{"content":{"sharePage":{"page":0,"digests":[{"id":"52063400","dateCreated":"1332508882","smartDate":"Mar 23, 2012","userCreated":{"username":"LEM0N","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/LEM0N","imageUrl":"https:\/\/ssl.wikicdn.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/ctge5549spring12.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/52063400"},"dateDigested":1532919221,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"Lemontrel's Leary","description":"The message I took from Chapters 1-3 of Zwiers is that BICS (social language) and CALPS (academic language) is comparable to learning a second language. Not all of our students come to school with the skills to "absorb" academic language so we as teachers need to make sure we explicitly teach the language to our students. We can use techniques such as modeling, sentence starters, and think-alouds to teach these skills. In addition, we need to make sure we are not devaluing our students' language just because it does not completely meet our expectations. We can achieve this goal by explaining to our students that we all use different registers in different settings and we are teaching the language which is needed to prosper in American society today.
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\nOne question I had while I was reading is, "How can we speak one level above our students when we have so many different levels in the classroom?"","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[],"more":0}]},{"id":"52042314","dateCreated":"1332457446","smartDate":"Mar 22, 2012","userCreated":{"username":"AvaMarron","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/AvaMarron","imageUrl":"https:\/\/ssl.wikicdn.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/ctge5549spring12.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/52042314"},"dateDigested":1532919221,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"Ava's Post","description":"To be honest "Building Academic Language" Chapter 1-3 did not teach me anything I did not already know. I have had so many conversations about code switching and the importance of understanding cultural language versus a "language of opportunity". I tell me students all the time that slang and the language that they use at home is not something to be ashamed of or try to forget. They just need to be bi-lingual in both their home dialect and more professional english. I wish all of my teachers reiterated this because some say "that sounds dumb" when its how their parents speak. It is not "dumb" but not what will impress future employers.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[],"more":0}]},{"id":"52041960","dateCreated":"1332456920","smartDate":"Mar 22, 2012","userCreated":{"username":"davidkwan","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidkwan","imageUrl":"https:\/\/ssl.wikicdn.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/ctge5549spring12.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/52041960"},"dateDigested":1532919221,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"David's Post","description":"As a Spanish teacher, I found myself slapping my forehead over one of the common teaching pitfalls that Zweir discusses. Teaching Spanish grammar, sentence structure, word choice, and punctuation, I perceive that my students find it difficult to learn a new language since it is made up of cohesive components that sometimes overwhelming them. Thus, I am often guilty of teaching the bricks of the language and assessing my students' acquisition of it by assessing components individually. For example, my students have been learning to build basic AR sentences and I have been scaffolding the skill, but I am still not confident that they will be able to master the skill of writing the basic sentences by our unit test. In the past, I must admit that I have simplified assessments for fear that my students won't be able to put the bricks and mortar of the language together. I think that this is indicative of the fact that in the future I must always ensure that I am connecting a particular skill to their prior knowledge of the language and allowing them to see the forest rather than just the trees. I think that this would not only build student engagement, but allow my students to see how the pieces of the language fit together, driving true language acquisition.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[],"more":0}]},{"id":"52039948","dateCreated":"1332454186","smartDate":"Mar 22, 2012","userCreated":{"username":"sdeuitch","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/sdeuitch","imageUrl":"https:\/\/ssl.wikicdn.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/ctge5549spring12.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/52039948"},"dateDigested":1532919221,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"Sarah's Post","description":"My post for this week is coming in a little late, but I'm actually glad for that. Rereading the first three chapters on my way home after tragically leaving the book at school, I realized that just today I was falling into some dangerous and confusing traps for my students while teaching. As I was explaining to my students how to complete their Fill-in-the-Blank worksheet, the words and phrases I was using to give directions were going right over their heads. See, right there, it's so difficult for me to not use figurative expressions even in a simple explanation. In Chapter One, Zwiers made the key point that teachers need to understand how their students think and what makes sense to them, taking into consideration language and home-exposure barriers. Not only were my directions geared towards individuals who were English-proficient but who had been exposed to 20-plus years of literature, history and complex analysis. That doesn't even address the content and assignment itself. When one of my students complained that it was too hard, I told her "No, it's not" and spent a few minutes explaining to her again how to do the work. Looking back at it, I cannot believe I said that to her. I did not take into consideration whatsoever that she may not be used to analyzing text that she read and heard and translate it into alternate wording, then supplying an appropriate term in a blank. Breaking it down into those small steps, I can see that it is a much more complex idea than I realized when I developed the lesson. So not only was the skill too complex, but the directions I gave were too complex to help students understand. I plan to reread Chapter 2 and integrate explanations and descriptions of figurative language and the "bricks and mortar" of Social Studies content into the content and skills lessons.