Learning Log: Chapter 4

Jennifer Jones
Chapter 4: Learning Log

Page 60: “Effective diagnostic teaching allows students to demonstrate their strengths (what they already know and can do) by overlapping what is known and done with new information and new strategies.”

In a previous learning log, I mentioned the importance of students (especially struggling learners) assimilating new ideas into their preexisting schema so that new ideas are not provided lip service and forgotten, but transferred to various new contexts and situations. In this passage, Walker is urging teachers to not only accept but embrace whatever prior knowledge, successes and experiences a child has as a starting point for growth. I like the term she picks (overlapping) as it provides the reader to visualize the interaction/ intersection of new strategies with the existing information. I think it is interesting that Walker points out that effective reading teachers continuously pursue and perfect simplistic reading strategies as they help students build and perfect new ones.

Page 61: “Allowing the reader to choose what she will read increases engagement. By choosing the reader establishes reason for reading the selected text.”

The reason I selected this passage is because I imagine this is an area of contention for reading teachers (especially at secondary levels) who know that student ownership leads to increased engagement, but at the same time are required to “cover” certain classic pieces of literature which may be unpopular with teens. I think this passage ties directly to Glasser’s theory of motivation and though it is not unique to reading- makes a lot of sense. Though Walker does not explicitly say it, interest is the reason why struggling readers will spend hours surfing the internet (reading web pages), sifting through magazine and comic books but are reluctant and unmotivated to read in school. Though I would be interested in knowing how reading teachers provide their students with choice, I think giving students a choice between options, a class vote or a free reading day occasionally will certainly increase student motivation (and morale).

Page 66: “For Mary, therefore, an effective diagnostic technique would be an adapted repeated reading that incorporates the strategy instruction of self talk.”

I think this notion of self-talk is very interesting and potentially powerful reading strategy for readers of all skill levels. One of my primary goals in working with my middle and high schoolers is to teach them how to be life long learner- to give them the tools and strategies they need to learn on their own without the assistance of an adult. This self-talk strategy seems to be a very powerful way to achieve that end as (in the example of Mary) it seems to be an example of self- reflection and self-coaching. I would like to know more about developing self talk in children in the upcoming chapters.

Page 67: “(Self assessment) helps students draw relationships among their strategy use, skill knowledge and personal effort.”

I think the portion of this sentence about “personal effort’ is one of the most important components of self assessment. I know I wrote about self assessment in a previous learning log, however I had not considered how reflection can empower students to consider how their efforts are effecting (negatively or positively) their academic accomplishments. Especially at the middle school level (the students I teach) being “smart” is not enough; students at this point in their academic careers also must exhibit some effort to be successful. I think that giving students the power to pinpoint how strategy, skill and effort can effect their achievement is not only a reading skill but a life skill.

Page 68: “For personal writing, the students and teacher communicate through writing. During each session students write to the teacher about anything of interest or importance to them… the focus is on communication between students and teacher.”

In this passage, Walker makes a tremendous point about the importance of allowing students to write about topic of interest as a way to increase motivation and engagement in writing tasks. For struggling readers/writers to have an outlet where they will not be judged is extremely important, especially given the fact that it is likely an atypical experience. Though I teach math, my very first homework assignment of the year is to have my students write a letter (journal entry) to me introducing themselves to me, after I write one to them. Though I provide guidelines it is largely an open ended assignment, which gives the students an opportunity to write about their favorite topic (themselves). Not only does this task give me the opportunity to get to know them better (thus guiding my instruction) it is also a terrific way to build community and relationships. Though in my example the letters are not continuous, the model Walker provides is certainly a tool which will help build and strengthen teacher-student relationships.