According to Daniels and Zemelman knowing the literacy of your content area matters because the strategies that they offer to achieve the goal of creating a classroom community of learners essentially requires it. For example, the very first strategy that D & Z propose is modeling for your students while sharing your own passion for the subject, you thinking processes when reading about it, and your own obstacles as a student and reader of the subject. Successfully doing this and observing tangible results would certainly require one to have a comprehensive knowledge of the literacy of one's content area. By the same token, if a teacher wanted to do this without knowing about the literacy involved, she/he would have serious problems modeling or getting much of anything across to students because not possessing that knowledge disqualifies you from having that ability.
Knowing about the literacy of your content area matters for several reasons. I believe the most important is knowing what you are talking about when you're teaching in front of students. If students sense that you're not confident in what you're saying they are more likely to tune out. Confidence in your background will allow you to connect to students more effectively. Being passionate about your content area will allow students to see you care about what you are teaching them. While they may not fall in love with the subject themselves, they will pay attention to what you are saying. Allowing students to become more engaged in your content area is a good idea as well. On p. 214 Daniels and Zemelman recommend that you "schedule in-class reading time with choices of articles and books about your subject." This lets students become more involved in reading and writing, the two most important parts of an English class. The paragraph goes on to say that students e-mail their teacher their thoughts on the reading. I think this is a great strategy for allowing students to not only strengthen their English skills but to hopefully gain a deeper understanding of something they enjoy. This would only be possible if the teacher is well trained in the literacy of their content area.
It is important to know the literacy of your content area for many reasons when you are a teacher. First of all, you have to know what you are teaching students and not provide them with false information. When you are literate in your content area, you are confident in your teaching skills. As a student, it is much more enjoyable to have a confident teacher than one that is unsure of them self. Also being confident and knowledgeable can help spark students’ interest in your subject. By being literate in your content area, you can explain why your subject is important for students to learn. It will also be easier to relate course content to students’ lives. For example, with physics, it will be easier for the teacher to relate physics problems to sports or other subjects that will make their students more interested. Also when a teacher is passionate about a subject, it keeps students attention during class. When a teacher knows their content area, it is easier for them to model what is expected for students. For example, in many of the reading strategies in the D and Z chapter we read, the teacher first showed the students their thought process. Being able to model this behavior for students, will make the reading more understandable. For example, it is important for science teachers to demonstrate to their students how to think about the reading scientifically, and relate the scientific method to class readings. This will lead students to better grasp the readings.
In order to create a community of learners within your classroom, you must be literate in your content area. Along with having a strong knowledge of your content, you must be confident in what you know and what you are teaching. Students will easily be able to tell whether or not you are confident and care about the material in your class. D&Z give a lot of great strategies teachers can use in every content area. On pages 88 and 89 they discuss "Before, During, and After" when it comes to helping students understand text. They explain that before they begin reading, you must prepare students by doing different activities that involve prior knowledge, asking questions, and coming up with predictions. During the process of reading, the teacher must help and guide students to analyze and question what they are reading. After, the teacher must help the students reflect on what they've read and share their thoughts and ideas. If the teacher is not knowledgeable on the material or text, they are unable to use this before, during, and after strategy. It is important for teachers to know their content so they can guide and help students when needed, as well as encourage them to think for themselves and create their own thoughts on certain subject areas.
The first and foremost thing that comes to my mind is credibility. If students don't see or believe that you, as their teacher, have confidence and literacy in your subject content they, generally, will not get invested. If you are well polished and display a certain level of knowledge in your subject area you can also be looked at as a model by your students. Someone they might aspire to be like or try to imitate. While modeling you will also be displaying to them how to conduct themselves within your disciplinary.
Secondly, having literacy in your content area also affords you flexibility and tools to use in class. By being literate, a teacher will be able to spend more time on other preparations for class instead of trying to bring themselves up to speed on the content. We all know time is of the essence in education and the less time a teacher has to spend on attaining their literacy in "real time", the better. Also by being literate in a subject area could allow a teacher to be more creative and artistic in his/her instruction. A person who is not sound or not well-versed in a certain area will stick to being "safe". They will not be able to venture off and try new and innovative things like a teacher who is extremely literate in the content area could.
Lastly, by being literate, a teacher has been exposed to several techniques to use in their classroom. For instance, in D&Z, Ch. 5, I learned a bunch of different exercises that I could use in my classroom to foster student's reading of my content area. I feel at a advantage over a teacher with less literacy and a small bag of tools. I could see using the strategies in Ch. 5 for years and years. This is what getting literate is all about.
