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Project
#38 April, 1999
The Origin and Context of the Research Each of the five teachers involved in the project implemented English A10 and B10 (Core) in the Herbert School Division during the 1997-1998 school year. They had been working as a collaborative group for two years, focusing on unit planning and exchange of materials and activities. The project was completed in the grade ten classrooms at the schools in Central Butte, Morse, Herbert, Hodgeville, and Chaplin, and at monthly meetings of the five teachers involved. At each meeting, they would study five instructional strategies or activities related to oracy from the curriculum document, or they would study instructional resources, which included other teachers and curriculum support personnel. After a discussion of initial thoughts about the appropriateness of the strategies for rural students, the teachers identified two which would meet or could be adapted to meet their needs. They planned to incorporate these strategies in their English 10 classrooms and to evaluate the ability of their students before and after the strategy was used. At the next meeting, the five teachers would make generalizations based on their observations and assess whether or not the strategy was appropriate in meeting the needs of their students. They decided if further modification of the strategy would be beneficial to their students, and the action research process would begin again with five new strategies and, possibly, two modified strategies from the previous month. Monthly meetings lasted approximately five hours each, and preparation and evaluation time during the month took approximately 2.5 hours per researcher, in addition to regular classroom planning and instructional time using the target strategies. Ideas, Approaches, and Methodologies The schools in which the research was conducted were K-12 schools, with the exception of Hodgeville High School, which has Grades 7-12. The criteria used to define Arural@ were small class size (less than 25 students) and restricted access to a choice of schools (i.e., only one school in the community to choose from at any grade level). As a result of these criteria, the teachers believed they could make the generalization that their students were likely to have a more familiar relationship with one another than students in larger centres. Realizing that the student populations in their schools may or may not be representative of those in rural Saskatchewan schools, the teachers framed their research as a study of five particular schools rather than a project which sought to make generalizations about all rural schools. With this limitation in mind, however, the teachers also believed that their research would be valuable to other teachers and students in situations similar to theirs. The selection of instructional strategies for study was based initially on the strategies suggested in the 1997 English Language Arts curriculum. In addition, the teachers used reference books related to oracy that were included in the bibliography of the curriculum. They believed that these were the resources that would receive the most use by teachers as they met the oracy objectives in the curriculum, and, therefore, they would be the most important resources to study. The oracy skills of students were measured using teacher notes and observations and student journals and interviews. In some cases, strategies were used several times in an attempt to measure the increased oracy benefits that the teachers' modifications were intended to provide. The research was carried out within the framework of the 1997 English Language Arts 10-30 curriculum, which is based on the foundational principle that learning is language-based, and language can be used as a way of learning, not simply to demonstrate previous learnings. The teachers believed that this movement from a literature-based curriculum would enhance student growth and that their research would complement the implementation of the core curriculum in English Language Arts. Relevance of the Research This research project is relevant to the improvement of teaching and learning in Saskatchewan as a result of both its focus and the time at which the project occurred. Following the changes in credit requirements that resulted from the work of the High School Review Advisory Committee, teachers in subject areas other than English Language Arts became increasingly responsible for language study across the curriculum. At the same time, English teachers were moving from a literature-based to a language-based curriculum, in which the importance of oracy was more clearly recognized. Support for all teachers was necessary as they worked to incorporate strategies related to oracy into their lesson and unit planning, but specific support was necessary for teachers in rural schools where students' experience with speaking, listening, and relating to each other is different from that of their urban counterparts. Teachers in rural schools face the challenge of limited resources and multi-graded classrooms, but they also have the opportunity presented by small class size and a commonality of experience in their students. It was believed they would benefit from a document that characterizes the unique reality of oracy in rural