EDR211 TMA#1

Rafael E.Ablong
TMA# 1 How reading and writing are used to understand content.
211TMA#1 Ablong/rea.doc
to: edr211@gmail.com

I. Introduction
A. Objectives:
This class observation was conducted to:
1. Know the nature of texts and how reading process are used in the class to learn the basics of map making and map reading
2. To understand what strategies are used for struggling readers in order that they learn the lesson and know what to do in their project.
3. To know what kind of texts and resources are used to help students acquire, process and apply the information.
4. To discover how the teacher measures students’ understanding of the texts and how they apply their understanding to the project.
5. B. Rationale:
In order to teach contents related to the subject matter under discussion, a teacher needs to: consider his students’ levels of reading and comprehension skills; and pre-read texts or resources that will be used by his students. Since “low level academic achievement of students may come from a variety of sources, high quality teaching and creative strategies” is a great way to help these students “engaged in learning.” Focused instruction or individualized instruction plans & after school programs can help struggling or reluctant readers understand what they read.
Lack of motivation to study and learn has always been a problem for both teachers and students. How to overcome that would depend more on how teachers present the texts or trade books that are used to learn content. The teachers’ main challenge is how to convince their students that they can be successful so they have to keep reading even when they are about to tune out because of difficulties at home or in the classroom.
Some strategies that teachers use include: a good selection of materials that attract students’ attention; using appropriate “level” books with “praise and positive feedback”; a selective departure from the textbook can be a very good motivator to help students choose their level books and keep their interest to read and learn from that book or books; and using books that catch students’ interest and motivation because of “engaging writing and great illustrations”. Elementary and middle school students are usually attracted to these engaging books with great illustrations.”
Another way of developing motivation and improving students’ comprehensions skills is “to tap into what they already know.” Studies show that “background knowledge of a topic contributes to comprehension.” Students are able to understand well ahead of the others when their previous information is being used in the topic.
“Discussion, brainstorming and asking questions to help all learners activate and share the knowledge they do have can help process information before the actually begin a reading.”

II. Description of the Documentation Methodology
Sample/ Subjects – This first assignment of the EDR 211 shows how Mr. Matthew Buck, a Grade 4 teacher of Fukuoka International School, use strategies to keep his students reading and learning in his social studies class. It is a study about a teacher’s way of teaching content through reading and writing. This was done using a combination of interview and observation. Below are the interview questions and observation checklist that I used.
A. Interview questions:
1. May I know what subjects you teach in your homeroom class?
2. How often do you use reading and writing to learn content in core subjects of math, science and social studies?
3. Do you have reluctant or struggling readers in your class?
4. How do you help these struggling readers understand content in your core subjects?
5. Are you using a particular textbook for your social studies class?
6. Why do you choose those books?
7. Do you conduct vocabulary and spelling tests?
8. How do you ensure that your students are able to use the words or vocabulary in your class?
B. Observation
The following things were done before, during and after observing Mr. Buck’s Grade 4 Class:
1. Before the Interview and Classroom Observation – I prepared a list of questions for the brief interview. Then, I printed out and filled up the Letter of Request of my EDR 211 FIC, Prof. Anne Choi. During the presentation of the letter of request to Mr. Buck during his break time, I also explained to him how important this course is for me, and the reason why I am doing the course. After my short interview with him, we M set up the observation schedule.
2. During the Interview and Class Observation – I showed a copy of the interview questions to Mr. Buck and took note of his answers. I also asked him to give me some important papers and copies of students’ work and pictures for my documentation of TMA#1. After everything was done, I took pictures of: the books that they used; students working individually and in groups; selected students’ work and the bulletin boar where they posted their finished projects.
3. After the Classroom Observation – I asked Mr. Buck to sign the Letter of Request to confirm my attendance in his class and I asked one of his students to take a picture of both of us next to his desk in the Grade 4 room.

Figure 1. December 3, 2010 –Mr. Matt Buck and I posing after the interview and classroom observation.
After giving him a Thank you Christmas card to show my gratitude for his cooperation and total support, I collected and organized what I have done and wrote this report.
4. Observation Checklist: See attached Checklist
The checklist that I used from www.austincc.edu provided four main categories to observe how the teacher performs his role. These four are: class structure, methods, teacher-student interaction, and content.

III. Results:
A. Interview
This is the result of the brief interview with Mr. Matthew Buck, Grade 4 teacher at FIS. The answers you will read here are taken from him but they are not done verbatim.