Knowing the literacy of our own content area seems like it should go without saying, but reading the perspectives of D&Z shed some light on the subject that I hadn’t really thought about before. I liked this idea of creating a classroom community of learners—essentially creating a desire and a hunger to learn within your students. I believe that the more in-tune and knowledgeable you are about your content area, the more creative you are likely to be when implementing lesson plans and finding effective ways to deliver the curriculum. Picasso said, “Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist,” which is a quote I have always applied to my passion for music. Basically, once you have mastered the art, you gain the freedom to be flexible and creative with it. With content literacy in mind, I think this quote is also directly applicable. If a teacher already has the content mastered, they can focus more time on the details, and on the theatric aspect of teaching, which draws students in. D&Z discuss modeling for students, which includes sharing why the content is so valuable not just in general, but to us personally. Why am I so on fire about this stuff? How do I approach it? What are my strategies? How does it affect my daily life, and how can it affect theirs? It seems that including these questions when approaching the curriculum and approaching lesson-planning will make it more likely that we, as teachers, will be able to more effectively bait the hook and get our students on board to become literate in our content area themselves.
I have a strong opinion about being literate in my content while teaching. While I do know that you need to know what you are teaching your students, I find myself always asking myself "What if I don't know the answer to a students' question?!" In observing at The Greene School and at NPHS, I have learned to understand that I will not always have the answer. D&Z provide great insight to this problem. What kid wants to learn something if they don't have a reason WHY this stuff is important for them to learn and know. While an educator should be more well-versed on content than the students (obviously), I would say that learning collectively and together would make students more interested in learning. I don't want to be the teacher (that we've all had at one point or another) that stands in front of the class and explains things in ways that the teacher can understand but the students may not. That might be my biggest pet peeve as a student.
Being able to create lesson plans that engage students in learning the content in creative and flexible ways should be my ultimate goal as a teacher. While I know that I am literate in my content area and "know my stuff," I'm more concerned with the way that I interpret the material in ways that encourage my students to be active learners. I want my students to know that I can answer their questions, but at the same time that I'm not a know-it-all and I too use my resources to find answers to things I may not know. D&Z express the importance of letting your passion for the subjects be shown to your students. I hope that I will be able to do this on most occasions, but we all have that one time period or subject that we just don't like. The real challenge here, to me, would be to fake it until I make it - make it the most interesting subject in my eyes so that my students don't see my passion for social studies fade at any point.
I am in no way saying that it's appropriate for a teacher to not have the content knowledge he/she is expected to have. All I'm saying is - we're all human. We aren't perfect. We aren't all-knowing. I think what separates a good teacher from an awesome teacher is learning to roll with it, accepting that we may not know every answer, and most importantly learning from and with your students.
Without being literate in your content area, you can't use the tools D&Z lay out in chapter 5. If you're unable to model how to properly do your subject, then your students aren't going to learn it. I think too often we mix up facts and content literacy. In my eyes, content literacy is being able to do your subject. If you're a historian, maybe your specialty isn't Medieval Europe but that may be required to be taught. It's the teacher's job to then go out and require the information through research in order to relay it back to the students. Facts come second to content performance literacy and when reading this D&Z chapter, that was the thought that kept running through my mind.
There's ways of getting around not knowing a certain fact, like the parking lot method we talked about while at the Greene School. To me, that demonstrated content literacy in teaching. Thinking about it now, it's like we have two contents: our subject matter and education. Often, we look at them with two different backpacks and it's far more useful to see them as one backpack with multiple pockets. Instead of digging into one pocket looking for the answer, open up the other pocket and see if it's in there.
When it comes to the importance of knowing your content, it's clear that it matters. If it didn't, I wouldn't be stressing about the English content Praxis test I have to take--and score at least a 168. If you want to be an English teacher, you need to know about ELA. That being said, there is SO much more to teaching than just knowing your content. It reminds me of running a photography business. Do you need to know how to take great photos? OF COURSE. But if you want to be a successful business, you also need to know how to market your business, create branding, advertise, book clients, follow-up, and mangage finances. And that's only the start of the list. If you only have the photography piece down pat, but nothing else, you're not going to have a successful business. Teaching works the same, I'm learning. You must have a command of your content, but if you want to be an exceptional teacher, you must know how to build a community of learners, like D&Z talk about in chapter 7. Real learning happens when students feel safe enough to take risks, ask questions, and can make mistakes. A sense of community happens when there are real connections being made, and that has little to do with the actual content. (Though I still need that 168 on my Praxis....)