Saskatchewan and suggests ways of meeting needs and enhancing student experience. Without such a document, rural teachers are limited to strategies more suitable for urban settings and may miss the opportunity to introduce students to appropriate, formal listening and speaking strategies for meaningful learning and appreciation. The organization of this study's findings around the foundational and learning objectives of the 1997 English Language Arts 10-30 curriculum promises to make the results of the research accessible and practical for English teachers in rural Saskatchewan schools. In addition, because many other curricula are focusing on language as a means of learning and not simply as a tool to express learning, the results of the research should prove useful to teachers in other subject areas. - Based on the project application by Tony Baldwin Teaching Oracy to Rural Students One particular problem that the new English Language Arts curriculum brought to English teachers was the increase of oracy to 50% of the curriculum. Teaching listening and speaking did not seem particularly formidable but assessing it objectively did. There were also other problems associated with the teaching of oracy that were experienced particularly in rural schools: the lack of resources, the familiarity of the students, the lack of technical equipment, the diversity of the learning levels in each classroom, and the acceptance by the parents of the greater emphasis on oracy in giving out marks for English. Throughout the year of the study, most of these issues were addressed, and although they were not necessarily solved, many suggestions were made for dealing with them. Lack of Resources The networking between the five teachers undertaking the study began in itself to solve the problem of lack of resources as we made lists, exchanged ideas and generally made our material accessible to each other. The listening experiences were drawn from everything we did in the school, whether it was a quiz on the day's announcements, a listening guide to be completed as the students listened to a speaker, or a self assessment for the students as they sat in other classes. Many ideas complemented themes we were teaching. For example, Jan's classes enjoyed solving Five Minute Mysteries that she would read to them. On the other hand, Bonnie's class found them difficult to solve, so she made up a set of questions for each mystery that would guide their listening and help them solve the case (see Appendix J). Over the course of the project, the ideas and shared assignments reduced our preparation time. Familiarity of the Students Small town students often see the school as their only place for socialization. There's no mall to hang out in and many ride the bus to school and home again, so their class time spent with their friends is valuable Achatting A time that they don't readily give up. Getting the class on task and keeping it there is often the greatest discipline problem in the rural school. Group work can present a special challenge. Controlling who will be in what group and giving very structured assignments with built-in behavioral assessment does help. Some students will refuse to work with certain class mates and others just won't talk in front of their peers. A teacher really needs to be aware of the dynamics of enemies and cliques within the classroom in order to avoid disruptions to teaching and learning. The familiarity of the students, grown out of ten years of studying with the same peers and an in-depth knowledge of each other's abilities, combined with the students' real concern about maintaining a certain image within that classroom, often undermined a number of group projects, speaking assignments and class presentations. The students had clearly defined roles within the classroom. A climate needed to be created conducive to safe discussions, starting with compatible partners recording responses, coaxing out discussions, building to larger groups, breaking cliques and eventually moving to complete classroom discussions and class presentations. Familiarity was a concern that had to be conquered before oracy could be successful. Lack of Technical Equipment One problem with the study of oracy in most small rural schools is the lack of suitable technical resources. There may be one cassette tape player, no listening stations, and maybe a video camera to be shared by the entire school. There are not many guest speakers in the school to create a listening Amoment@. As a result, rural teachers are challenged to be inventive, e.g., they may tape television and news broadcasts that the whole class can listen to; they may create an alternate activity while one group videotapes a commercial, or they may have to evaluate all speaking assignments as performed without the luxury of taping them for consideration later. Diversity of Learning Levels The diversity of learning levels within the rural classroom presents extra problems as some strategies prove unsuitable for slower learners (debates, for example), while other strategies can be frustrating for academically talented learners (like drawing a scene from a listening passage). This often requires that the teacher run different groups for students with different levels of learning. The Literature Circles seem to offer one way of working with students with different learning levels. The students usually select books that are suitable for their own reading levels and interests, which automatically places them with others of similar abilities and interests. The discussions in the circles should automatically advance to the level of the students. The weaker students often achieve higher marks on spoken responses than written ones, which gives them greater opportunity for success. 