In the Hammond book, we started to read and learn about Culturally Responsive Teaching and also how the brain plays a part in that. In the first 2 chapters we are introduced to the idea of CRT and culture in general. We learned about dependent and independent learners, culture, and so many other things. The book is not about how CRT is like in an ELA classroom, and today I would like to make an attempt at connecting the two. What would it look like in terms of ELA.
Some key components of the first 2 chapters that can be important for an ELA classroom is the iceberg of culture. There is the surface level, shallow level, and the deep level. It is very important for all teachers, not just ELA teachers, to try and get to the deeper level. In the deep level it is about how people from two different background react to certain events or topics. As a teacher it is important to understand how your students will feel and react to certain things. In order to do this you just have to spend time with your students, feel them out and figure out how they work. Once you are able to do that, then you can create a classroom environment that positively reflects your students. For ELA some ways you can create that understanding is through writing. Having your students write narrative pieces about themselves, or have them write about imagined scenarios and how they feel about them. Sharing these writing pieces with the other students can help the students make connections between each other too. Another key point is about how poverty is not a culture, and should not be included in how we see our students. Poor students act or have certain rituals as a way to survive poverty, it is not a culture. So being aware of this will help you also know your students.
Hi Krissy,
ReplyDeleteI love how you include students in ELA writing narratives about themselves or scenarios about their lives and how they would react to reach that deep cultural layer! It is a great reflective and mindfulness tool for them to use.
While I was reading these writing ideas, I came across the idea of using multimodal ways too for students to share their culture more deeply and make connections with their classmates. What if the students made a playlist of songs about their lives within their culture, and then shared them in small groups in class? This could help students that learn though their auditory sense. Another possible activity, is having the students make a visual comic strip either hand-made or using an online version like storyboardthat.com for example? These are just two activities we could use to encourage sharing and bonding between students, while also using multimodal and technology driven tools! What do you think? What kinds of other multimodal and technological activities can we use to encourage students to share their culture more deeply?
Hey Megan!
ReplyDeleteI really liked the idea of using various multimodal tools for assignments. It touches on their other senses and creativity and makes their learning experience very dynamic. Other ways is creating short films about their lives or a certain experience they have been through. That is a very hands on and has different aspects to it. Such as sound design, video camera work, lighting, script writing, and even acting. It would be a very engaging activity and it could encourage students to dive deep into film and other arts than just writing.
Thanks for your comment