Written Resonse for Workshops Seven and Eight

Ryan’s Story

Ryan moved to the Toronto area last January. He speaks very little English and is experiencing Canadian culture for the first time. He lives in a poor neighbourhood and attends school in a middle class area. The school board’s geographical boundaries often include students from different social class communities. At this school, your social class makes a difference with regard to your educational experience.

The English Language Learner (ELL) teacher often says that “Learning another language is not learning different words for the same things, but learning another way to think about things.” She works with Ryan and his classroom teacher to help him fit into the school culture, learn the language and actively participate in lessons.

For the most part, Ryan’s lessons are teacher directed from the front of the class. Ryan sits in the front of the class looking up at the teacher and the teacher looking down at him. My hope is that at some point the teacher will accept the challenge of “sitting at the same level as the students, listen in a different way, and speak in a different way” (Murry). I recognize the fear and pressure the teacher is experiencing trying to maintain control in the classroom and covering the curriculum. As a result, Ryan is learning that good students behave at all times in a classroom, listens and completes their work on time. Only during ‘literature circles’ is the teacher sitting with the students, however, there is very little exchange of ideas between the teacher and students. This is a time for the teacher to evaluate. Prior to taking part in literature circles, the ELL teacher helps Ryan to prepare. They read his book together and there is an exchange of ideas. The teacher, however, does most of the talking. She tries to engage Ryan by asking him questions. It is fair to say that ‘acquisition’ experiences are not available for Ryan in this class. Many of his classmates learn about school from a very young age and know how the system works.

Ryan’s experiences at school are very different when he is on the soccer field with his classmates. This is a place Ryan has a lot of experience and feels very comfortable. He appears to be very skilled and engaged. It would seem by watching Ryan play soccer that he has grown up from a young age with his team members learning to play soccer. But just like the idea that ‘learning a language is not learning different words for the same things’ knowing the skills to play soccer are not the only thing necessary to playing soccer in a different country. Yao Ming once said, “Basketball in America is like a culture. It is like a foreigner learning a new language. It is difficult to learn foreign languages and it will also be difficult for me to learn the culture for basketball here.” According to his ELL teacher, soccer is an important part of Ryan’s life and is often the subject of conversation during her interactions with him. Luckily the ELL teacher’s children play soccer so she is somewhat familiar with the soccer culture in Canada. She sees this common interest as a connection between the two and an authentic way for her to share thoughts and feelings with him.
Scott’s Story

Scott attends the same school as Ryan. He has been a student at this school since kindergarten. Scott is known by most if not all teachers in the school and is often the topic of conversation in the staffroom. He was diagnosed with ADHD a few years ago and is medicated for this condition. When told that Scott will be in their class, teachers prepare themselves for a challenging experience. Whether in the classroom, on the playground or at home, Scott doesn’t fit in.

Early on in the year, Scott’s classroom teacher met his step brother and sister. “So is Scott driving you crazy yet,” his older sister asked his teacher. “He drives my mom crazy and she is constantly yelling at him to finish his breakfast, stop fooling around…,” she continued. This first glimpse into Scott’s home life gave the teacher a lot to think about. In this case the step mother was “Whinny the Witch,” not the classroom teacher.

Scott’s teacher attended meeting with his father, the social worker and principal. Their goal was to try to make Scott fit into a traditional classroom environment. However, one thing they didn’t know was that Scott’s teacher was not a traditional classroom teacher and didn’t practice in a traditional classroom environment.

After listening to the advice of his father, Scott sat at his desk quietly preparing to listen to his teacher. The teacher sat in her chair and invited the students to join her at the carpet. After a short time Scott began to move around and find small things on the carpet to play with. He ended up at the back of the group appearing to be distracted and not paying attention to the conversation. When the teacher talked about something that was of particular interest to Scott, he stopped moving and focused intently on what the teacher was saying. At other times Scott would stop moving when he questioned something or wanted to share something significant with the class. Clearly he was paying attention. Just like the video clip we saw in class, students who appear to be distracted may in fact be very much engaged in the lesson. Luckily for Scott, early in the year his teacher recognized his ability to focus when it appeared he was not engaged.

Scott loved books and was a very expressive, fluent reader. The reading center was his favourite place in the classroom and he often read with another students. Since he was able to read more challenging material Scott took the responsibility to read the book while other students listened. Sprawled out with a book on the floored, Scott would jump to his feet when he had something exciting to share. “Shark expert who practices unusual research methods was bitten by a great white shark.” he exclaimed along with a gruesome picture to share.

This teacher clearly had respect for her students and allowed for alternative ways of interacting in the classroom. As Palmer suggests “… good teaching requires the teacher to yield some control in order to empower the group.”

Both Ryan and Scott’s school experiences were enhanced by teachers who took the time to hear and understand their stories. Many students come to school groomed to fit into the traditional white middle class education system. However, more and more students who don’t have these experiences are entering our school doors. Clearly the traditional ways of learning in school are not meeting the needs of all students forcing educators to change their beliefs about learning.

Wenger’s theory of a more natural/social learning experience really applies to me. “What if we assumed that learning is as much a part of our human nature as eating or sleeping, that it is both life-sustaining and inevitable, and that given a chance – we are quite good at it?” For me, this statement feels like a breath of fresh air. It provides for a more authentic learning experience that respects the perspectives and abilities of all students.