1. Working with my colleagues from my division has been an invaluable experience for me. Over the past three years we have shared resources, had an opportunity to exchange teaching ideas and discussed changes to the curriculum; as well, we had many laughs of the strictly English teacher type, that our spouses could not possibly appreciate. Our McDowell group grew out of this networking that we had established. Tony Baldwin suggested that we apply for the grant to study the problems that we were facing with the increased component of Oracy in the New English Language Arts Curriculum, and to allow him to work on his Master's degree. We readily agreed. The grant gave us the opportunity to meet during school hours and reduce our evening commitments. This type of networking is invaluable to rural teachers as we are the department heads, as such, and often the only teacher in our field in our schools. We can feel very isolated at times. Even though I have taught senior English for fifteen of my twenty teaching years, I sometimes find that I'm not sure of or don't know the meaning of a piece of literature, or I need an idea to motivate my class. Sometimes these new curriculum changes seem to be written in a new language and I am not sure where to begin to implement the change. This is where my fellow English teachers lend their expertise. Their ideas have enhanced my teaching. There are far more strategies to use than we had in the old curriculum when the focus was on literature. My theory in teaching English used to be: read the literature, teach the style, background, or message, and then write in a way that models an aspect of the literature, whether it be figures of speech in a poem, short metaphorical sentences like Bacon's essays, or another form of composition that was needed. I always used dossiers that were peer edited, then submitted for marking. Then I would move on to the next piece of literature. With the increase of oracy there are more activities and strategies to use with each piece of literature. Many listening and speaking assignments are group oriented. The students seem to enjoy group activities and perhaps try more so as not to look foolish in front of their peers. The less literature used, the less preparation of material the teacher has to do, and the more the focus is on the student's work. Borrowing ideas from my colleagues also helped reduce the work load. The teaching load of rural teachers is particularly heavy as we often prepare for seven different classes daily and evaluate, on the average, twenty students each class. What we shared from each other was greatly appreciated. One very successful new strategy, The Literature Circles, set the teacher up as an observer and evaluator only. No teacher-prepared worksheets or vocabulary sheets were needed. The students are expected to create their own pages and lead the discussions in their groups. Sometimes as a frustrated observer, when I felt their level of discussion wasn't digging deep enough, I would write questions in their duotangs, to start their discussions the next day. My other concern about the Literature Circles was that the students did not have any material of their own to study from if I tested them on the novel, because only one duotang would be produced in each group. The teacher evaluated daily their group interactions and skills in oracy. Assessing oracy seemed to present a problem at first to me; but using rubrics gave me a starting place. The marks in general were higher, which suggested to me that I did not know how to assess speaking and listening at the higher levels. My expectations of the students will probably increase as my own personal knowledge of effective speaking and listening skills improves. Oracy is considerably more difficult to assess objectively. The increased oracy has been a major difference to my program, so I appreciated the ideas from other teachers. Their drama backgrounds have supplied numerous ideas. The concept of teaching listening specifically gave me a reality check, as I never considered whether the quiet students with their faces pointed forward were actually comprehending. They fooled me if they appeared to be on task. Then I began to notice how few adults in the community actually listen. Some behaviors are obvious in assessing listening but we have really struggled with creating objective tests that actually indicated if students were listening and not comprehending. That will be a challenge for another group. But I certainly realize now the need to teach listening skills in the school and note taking skills that are the partner to listening. The Verbatim Split Page Procedure was one excellent tool to begin teaching both listening and note taking. There have been numerous advantages to networking and the shared oracy ideas are some of them. The experience has been invaluable. - Bonita Tucker, Central Butte School 2. When I was hired to