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Language & Culture in the Classroom
LLED 5040 Spring 2011
Instructor: Stephanie Abraham
Office Hours: Mondays and Wednesday 9:30-10:30 or by appointment
Location: Aderhold 126C (first floor)
Email:
Course Description
This course examines the concepts of language and culture and their relationships to teaching and learning in U.S. public schools. We will discuss different perspectives concerning school achievement of diverse student populations and strive to expand our notions of what it means to develop a multicultural perspective regarding teaching and learning.
Course Objectives
We will develop an understanding of 1) socio-cultural factors that both promote and impede school achievement; 2) critical perspectives on curriculum, pedagogy, and learning, 3) multicultural school reform efforts, and 4) tools that enable teachers to link theory with practice in order to create responsive learning environments for diverse student populations.
As LLED 5040 is one of the required courses for the completion of the ESOL teaching endorsement for the state of Georgia, students are expected to prepare, participate, and interact in a thoughtful & professional manner at all times. One of the goals of LLED 5040 is to give pre-service teachers a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities that accompany the commitment you make as a teacher of linguistically and culturally diverse students.
Class Atmosphere
· This course is meant to open space where we can deconstruct personal ideologies as well as the ideologies of others. This process usually causes some discomfort, so it is important that we are sensitive and respectful toward others. However, we still want to have conversations that address complex and difficult issues such as prejudices and biases regarding culture, language, gender, race, ethnicity, and sexuality.
· I have chosen the readings here based on my own experience and the advice of teacher educators. However, these readings are only a starting point. I hope that you will bring additional readings to the group, either through the class wiki or during your time to lead us in inquiry around the week’s topic.
· Please turn off all cell phones before entering class.
· Laptops are welcome here, as they provide access to a wealth of resources to facilitate our discussions and small group work. However, please do not use laptops for inappropriate purposes during class time.
Assignments
1.) Participation 20%
Your participation in this course will be graded on three factors.
° Engagement with the Readings (evidenced by notes, copies of readings in class, questions brought to class)
° Engagement in Class (evidenced by discussion, response to other students)
° Attendance: Two free absences, two point deduction in your final grade for all other absences
(I define engagement as critically thinking about the readings and discussions and responding to them through applying to your own life and to your future classroom.)
2.) Cultural Autohistory (Anzaldúa, 1987) 15%
For all educators self-reflection is vital. By examining our attitudes, beliefs, and cultural values and behaviors, we can discover what has influenced our value systems. Each student will produce a cultural autohistory (3-5 pages) that describes and analyzes how you came to be who you are at this point in your life and what contributes to how you view your culture. You will identify salient characteristics in your life, which may include your gender, ethnicity, race, religion, etc. You may also choose to discuss particular people in your life, or an event, which symbolically reflects your cultural identity. The key for this paper is depth rather than breadth. I encourage you to focus on key details, a singular event, or aspect instead of just creating a biography or timeline. Also, include at least three good references from our readings up to this point. We will share several of these each class after the due date.
Some suggestions and guiding questions:
o Multimedia is acceptable.
o Incorporate song, poetry, or another other visual art in or with your narrative (they do not count toward your page requirement)
o Cultural artifacts accompanied by narration/text are acceptable
o Analyze current events relating to language, race, culture, etc. and consider how these reflect your own experiences growing up (for example, can you connect to the experience of immigrants facing deportation in Georgia because of new legislation?)
Consider the following:
o How do you connect or disconnect to American values of individualism, competition, hard work, self-reliance?
o What was the knowledge environment like in your home? What type of reading was done in the home by parents and others?
o What is your best memory from elementary school? How would you describe your favorite teacher?
o Was your school experience ethnically and racially diverse?
o What is you ethnic group? What symbols or traditions do you participate in that derive from this group? What do they mean to you? How do they fit into or clash with dominant cultural traditions around you?
o Describe a time when you felt extremely proud of your ethnic heritage. A time when you felt particularly ashamed.
o What has been your experience with ethnic diversity? What are some of your earliest images and experiences with race and skin color? Has there been a time in your life when you sought out diverse contacts to expand your experience and understanding of the world?
o What contact do you have now with people of dissimilar racial or ethnic backgrounds? How would you characterize you desire to learn more? What are your plans for making this happen?