According to Daniels and Zemelman knowing the literacy of your content area matters because the strategies that they offer to achieve the goal of creating a classroom community of learners essentially requires it. For example, the very first strategy that D & Z propose is modeling for your students while sharing your own passion for the subject, you thinking processes when reading about it, and your own obstacles as a student and reader of the subject. Successfully doing this and observing tangible results would certainly require one to have a comprehensive knowledge of the literacy of one's content area. By the same token, if a teacher wanted to do this without knowing about the literacy involved, she/he would have serious problems modeling or getting much of anything across to students because not possessing that knowledge disqualifies you from having that ability.
ReplyDeleteKnowing about the literacy of your content area matters for several reasons. I believe the most important is knowing what you are talking about when you're teaching in front of students. If students sense that you're not confident in what you're saying they are more likely to tune out. Confidence in your background will allow you to connect to students more effectively. Being passionate about your content area will allow students to see you care about what you are teaching them. While they may not fall in love with the subject themselves, they will pay attention to what you are saying. Allowing students to become more engaged in your content area is a good idea as well. On p. 214 Daniels and Zemelman recommend that you "schedule in-class reading time with choices of articles and books about your subject." This lets students become more involved in reading and writing, the two most important parts of an English class. The paragraph goes on to say that students e-mail their teacher their thoughts on the reading. I think this is a great strategy for allowing students to not only strengthen their English skills but to hopefully gain a deeper understanding of something they enjoy. This would only be possible if the teacher is well trained in the literacy of their content area.
ReplyDeleteIt is important to know the literacy of your content area for many reasons when you are a teacher. First of all, you have to know what you are teaching students and not provide them with false information. When you are literate in your content area, you are confident in your teaching skills. As a student, it is much more enjoyable to have a confident teacher than one that is unsure of them self. Also being confident and knowledgeable can help spark students’ interest in your subject. By being literate in your content area, you can explain why your subject is important for students to learn. It will also be easier to relate course content to students’ lives. For example, with physics, it will be easier for the teacher to relate physics problems to sports or other subjects that will make their students more interested. Also when a teacher is passionate about a subject, it keeps students attention during class. When a teacher knows their content area, it is easier for them to model what is expected for students. For example, in many of the reading strategies in the D and Z chapter we read, the teacher first showed the students their thought process. Being able to model this behavior for students, will make the reading more understandable. For example, it is important for science teachers to demonstrate to their students how to think about the reading scientifically, and relate the scientific method to class readings. This will lead students to better grasp the readings.
ReplyDeleteIn order to create a community of learners within your classroom, you must be literate in your content area. Along with having a strong knowledge of your content, you must be confident in what you know and what you are teaching. Students will easily be able to tell whether or not you are confident and care about the material in your class. D&Z give a lot of great strategies teachers can use in every content area. On pages 88 and 89 they discuss "Before, During, and After" when it comes to helping students understand text. They explain that before they begin reading, you must prepare students by doing different activities that involve prior knowledge, asking questions, and coming up with predictions. During the process of reading, the teacher must help and guide students to analyze and question what they are reading. After, the teacher must help the students reflect on what they've read and share their thoughts and ideas. If the teacher is not knowledgeable on the material or text, they are unable to use this before, during, and after strategy. It is important for teachers to know their content so they can guide and help students when needed, as well as encourage them to think for themselves and create their own thoughts on certain subject areas.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThe first and foremost thing that comes to my mind is credibility. If students don't see or believe that you, as their teacher, have confidence and literacy in your subject content they, generally, will not get invested. If you are well polished and display a certain level of knowledge in your subject area you can also be looked at as a model by your students. Someone they might aspire to be like or try to imitate. While modeling you will also be displaying to them how to conduct themselves within your disciplinary.
ReplyDeleteSecondly, having literacy in your content area also affords you flexibility and tools to use in class. By being literate, a teacher will be able to spend more time on other preparations for class instead of trying to bring themselves up to speed on the content. We all know time is of the essence in education and the less time a teacher has to spend on attaining their literacy in "real time", the better. Also by being literate in a subject area could allow a teacher to be more creative and artistic in his/her instruction. A person who is not sound or not well-versed in a certain area will stick to being "safe". They will not be able to venture off and try new and innovative things like a teacher who is extremely literate in the content area could.
Lastly, by being literate, a teacher has been exposed to several techniques to use in their classroom. For instance, in D&Z, Ch. 5, I learned a bunch of different exercises that I could use in my classroom to foster student's reading of my content area. I feel at a advantage over a teacher with less literacy and a small bag of tools. I could see using the strategies in Ch. 5 for years and years. This is what getting literate is all about.