teach in Chaplin School in the fall of 1997, I was met with a teaching load which seemed a bit daunting, to say the least. As an English major, I have had thirteen years of experience in teaching the standard old courses. Now, my teaching assignment consisted of the newly implemented ELA 9, ELA A10 and ELA B10. I also inherited the job of piloting the ELA 20, ELA A30, ELA B30 and Communication 20 courses, and, much to my surprise, I was teaching Biology 20 and 30 for the first time in my career, too. But since we of the teaching profession pride ourselves on not being faint of heart, I courageously plunged in with determination and even a sense of adventure, especially with regard to the new curriculum programs and the pilot courses. Needless to say, I was ready for these changes but not ready for them to occur all in one year. So, in addition to adjusting to all those factors that accompany accepting a new teaching position, such as moving, learning the ropes of a new school and new division, and following in the shadow of Tony Baldwin, I had the bonus of preparing courses which were new to me. Little did I know that a research grant provided by the Dr. Stirling McDowell Foundation for Research into Teaching would link me to a group of English teachers in the Herbert Division who had a wealth of ideas, experience and enthusiasm and who were also implementing the ELA A10 and ELA B10 courses. The access to information and ideas, which was afforded by the research grant, provided the ELA 10 teachers in Herbert School Division with opportunities to share ideas, information, concerns, strategies, resources and humourous anecdotes as we worked through the new curricula in a co-operative atmosphere. I welcomed the opportunity much like a dazed, excited traveler with too much luggage welcomes a moving sidewalk. With each meeting of the group, I came away with new ideas and with the assurance that some of the concerns I felt were shared by my colleagues. One area which caused considerable concern within the group was the oracy component, and more specifically, the listening component. My experience with the "old" curriculum did not prepare me for the new requirements in this area of oracy. Not only was I at a loss for activities which would address the listening objectives, but also I was at a loss for assessment techniques for those objectives. One of the things we did then, as a group, was to gather and use readily available resources to guide us as we developed listening activities. Initially, although some of the activities we developed seemed too easy or elementary, we continued trying to accomplish the listening objectives. Finding out that some of these activities were not grade appropriate or were not easy to evaluate was a part of the process that we had to experience. Unfortunately, because of these difficulties, I became increasingly more frustrated even though I, along with the others, firmly believed in the objectives and the concept of teaching listening skills. The meetings were a real source of encouragement and we continued working at listening activities and assessment by ferreting out materials from our resource room teachers, public libraries, and the Internet. As we found materials, developed activities, and shared them, we tried them in our classes with varying degrees of success and made plans for changes for the next semester. As a result, my listening program in ELA 10, 20, and 30 this year is much stronger, is meeting the objectives, and is age and grade appropriate. Another concern that we all encountered was the limited access to resources, including that most valuable of resources -- time. At each meeting, we exchanged materials, and, yes, over store-bought pre-packaged cookies and an occasional meal at the local cafe, we even commiserated with each other about the lack of time that we had to do all the great things proposed in the new curriculum while trying to teach other courses and trying to have a life beyond teaching English Language Arts. But through our joint efforts, we did indeed save valuable time and effort because instead of working in isolation, as we would have without the grant, we spent our time collaborating, creating, evaluating, reflecting and re-energizing. As a result of our meetings, the gains I experienced are too great to list and explain. But in closing, I would like to focus on three specific benefits. Primarily, I have become a more reflective practitioner which has benefitted me, my students, and my teaching. Next, I am part of a network of teachers that is committed to continue meeting and whose influence is felt in my classroom every day. Finally, I am using my experiences and opportunities as a workshop leader to promote the benefits of networking among teachers and to encourage members of our profession to apply for the funding available through the McDowell Foundation. - Maureen Braun, Chaplin School 3. I began this project as a teacher who was and is a Social Studies specialist first. I had taught Division IV English briefly at the beginning of my career, and had taught Division III English at various times, as well as some Special Education, but I felt most comfortable in the History or Social Studies classroom. To be presented with a new curriculum two years after returning to English 10 and picking up English 20, when I