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[{"id":"52041260","body":"Ditto on the lateness. I fall into the same trap of using words that are above my student's reading abilities which then causes all sorts of problems. One strategy that I've found helpful is to think as if I'm explaining something to a child and then use those words for directions. However, when it comes to content areas, I like the way Zwiers offers concrete word phrases to use when explaining material. One of my personal struggles is figuring out how to scaffold material in an engaging manner. Zwiers suggests that the words we use need to be very purposeful in order to'build' the academic language that we want to see from our students.","dateCreated":"1332456089","smartDate":"Mar 22, 2012","userCreated":{"username":"jmiller76","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/jmiller76","imageUrl":"https:\/\/ssl.wikicdn.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}},{"id":"52042180","body":"Hi Sarah. I can totally relate to you anecdote about your interaction with the student that wasn't "getting it". Too often, I feel like I am not flexible enough in using alternate wording and breaking down steps for students in the spur of the moment. Even though, I feel like I modify steps sufficiently so that my students will be able to acquire a skill, their confusion is indicative of the fact that more is needed. One good thing that has come with this realization is acknowledging that my students and I have vastly different perspectives. With this understanding, I find myself to be more patient with students and try take their perspectives more often to see where there are gaps in understanding.","dateCreated":"1332457244","smartDate":"Mar 22, 2012","userCreated":{"username":"davidkwan","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidkwan","imageUrl":"https:\/\/ssl.wikicdn.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}}],"more":0}]},{"id":"52038964","dateCreated":"1332452572","smartDate":"Mar 22, 2012","userCreated":{"username":"Martin.mintz","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/Martin.mintz","imageUrl":"https:\/\/ssl.wikicdn.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/ctge5549spring12.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/52038964"},"dateDigested":1532919221,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"Martin's Post","description":"Zweirs brings up some very interesting ideas and got me to think about a topic that I feel I have been thinking about a lot recently. This helped to to think about, even though I am using academic language, and I building academic language with my students?
\nI have seen many of the things talked about in these chapters showing up in my classroom. I try to talk about and use academic language, and I expect students to learn and use certain words that we have learned in our lessons and apply them. However, I too see students who clearly understand a topic and make connections with the material but are not following through in the writing part of the assignment. For example, there may be a great discussion\/group share; however, for example, when I pick up the exit slips or something, the understanding of these concepts gets clouded when it comes to writing it, and much less is written down than what is said in class. I agree wit Zwiers that it is my responsibility to help build that academic language for my students in how they express themselves, but I have never directly thought about that and certainly have not yet addressed it in an effective way for my students. Being more clear with those expectations and welcoming the writing process (as others have talked about already on their own posts) is something that clearly connects with the goals that I have for my students, and I am looking forward to moving on with that.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[],"more":0}]},{"id":"52020178","dateCreated":"1332431234","smartDate":"Mar 22, 2012","userCreated":{"username":"senguptaishan","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/senguptaishan","imageUrl":"https:\/\/ssl.wikicdn.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/ctge5549spring12.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/52020178"},"dateDigested":1532919221,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"Ishan's Post","description":"The first 3 chapters of \u201cBuilding Academic Language\u201d by Zwiers were very informative. Academic language includes the words (vocabulary included), grammar or syntax, and organization strategies used to describe complex topics, higher-order thought processes, and conceptual ideas. There are both general and specialized languages. Students start with a foundation of language that builds from childhood from family, home culture, and community. This can often vary drastically with the general and specialized language used in school. In school, students are expected to know specific vocabulary words and to use correct grammar when they speak or write. All too often, students who understand concepts do not appear to do so because they cannot \u201cturn off\u201d the language they bring in. Many students claim they know how to speak \u201cproperly\u201d when they need to but it has become apparent that this is not always the case. Zwiers states that it is the teacher\u2019s responsibility to build academic language for our students.
