When I would enter the classroom on Fridays to work with my reading buddies, I always began to feel terribly overwhelmed and uncomfortable. The first thing one would notice about the classroom was the noise level. Most of the children appeared to be distracted from doing their work, and instead yelling at one another and throwing things across the room. Looking around, kids everywhere were running and knocking things over. Chaos would be the perfect word to describe the classroom setting. As I would take each student to sit down and read with me, they also seemed to be distracted by the other children's actions in the class. It became harder and harder to get their attention, constantly saying their names just for them to look at a page and the next second they were watching students getting yelled at by the teacher. One of my reading buddies, Madison, flew through words on Tuesdays in the library but seemed to be a bit slow on Fridays. The same thing seemed to be noticeable with my other reading buddy Erica. Although both struggled a little with some pronunciation of words and sentences, it was clear that they were much better on Tuesday's then on Fridays. This was something I was going to have to figure out how to get through so that both students were learning affectively. The teacher is what disturbed me most in the classroom.
Mr Snow was a very tall, old man who seemed to have no patience with his students at all. A culturally competent teacher should be able to communicate with his/her students in a way that expresses sensitivity to their linguistic as well as sociocultural differences. Mr. Snow was not a good example of this kind of teacher through my eyes. I noticed when working with some of the other students from the class that a couple of them spoke fluent Spanish as their first language. When it came time for reading as a whole class, these students had a difficult time with some words that they did not understand. They asked the teacher over and over to help them but Mr. Snow was so distracted and busy with those students misbehaving, that it seemed unimportant for him to help the other students who needed the attention the most. Not being able to speak Spanish, I was unfortunately not able to help those few students in the classroom. It was difficult to see them struggle as the teacher seemed to be ignoring them. He would simply move on to the next thing even with students still raising their hands as they began to understand less and less of the lessons he was teaching. As mentioned before, a well culturally competent teacher would take the time to work with his/her students understanding and seeing their linguistic and sociocultural differences. Mr. Snow did not seem to express this, but I was hoping that I would see a change within the weeks to come.
Isn't that sad? I wish that Mr. Snow could realize the importance of different cultures and bring them into his classroom. It would be better for the students and maybe even better for himself. Johnson talks about how we should not be bias towards different ethnicities and there is Mr. Snow just avoiding that he may have students who are struggling because they are a little bit different.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry that you were unable to help the students who needed that extra hand. But I am sure that you gave it more of a try and that they were gracious to you. I know in my own classroom if the teacher moves on I will help the students try and catch up by explaining it a little more during some free time they may have. It seems like most of the students have improved from what the teacher told me so I am just happy I can help them in a little way because I can only relate to how hard it is to catch on to something once you missed something before. Its happen to me and Im sure it happens to everyone. But it is more of a struggle for the children who have trouble with the primary language spoken in their classroom. That is why I am so happy for ELLs classes and that they are able to take the time to help students. I hope your students can get that extra helping hand and hopefully improve.
Hello Jill,
ReplyDeleteThe situation that these students are in is unfortunate. The teacher himself does not sound like a helpful resource, and he seems to have created a classroom environment that does not advance learning but slows it down. A classroom should be somewhat quiet so that everyone can have the opportunity to listen and think. Also, the teacher, even if he does not speak the same language as some of his students, should work with them and have patience with them. I don't understand how someone can be a teacher and not have the patience to deal with their students. I can't imagine how it feels to watch these children leave everyday with their questions unanswered. I am not fluent in Spanish, so I would be in your same position.
While reading your response, I was reminded of Claude Goldenberg. Goldenberg claims that a student can learn a second languagage much more successfully if they learn how to read and write in their own language first. The several Spanish students within Mr. Snow's classroom are trying to juggle learning the material along with learning English. It is a big deal that Mr. Snow is ignoring these children. They are not getting the help they require, and their future in school may be a struggle. Although they are masters of their language, it will not help them when it comes time for tests. I also hope that something will be done, and you will see your students getting the help they need to succeed.
Hi Jill,
ReplyDeleteIt sounds as if Mr. Snow needs more support in his classroom. That is where the politics come in, correct?
Dr. August