had just begun to assemble materials and ideas, was somewhat daunting. For this reason, I had been very thankful for the opportunity to join in the informal grouping of the Herbert Division English teachers. I found that not knowing the jargon was not necessarily a handicap, and that the others were more than willing to share the materials and the plans that they had. It became apparent that the best inservice for a teacher like me was the networking opportunities. I knew how to use the curriculum documents and how to do all of the generic teaching (grouping, organizing and planning) that was necessary; what I did not know was some of the methodology specific to the English classroom. It was particularly useful to work with teachers who were aware of the issues related to teaching in a small rural school. In the months since we began the project in the fall of 1997, one of the themes that we have come back to again and again is the value of the network that has been developed among the group. While we began as a group focused on oracy, our meetings have covered a range of subjects related to English Language Arts, and the professional development has been invaluable. In a rural division such as ours, where the numbers in any subject area are limited, and subject inservice is limited to curriculum implementation or the yearly subject council conference, the network may be the only professional development affordable or possible. The benefit for the teachers involved is that they control the agenda, which is not necessarily the case at department-mandated inservice sessions. When you bring together teachers from four divisions to introduce new curriculum, there will be a group of teachers ranging from the recently graduated beginner who is teaching outside of his subject area in a small rural school to the expert specialist who teaches nothing but English 10 in the large urban comprehensive school. The inservice provided will have to be addressed to all of them and will completely satisfy none. Smaller groups like ours, with careful planning, can accomplish a great deal with the combined knowledge of all involved. What I have been able to bring to the group, I believe, is my background in drama, with its emphasis on speaking (if not listening), and my experience in some of the speaking activities which are part of Social Studies, especially the group discussion techniques and debate. Once again, in rural schools the English teacher is usually teaching more than one subject. The fact that most of us are teaching outside of English enabled us to use some of the speaking and listening strategies in other subject areas. This has meant, for instance, that while there may not be time to try everything in the English classroom, in Social Studies there are opportunities for speaking assignments and listening for fact and opinion, in a speech, for example. Rural teachers have, I feel, unique opportunities for integration across the curriculum, simply because they are more likely to be teaching more than one subject. Oracy skills will be necessary to our students as they move into the wider world after graduation from high school, no matter what path they pursue, and it is not enough to make oracy part of the English class and leave it there. - Marlyn Keaschuk, Herbert School 4. For 17 years I have taught ELA at the same small rural Grade 7-12 school. During that time I have watched our teaching staff shrink from 11 to 6.8. However, our school has maintained the same extracurricular program, we offer the same number of courses, and teacher prep time has all but disappeared. We have only a half time secretary and a half time librarian. Add to this the implementation of the new core curriculum and it becomes obvious that teacher work load has dramatically increased. Increased community involvement due to a shrinking population and a growing family of my own make it safe to say that describing my life as Ahectic@ would be a gross understatement. Into this growing state of chaos came the birth of our networking group, and it has been a lifesaver! Meeting with the other English teachers in the Division has provided me with a fresh outlook, a place to unload stress and concerns, a burst of new ideas, and much needed support. Due to decreasing budgets and new curriculum, a lack of resources was our primary concern at beginning meetings. With five of us to share our knowledge, read new material, and make existing material available to each other, the task of setting up a new program became less daunting. To me, the most beneficial aspect of our networking group has been the sharing of materials. What I have gathered there has been invaluable. But the other treat has been the sharing of ideas. Hearing what others do, and seeing samples of their assignments and students' work, has given me a wealth of new ideas to try on my own. To teachers in city schools with large English departments, this may seem an obvious and Aalready done@ concept. But for those of us in a rural setting the opportunity to meet with people in our same subject areas is not something that is frequently done. By networking, though, we can make it happen. I cannot stress the value of such meetings, and I suggest that all rural school divisions would benefit by implementing such a networking system. With the Stirling McDowell grant, we were given a second task to focus on at our networking meetings. The new ELA 10 curriculum increased oracy to 50% of the course. Speaking and listening have always been an integral part of my English program, but not to the degree that the new curriculum seemed to dictate. Our group became primarily concerned with two questions concerning oracy: 1. How does one actively teach listening to high school students? 