Blog #4 Teaching is Challenging

Teaching is challenging!  Watching "A Class Divided" really brought out how important lessons are and how they have impact for the rest of a student's life.  Those students did not just encounter a good teacher, they encountered a lesson in prejudice that lasted for a lifetime.  This is an excellent example of how a lesson that involves the student on the emotional level with real concrete "lived" experience will be remembered for a lifetime.  The challenge for me, is to recognize the commitment of the teacher and to consider how going into a lesson like that needs to be considered before its implemented.  It was good to hear  Mrs. Elliot's comment that the "debriefing" part of her lesson is of the utmost importance, and that if it were not handled correctly it could damage a child.  As a future teacher, that is the most important aspect of the lesson.  I would love to attempt a lesson like that, but also need to keep the needs of the students first.  I never want do something that is damaging to a child.
I enjoyed rereading  To Kill A Mockingbird,  interestingly, I have loved this novel for a long time, but do not think I studied it in school- maybe that's why-it wasn't "ruined" for me.  I think my favorite scene in the book is imagining the scene where Scout beats up Francis.  I have laughed out loud reading that more than once.  But, in light of our readings I was thinking about how a different reader would consider aspects of the book.  I always identified with Jem and Scout, but a black person would "look at" them differently than I do.  Similarly, the book deals with the "classes" that existed in Maywood.  How would I effectively "teach" the book and challenge my students to consider the differences between the Finches and the Ewells?  I hope I can come up with strategies that teach awareness of prejudice and stereotypes.  I believe this is an especially difficult issue because knowledge of an issue is not enough.  The student must be made "aware" of behaviors that contribute to it.  Hade's article illustrated this very well.  I really liked how he proposed reading books against each other.  It seems to me this would be effective and would help counter the potential of labeling a book as "bad."  
Finally, Hade's thoughts concerning the argument of imposing meaning or exposing injustice is really important.  I completely agree with him that a child does not naturally possess meaning.   All stories have a meaning, but each individual supplies their personal meaning.  Like Hade, I agree that we have a duty to expose injustice.  I know this can be controversial, and believe there are parents out there who would disagree, but also believe a teacher should teach social responsibility and with that social justice.

Blog #3 Reflections on Visual Art and Graphic Novels

After reading Gene Luen Yang's American Born Chinese, I was struck by all the elements that can be used for teaching in an English classroom.  The symbol of the transformer (for personal transformation) jumped out to me, but it was only after reading the entire book and reflecting on it that I realized the monkey king is also a symbol for Jin.  I must say that Yang's way of using stories from Chinese culture surprised me.  For example, the figure of Tze-Yo-Tzuh, who is apparently a Chinese holy man or philosopher, was treated very disrespectfully by the monkey king.  Perhaps this is because I have thought of graphic art as a use of comedy and an American convention, but in its use here it causes me to recognize there are legitimate teachable elements in it.  The theme of searching out one's identity and need to belong is universal, but would a critic say it is an Asian American text?  The other thing I thought about is the way that Chin-Kee was a comic figure who humiliated Danny and eventually turned out to have another identity.  But, would a critic say that Chin-Kee was too much of a stereotype or portrayed too negatively?  Given that Yang used the Ha-Ha-Ha to underline all of Chin-Kee's section, I took it to mean he meant it as a humorous portrayal.
Moving on to the coventions of comics, I was struck how the conventions in Dr. Mortimore-Smith's paper were employed throughout the book and were used effectively.  When the monkey king reached the end of all time it was represented with an entire page (73-76).  These made a very strong statement that it was important moment that transcended time.  The other technique I noticed throughout the book was the way Yang used bold type in the dialogue, for me it really made the dialogue come alive.  After Jin kissed Wei-Chen's girlfriend, I felt I could hear Wei-Chen when he was confronting Jin about it.
In class, we haven't yet discussed multicultural texts, but in some of our discussion we have considered the usefulness of comparing texts.  This book certainly makes use of and confronts stereotypes, I'm wondering could this book be successfully used with a book such as To Kill A Mockingbird?  Or would it be suitable for use as an alternate if you had student's similar to Kae, Walter, and Tommy that Wilhelm writes about?
In considering Wilhelm's chapter five and the Frey and Fisher reading, I thought about how they each used visual arts successfully to achieve student success.  While Frey and Fisher's focus was on writing, it stood out to me that use of visual arts and graphic novels brought about a level of engagement and learning that had not been reached using more traditional methods.  The factor that concerns me is time.  In a public school classroom, in which you have a certain amount of ground to cover, how do you handle it if you feel that you can't work in the time involved in Wilhelm's SRI?  I believe there are ways to do it, it just seems daunting when considering all the needs in a typical classroom.
In Wilhelm's introduction of Kae, Tommy, and Walter, he was voicing his concern and frustration at effectively engaging or reaching these students.  In speaking of arts education he quoted a study by Eisner (1992) who identified three aims of arts education.  They are:  "to increase the variety and depth of meaning people can secure in their lives, to develop cognitive potential, which is achieved only through the exercise of various opportunities, and to achieve educational equity" (Wilhelm 162).  Wilhelm further laments that these students were short-changed by the educational system which did not allow them to reach their potential, nor was it educationally equal.  This passage caught my attention in a new way.  In the public school system, it is not acceptable to simply label a student as "unreachable" and give up on them.  We owe it to both ourselves and the student to do everything possible to give them and education equal to that of other students and that always strives to help them reach their full potential.  In Wilhelm's notes about these students he said that they seemed to have no memory of parent's reading to them or little memory of reading illustrated children's books.  I think that is what first made this jump out to me.   These student's are possibly struggling because of an early deficit in visual development.  That is not their fault.  We definitely owe them a fair chance in learning to read.  That being said, I hope Wilhelm's successes can be a model for me in the future.