Question No.1: May I know what subjects you teach in your homeroom class?
Answer: “I teach math, science and social studies in my class aside from the regular homeroom activities” that I do with them to help them improve their overall behavior and performance at school.

Question No. 2: How often do you use reading and writing to learn content in core subjects of math, science and social studies?
Answer : “I use it every time. He uses different strategies to have them read and write in his class.” He pairs up a good reader with a developing reader or with new students depending on their first language and level of English- reading abilities. Like a proficient Korean- reader of English books is paired up with a new Korean student. This is to facilitate communication in their native language in order to learn the English language or read an English book.

Question No. 3: Do you have reluctant or struggling readers in your class?
Answer: The new students except those who are coming from English-speaking schools outside FIS have reading and writing problems. I also have students who have shown extra effort to read and are succeeding. So I have different levels of readers. They usually overcome most of their basic reading problems after a few months with the help of their ELL teacher, their reading buddies, and “with the teaching strategies and support that I give through my core subjects.” Since words give meaning to what we read, the more we read the more we are able to learn new things and for some people the reading adventure continuous for a lifetime.

Question No. 4: How do you help these struggling readers understand content in your core subjects?
Answer: “Having different levels of English readers from different countries means that you have to use their potential to help the teacher in some ways, especially in translating, my instructions. I also ask students to share their ideas how to go about helping them read better. Students sometimes guide the teacher so that they will be motivated to read. I also do a lotnof collaborative work with ELL teachers, tutors and even student partners of the student (s) who have reading problems.

Question No. 5: Are you using a particular textbook for your social studies class?
Answer : “I don’t have a textbook to teach social studies. I have different kinds of readers.” He uses different books of the same topic and related topics in social studies. For map-making and map-reading, he uses two websites and different kinds of books that contain the same topic

Figure 2. Some of the Geography books that students read before their Group Map Activity.
Question No. 6: Why do you choose these books?
Answer: These books are good for different levels of readers. I usually ask them to choose from this pile of books that I have pre-read and selected myself. A particular student will naturally be attracted to a book or books that fit his reading ability. These books are very engaging and have great illustrations.

Figure 3. Other Books about Geography, Map-Making and Reading for different levels of readers
Question No. 7: Do you conduct content, vocabulary and spelling tests?
Answer: Yes, I do. I do it regularly to check on their reading habits, comprehension and memory skills. It always gives them a goal and a feeling of achievement after the test. Some of them are beginning to enjoy reading adventures.

Question No. 8: How do you ensure that your students are able to use the words or vocabulary from their readings in your class?
Answer: I use different activities that repeat the use of the same vocabulary. Before I start a topic, like in this case, map-making and map-reading, I ask them to read their level books and sight the words that I write on the board in their books: latitude, longitude, grid coordinates, etc. They are going to find those words in their books and then talk with their reading buddies about the meaning of those words. At one time, I ask them to draw or write or both what they think a map is and they came out with different ideas and illustrations (see figure 4). They also had a chance to actually use the floor to work on their grids. See attached drawing and pictures about this. Then, he asks them their understanding of the word.

Figure 4. Students’ own definition and illustration of a map.
B. Classroom Observation:
My classroom observation took almost 3 days to finish, since I had to cover for some teachers who were absent due to the cold. Mr. Buck always updated me about what his students were working on. Anyway, on the first day to last day of my observation, I saw consistency of instruction and coherence of purpose for reading. The students exuded interest for the most part although some students were not as excited as the others.
Mr. Buck gave an excellent explanation of the nature of the activity that students are going to do for the rest of the day and the coming days of the week before the winter break. He told the students to work closely with their partners. If a partner in the group is a good reader and the other is not then the former is a text reader and the other supports him as an illustrator. The better reader should see to it that his partner understands the word and what they are going to do in the reading part of the project.
Mr. Buck asked students to go the site http://www.map-reading.com/ch4-3.php and read about map-making there. Some of them said that there were words that were hard to understand at first. So he asked them to write those words on the board so everyone will know. The teacher challenged them to find whatever words they can’t understand aside from the sight words that he wanted them to find.
After writing their sight words, Mr. Buck asked them to find their meaning in the dictionary and then, in their own words try to explain their meaning as they were used in the sentence. Most of them wanted to say what they thought a map was. The activity was electrifying and it made some students really enjoy the interaction. After a few minutes, Mr. Buck took over and clarified the definition of: grid coordinate, latitude, longitude, magnetic north, true north, contours, reliefs, symbols, etc. He had the students talk about it. This was followed by an activity where students had to look at some other maps with their partners taking note of the words and their applications in the maps.