Knowing the literacy of our own content area seems like it should go without saying, but reading the perspectives of D&Z shed some light on the subject that I hadn’t really thought about before. I liked this idea of creating a classroom community of learners—essentially creating a desire and a hunger to learn within your students. I believe that the more in-tune and knowledgeable you are about your content area, the more creative you are likely to be when implementing lesson plans and finding effective ways to deliver the curriculum.
ReplyDeletePicasso said, “Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist,” which is a quote I have always applied to my passion for music. Basically, once you have mastered the art, you gain the freedom to be flexible and creative with it. With content literacy in mind, I think this quote is also directly applicable. If a teacher already has the content mastered, they can focus more time on the details, and on the theatric aspect of teaching, which draws students in.
D&Z discuss modeling for students, which includes sharing why the content is so valuable not just in general, but to us personally. Why am I so on fire about this stuff? How do I approach it? What are my strategies? How does it affect my daily life, and how can it affect theirs? It seems that including these questions when approaching the curriculum and approaching lesson-planning will make it more likely that we, as teachers, will be able to more effectively bait the hook and get our students on board to become literate in our content area themselves.
I have a strong opinion about being literate in my content while teaching. While I do know that you need to know what you are teaching your students, I find myself always asking myself "What if I don't know the answer to a students' question?!" In observing at The Greene School and at NPHS, I have learned to understand that I will not always have the answer. D&Z provide great insight to this problem. What kid wants to learn something if they don't have a reason WHY this stuff is important for them to learn and know. While an educator should be more well-versed on content than the students (obviously), I would say that learning collectively and together would make students more interested in learning. I don't want to be the teacher (that we've all had at one point or another) that stands in front of the class and explains things in ways that the teacher can understand but the students may not. That might be my biggest pet peeve as a student.
ReplyDeleteBeing able to create lesson plans that engage students in learning the content in creative and flexible ways should be my ultimate goal as a teacher. While I know that I am literate in my content area and "know my stuff," I'm more concerned with the way that I interpret the material in ways that encourage my students to be active learners. I want my students to know that I can answer their questions, but at the same time that I'm not a know-it-all and I too use my resources to find answers to things I may not know. D&Z express the importance of letting your passion for the subjects be shown to your students. I hope that I will be able to do this on most occasions, but we all have that one time period or subject that we just don't like. The real challenge here, to me, would be to fake it until I make it - make it the most interesting subject in my eyes so that my students don't see my passion for social studies fade at any point.
I am in no way saying that it's appropriate for a teacher to not have the content knowledge he/she is expected to have. All I'm saying is - we're all human. We aren't perfect. We aren't all-knowing. I think what separates a good teacher from an awesome teacher is learning to roll with it, accepting that we may not know every answer, and most importantly learning from and with your students.
Without being literate in your content area, you can't use the tools D&Z lay out in chapter 5. If you're unable to model how to properly do your subject, then your students aren't going to learn it. I think too often we mix up facts and content literacy. In my eyes, content literacy is being able to do your subject. If you're a historian, maybe your specialty isn't Medieval Europe but that may be required to be taught. It's the teacher's job to then go out and require the information through research in order to relay it back to the students. Facts come second to content performance literacy and when reading this D&Z chapter, that was the thought that kept running through my mind.
ReplyDeleteThere's ways of getting around not knowing a certain fact, like the parking lot method we talked about while at the Greene School. To me, that demonstrated content literacy in teaching. Thinking about it now, it's like we have two contents: our subject matter and education. Often, we look at them with two different backpacks and it's far more useful to see them as one backpack with multiple pockets. Instead of digging into one pocket looking for the answer, open up the other pocket and see if it's in there.
When it comes to the importance of knowing your content, it's clear that it matters. If it didn't, I wouldn't be stressing about the English content Praxis test I have to take--and score at least a 168. If you want to be an English teacher, you need to know about ELA. That being said, there is SO much more to teaching than just knowing your content. It reminds me of running a photography business. Do you need to know how to take great photos? OF COURSE. But if you want to be a successful business, you also need to know how to market your business, create branding, advertise, book clients, follow-up, and mangage finances. And that's only the start of the list. If you only have the photography piece down pat, but nothing else, you're not going to have a successful business. Teaching works the same, I'm learning. You must have a command of your content, but if you want to be an exceptional teacher, you must know how to build a community of learners, like D&Z talk about in chapter 7. Real learning happens when students feel safe enough to take risks, ask questions, and can make mistakes. A sense of community happens when there are real connections being made, and that has little to do with the actual content. (Though I still need that 168 on my Praxis....)
ReplyDelete