[etni] Expensive Objects, Risk, Reciprocal Teaching & Cooperative Learning
- From: "Arieh Sherris" <asherris@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: etni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Tue, 02 Sep 2003 14:40:35 +0300
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Hi all,
Steve had some questions. I will paste his questions and add my responses
below each one.
1.A digital camera is an expensive article. How do you have the
confidence
to take a possible accidental "total loss" on yourself?
My confidence comes from years of being a date farmer on my kibbutz way
before I was a teacher. We would get gangs (yes, that's the best word) of
teens born and raised in inner-city poverty; their low socio-economic
status, in some cases generational poverty, generated low-self esteem and a
low regard for themselves, others and property. They were actually very
troubled nachal groups.
Their self-expression swung like a pendulum from harsh, cruel words that
divvy up reality in black and white terms, to listlessness and silence. They
knew pain and hate--for themselves and for others. They broke things, stole
things and laughed at us. At first, most branch managers kept them at arms
length. I did too. That only increased the problems. A few of us got
together and decided we would provide them with a tractor course that would
culminate in getting a key to a tractor and being responsible for it--that
meant, checking oil, tires, filters, connection points--you name it, we had
these kids on their way to being mechanics. The prize was the expensive
object--the tractor; ours was their growing self-esteem from having given
them responsibility and from building into the equation of our
relationship-- trust.
You have to carefully take a leap with kids, turn over ownership of things;
teens are very concrete--I don't care what Piaget said. To get across to
them, to get to higher things, you have to share materials, build
responsibility. You might be able to start with pencils, but that might be a
recipe for failure because it is so ridiculous.
Others might argue that starting with an expensive digital camera is risky
too. I can't argue with that. But I also know that with teens---and this
seems to be a problem everywhere I have taught--school systems do not know
how to build in "risk". Teens need to take risks. We have to be able to let
them take risks in ways that are constructive--that's one important way that
they grow up to be mensch, no?
I think that the camera worked in my class. It could have gotten broken,
stolen, misused. An accident could have happened. It was a risk. We had so
many good experiences with the camera, that if something unfortunate had
happened, we were somehow immunized, no?
2. Could you elaborate a little on a) They learn ways to talk
and
reciprocal teach using the camera. They like this.
First of all whenever I have an object to talk about, I do it like I was
taught in the Israel Army: break it down into 3 parts. So, whatever I talk
about, say, a digital camera. I only talk about 3 things at a time. I use
discourse markers: First, Then, Finally; one, two, three; or, first, second,
third.
Do you know about shadow talking? Students have to shadow my 3 steps, by
telling their partner (these kids are beginners, remember). So, student A is
the teacher; student B is a martian, if you like. In any case, student B
hasn't been listening....so of course I always exploit this for a laugh and
ask...ok...who hasn't been listening...we need you too! Thank god you're
here today...(middle school humor stuff). Then, student A and student B
change roles...BTW, this takes all of 2 minutes of class time.
b) I punctuate my short talks with think-pair-share, even
think-write-pair-share.
Think-Pair-Share is a cooperative learning strategy from Frank Lyman. I ask
a question. Students think about the answer. (They are asked not to raise
hands, not to talk.) Then, pairs share their thoughts with one another.
Finally, the teacher debriefs and writes different responses from around the
room on chart paper, an OHP transparency, or the board.
Think-write-pair-share is the same only just after the "thinking step",
students do a quickwrite of their ideas (not worrying about spelling,
grammar or mechanics--only meaning focused). The rest is the same--pair
share and debriefing.
If you like this strategy, there are many more in an anthology of
cooperative learning strategies I like to use as a reference before I plan
my lessons. The citation is as follows:
Kagan, Spencer. (1994) Cooperative Learning. San Clemente, CA: Resources for
teachers.
I have been trying to convince the powers that be at ETAI to invite Dr.
Spencer Kagan and his daughter to Israel for the ETAI International
Conference next summer. He and his daughter do wonderful plenary sessions
and workshops. Maybe others could write to the folks at ETAI and put in a
word, too.
Best wishes,
Arieh Sherris
Washington, DC
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