This week I discovered many new strategies and ideas for improving the teaching process of reading in my classroom. To be honest, this has caused me to rethink how I am teaching literacy in my classes—especially reading—in relationship to how our District wants the curriculum delivered. The analogy becomes, what will stay the same after I finish this program, with the knowledge that I am gaining through this course? Which begs the follow-up, how will I collocate this message to improve the affective environment of my classroom? Right now, there are a lot of dissimilarities between the two; it is now my challenge to mesh the two a find what works best in my classroom.
Designing or reimaging the classroom to create extraordinary minds on activities will be successful only if I provide teaching opportunities for students that will expand beyond the video screen of the computer and tap into their ability to make sense of the content (Laureate Education, Inc., 2005). According to Weaver (2002), schema is the prior knowledge, varied interests, values, and life-factors that influence students’ everyday choices. Affective environment in the computer lab-my classroom-is dependent upon what students see in the first two minutes of walking into the lab. What these students experience before they sit down affects what they will learn while they are tuned into the electronic classroom environment.
According to Hinchman, et al. (2003), teachers may find value in looking first at students’ experiences (p. 306). As a teacher, it is important to me to try and fill some of the gaps that students have in regard to experiences they have had. This is very important when it comes to English Language Learners and their reading progress, however it is not just ELLs that need this support, all of my students need support.
Another important lesson I learned this week is that I am remiss in providing adequate academic support for the students I teach. It’s not only the challenges that accompany alternative students, what I need to improve is how I can elevate their self-efficacy by showing them there are effective choices and options that will improve their literacy retention (Brozo & Flynt, 2008). A lot of the students have issues with reading on to a computer. As students become comfortable with the online learning environment they will start to venture out on their own, using strategies that they have brought with them and have learned in their online reading development. By applying these strategies and resources, I am confident that the learning environment in my classroom will improve.
References:
Brozo, W. G., & Flynt, E. S. (2008). Motivating students to read in the content classroom: Six evidence-based principles. The Reading Teacher 62(2), 172–174. Retrieved from the Walden Library using Education Research Complete database.
Hinchman, K. A., Alvermann, D. E., Boyd, F. B., Brozo, W. G., Vacca, R. T. (2003). Supporting older students' in- and out-of-school literacies. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy 47 (4), 304–3 10. Retrieved from the Walden Library using Education Research Complete database.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2005). Creating a supportive academic learning environment [Video webcast]. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_ 1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3F%26id=_2822226_1%26url=
Weaver, C. (2002). Reading process and practice. (3rd ed.). Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Designing or reimaging the classroom to create extraordinary minds on activities will be successful only if I provide teaching opportunities for students that will expand beyond the video screen of the computer and tap into their ability to make sense of the content (Laureate Education, Inc., 2005). According to Weaver (2002), schema is the prior knowledge, varied interests, values, and life-factors that influence students’ everyday choices. Affective environment in the computer lab-my classroom-is dependent upon what students see in the first two minutes of walking into the lab. What these students experience before they sit down affects what they will learn while they are tuned into the electronic classroom environment.
According to Hinchman, et al. (2003), teachers may find value in looking first at students’ experiences (p. 306). As a teacher, it is important to me to try and fill some of the gaps that students have in regard to experiences they have had. This is very important when it comes to English Language Learners and their reading progress, however it is not just ELLs that need this support, all of my students need support.
Another important lesson I learned this week is that I am remiss in providing adequate academic support for the students I teach. It’s not only the challenges that accompany alternative students, what I need to improve is how I can elevate their self-efficacy by showing them there are effective choices and options that will improve their literacy retention (Brozo & Flynt, 2008). A lot of the students have issues with reading on to a computer. As students become comfortable with the online learning environment they will start to venture out on their own, using strategies that they have brought with them and have learned in their online reading development. By applying these strategies and resources, I am confident that the learning environment in my classroom will improve.
References:
Brozo, W. G., & Flynt, E. S. (2008). Motivating students to read in the content classroom: Six evidence-based principles. The Reading Teacher 62(2), 172–174. Retrieved from the Walden Library using Education Research Complete database.
Hinchman, K. A., Alvermann, D. E., Boyd, F. B., Brozo, W. G., Vacca, R. T. (2003). Supporting older students' in- and out-of-school literacies. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy 47 (4), 304–3 10. Retrieved from the Walden Library using Education Research Complete database.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2005). Creating a supportive academic learning environment [Video webcast]. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_ 1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3F%26id=_2822226_1%26url=
Weaver, C. (2002). Reading process and practice. (3rd ed.). Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.