Useful Takeaways and Resources
Curious about how English was taught in the North American Colonies in the 18th century? What about more recently in the late twenty-first century? What is going on with English education right now? Tchudi and Grossman (2019) will catch you up.
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I found this article interesting because I feel more confident when I have an understanding of the subject's foundation, which must be a common instinct because Tchudi and Grossman plainly state how broad and complex the English research field is and that the enormity of the subject can be overwhelming to new teachers.
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Tchudi, S., & Grossman, P., L. (2019). English Education - TEACHING OF, PREPARATION OF TEACHERS. https://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/1958/English-Education.html
I came upon this updated and comprehensive literacy guide from a previously published chapter on Metacognition. The full literacy guide contains helpful sheets on each of the five components of adolescent literacy: Critical Literacy, Metacognition, Questioning, Strategy, and Voice and Identity.
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This guide also features helpful reminders on the physical, social, and cognitive developments adolescents are moving through, and provides some insight into strategies which are likely to be helpful literacy techniques which are developmentally appropriate.
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Adolescent literacy guide: a professional learning resource for literacy, grades 7-12. (2016). Adolescent Literacy Learning. https://brocku.ca/supporting-coaches/wp-content/uploads/sites/247/Adolescent-Literacy-Learning-2016-Adolescent-Literacy-Guide-A-Professional-Learning-Resource-for-Literacy-Grades-7-12.pdf
Assessments featuring multiple modalities and student created multimedia, as many have suggested, is a step outside of the comfort zone for teachers such as myself - those who feel more comfortable behind a book than a microphone or a camera. For me, my largest apprehensions come from assessing what I cannot teach, such as the technical nature of editing software. It's not that I can't teach software (I can do that very well), but more about equitable access to such software in a classroom.
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However, as Robinson demonstrates, teachers must find solutions that match their students excitement over projects they are passionate about. And that is a powerful reminder about the influence teachers have in their students' lives, which is why I want to include his story in my portfolio. It is a strong message that resonates with me.
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Robinson, B. (2018). Lights, Camera, Courage: Authentic Assessment and Multimodal Composition. English Journal, 108(1), 25–31. https://doi.org/10.58680/ej201829801