Hey Guys I hope you enjoy this Blog!
For Blog #3 I decided to ask a teacher that isn’t necessary an
ESL teacher but Teaches in a widely known area that is full of non-English
speakers. Rhaven is a 26-year-old 4th grade English teacher who is approaching
her third year in teaching, she previously taught math in her past years but
decided to embark on a new adventure in a different category. Rhaven
is now a fluent in Portuguese, English, and Spanish and is
able to communicate with her students and fellow co-workers through their
native language. Although the PISD school district is known for its minorities,
Rhaven says her class only consist of about 45% or bilingual speaking students,
but she said out of those 45%, 30% know little to no English. Through out the
interview I asked about lesson plans, student-teacher interaction,
student-student interaction, the gaps between parent involvement, and many
other things that involve around her teaching in today’s world. Thought out and
after the interview Rhaven’s biggest on going issue is ensuring she is doing
what is best not only for her but for ALL of her students, she wants them all
to not only succeed but enjoy coming to school everyday. While interviewing I
cam across what exactly an effective teacher is, “Effective teachers recognize
and value vast store of knowledge students have in their first language and
provides instructions to draw on the knowledge” (Wright, 2015,pg.55). I believe that Rhaven is a true blessing as a
teacher, and goes the extra mile for her students, with all that is going on
its refreshing to know that there are teachers out there making the transition,
and learning another language a little easier for students world wide.
Wright, W.E. (2015). Foundations for
Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice.
Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, Publishing. Second Edition.
Hey Kaila, I am Isabel Uribe. I think that your video was great! Your teacher made some great points. I love that she went back to certify in English. I think that we need more teachers to care about the students and what they are lacking more than just the pay check. Although, it is not just the teachers that are not putting the effort into meeting student's needs. In wrights book he says "Schools serving poor, minority, and ELLs usually have the least experienced teachers and the fewest resources"(Wright Ch.1 Pg.14). This is very sad because this means that these students will never meet the standards and they will never reach or overcome the achievement gap. I also work for Pasadena isd and have done all my student teaching in PISD. I noticed first-hand how hard it is for these ELLs to try to learn English as a second language without having the materials or teacher education that they need. The teachers lack the skills that are needed and that is something that Mrs. Raven says, I agree with her 100%. Its like Wright states"… the researchers note the irony of assigning students with the greatest needs to the leas Qualified teachers"(Wright Ch.1 Pg.13). Now I do not blame the teachers for not being qualified. I blame the principals and districts that hire these unqualified teachers for the lack of success that these students are having. They are in no mean helping the students at all.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for watching my video! I agree with you 100% , teachers are just following the criteria its the districts and rules that are below par for our students. In order to see a growth in teaching we must see a growth in the criteria it takes to become a teacher. Also when interviewing I came across the same quote "Schools serving poor, minority, and ELLs usually have the least experienced teachers and the fewest resources"(Wright Ch.1 Pg.14)." I find it highly unfortunate that education varies simply due to the loctation. I feel as future educators we need to demand a more rigourious criteria, in order to prepare our students for the ever expanding world around them.
DeleteHi, Kaila! I think we all can emphasize with Mrs. Rhaven’s struggle to do the best for her, her students, her students’ success, and to get them to enjoy school. I think it’s hard to define what success is—is success having them do well on standardized testing, improving little by little everyday, is it doing well on grade-wise? I have seen ESL students I’ve worked with grow personally and academically, however, these students have also not met the requirements for things such as STAAR and benchmarks.
ReplyDeleteThanks for watching! I agree , even through my observations I see teachers struggle with combining fun and test ready lesson plans. I feel that teachers are given so much to teach in such a small window of time. I completely understand the pressures all teachers are feeling on a day to day, year to year basis.
DeleteThank you for sharing this interview Kaila! I think it is awesome that Mrs. Rhaven really cares about whether her students enjoy coming to school. It is important for all teachers to build welcoming and accepting classroom environments. Working hard in this area can encourage ELLs and improve their confidence in learning.
ReplyDeleteThanks for watching! I agree , even through my observations I see teachers struggle with combining fun and test ready lesson plans making it harder for the teachers to determine If their students are learning and also enjoying it at the same time. I feel that teachers are given so much to teach in such a small window of time, they are ovewhelmed and do the bare minimum to ensure the students skate by. I feel that we should'nt have students just "skating by", we should take pride in making learning enjoyable, only a select few can do that and thats why they become teachers, we should embrace that instead of stressing them out for a certain score on a silly test.
DeleteHi Kaila! I enjoy your interview with Mrs. Rhaven, and I do agree that as teachers, we have to value the knowledges the students have in their native language and adapted them to the instructions or at the very least accommodate the instructions. After all, no matter what programs the ELL students are in, they need to depend on their "characteristics and needs of the ELL students, the desires of their parents and community, and the resources of the school. Regardless of the program models selected, schools nad teachers must fully commit to implementing them to the best of their ability" (Wright, 2010, pg. 109).
ReplyDeleteThanks for watching Michelle!
DeleteI agree , Having the plus of knowing the students native language helps teachers destroy the barrier that is between them. Teachers are able to establish a relationship before the student even walks into the room, which I feel is very important. As a community we are entrusting certain individuals to educate our future , so i turn relationships are super important.