2. How does one accurately assess speaking and listening, especially listening? The group spent a lot of time discussing these questions. I found sharing ideas on different assignment techniques and teaching strategies to be a great help. Some of our ideas are included in the appendices. Also included in the appendices are lots of possible assessment techniques. Personally, I felt very comfortable with the speaking component of the course. Speaking has always been part of my English program and evaluation. Listening, however, is another matter. I still don't feel satisfied with my listening program and our group is still struggling with the problem of how to assess listening. For myself, the most important thing I've come to realize is just how important the component of listening really is to me. Many students don't know how to listen. Their inability to listen well often shows in their poor assignments or low grades. I feel strongly that this is an aspect of learning that has been greatly ignored. I also feel strongly that many teachers don't model listening as well as they could. How many of us really listen to understand our students? This project has been an awakening for me. One of the most positive things it's given me is a renewed drive to increase my knowledge and competence in the art of listening. - Jan Duncan, Hodgeville Elementary School 5. Oracy is definitely a skill that students need to develop and refine. I remember having my students do Verbatim Split Page Procedure assignments and being pleased at the results. Then, after Christmas holidays, my Grade Tens were giving me a friendly grilling about how I had spent my holidays. I mentioned that one of their former teachers had stopped in Morse for a visit and spent the last two days of the holiday at my house. One of the Grade Tens immediately replied, ACool! How long did he stay?@ We did more listening exercises. Students have an ability to turn off their listening skills when there is no immediate need for them. We've all experienced that when giving instructions to a classroom. Implementation of the ELA 10 curriculum has caused me to re-examine the way in which I give instructions and to pay closer attention to the specifics of what I am asking for when I have my students speak and listen to myself and to their classmates. In the last ten years, I've been an English teacher and principal in three different schools. In that time, I've always been the only senior English teacher in the school. It is very frustrating to not have access to other people with backgrounds similar to my own, and yet I always manage to find some way to accumulate information and resources. Over the years, I've been fortunate enough to make some good friends among other English teachers, but the opportunity to share and exchange information has been limited by time and distance. The Herbert Division English Teachers' Group has been an invaluable resource as we moved into new curricula and concepts. The difficulty of evaluating the oracy component aside, it is a struggle simply to obtain sufficient materials to address the topic. The group has aided greatly in that struggle, as five sets of networks are greatly more effective than one. I can't begin to predict the number of hours saved in finding, developing, and implementing new materials. Add to that the opportunity to discuss areas of concern with four other people who are dealing with those same concerns and you can imagine how enriching being a part of this group has been. If I came away with anything from this experience, it is a realization that networking is an invaluable tool that teachers must add to their repertoire. With declining rural school populations, teacher cutbacks, and shrinking budgets, anything that helps teachers do their jobs as effectively and efficiently as possible deserves attention. During the completion of this project, I left my position to return full time to the classroom with another division. I miss the support of the group, although I have stayed in contact with the other members of the group and have received materials not otherwise readily available to me. The experience has left me an advocate of networking, aware of the problems and arguments concerning the lack of time and availability of access to colleagues. However, I believe teachers must show initiative and begin networking groups as we first did, a few times a year in organized sessions with agendas and specific areas to share and develop. The Stirling McDowell grant allowed us to expand the role of our group and I encourage teachers who are interested by our experience to examine the possibility of applying for a grant themselves. This project draws to a close and the final product has undergone a metamorphosis from the original beginnings envisioned by Tony Baldwin in our initial proposal. While oracy was examined by our group and strategies and assessments were examined, we also came to realize the value of the networking process and were encouraged to pursue that avenue as we moved from ATo Tell the Truth@ to AListening, Learning and Lending@ in our research. Thanks to Herbert School Division and the Stirling McDowell Foundation, we were able to enrich the implementation process of Language Arts 10 in our schools and assemble a wealth of resources that will benefit our students. - Greg Trithart, Morse School
