Class: Literature

Today's lesson was fun, the student's really enjoyed it. Today lesson was on taking a scene from the book we finished and student's were given the task to not only act the desired scene out and find the dramatic significance but also had to use film the scene and present it to me on a DVD. The student's were divided into groups in which they chose and together had to choose which scene in the book they wanted to do. Student's were also asked to ask family members to assist them with the taping. This assignment was roughly a 2 week project. The students were also advised to find elements of similar setting that are in the play to similar setting here in Antigua. When the assignment was completed we as a student body was able to watch the dvd's through the LCD projector and students had to take notes of scenes that were dramatic significance in order to assist them on their CAPE exam.

I felt that this lesson fit well with the characteristic of culturally responsive teaching as well as the standards of CREDE. I provided the student with options and the students then had to create and develop how the project was going to be designed. I moved the project away from being teacher centered to student directed. I wanted to incorporate activities and technology that they are familiar with . I felt by "maintain challenging standards for the class the performance, would advance understanding to a more complex level. Haberman, 1991;Padron and Waxman, (1999) states "Instruction that focuses on low-level basic skills, drill and repetition, and test preparation constitutes a Pedagogy of Poverty, that has pervasive, negative effects on student motivation and learning(Haberman, 1991;Padron and Waxman, 1999). CREDE also suggest culturally and linguistically diverse students may become bored or even turned off. This is due to the fact that the content is being limited towards the student, in addition to this English learners are not assessed and are left outside of the box of accountability. It is because of this belief that students standards are not set high, which in turn may cause risk factor to the students(Tharp, 1997).
In the CREDE standards, one critical role of this standard is constructing an effective classroom which will be conducive to learning. By allowing the students to work in small groups students were able to discuss ideas, and brainstorm how they were going to undergo the task given. Students were able to evaluate who was good at specific tasks and were able to use prior knowledge in assessing their skills. Students were able to ascertain together the dramatic significance of the play and then would have to convince each other why they thought it was so. I felt that this task built confidence, and also allowed the student's to express their knowledge in a meaningful, and entertaining way. Dr. Garcia mentions the approach that all students can learn, we as teachers first must construct a safe and happy learning environment.
The second CREDE standard encourages student to verbally be involved linguistically. Student's within the group are working together and interacting within the group while formulating ideas on their own terms and not the facilitator. Students are guided by the novel that was read within the class. In addition to this student's will have to have script their answer before they are able to share, while they are exposing themself and working with language. Students in this lesson are verbally involved linguistically. The third CREDE standard promotes that educators should connect school with student's lives. I encouraged the students to allow their parents of family member take part in the process of putting the video together and assisting with the filming. I felt by including this statement parents and child could have worked together especially due to the fact that everyone had to be in the movie at the same time. Next time I could invite the parents into the class to be a judge, or just part of the audience. I felt it was important to incorperate school life with student's life for them the assignment became more meaningful. In addition to this, we are able to see though they may have been a difference due to cultural diversity we had many similar qualities that were able to bind us together. The fourth CRED standard promotes student engagement. To me, I found that the students were engages right from the planning stage to the finishing stage. Students were also challenged with the assignment which in turn lead to eagerness and a higher standard of learning. Lastly, I was very proud to say that i did not lecture at all . The student's were talking 92 percent of the times while I spoke 5 percent. I realized that students were the important factors with me as the observer.
Dr. Garcia speaks to the fact that the teacher approach, and the knowing of teacher's educational theory is very vital to student learning. I felt in this lesson that I embraced the concept that all students, or all levels where able to learn. I was able to tap into the realm of what they liked and what skills that they use outside of school. I felt that I provided the student with the appropriate support to ensure student success. Group members were able to feel relaxed and they had control on how they were going to share their knowledge. Lastly, I found that this assignment was culturally responsive because the text was a Post colonial but I gave the student the choice to use their native language which would be "DIALECT", to be incorporating within the play. I could have also invited students and their parents or family from that region to come and speak to us about how life was in India, and the political war about the Hindu and the Muslim.

Reflection Day 2

Objective of the Reflection

• In the book Teachers as a Professional Sonia Nieto makes reference to the importance of being a reflective teacher. It is through reflection that I am able to see what I can improve upon so I can mold myself into the best teacher I can possibly be.

• Upon reflection of this weeks lesson I was able to analyze my strength and weaknesses in regards to CREDE and Culturally responsive approaches. It is through reflection I am hoping to be able to revisit my other lesson's in weeks to come in the hope that I able to improve upon areas that may need Improvement.

Learning through CREDE and 5 R's and 1 T

As teacher's we sometimes fall in the trap “If it is not broken, why fix it attitude." Though this cliché may prove to be true in the minds of individuals in essence what we are saying is by masking the problem we are masking the solution.

The CREDE program is based on a "Social Cultural Theoretical Framework” within this framework we observe the cultural of language and diversity amongst individuals. CREDE consist of 8 principles and the following beliefs are

1. Children can learn

2. That all children need to keep challenged.

3. That students needs to be proficient in English.

4. Through languages, and cultural diversity students and teachers are benefited.

5. Bilingual proficiency is desirable for all involved.

6. Teaching and learning can be an accommodation in learning to individuals.

7. Lastly, risks factors skills are encouraged in schools, along with ways to ascertain a solution.

Yolanda n. Padron states, "Effective instructional practices are critical to addressing the educational crisis facing many Hispanic students." CREDE researchers have synthesized that the research on strategies that have been significant in advancing the achievement of these students."(Tharp, Estrada, Dalton and Yamanchi, 2000) also states that education must be meaningful and responsive in order to meet the needs of the students.

In addition to this, it must also be culturally and linguistically appropriate. CREDE researchers suggest 5 standard for based practices these practices includes

1. Teachings and students working together.

2. Developing language skills across all Curriculum.

3. Connecting Lessons to student's lives.

4. Engaging students with challenging lessons.

5. Emphasizing Dialogue over language.

While Dr. Garcia also encourages teachers to embrace and implement the following strategies in the classroom and discussion within the classroom.

1. Respectful
2. Responsive
3. Responsible
4. Resourceful
5. Reasonable
6. Theory

As a teacher I plan to reflect on my lesson for this week and see how I have been able to embrace CREDE in my lesson and use Dr. Garcia 5 R's and 1 T.