1.Teaching to Exceed theEnglish Language ArtsCommon Core StandardsRichard Beach, University of MinnesotaAmanda Haertling Thein, University of IowaOnline handouthttp://tinyurl.com/cwndbp3Resource website:http://englishccss.pbworks.com

2. Strengths of the CCSS Not mandating content to be taught Versus the Profile of Learning Emphasis on informationaltexts/argumentative writing Connection to social studies and science 3. Limitations of the CCSS Formalist approach to reading/writinginstruction Teaching structures of essay/literatureversus responses/experiences 4. Decline in writing aboutexperience 5. Implemenation: Publishers use ofText-dependent questions The Standards strongly suggest thata majority of questions posed tochildren be based on the text underconsideration, not rely on studentsdifferent knowledge backgrounds. Authors of the Common CoreStandards in ELA/Literacy 6. Publishers ad: Give them informational andnarrative books they cant put downwith text-dependent questions forevery title! Every book in the following setscomes with a Text-DependentComprehension Card to help studentsrespond to 4 levels of text-dependentquestions on new Common Core andstate assessments. Saves prep time 7. Literature/informational textsPrior knowledge: Before reading All Quiet on the WesternFront, my honors-level sophomores readthree pieces on morality and ethics, writtenby Pema Chdrn, Thomas Jefferson, andMachiavelliall of whom propose certainethical standards to live by. As we then readAll Quiet, the moral dilemmas came intosharp focus as students considered howErich Maria Remarque created his ownethical code. They read Taliban propagandaand then the Declaration of Independence.We looked at how people use that power,both legitimately and illegitimately. 8. Grade level standards based onprogressions: Literature 6th grade. Interpret the figurative andconnotative meanings of words andphrases as they are used in a text. 7th grade. Interpret the figurative andconnotative meanings of words andphrases as they are used in a text anddescribe in detail a specific word choiceand its impact on meaning and tone. 8th grade. Explain the comparisons anauthor makes through metaphors,allusions, or analogies in a text andanalyze how those comparisonscontribute to meaning. 9. Literacy practice frameworkFraming eventsConstructing and enacting identitiesRelating to and collaborating with othersConstructing texts or objectsSynthesizing and connecting textsCritiquing and representing issuesFormulating effective arguments onissuesCritiquing systems Re-designing/transforming systems 10. 9 th/10th grade argumentativewritingarguments which they: 1. Write a. Introduce a precise claim, distinguish it fromalternate or opposing claims, and provide anorganization that establishes clear relationships amongthe claim, reasons, and evidence. b. Develop a claim and counterclaim fairly, supplyingevidence for each, while pointing out the strengths oftheir own claim and the weaknesses of thecounterclaim. c. Use precise words, phrases, and clauses to makeclear the relationships between claims and reasons,between reasons and evidence, and between claimsand counterclaims. d. Sustain an objective style and tone while attendingto the norms and conventions of the specific disciplineas well as to the audiences knowledge of the issue. 11. Negotiating identities/adoptingperspectives: Online role-play Issue: Access to information onblocked websites Students adopt pro-con roles construct a persona employ rhetorical appeals support their position with reasons identify and refute counter-arguments revise or modify ones own positions 12. Using a Ning as the platformfor online role-play: 13. Using Diigo sticky notes to share annotations onrelated research http://grou.ps/cwhybrid2010t1/talks/5160010/4 14. Threaded discussion allows students easily followdiscussion 15. Role construction: Adoptingdifferent perspectivesEmoGirl: Critique of schoolInternet policiesI think the internetusage policies are ridiculous.The policies arealmost impossible to find. Ispent half an hour trying tofind them and Im ayoung, computer savvyperson. 16. Strict Father cultural model:Charles Hammerstein III The issue with sites likeYouTube is that it is ahelpful site when usedcorrectly, but the ratio ofstudents who would use itto the students who wouldabuse it would greatly favorthe later of the two. R-ratedsites are not ok becausethey usually containinformation and content thatmay be consideredoffensive. The internetpolicies are very clear, ifyour grandmother would notappreciate it, then youprobably shouldnt be doingthose kind of things atschool. 17. Issues from literatureElizabeth Barniskis, Edina High School:Huck or Chuck?: Using Online Role-Play and Ning to Negotiate Race in theHigh School English Classroom ~MCTE Journal 18. Same-sex classrooms enhancelearning 1. Divide up table: half pro/half con 2. Adopt roles: teachers, students,administrators, counselors, parents,etc. 3. Adopt a pro or con position andvoice your opinions with supportingreasons Share positions (State role andpositions) http://todaysmeet.com/M 19. Making sense of the CCSS, literacypractices and:LANGUAGE, GRAMMAR, AND USAGE 20. English teachers and red ink: English teachers ought to teachproper grammar, spelling, andmechanics, right? The primary job of an English teacheris to teach student to speak and writein Standard English, isnt it? The answers are not so simple! 