Appendix A "YOUR ATTENTION PLEASE" Announcements as Oracy Projects A relatively easy way to teach and assess the public announcement is to have students prepare and make the morning announcements on the intercom. It is a relatively easy project, requiring a portion of a class to discuss and teach the elements of a good announcement (after ten years of public school education, most students are well aware of what a "bad" announcement sounds like), some preparation on the part of the students, and simply filling in an assessment checklist or rubric as they actually complete the assignment. Students can choose the date that they wish within a specified period of time, and then are responsible for preparation by checking with the sports team, the teachers and the announcement board. On the day that they "perform", it is possible to check such things as the organization, completeness and accuracy, and the use of the microphone. I found that there was no shortage of "subjective anecdotal evaluation" on this assignment. If something was missed, I heard about it almost immediately. If a fact was inaccurate, I was duly informed by the offended party. If the announcement was unintelligible, hoards of other students were quick to point that out to the Grade 10 student who was identified as the culprit. At the same time, the class itself was very supportive of their fellow "announcers" and invariably pointed out all of the positive qualities. Appendix B "IT IS MY DISTINCT PLEASURE..." The Art of the Introduction In the rural school, it may, paradoxically, be difficult to introduce a someone who has been a classmate for the past ten years, and is well-known to the rest of the class as well. Therefore, it may be more practical to teach the introduction using a different technique. In teaching the theme of the "Unknown", students introduced either a character from a book related to the theme (for example, Dracula, Frankenstein, Sherlock Holmes, or a character in AThe Chrysalids@) or another author of science fiction, fantasy or mystery. The student was required to include in the introduction the reason for the presence of the character or the author B the acceptance of a particular award or the delivery of a talk on a particular topic. In addition, students could combine this with a brief reading from either one of the author's works, or a description of the character from a book. This could be assessed separately for oral reading. Students are often aware of what makes a "poor" introduction B the hackneyed phrases, an excess of information about the person that is unrelated to the subject of the talk, the insertion of the introducer's personal life. They do need, however, to be taught the basics of a proper one B the name of the speaker (at the beginning and at the end of the introduction at least) and some relevant background information. They should also include a brief introduction to the topic of the speech, including information about why that topic might interest the listeners. Appendix C LISTEN TO A STORY Topic Tape recording of "The Fall of the House of Usher", a story by Edgar Allan Poe Initial Prompt Set mood. Students imagine being requested to spend the night with a friend in the Mitchell house (show picture). How would you feel? What would you do? Response Journal entry discussing how the atmosphere of your surroundings influence your feelings and actions - five minutes writing. Lesson Development
Evaluation/Assessment AThe Fall of the House of Usher@ (45 marks - speaking, listening, reading skills and writing) Journal Entry
Appendix D EXPERIENCE YOUR OWN PREJUDICE Equality "One, Two Three Little Indians" written by Hugh Garner It is hoped that the students will experience their own prejudices and stereotypes by being involved in a situation in which they are given only half the information required to make a fair judgement.. Students are to visualize a situation based on an oral story, then respond in writing. After reading Garner's story, the students will make a second journal entry regarding the changed situation once all the facts were given . In pairs, students will define stereotype, prejudice, and racism. They will discuss examples of each. Further discussion should draw students to the conclusion that we tend to prejudge people using very limited information. I. Visualization Teacher will ask the students to sit back, relax and try to visualize this story. You are holidaying at a Northern Saskatchewan fishing camp. You have rented a trailer with your family, to be able to fish and swim. There are a number of Indian guides and house cleaners also at this camp. They live along the highway in broken down shacks, without running water. The first morning, as you head to the showers, you see sitting along the side of the path a big, dirty Indian man. He has a feather in a band on his head and is stopping people to sell baskets. He speaks English. He