Story of Question: This question was a slight transformation from my original question after having spent a considerable amount of time trying to actively engage in discourse with every single student in my student teaching site at PAS. From my perspective, it seems that some students are more open to discussion than others even when it is about the same topic and I was wondering why that is. Lately, with every chance I can get, I try to have lunch with my Kindergarten students in the cafeteria. I learned that a different kind of discourse occurs in this setting as opposed to in the classroom. There is something about eating together that creates conversation that seems more personal and down to earth to the child. I was also interested in the topic of classroom discourse in the sense of building classroom community. And once I get Kindergarten students to talk, I would center their classroom discourse to build and sustain a safe classroom community.
This question is something that I have been trying to answer ever since I taught English overseas two years ago, prior to joining University of Pennsylvania’s TEP. Aside from teaching over 350 students a week along with a co-teacher, I worked in an afterschool program with eight 6th grade students who were struggling with the English curriculum. During class time, these students seldom raised their hands in front of their classmates but when they were together in the afterschool program they were not afraid to ask me questions but more importantly, they participated and interacted with one another. Was this type of cooperative learning beneficial to promote classroom discourse? This type of learning was proved to be beneficial in the after school program as the students seemed actively engaged as opposed to regular school hours. Learning from this experience, how can I get my current Kindergarten students to talk to one another in rich, meaningful discourse?
Currently as a Kindergarten student teacher at PAS, I would like to see more of my students engage in discourse with each other along with myself without the fear of being judged. From my past experience overseas and current teaching experiences at PAS, it seems that classroom discourse, from peer-to-peer and teacher-to-peer, plays an important role for students to feel safe to voice their thinking within the classroom environment.
Current Beliefs Regarding the Question: As an educator and lifelong student, I believe that classroom discourse is an important factor of sustaining a safe classroom environment leaving room for open conversation between peer-to-peer and teacher-to-peer. I have learned that the topic really matters when it comes to discourse. Talking about a subject that is closer to something students can talk about can generate a meaningful discussion. During one Seminar session, Professor Rust contributed to my affinity group’s discussion by saying that “kids say things because it makes sense to them.” This statement unveils children’s thinking because they say things in a way that fits into their worldview. Sometimes adults may not understand what a child might be saying but the child expressed their statement in a way that fit into their worldview. In regards to Professor Rust’s statement and an attempt to partially answer my question, I would have to say that students have the ability to engage in rich, meaningful discussion more than I can imagine. According to Professor Rust, it seems that if they say things that makes sense to them, what they say has some kind of meaning which is an important component to discourse.
My goal is for students to believe that their thinking is welcome at all times thus creating a variety of classroom discourse. In doing so, whether an answer is right or wrong, discourse can help justify their reasoning meanwhile creating meaningful discussion. It is imperative to understand the ideas of communication, conversation and the significance of discourse to student’s social and academic experiences in school (Herbel-Eisenmann, B. & Cirillo, M., 2009). For example, there are a variety of resources from our fall semester courses such as the Number Talks discussions from our mathematics methods course and literacy readings such as “Why Cauley Writes So Well”. In terms of Number Talks, asking students to apply their own reasoning to another student’s reasoning extends participation by promoting student-to-student interaction. There is an opportunity here where students have a chance to make sense of the other student’s reasoning while raising levels of interaction and encouraging critical thinking (Shindelar, A., 2009). In terms of writing, meaningful discourse can occur when a teacher encourages students to choose topics that matter most to them and then share their work with others who share their passion as well. Rather than addressing students on how they write it is crucial for them to first care about what they write about (Ray, K., 2004). All of these resources provide rich discourse in learning among students and teacher that can sustain a community where students are welcome to voice their thinking.
This question is something that I have been trying to answer ever since I taught English overseas two years ago, prior to joining University of Pennsylvania’s TEP. Aside from teaching over 350 students a week along with a co-teacher, I worked in an afterschool program with eight 6th grade students who were struggling with the English curriculum. During class time, these students seldom raised their hands in front of their classmates but when they were together in the afterschool program they were not afraid to ask me questions but more importantly, they participated and interacted with one another. Was this type of cooperative learning beneficial to promote classroom discourse? This type of learning was proved to be beneficial in the after school program as the students seemed actively engaged as opposed to regular school hours. Learning from this experience, how can I get my current Kindergarten students to talk to one another in rich, meaningful discourse?
Currently as a Kindergarten student teacher at PAS, I would like to see more of my students engage in discourse with each other along with myself without the fear of being judged. From my past experience overseas and current teaching experiences at PAS, it seems that classroom discourse, from peer-to-peer and teacher-to-peer, plays an important role for students to feel safe to voice their thinking within the classroom environment.
Current Beliefs Regarding the Question: As an educator and lifelong student, I believe that classroom discourse is an important factor of sustaining a safe classroom environment leaving room for open conversation between peer-to-peer and teacher-to-peer. I have learned that the topic really matters when it comes to discourse. Talking about a subject that is closer to something students can talk about can generate a meaningful discussion. During one Seminar session, Professor Rust contributed to my affinity group’s discussion by saying that “kids say things because it makes sense to them.” This statement unveils children’s thinking because they say things in a way that fits into their worldview. Sometimes adults may not understand what a child might be saying but the child expressed their statement in a way that fit into their worldview. In regards to Professor Rust’s statement and an attempt to partially answer my question, I would have to say that students have the ability to engage in rich, meaningful discussion more than I can imagine. According to Professor Rust, it seems that if they say things that makes sense to them, what they say has some kind of meaning which is an important component to discourse.
My goal is for students to believe that their thinking is welcome at all times thus creating a variety of classroom discourse. In doing so, whether an answer is right or wrong, discourse can help justify their reasoning meanwhile creating meaningful discussion. It is imperative to understand the ideas of communication, conversation and the significance of discourse to student’s social and academic experiences in school (Herbel-Eisenmann, B. & Cirillo, M., 2009). For example, there are a variety of resources from our fall semester courses such as the Number Talks discussions from our mathematics methods course and literacy readings such as “Why Cauley Writes So Well”. In terms of Number Talks, asking students to apply their own reasoning to another student’s reasoning extends participation by promoting student-to-student interaction. There is an opportunity here where students have a chance to make sense of the other student’s reasoning while raising levels of interaction and encouraging critical thinking (Shindelar, A., 2009). In terms of writing, meaningful discourse can occur when a teacher encourages students to choose topics that matter most to them and then share their work with others who share their passion as well. Rather than addressing students on how they write it is crucial for them to first care about what they write about (Ray, K., 2004). All of these resources provide rich discourse in learning among students and teacher that can sustain a community where students are welcome to voice their thinking.