21. In this part of the session Ill talkabout: Current theory and research onlanguage variation, vernaculardialects, and English languagelearning What the CCSS ask of Englishteachers with regard to the teachingof language, grammar, and usage How you can meet and exceed thesestandards as you acknowledge andbuild upon students language andliteracy practices 22. Direct instruction of traditionalschool grammar Student learning through directioninstruction of traditional school grammarhas been extensively studied withabsolutely clear results: The study of traditional school grammar (i.e.,the definition of parts of speech, the parsingof sentences, etc.) has no effect on raisingthe quality of student writingIn some casesa heavy emphasis on mechanics and usage(e.g. , marking every error) results insignificant losses in overall quality. - Hillocks, 1984, p. 160 23. What do the CCSS call for? At first glance they seem at advocatefor a traditional approach: Anchor standards state that studentsshould demonstrate command of theconventions of standard English grammarand usage when writing or speaking. 24. What do the CCSS call for? However, in the CCSS key pointssection they explain that: The standards recognize that students mustbe able to use formal English in their writingand speaking but that they must also be ableto make informed, skillful choices among themany ways to express themselves throughlanguage. This caveat is also seen in standardsthat state that students should: Apply knowledge of language to understandhow language functions in differentcontexts, to make effective choices formeaning or style, and to more fully 25. In other words: While the CCSS place a high valueon Standard English, they alsosuggest that students must be able tounderstand and use languagevariation within the English languageas well as other languages thatstudents might speak in their homesand communities across differentacademic and social contexts. 26. How does language variationwork? In order for students to understandhow language functions, they need toconsider how it varies and changes Example of English as spoken inU.S.: Regional differences; generationaldifferences how do they occur? 27. Is there one, correct, formal,standard English? People often assume so Variations (AAVE, Chicano English, etc.)must then be informal or even improperor incorrect. People who see themselves as speakingstandard English typically those whoare white and middle class tend tohold negative views of people whospeak vernacular Englishes. Teachers often have lower expectationsof students who speak such variations. 28. These ideas have been widelydebunked by linguists andliteracy scholars.Standard dialects are not linguisticallybetter by any objective measure; they aresocially preferred simply because they arethe language variations uses by thosewho are most powerful and affluent insociety. In addition, although schools oftenrefer to Standard English as if it were asingle dialect, there are numerousregional standard dialects.- Godley, et. al., 2006 29. Do SE speakers actually speakSE? James Gee (1996) argues that ALLEnglish speakers (and speakers ofany language) speak a range ofinformal variations of English that varyin their faithfulness to SE acrosssocial contexts. As a teacher you almost certainlyspeak a different variation of Englishin your classroom than you do athome with friends or family 30. Language as social practice -Pennycook (2010) In no one really speaks standardforms of languages, than how dolanguage actually function? Languages are not systems that are usedmore or less formally in various socialcontexts Instead, social contexts themselves drivelanguage use and construction. We use language to achieve social goals for instance to construct identities orbuild relationships. 31. Language as social practice -Pennycook (2010) Language is not a system that ischanged or distorted by social contexts,but shifts with social needs Example friend and unfriend The construction and use of these termsdeveloped within bundles of social practicesthat are a necessary part of social networking Abbreviations such as lol and btw Not simple formal or careless means ofcommunication Logical and useful variations that developedas part of the social practice of texting 32. So why teach Standard Englishat all? Students need to learn about theconcept of SE, what it looks like, andits gatekeeping role in allowing sopeople access to power while denyingit to others SE is part of codes of powers thatwe should not deny any of ourstudents from accessing andunderstanding (Delpit, 2006). 