\nOne way to do this is to train students to use linguistic \u201cbrick\u201d and \u201cmortar\u201d. These can help students differentiate between content-specific words (vocabulary) and general academic terms. Clear content specific words (often in bold print in text books) are hard bricks \u2013 they are technical words needed to describe concepts in a content area. Other key words that tend to be more abstract (like democracy or balancing equations) are soft bricks. These soft bricks can be harder to teach as they require higher level thinking in order to understand. Mortar on the other hand is the words and phrases that have general utility in academic language that helps to support and hold together all of the \u201cbricks\u201d. The mortars are not content specific and include connecting words, prepositions, pronouns, and more. I think of the Bloom\u2019s taxonomy verbs as important mortar words that students need to understand and use in order to move up to higher level thinking.
\nKnowledge and use of academic language serve several functions. They can describe complexity, higher order thinking, and abstractions. All content areas have complex concepts (relationships between organisms, historical figures that were both \u201cgood\u201d and \u201cbad\u201d, math tables and graphs, advanced themes, etc.) and academic language is used to help describe them as clearly as possible. Words like therefore and understanding things like \u201ccompare and contrast\u201d are necessary skills for students when they want to describe these complex topics. In addition, as topics become more advanced, so do the high-order thinking skills needed to address them. To fully understand a topic, students need to move up on Bloom\u2019s taxonomy. Understanding how words like synthesize or evaluate are used and knowing proper ways to address them are necessary skills for a student to succeed in school and out of it. Teachers need to teach this so that students can bridge the ways in which they use and describe thought processes outside of school in the way a school would expect. Students who can use academic language and describe high \u2013order thinking will be able to achieve more.
\nAll in all, I know that my students would benefit greatly by using and understanding academic language on a more frequent basis. My students are older than most in high school but further back than most in credits. A history and pattern of truancy, drug abuse, and social \/ emotional disabilities have kept them from these credits. All too often, home and family culture and their community of friends has done nothing to alleviate the issue \u2013 more often they make things worse. Getting them to use \u201cproper\u201d academic language is unheard of and resistance is very high. While most of them do not think education will be useful in their lives (as most of them are just trying to not drop out of school at this point), it is my responsibility to teach and use academic language so that they can bring that skill to wherever they choose to go afterwards.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[],"more":0}]},{"id":"52019176","dateCreated":"1332429999","smartDate":"Mar 22, 2012","userCreated":{"username":"dschall2","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/dschall2","imageUrl":"https:\/\/ssl.wikicdn.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/ctge5549spring12.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/52019176"},"dateDigested":1532919221,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"Douglas Schall's post","description":"I practice collaborative teaching in a CTT classroom with another first year teacher (she\u2019s not TFA). We\u2019re consistently giving one another critiques about our teaching-practices during our instructional time together. One of her most frequent criticisms of my teaching style is that I use language that is above our students\u2019 heads. Oddly, one of the things I dislike most about her teaching style is her non-usage of academic language \u2013 i.e. \u201clinguistic enabling, or \u201coveruse of scaffolding.\u201d After reading chapters 1-3 of Jeff Zwiers, Building Academic Language, I feel more justified in my approach to incorporating academic language into my classroom discourse and instruction. I believe that one should not simply expose students to \u201cformal\u201d language by speaking over their heads. Instead, I must really make an effort to nudge students a little at a time. That is, use speech that is only slightly higher than the students level of proficiency, or I guess find the \u201czone of proximal development.\u201d Such a balance is very hard for me to strike, though.