Figure 5. Grade 4 students worked on their grid coordinates using the floor and posted the results of their work in the bulletin board so other students can see them. Appreciating students’ work motivates them to sustain their efforts and to do better.
After writing their sight words, the teacher asked them to find their meaning in the dictionary and then, in their own words try to explain their meaning as they were used in the sentence.
The teacher explained the words in map reading like: grid coordinate, latitude, longitude, magnetic north, true north, contours, reliefs, symbols, etc. then he had the students talk about it. This was followed by an activity where students had to look at some other maps with their partners taking note of the words and their applications in the maps.
To repeat the words and understand their meaning, they did a short competitive game. The group that gives the right first answer gets a point. One group gave the meaning of the word using signs of symbols and the other group writes the spelling of the words. If the other group writes it correctly, then the next chance to define the meaning of the word goes to that group.
Moving on to their activities, Mr. Buck introduced the concept of grids and guided the students to making the grids following small, simple patterns then moving into more complex exercise to make a map with grids in it. Students also applied their understanding of grids, longitude and latitude when they made a replica of the globe using an orange and then transposing that globe (the orange) into a flat map. It is important to note here that during their map activities, there was a lot of reading and talking about what information needs to go to what place of the map that they made.


Figure 6. Transposing the globe into a flat map using (mikan) oranges
Their final project is actually making an online map with an audio recording of each place that they have read about represented those places with red spots that readers can press and listen to the recorded texts of the place in the map.
Classroom Observation Checklist
Name: Rafael E. Ablong Date: December 3-5, 2010
Class Observed: Mr. Matt Buck’s Grade 4 Time: 8:55 -- 9:55 am
Department: Elementary
Class Structure Could Improve Acceptable Excellent Not Observed
Reviews previous day’s course content
Gives overview of day’s course content
Summarizes course content covered
Directs student preparation for next class
Comments

Methods Could Improve Acceptable Excellent Not Observed
Provides well-designed materials
Employs non-lecture learning activities
(i.e. small group discussion, student-led activities)
Invites class discussion
Employs other tools/instructional aids
(i.e. technology, computer, video, overheads)
Delivers well-planned lecture
Comments

Teacher Student Interaction Could Improve Acceptable Excellent Not Observed
Solicits student input
Involves a variety of students
Demonstrates awareness of individual student
learning needs
Comments

Content
Could Improve Acceptable Excellent Not Observed
Appears knowledgeable
Appears well organized
Explains concepts clearly
Relates concepts to students’ experience
Selects learning experiences appropriate to level of learning
Comments
Source: http://www.austincc.edu/hr/eval/procedures/ClassObservCheck.pd

IV. Implications & Recommendations
The results of the interview an observation imply that sufficient teacher guidance and encouragement, students “learned to read and read to learn” in their social studies class. Different levels of students were able to work together as reading or research buddies, project teams and successful elementary map-makers and map readers. The teacher was able to demonstrate how strategies can influence the interest and reading behavior of students. It can be said that teacher’s focus and stability of purpose was his students’ guide to succeed in their reading and learning challenges.
There was a lot of reading, partner activities, question and answers, and teacher help during the process of understanding the vocabulary elements of the subject, emphasizing the value of teamwork and helpfulness. More than this, students were able to understand and apply their understanding to an actual project. Thus, their project embodied the different levels of learning as reflected by Bloom.
It was very evident during the course of the interview and observation that the teacher used his knowledge, experience and understanding of his students’ levels and characteristics. Hence from this study, I can say that:
1. Encourage and sustain students’ motivation.
2. Collaborate with other teachers and students that are capable of substantial help.
3. Use variety of resources and activities that create impact and heighten the interest of students to read and work together.
4.

V. Reflection

IV. Reference:
1.http://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=AnmL4LmLy2vMYwz6_1JaTNlG2vAI?p=K-5++Teacher+observation+checklist&fr=my-myy&toggle=1&cop=&ei=UTF-8
2. http://www.doe.mass.edu/sped/iep/sld/SLD4_g1-4.pdf
3. http://www.map-reading.com/ch4-3.php