33. Delpit (2006) To act as if power does not exist is toensure the power status quo remainsthe same. To imply to childrenthatis doesnt matter how you talk or howyou write is to ensure their ultimatefailure. I prefer to be honest with mystudents. I tell them that theirlanguage and cultural style is uniqueand wonderful but that there is apolitical power game that is also beingplayed, and if they want to be in onthat game there are certain games 34. Englishes, not English (Kirkland,2010) Teachers should acknowledge andteach the power of SE The should also consider ways thatother variations provide access toparticular kinds of status and socialpower Example: working class girls (Jones, 2006) Used regional variation and discourse toshout back at a mainstream society thatjudged them harshly (122) 35. Activity: Consider the variation in your ownlanguage use, even within your role asan English teacher Working with a partner role-play 3scenarios. Describe your goals for oneof your English courses to yourprincipal, a parent, and a student. Take turns being the teacher. The otherpartner listens and examines: Word choice, grammar/usage, affect, andtone Information that is included/omitted Consistency of language with SE in eachscenario 36. Debrief: What did you notice about languagevariation in this activity? What social practices was yourlanguage linked to in each scenario? What kinds of social access might yougain through your use of languagevariation in each scenario? 37. How can we help studentsunderstand language variation? Show students that SE is not a staticsystem Close examination of language inShakespeare functional shifts such asusing a word commonly used as a nounas a verb leading to changes in the wordsuse in everyday speech. Show students the same poem written inOld English, Middle English, and ModernEnglish. 38. How can we help studentsunderstand language variation?Some words or phrases becomelinguistic fads; others fall into disuse ormisuse. Rules of taste change, andthe pronunciations, uses, conjugations,and spellings of words are altered overtime to adjust to new contexts,speakers, purposes, and audiences.We call this adaptability survival of thefittest when we discuss other kinds ofevolution; it is evidence of theresilience of language and not a matterfor concern (Zuidema, 2005, p. 672). 39. Grammar vs. Usage (Zuidema,2005): Grammar internal patterns that agiven language naturally follows Usage rules of taste Confusion between the two leadspeople to see the English languageas more rules oriented than it is. Examples: aint or ending a sentence ina preposition. Neither are grammaticallyincorrect from a linguistic standpoint, onfrom the standpoint of particular tastes. 40. De-centering StandardEnglishTranslating Tupac Shakurs Just Me Against the World from a variation of AAVE to SEThough each passagehas the sameliteral meaning, the original, non-StandardEnglish passage inevitably holds far moreemotional and rhetorical powerviadifferent translations of the same text, mystudents experienced firsthand howmeaning can be list when we insist on arigid form of English for making meaning 41. Examining linguistic prejudice Wilson (2001) suggests askingstudents to look at ways thatparticularregional, racial, cultural, andgenerational variations of English arestigmatized, stereotyped and linked toparticular identities in popular cultureand media. Viewing sitcoms how dialects delineatecharacter types Record evidence of language prejudice incartoons, newspapers or magazine 42. Students examining their ownvariations Role playing activity in which studentsdescribe a car accident to parents,friends, and an insurance agent(Hagemann, 2001) Depending on the audience [students]chose different words, added/deletedparticular details, used a different tone,etc. (p. 78). Ask students to list all of thevariations they hear and speak ineveryday life (dinner table, church,military, school, etc.) (Flynn, 2011). 43. Constructing and enactingidentities through languagevariation: Helping students understand howidentities are constructed through useof language as social practice. Challenge and rethink their status quouses of language as they impact theirability to access particular kinds of power. 44. Seeing links between identity andlanguage in the classroom: Acknowledge and allow students touse home languages and variations inclass whenever possible Choose texts that use non-standarddialects to provide students a meansof exploring identity and language 45. Collaborating with others inexploring language: Provides multiple perspectives on socialpractices related to language use Student-centered, dialogic discussion(Godley & Minnici, 2008) of language use: African American students identified nuancesand variation in the use of AAVE acrossneighborhoods in their city. Emphasized distinct identities within anAfrican American community rather than alinguistic identity constructed primarily inopposition to White identities (p. 336). 46. Conducting ethnographies oflanguage use: Students collaborate in studyinglanguage oral and written language useas it is linked toroles, relationships, norms, beliefs, andsocial practices in a particularcommunity. Athletic teams Sororities/fraternities Car body shop Church communities Students learn how language is used toestablish shared knowledge and defineidentities within a group 47. Synthesizing and connectingacross languages and dialects:Once your students learn to: Frame all language as inherently variable Understand language use as a social practices used to construct identities And, explore multiple perspectives on language use through collaborative discussion and inquiry they will be ready to synthesize what theyve learned and make connections that will lead them to acquisition on new language variations 48. Knowledge of home language orvariation can help students gainproficiency in Standard English: Comparison or contrastive analysis(Godley & Minnici, 2008) of language Learning to notice and pay