\nIt seems that nearly any \u201cformal\u201d phrasing of language is capable of throwing my students for a loop. I will typically call for students to use \u201cmath\u201d language when describing why they did a certain operation in math. For example, the word \u201cinverse\u201d should be used instead of the word \u201copposite,\u201d or I seek for them to describe the \u201coutcome\u201d of a series of mathematical steps, merely getting the \u201canswer.\u201d This works well when building familiarity with specific mathematical terminology, or \u201cbrick\u201d terms, but the challenge of raising the overall level of the classroom\u2019s academic literacy is not really being achieved during such exchanges. Moreover, how should I change my way of communicating? Short of correcting speech and demanding that answers conform to a watered down version of academic language I\u2019m still at a loss as to what extent I should scaffold the language I use during instruction.
\nAnother aspect of the reading that really caught my attention was the approach to using \u201ccontroversial topics\u201d to promote positive habits of communication. I hated when teachers attempted to create provocative statements, especially about topics that were not inherently subjective. But I didn\u2019t really consider the side benefits (that is, outside of the immediate content being taught) of incorporating such statements into a lesson. I liked the assertion that, \u201cseeing multiple perspectives helps students empathize with others who do not share similar backgrounds. Students can, and need to, see through the eyes of others\u2026\u201d Now, I don\u2019t expect a discussion about decimal placement in my rather homogenous class to really promote such an outcome \u2013 empathy. But having discussions in which the students must formulate an opinion, listen to others, and present their viewpoints would most definitely have an impact upon their ability to hold partake in civil discourse. Currently, I demand that my class can defend their answers (though, this generally occurs when I check for understanding). But perhaps my lessons should include more discourse that stems from proactive statements as is suggested in the readings. This may very well foster an increased ability to listen to others and articulate opinions. If indeed my students left my class with an increased ability to advocate for themselves and empathize with others I would be a truly happy teacher. For, empathy is one of the main skills I\u2019d like for my students to garner under my tutelage.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[],"more":0}]},{"id":"52001786","dateCreated":"1332391235","smartDate":"Mar 21, 2012","userCreated":{"username":"terrencekumar","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/terrencekumar","imageUrl":"https:\/\/ssl.wikicdn.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/ctge5549spring12.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/52001786"},"dateDigested":1532919221,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"terrence's post","description":" Reading the first several chapters of Building Academic Language was a chore. I believe Jeff Zwiers was stating one obvious fact after another. For example, Jeff Zwiers states that lessons on abstract subjects should include clear and direct teaching of the vocabulary involved. He then offers \u201cfactoring\u201d as an example from a math class. His prompt:
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\nFind the roots of the equation: 12x2 + 5x - 2 = 0 by factoring
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\nZwiers explains that the teacher must first explain roots, equations, how to factor, and how variables can signify different numbers. This is a practice problem for factoring. I doubt that any teacher would teach students this topic without explaining roots and factoring. What is his point? I am dumbfounded. This is just one of the many vacuously true examples he provides.
\n As I trudged through the three chapters, I did search for valuable information. The only reason I think I would have made the better teaching decision in all of the presented dilemmas is because I was aware of the problem. Of course the reason I was aware was Zwiers had just presented it. This was the value the reading for me. Teaching with a defined awareness of these issues, will help me to avoid all of the mistakes I do not know I make.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[],"more":0}]},{"id":"52001138","dateCreated":"1332388865","smartDate":"Mar 21, 2012","userCreated":{"username":"emilylynnmiller","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/emilylynnmiller","imageUrl":"https:\/\/ssl.wikicdn.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/ctge5549spring12.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/52001138"},"dateDigested":1532919221,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"Standard American English","description":"I have the same struggles with Standard American English and getting my students to use it PROPERLY that any of the other teachers have I would guess. (Half of my students are ELLs or former ELLs, so I know this plays a part.) However, that being said, I don't actually have a hard time getting students to TRY to use it in their writing (albeit not always successfully).
