ckeifer's blog

This week at my field placement I was able to observe a metacognition class.  When I walked in the students were seated at their desks working independently on what seemed like different steps of the same process.  Some were reading through packets of paper, others writing by hand, and still others on their computer.  At the beginning of the year the students learned about different learning styles and figured out which type of learning style they have.  They learned about how their brain works and why one method may work better for them.  As the year progressed they learned about different study skills and techniques and practiced developing these skills in the classroom. 

I was amazed that this school is implementing this type of learning at a sixth grade level.  I think it is an extremely important skill to possess and I am happy that these students are able to have the resources to develop their study techniques.  However, I would argue that the meta-learning process needs to be taken one step further.  I think it is important for students to apply the same methods to talking about the curriculum and where they are in their learning process within their core subject areas.  I hope that I have the opportunity to talk with some of the students in the class to see what they think about this process and their learning.

Today I had my first field placement.  I am placed in a 6th grade classroom at a college prep school designed for students with learning differences. The thing that jumped out at me the most at my field placement today was that the “how” of literacy education was really coming through in an obvious way in this classroom. It was obvious to me today that many of the students in this class, because they have learning differences, have been grouped in with students who lack the literacy skills necessary to excel in regular education classrooms. This classroom is unique because it consists of predominantly wealthy white upper middle class students who come from homes that value education. They are also being provided with the support they need to acquire the literacy skills necessary to succeed in higher education.  Literacy skills were being explicitly taught in a way that would not be seen in regular education classrooms especially at a 6th grade level.

Here is a short list of some of the teaching techniques that I observed today to help the students learn literacy skills.  Many of these are things that I myself do automatically and that many kids learn to do over time on their own.

As I start to formulate a definition of what literacy is, I’m finding that it is far easier to say what it is not.  For instance, literacy is not just knowing how to read and write. It is not just being proficient in a language.  Literacy can not be constrained to only the dominant discourse. Literacy is not an individual event. Being literate is not the same as being educated.  Literacy is not inclusive. I could go on forever describing all the things that are not literacy and still feel no closer to defining what literacy truly is.  I’m pushed to question the ramifications of putting so much emphasis on a concept, literacy, without having a clear definition of what it is.  Literacy is something that is deemed essential in the school setting yet how can a curriculum promote literacy if there is no working definition that is accepted?  Completing the exercise of defining literacy has shown me that more critical thinking must be done in this area to reach a more inclusive and succinct definition that is easily understood and applicable by its’ audience.  Furthermore, defining literacy more successfully should illuminate better methods of promoting literacy in classrooms and communities.