attention tofeatures in their home language as theyseek to understand particularities of SE Negation in AAVE or Southern U.S. dialects(aint vs. is not) Students learn to determineeffectiveness of language choices forparticular audiences 49. Key point: Students need to understand that youare not asking them to give up theirhome languages: Our goal as teachers should be expandingrather than erasing a students linguisticrepetoire (Hagemann, 2001). Students need to know about code-switching (Depit, 2006) using differentlanguages, discourses, and variations indifferent contexts. Examples on code-switching can be found inliterature (A Lesson Before Dying, To Kill aMockingbird, etc.) 50. In sum: The CCSS for language and usageconvey two key ideas: They ask that teachers help students gainproficiency in SE in both written and oralforms They ask that teachers ensure that studentsunderstand the contextual nature of languageand usage and are prepared to communicateappropriately and effectively across socialcontexts Both of these standards can be met andexceeded by literacy practices that helpstudents understand language variationand the role of SE within that variation. 51. Digital/media literacieshandout:http://tinyurl.com/boemvof 52. Using Diigo social bookmarkingfor sharing annotations1. Add Diigo to your iPad or computertoolbar2. Find an online text3. Highlight sections of the text4. Click on the icon to add a Sticky Noteresponse5. Have other students add their responses 53. Diigo annotations: Pro-conreadings: benefits of energy fromwind power th 7 grade students iMelanieSwandbys Lighthouse School CommunityCharter School, Oakland, California Students posed questions for eachother What does that mean, virtuallyfree? What are some things that useenergy or power? 54. Adding sticky-noteannotations 55. One students annotation: Prowind turbine essay 56. One students annotation: conessay 57. Students responding to eachothers annotations 58. Dialogic interactions throughannotationsThere is a bad and good thing about this. Bad is it kills birds passing by. Good it makes energy cleaner. Tarnished with wind turbines? Arent wind turbines supposed to be a good thing? Why are they complaining about the turbines? it doesnt even look bad. 59. Use of annotations for summarywriting I am perplexed in choosing if windenergy is a good courses or bad source.While, wind energy is a good sourcebecause its renewable and needsnothing more but construction, it canalso cause irritation and attention ofsome people. Wind turbines are loud,noisy, and risky. Even though, it doesntcause any greenhouse gases in the air,wind turbines are harmful to wildlife andspace. More birds die by getting hit bywind turbines which is very dangerous toour wildlife. 60. Digital concept mapping iPad apps: iBrainstorm, MindMeisterfor Ipad,, Sundry Notes, Idea Sketch,Total Recall, inShare, iMindMapMindNode, iThoughtsHD, Popplet Lite http://tinyurl.com/3o6a3wy Hierarchical/logical relationships betweenkey concepts 61. 5 th Grade Students: PoppletLite for Concept Mapping 5th grade studentsin LauraKretschmars classat LighthouseCommunity CharterSchool, Oakland, California Lesson on rareearth metals toaddress thequestion, What isgold? 62. Mateos initial map: What isgold? 63. Mateos revised map 64. Speaking and listeningstandards: Discussing to learn 65. Subtext: book discussions 66. Images/audio/video to learn 67. Comic Life 68. Objective: Understand personal experience, opinions andattitudes about modern society through techniques ofnarrative storytelling within a multi-media product thatincorporates photos from a variety of sources. The finalproduct must present a thorough narrative of yourexperience. Use photos and/or drawings from your ownlife. Use text bubbles that convey both dialog andthoughts. You may use and cite additional sources thatyou find to give more information about current events. 69. VoiceThread: Multiple audiencesshare responses to the sameimages 70. 5th Graders: VoiceThread forStudying Dinosaurs Extinction of the dinosaurs:supernova, volcanoes, or an asteroid. Volcanoeshttp://voicethread.com/share/2454743/ Supernovahttp://voicethread.com/share/2544219/ Asteriodhttp://voicethread.com/share/2545658/ 71. Students ShowMes: Genetics:dominant vs. recessive traits If a brown eyed and a blue eyed parenthad a baby, what color eyes would the babyhave? http://www.showme.com/sh/?h=ibbycYS Mother and father birds and baby bird http://www.showme.com/sh/?h=RNKspgu Pea plant genetics http://www.showme.com/sh/?h=GC6q3nM 72. Screencasting: Students or youcreate how-to tutorials for peers VoiceThread, ExplainEverything,Screenchomp, ShowMe,Educreastions Snapguide http://tinyurl.com/ctkslx8 Students: 73. Screencasting: feedback VoiceThread, ExplainEverything, Screenchomp, ShowMe, Educreastions Video response to writing: Jing http://tinyurl.com/3kkw4am Speeches/drama: FormativeFeedback for Learninghttp://formativefeedbackapp.blogspot.com 74. Publishing Multimodal Writing ePub: Mac Pages (soon to beon iPad Pages) Apple iBooks Author (requiresOS Lion): iBooks 75. Toms Messengerhttp://tinyurl.com/7v7klxw 76. My message on TomsMessenger 77. Another message 78. Brainstorm: Digital tools/apps How could you use digital tools/appsto engage students in learning? Share:http://todaysmeet.com/MCTE 79. Professional LearningCommunity