maps are cool too.
Jago often mentions the state standards. I know these are vitally important and totally necessary, but sometimes I'm nervous I won't do something quite right to meet the standards. Her suggestion to hand up a particular standard by a project to show that it matches is not only good for the students and those who happen to see it, but also for the teacher him/herself.
Reading and relying only on Sparknotes or the like for knowledge of the text is like "having someone else chew your food" that mental picture is disgusting and effective. I love how she doesn't ignore the existence or use of Sparknotes, she faces it head on and in doing so gives the impression she's read all of the available shortcuts to reading.
I had a question that someone might be able to shed some light on, why is it so important for students to hear the translated texts in the original language they were written? Jago talks about this on pages 134-138 and I wasn't quite sure of the significance.
To end this blog I have a quote from the chapter, "More important than ensuring that every student read every word is ensuring that every student knows how to read an epic". The classroom and the reading of classics is just a stepping stone for students...a foundation that will set them up for a lifetime of personal reading and growth in the continuance of their education even outside of the classroom.
One of Jago's peers stated that teachers should be teaching teachers how to teach. Seems pretty simple, but in the beginning of this chapter, Jago discusses how teaching is the only profession that eats its young. If teachers are supposed to be teaching teachers how to teach, how can this statement be true? Unfortunately, many teachers are too busy to help out the newbies in the school and so many teachers are left on there own. One idea that I really like and could help with me learning from other more experienced teachers is the Writing Project institutes. I can definitely see myself attending one at some point in my career. (I think there might be a project at Kent State).
Another big problem with being a first year teaching is the lesson plan. Jago talks about Japan's lesson studies and how the step by step process is very effective. If we used this program in the States teachers wouldn't be on there own for lesson plan. Jago quotes from James Stigler who explains that many new teachers believe they must come up with something entirely new and different when it come to lesson plans, but he believes that, "There's nothing wrong with going out and doing the standard practice, providing that you have a means of improving it over time". I find this statement not only reassuring and comforting, but also very practical.
Another reassuring statement was that, "teaching is an organic process, deeply dependent upon relationships between students and their teachers, students and the content, students and one another". This is reassuring because if when I first start out teaching I don't get a lesson plan perfect the first time, I can remember that teaching is an "organic" experience and over time with lots of practice and learning from my mistakes I can make something really useful and wonderful for my students.
Lesson plan for Homer's Odyssey - "I always find that the more I know, the better able I am to make the reading comprehensible for my students". so true, I mean how can we expect to teach that which we don't know. I love to read and so it's not too big of a deal to read and re-read the great books I'll be teaching in my class, but reading is also time consuming....thank goodness for audio books :) The bullet point I thought was really useful was:
- An epic poem is a ceremonial performance, and is narrated in a ceremonial style which is deliberately distanced from ordinary speech and proportioned to the grandeur and formality of the heroic subject and architecture.
The concept of always having students take notes as opposed to just handing out papers with the information on it, is a great idea. These students will need to take notes in college anyway, and so it's good to learn it early and learn it well. The various charts of names and maps are cool too.
Jago often mentions the state standards. I know these are vitally important and totally necessary, but sometimes I'm nervous I won't do something quite right to meet the standards. Her suggestion to hand up a particular standard by a project to show that it matches is not only good for the students and those who happen to see it, but also for the teacher him/herself.
Reading and relying only on Sparknotes or the like for knowledge of the text is like "having someone else chew your food" that mental picture is disgusting and effective. I love how she doesn't ignore the existence or use of Sparknotes, she faces it head on and in doing so gives the impression she's read all of the available shortcuts to reading.
I had a question that someone might be able to shed some light on, why is it so important for students to hear the translated texts in the original language they were written? Jago talks about this on pages 134-138 and I wasn't quite sure of the significance.
To end this blog I have a quote from the chapter, "More important than ensuring that every student read every word is ensuring that every student knows how to read an epic". The classroom and the reading of classics is just a stepping stone for students...a foundation that will set them up for a lifetime of personal reading and growth in the continuance of their education even outside of the classroom.
"teaching is an organic process, deeply dependent upon relationships between students and their teachers, students and the content, students and one another".
ReplyDeleteTeaching is an "organic" process - I hope you can remember this during your student teaching :)
This is reassuring because if when I first start out teaching I don't get a lesson plan perfect the first time, I can remember that teaching is an "organic" experience and over time with lots of practice and learning from my mistakes I can make something really useful and wonderful for my students.