Judy - you and the others who posted in response to Jennifer's question are making me re-think my disconnect with my School Law class. I'm now thinking of the importance of self-selected reading in a student's ability to understand. For my master's degree, I've taken many courses and been forced to read many books I may not otherwise have chosen. I'm thinking of 2 classes on opposite ends of my understanding continuum: 1. School Finance - a topic I was never interested in before and had virtually no schema for when we started the class. Now, after completing the course, I could tell you how schools are finance, why the school finance system in Illinois is so unequitable, how state funding is computed..... not only COULD I tell you, but I would WANT to. I find it fascinating and I derive such pleasure knowing that I was able to make sense of something that I knew nothing about before. 2. School Law - I could tell you the outcome of the landmark cases affecting our school system, and I could tell you how our constitutional rights affect us at teachers and administrators, and we could discuss teacher tenure laws in Illinois. But would I WANT to discus this? Nope. It's not interesting to me, and although I'll probably remember it, I have no real desire to learn more. I'd say I understood it, but only because I'm a conscientious student and I felt that I had to make myself understand.
What's the difference between these two classes that were essentially foreign to me? Not my schema or BK, as I had none for both. Essentially, the only difference is topic. One I was interested in (I'm a bit of a logic-brained, numbers person) and one I was not. And that, it seems, made all the difference in the world in the degree of my fervent desire to learn. I would venture a guess that you're exactly right, Judy, that the exact same principle would apply to our students, and that we need to allow our students to choose readings that will help create, for the, a fervent desire to learn. And, more importantly, when we observe this fervency (still not sure if that is word), we need to acknowledge it, talk about it, and celebrate it! Dana Williams Fascinating thinking, Dana and June! I wonder how Ellin would explain the difference in our engagement with self-selected vs. required reading. True story: my family will not let me forget that on the day I graduated from UCLA, I said, "Finally, I can read what I want." This is not to say that I experienced none of Keene's outcomes in my college days, but it does tell you about the power of self-selection for this reader. As I teacher, I must assign reading. I choose text for guided reading hoping to prompt engagement and discussion, but the texts are still my choice. Again, I wonder how Ellin would explain the difference in our engagement with self-selected vs. required reading. Judy _______________________________________________ Understand mailing list [email protected] http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/listinfo/understand_literacyworkshop.org _______________________________________________ Understand mailing list [email protected] http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/listinfo/understand_literacyworkshop.org