3.) Inquiry Guide 15%
During one class, you will lead the group in a 30 minute inquiry about the readings/topics for the week. Please, be creative. Approach this as an opportunity to try out classroom methods, but please modify them for adults. Your inquiry plan can include any of the following or a combination of them.
· Small Group Discussion
· Powerpoints/Prezis
· Creative Internet Displays
· Posters/Visual Displays
· Group Activities
To help with your lesson you may want to refer to some websites that have great teaching resources. Here are a few:
· www.readwritethink.org
· www.tolerance.org
· www.rethinkingschools.org
· www.zinnedproject.org
· www.tesol.org
· www.cal.org
· http://bakers5thgraders.wikispaces.com/
· http://www.childrensbookpress.org/
· http://www.radicalmath.org/main.php?id=SocialJusticeMath
· http://www.amazon.com/dp/0807743836/ref=rdr_ext_tmb (Teaching Science for Social Justice)
· http://illuminations.nctm.org/
UGA also has many ejournals available to you that are potential resources.
Go here. http://www.libs.uga.edu/ejournals/, then type in the title of the journal.
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· Science and Children
· The Reading Teacher
· Anthropology and Education Quarterly
· Radical Teacher
· TESOL Journal
· Journal of Latinos and Education
· International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism
· Journal of Language and Literacy Education
· Journal of Language, Identity, and Education
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Your grade for this assignment will be bases on the design of your inquiry, the inclusion of references to required readings, and using at least one strategy from the above resources. Please post your lesson plan on the wiki on the day you will guide the class. Please indicate where your resources and strategies come from.
4.) Boundary Crossing 15%
For this assignment, you will immerse yourself in an unfamiliar cultural environment. The purpose of this assignment is to give you a short firsthand experience with culture shock.There are many possibilities; for example, you might:
° assist nurses at a hospital or nursing home
° attend services for a religious denomination unfamiliar to you
° attend social gatherings of a cultural group or association unfamiliar to you (e.g., Chinese Student Association meeting on a university campus, a Saturday language school in an immigrant community, etc.)
Respect is KEY in choosing the location for your experience. Things to consider: is this a “safe space”, both for you and the group/community. How would I feel on the other end of this assignment? Is my interest sincere? I highly recommend that you find a person who can be your cultural broker in this circumstance, for instance do you know someone who is part of this social and who would be willing to take you with them to the social or cultural event?
You must spend at least four hours in this environment (best if spread out over at least 2 visits). Keep a record of your experiences, thoughts, and feelings. Begin your “documenting” of this assignment when you are considering possible locations—like right now possibly! Watch especially for reactions such as "I wouldn't go there!" or other feelings of discomfort. Reflect on how you respond to "foreign" environments. When you are done with the experience, reflect on the experience and how it ties in with things we've discussed in this course.
Your response should be a four to six page paper (excluding title and bibliography pages) describing what you did and where you went (including times/dates), how it made you feel, how being othered relates to topics from the course, and what analogies you can draw for those in who are considered the other in American societies and other nations, as well. Writing in a descriptive narrative style is encouraged. You must include at least three references in your paper. However, they need to good references, not just dropping in names.
5.) Cultural Group Studies Wiki Page 15%
For this project, you need to form a group of three to five people. You need to choose a cultural and/or linguistic topic relevant to Georgia. Some topics may be the New Latino Diaspora in Georgia, Deaf Communities in Georgia, Bilingual Schools in Georgia, Korean Americans in Georgia, the History of Hmong migration to Georgia, Southern American Englishes in Schools, African American English in Schools, and many others. I want you to choose a topic that is interesting to you. For this assignment, your group will create a wiki of resources on this topic. (I will show you how to make a wiki page, if you don’t know how) J Your wiki page will include:
Embedded Videos: Please include movie trailers, newscasts, documentaries, music videos, and anything else you can find embeddable on your topic.