has a disgusting habit of coughing and spitting continuously. After lunch, you see this Indian again, Big Tom, as he is called. He continues to interrupt Mr. Cooper who is trying to work on his truck. Head down, he walks back to his shack. Big Tom wears old army trousers, drooped around his lean loins, plaid shirt open at the throat. He is carrying a baby wrapped in a blanket, as he again approaches the campsite. Beside him is his obviously pregnant, wife. She enters a trailer; Tom and baby climb into a row boat with Mr. Staynor. After laying baby in the boat's bottom, Tom rows out into the lake, constantly coughing and spewing. You spend the afternoon with your friends at the beach. On your return to the camp you see Big Tom running from trailer to trailer, obviously in search of something. He gives up the search and runs up the road carrying the baby. He tries to flag down a car load of people but they only laugh at his feather and keep driving. He trudges on up the road; soon out of sight. Later that night, just before you are heading for bed, you hear a loud commotion outside your window. Peering out you can just make out that Big Tom is dragging his wife out of a car by her hair. He is going to hit her and she is crying. She doesn't seem to be fighting back, only sobbing and clinging to him. Together they head out of the camp down the path to his shack. You wonder if you should call the police, but you decide against getting involved. Perhaps you will mention it to the campground owner in the morning. He should know what kind of employees he has working for him. You go to sleep without any further concerns. Students respond
in their journals II. Evaluation Response journal should reveal students' listening for facts in the visualization and indicate depth of ideas. Discussion should be assessed for participation and thought expansion and clarification. Appendix E BECOME A RADIO BROADCASTER FOR HALF AN HOUR Students will prepare a half hour radio show on cassette, including music, commentaries about the musicians and songs, news and sports reporting from the school, interviews with school celebrities and advertisements, to be aired at noon hour on the intercom. How to Prepare Advertisements:
Pet Paradise 30 Second Limit With all the love and affection your pet gives you, return the favor with outrageous pet food. Pet Paradise is the food that will have your pet giving you a standing ovation each time it is served. Pet Paradise comes in any size to suit your pet and your budget. With a small box of only 14 ounces of food to as much as a fifty pound bag, your pet can decide how much it wants to eat. Pet Paradise is available at any supermarket, pet shop, or bulk food store across the country. Pet Paradise, the best for your pet. Evaluation:
Appendix F PAIR POETRY STUDY After demonstrating an analysis of a poem, assign pairs of students this work sheet and a different poem. They discuss, research, and analyze their poem, then present the findings to the class. Presentation includes reading the poem with expression and explaining their findings. Teacher evaluation includes presentation and information on the worksheet. Poetry Evaluation Sheet
Appendix G Experiential Writing and Oral Presentation Lesson Development
Appendix H LITERATURE CIRCLES FOR NOVEL STUDIES Students select a novel to study from a set number, so that the novel groups end up consisting of six students or fewer. A time frame is established. The groups meet and divide the novel into sections according to class times allotted and completion dates assigned. Then the groups divide the six jobs, so every member completes each job at least once (depending on the time frame). The jobs include:
The groups meet daily to present their assignments and add their pages to the group's duotang. Then they are free to read and prepare the next day's presentation. The teacher joins each group periodically to discuss or evaluate. The duotang is marked daily for completion and quality. The teacher also assesses the students' daily involvement in the group, according to these topics:
The students use the same criteria to evaluate their peers at the end of each session. This is an excellent speaking/listening/reading/writing activity. However, I did find that when I wanted to force the students to look for more depth in their novels, I could write questions in their duotangs that the Discussion Director would ask of the group at the beginning of the next session. Appendix I INTERVIEW A HERO Each student researches a person that he or she considers a hero. From this information the student prepares minimum of ten questions that his or her partner will ask. The interview may take the format of a favorite talk show. The student responding will be evaluated for his or her questioning, content and delivery. INTERVIEW A HERO
Rating: Poor, Needs Work, Average, Good, Excellent Delivery (out of 20)
Content (out of 20)
Questioning (out of 10)
Final mark _____ /50 General Comments Appendix J FIVE MINUTE MYSTERIES FOR THE ARM CHAIR DETECTIVE Listening exercise - The students are given a series of questions to listen for as the teacher reads the story. The ultimate goal is for the student to solve the mystery. I. An Early Morning Murder at 13 Humberview
II. The Case of the Erring Arsonist
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