Blog #2

Reading Wilhelm's You Gotta BE the Book has caused me to take a step back and consider the difficulties of reaching all the students.  The story of Sasha, who was into Goth and fascinated with Marilyn Manson, got my attention.  What would I do with a student like her?  Would I be able to reach her in an effective manner?  Wilhelm did successfully engage her, but humbly noted there are possibly many others he did not reach.  This reading really has caused me to consider how important the human factor is in teaching and demonstrating a love for reading in students.  I have had a few really good teachers who demonstrate the qualities that instill a love for reading and I hope to emulate that in my own classroom.  At the same time, I need to consider how both Wilhelm and Dr. Shannon have pointed out that teacher's revert to what they have experienced in the classroom and were exposed to as students.  I need to consider how I will handle the realities of a large class, short class period, and the heavy testing pressures that are placed on teachers from outside the classroom.  In the meantime, Wilhelm's social contract, (YGBB, 13) he developed  from a study he undertook with his colleague Michael Smith,  jumped out at me and I thought it worthwhile to write the inverse of each statement as a type of personal mantra.

1. I will try to get to know each student as an individual.
2. I will care about each student.
3. I will address each student's interests in some way (either outside or inside the classroom).
4. I will assist each student in learning and work hard to help them learn.
5. I will be passionate about the subject and teaching.

As Wilhelm wrote in chapter one, it really stood out to me how his research demonstrates the importance of showing and demonstrating a love of reading as the foundation for teaching a love of literature.  As he points out, the New Critical approach has been the dominate theory used in classrooms.  I know I was not aware of it as a student, but since having literary theory and criticism, I am aware of it and I saw it in action in my highschool last spring when I was observing for Level I observation hours.  I also fully agree with Wilhelm that it bears a connection to students developing a dislike for analyzing texts and answering interpretative questions on a text.  I am not saying that the New Critical approach is wrong or bad, but I am excited to learn other methods and approaches that developes a love for reading in students, rather than instilling in them a fear of reading and literature classes.
I found reading the examples taken from Wilhelm's research really interesting and informative.  I must admit that when Ron notes that he becomes so involved in a book that he forgets to do his other school work, I could relate to that.  I have done similar things.  On the other hand, I find myself wishing I had experienced a teacher similar to Wilhelm in my adolescent years.  I have little memory of good discussion or group work in literature classes in my middle school years.  That, combined with the peer pressure to never admit to liking books, has caused me to be hesitant to share what I think.  It is almost like I internalized my feelings about characters in a book as something very private.  Nevertheless, Wilhelm's example's of how a reader aligns themselves with fictional character's and develops a shared perspective is really valuable reading, and will help me to not underestimate a young reader's ability to draw insight from a text. As a teacher, I must find a way to value what each student has to say and to find literature that the student can connect with.
Last, but not least, I found Wilhelm's knowledge of research and commentary on teaching as a profession to be very insightful.  He shares that for him learning from students and how they need to be taught is of primary importance.  I couldn't agree more.  As an older student, I have experienced how much technology and classroom culture has changed.  I further agree completely that a teacher must learn from their mistakes and carry on.  Wilhelm  notes that some of his best teaching is when he show students how he "rolls with the punches" (YGBB 57).  Students can see right through a teacher attempting to hide mistakes.  Wilhelm's use of personal stories were extremely valuable in sharing his belief that the authority in the classroom is and must be the teacher.  I understood it to mean authority developed by learning what the needs of the students are, and where they are in the learning spectrum, and then creating an environment where they can learn well. As a teacher, it will be my job to learn to know my student's personally, what their needs are, understand what will work in my classroom and teach to the best of my ability.

Arlen's Blog Down Memory Lane

Hi, my name is Arlen Saner and I am looking forward to our adolescent literature class and learning methods to encourage young people to read and develop a love for reading.  I have always read for pleasure and cannot imagine life without reading.  I grew up in a home without television and remember looking forward to going to the public library and choosing a new book!  At that age, I was fascinated with the Hardy Boys and usually picked a new adventure to read.  I wish I knew how many of those books I read, but I do remember that in the sixth grade we created worms by writing book titles on cutout circles of paper and my worm extended the whole way around the classroom.  Other books that I remember reading were Brighty of the Grand Canyon by Marguerite Henry and Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell.  I also remember reading adventure books such as Ramona and Beezus by Beverly Cleary and other fictional titles such as Cricket, Amanda Fair, and Charco by Dorothy Hamilton.  I was (and still am) drawn to adventure stories that are based on a realistic character and relates their life adventures.  Similarly, I primarily read biographies or inspirational/faith-based type books.  In junior highschool, the book I remember reading is To Kill A Mockingbird.  The only other book that I clearly remember reading and studying is The Outsiders  by S. E. Hinton.  Even though the street life depicted in the book was entirely foreign to me I could relate to the younger brother status of Ponyboy and was fascinated with him and the events of his life.  Outside of school, I always read for pleasure and read the entire Anne of Green Gables series by L. M. Montgomery and many books by Christmas Carol Kauffman who wrote fictional faith-based inspirational novels.  These books have become favorites and I have re-read many of them more than twice.  The only fantasy books I remember reading is Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings trilogy.  At this point in my life, I am interested in learning more about other genres such as the graphic novel and science fiction.  I have had little exposure to either genre, in my own experience and are excited to learn more about them and methods of incorporating them into the classroom.  In our culture today, it seems to me that literacy does and can extend beyond "the classics" and that students can be reached through other genres if they are encouraged to read material they are familiar with and would choose to read.  It seems that the most difficult aspect of teaching literature will be reaching the students who have never been around adults who read and take an oppositional attitude toward reading of any kind.  Hopefully, those student's can be reached through example and effective teaching practices.