Responses to “Invitation to Reflection” # 1-3 (page 4 of Bridging English):

1.       I think that the question, “What is English?” can be answered in hundreds of different ways, but very few of these are the same as the way one would answer the same question about algebra or history. True, someone could answer all of these questions with a reply like, “It’s a field of study,” or “it’s a subject in school,” but other than these basic similarities these subjects can each be defined in many different ways. As Milner, Milner and Mitchell point out on pages two and three, the ways in which the question “what is English?” can be answered are indefinite and have long been debated.

2.       Every subject listed in the box would be appropriate content for a high school English course. I would also like to add proper internet usage to this list of appropriate content, since this week’s reading has really impressed upon me the fact that more and more of our language and research is becoming available on the internet and students will need to be able to decipher and work with all of this material in the future.

3.       If a teacher didn’t want to define English in terms of content, he or she could describe their classroom activities as “discovery of language” and/or the “development of communication knowledge and skills”. The point is that students learn and grow in their ability to communicate (in writing, in person, or in any other way) with other people as well as increase their knowledge of the conventions of our language so that they can understand the ideas and opinions expressed by others.

4.       Even though the text says that English is a “young discipline” (page 2), it doesn’t surprise me that it is such a prominent subject in schools today. After all, the ability to communicate clearly is an essential skill in today’s world.

5.       I do not think of teaching as “the transmission of knowledge from teacher to student”. At least, I don’t think that the best kind of teaching works that way. I think that teaching requires that teachers and students have to work together to create understandings. Teachers should merely work as guides and coaches for their students. Teachers may transmit knowledge by modeling behavior or nudging students towards the discovery of an answer, but I think direct transmission of knowledge requires little critical thinking or discovery on the part of the students.

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Response to “How to Bring Our Schools Out of the 20^th Century” by Wallis and Steptoe

I think that this week’s article drove home some key points about 21^st century classrooms. I especially agreed with the point that balance needs to be achieved between the learning of facts and the development of critical thinking. Technology can provide immediate delivery of information so the memorization of trivial facts seems like a waste of valuable classroom time. However, I think the authors were right to point out that there is a level of base knowledge which is necessary for a student to move forward in a subject. As they say on page 54, “Without mastering the fundamental building blocks of math, science or history, complex concepts are impossible.” How do we distinguish between core concepts and information that does not necessarily need to be memorized?

I wish that Wallis and Steptoe have gone into more detail in their explanation of what it means to be a “global student”. They used examples of schools to illustrate their idea, and my understanding from these examples was only that “global” students are (or work towards becoming) bilingual, exposed to other cultures and technology-savvy. I wonder if there are any other factors that would benefit a “global” student. For instance, the development of good people skills is something that the authors discuss as important for 21^st century education, but not necessarily for global students. However, I think that strong interpersonal skills should be a goal for any school that wishes to develop “global students”.

Notes for an English Curriculum:

Students need to know what to do with the excess of information that is available on the internet. This will require the ability to distinguish between credible and non-credible sources as well as knowledge of what information is relevant or useful to their studies.

Because strong interpersonal skills are necessary in most workplaces, collaboration between students on projects and in classroom activities is an end in itself. Creating a “safe” classroom which students work together to learn is key.

We can help students become “global” by encouraging them to embrace languages and cultures other than their own.

The curriculum needs to balance core knowledge and “portable skills”. Classroom activities should require reflection and critical thinking on the part of the students.

Knowledge should be transferable to other areas of study as well as applicable to life outside of the classroom.