I am impressed with your great book study!

I loved the book study in Kipnuk. It was fantastic! Great facilitation and participation on everybody’s’ part. I loved the discussion on strategies, which was intertwined with insights from the classroom. This type of discussion can really help you improve your teaching practice. Many of you brought up relevant topics, like wait time and oral language development.

I appreciated  the comment about how you felt about following a scripted program, without deviating from the script. I know some programs put this message out so that they have fidelity with the implementation of the program.  Language acquisition does not happen in isolation.  Language acquisition has to take into account the learner, the teacher, the community, the culture and the influences of other languages in the community, as well as socioeconomic and political factors.  Every language program should emphasize the influence these factors; thus it is only the teacher who can put these pieces together and teach in a way that is most effective for his or her particular students. That is why research says the greatest factor in approving student achievement is the teacher! There is no one program that  will work the best for all students; so the best answer is that teachers should be highly trained so they can become skillful practitioners.

I like the comment someone said about “Why do experts come from the lower-forty-eight and tell us what is best for our students?” I could not agree more. Many teachers across the state have also said this. When you count the hours you have spent with your kids in your classroom, this make you one of the experts for teaching those kids (along with insights from the parents). It is important to increase the skills in your teaching toolbox and continue to find what works best for your students.  What we do need here in Western Alaska is more research on linguistics, which studies the influence of language, culture, socioeconomic and political that affect language acquisition in this region. We need to have our own experts, and not only rely on outside experts. What they have to offer is great, but we also need our own experts for this region, because this region is very unique compared to Washington DC, New York, California or wherever the research is done.

Your discussion reminded me of critical pedagogy. Critical pedagogy focuses on knowledge, reflection and action as a basis for systemic change. Critical pedagogy use the word “critical,” which in this context does not mean “ to criticize,” but rather it refers to a “turning point” or “transformation.” Critical pedagogy encompasses three steps: 1) Information; 2) Reflection; and 3) Action.  What do you think of critical pedagogy? Do you see your teaching practices as a process of learning new knowledge, then reflecting on it in terms of your students,  which then leads to action? I see the book study in terms of critical pedagogy because of the new information that you are learning from the book and the opportunity for  reflection that you have.

I hope I was not too long-winded, but I kept thinking of what you said reflected on your comments as you discussed the chapter and your students, and I kept mulling these ideas over in my head.  Keep up the great work on your book study! I am looking forward to your discussion on interaction.