Links: Include links to websites that you think would be helpful to another teacher who has a student who identifies with the cultural group you are researching. Please include links that are useful for adults, not just children.
Readings: Include a short book review of a children’s book, young adult book, or novel that relates to your cultural group. If you need help choosing a text, please let me know. Everyone is responsible for reading the book, but you may who and how to write up the review.
Article Review: Include a short article review of research or pedagogical article that relates to your research group. Use UGA’s ejournals, Google scholar, or Galileo to help you here. Again, every group member needs to read the article, but your group should decide on how to divide up the writing of the article review. Also, attach the article to your wiki page.
6.) Journals 20%
During the semester you will keep an academic reflection journal. Every week or so I will give you a prompt to help you reflect on the concepts we are exploring, but you may write anytime that you want. Your final project will consist of these reflections. Date your journal entries and also include the critical question for the topic you are reflecting on. These journal entries need to include references to the readings or discussions that we have in class, please use APA style when referencing the texts.
A = 4.00 / 95-100A- = 3.70 / 90-94
B+ = 3.30 / 87-89
B = 3.00 / 83-86
B- = 2.70 / 80-82
C+ = 2.30 / 77-79
C = 2.00 / 73-76
C- = 1.70 / 70-72
D = 1.00 / 60-69
Academic Honesty:
All students are responsible for maintaining the highest standards of honesty and integrity in every phase of their academic careers. The penalties for academic dishonesty are severe and ignorance is not an acceptable defense. If you are caught plagiarizing, you will be handed over to The Office of the Vice President of Instruction who will determine your woeful fate.
DIVERSITY STATEMENT
The Department of Language and Literacy Education welcomes you to what we hope will be a productive and enjoyable semester. We recognize the University of Georgia’s contributions to the nation¹s intellectual, cultural, linguistic, and environmental heritage. We share the College of Education¹s stated mission to (1) recognize, respect, and affirm differences among peoples; and (2) challenge oppression and structural and procedural inequities that exist in society, generally, and in local educational settings, specifically. These inequities arise from social, historical, economic, and political structures that influence and are influenced by culture, race, religion, language, ethnicity, age, gender, educational and socioeconomic status, disability status, sexual orientation, world-view, and community. Through our programs and courses we are engaged in a process of continual reflection and evaluation to work toward an equitable democratic society.
We value your participation in this process. If you feel that our department program or courses fall short of this commitment, we encourage dialogue with your instructor. Enjoy your learning this semester!
JoBeth Allen, Melisa Cahnmann-Taylor, Laurant Cammarata, Viktoria Driagina-Hasko, Linda DeGroff, Mark Faust, Peg Graham, Linda Harklau, Ruth Harman, Don Rubin, Peter Smagorinsky, Bettie St. Pierre, and Joel Taxel.
Class / Topic / Readings / In ClassM 1/9 / What questions do you have about languages and cultures in your future classroom? / In class read aloud:
In class: Forward to A Critical Discourse Analysis of Family Literacy Practices (Gee) / Watch: The Danger of A Single Story
Discuss Syllabus.
Record the questions to guide our semester inquiry into this topic.
W 1/11 / Culture Matters : Rethinking Educational Equity (Gutiérrez)
Cultural Ways of Learning: Individual Traits or Repertoires of Practice (Gutiérrez & Rogoff) (Be prepared to discuss the terms, individual traits and repertoires of practice.)
Go to www.tolerance.org/tdsi/, join, and log-in. Go to Learning Resources and watch a couple of videos. Come prepared to share what you learned. / Watch Kris Gutierrez’s interviews on teaching tolerance.org.
http://www.tolerance.org/tdsi/asset/culture-students