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\nI don't use Standard American English 100% of the time in my speech (and my students would tell you "Ms. Miller goes country if we're bad"), but I use it in my formal writing. From the very beginning (and many times since as needed), we had a conversation about language and how you communicate equating to respect. I use my proper grammar as their teacher and to my principal, but when I'm with friends and family, I get to be less formal and use slang. And even though my students don't adhere to this 100% of the time, they are always improving (and I don't get addressed as "yoooo, misssss"). I also use this conversation as a reminder and a stepping point in conferencing, etc.
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\nMy constant problem is my students not understanding all of the intricacies of Standard American English because they aren't on reading level, their peers don't use this language, and it's seems like no teacher has ever taught them any of it before (though I know that isn't true). I feel like my kids are so far behind where they need to be in the grammar, mechanics, and usage of Standard American Language, and I KNOW I don't have the time (or the approval of my superiors) to focus on such. And sure, I take one little thing at a time to focus on, but I would love to hear some strategies about how to get students to use it more and understand more (knowing that they aren't likely to use it in their everyday lives).","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[],"more":0}]},{"id":"52000178","dateCreated":"1332386593","smartDate":"Mar 21, 2012","userCreated":{"username":"aylinkuzucan","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/aylinkuzucan","imageUrl":"https:\/\/ssl.wikicdn.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/ctge5549spring12.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/52000178"},"dateDigested":1532919221,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"Aylin's Post ","description":" When I began teaching I was exposed to several words that my students use and I had never heard of before. Even after the definition was explained to me by my students I would question whether or not it even made sense. For instance, \u201cdead-ass\u201d means serious. Why this is the case I have no idea. I\u2019ve never minded my students using their lingo but I make it clear in the class that there is a place and time for that language. The first chapters of "Building Academic Language" by Zweir reinforce the idea that our students are impacted by the way they speak at home. Students do need to learn a new type of English because at home many of them are not exposed to academic English. Looking at the achievement gap in literacy and using Zweir\u2019s ideas it makes sense. Students in suburban schools in Westchester have less of a transition into academic language because their language at home does not stray far from the language used in academia. On the other hand, my students in the Bronx have a different version of English they use at home and thus have more of a transition into academic language. This makes it imperative to enforce this formal language in class.
\n In my classroom, I have chosen to embrace their slang words. I\u2019ve promised that I will master their slang if they promise to master academic language. I explain to my students that both are acceptable ways to speak, but they must know when to turn it on and off. I also struggle with many students characterizing academic language with \u201cwhite speech\u201d and their slang as \u201cblack speech.\u201d This is problematic because I want to portray to my students that both versions of English are equal and are not delineated by race. I agree with Zweir that is imperative to teach our student\u2019s the skills to speak like a professional but to also respect their upbringing. This combination is ever challenging. By learning the words they use every day I hope to find connections and teach students why transition to academic speech is important\u2014and it isn\u2019t to make them \u201cwhiter.\u201d
\n In these three chapters Zewir emphasizes the need to teach academic language and to also respect our student\u2019s informal language. I have begun this process in my classroom but feel that I need a lot more to master the task. I still have questions. I\u2019m unsure of when to allow informal speech in class. I understand that for students it makes expressing their opinions easier because they are not stressing over properly writing their sentences. On the other hand, they need to learn how to write their sentences. I question how to make these technical lessons engaging and interesting. Additionally, if students are not practicing at home how can I make sure they remember what they learned in class?","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[],"more":0}]}],"more":true},"comments":[]},"http":{"code":200,"status":"OK"},"redirectUrl":null,"javascript":null,"notices":{"warning":[],"error":[],"info":[],"success":[]}}