Literacy Child Study Project TE 301, Fall 2009

Transcription

1 Literacy Child Study Project TE 301, Fall 2009 Purposes This assignment has several purposes. First, the assignment is intended to help you develop your knowledge of literacy learning and development by examining the literacy learning and development of one child in some depth, paying close and systematic attention to what your study child knows and is able to do with respect to literacy specifically, and also, more generally, how your child learns, how your child sees and interacts with the world, and what interests and engages your child. Second, this assignment is intended to help you develop your skills in participant observation; administering and interpreting assessments; using evidence to describe, analyze, and draw conclusions; and communicating your findings to others. You will also begin to learn lesson planning and how to observe response to instruction. Third, this assignment is intended to develop or further develop your disposition to see students as individuals rather than just as a group to view teaching as about fostering the learning of each individual child to the fullest of that child s and your ability rather than simply as fostering the learning of a class of children as a whole. Product The product of this assignment is a Portfolio sharing your knowledge of your study child as a learner in general and as a literacy learner in particular. The portfolio could be shared with a new teacher who might come in to take your CT s place if your CT had to go on leave, a reading specialist in the building who has not worked with your child, the child s parent(s) during parent/teacher conference, the child s teacher for the following school year, or some other professional who has not worked with your study child. For this assignment, you ll be sharing your portfolio with a group of your peers. Whether you share the portfolio with your collaborating teacher will be decided on a case-by-case basis. The portfolio will have the following parts: Part I: Introduction Part II: Data Sources Part II: Data Part IV: Interpretations More information about each of portfolio sections is provided below. (Please note that the material in italics is suggested wordings you can actually use. Material in roman or in brackets is instructions to you.) CONTENT OF THE PORTFOLIO THIS IS A TEMPLATE THAT YOU NEED TO ADAPT TO YOUR PARTICULAR CASE. Part I: Introduction I am writing to share data and interpretations regarding [Child s name], particularly his/her literacy learning and development. I am a student in Michigan State University s course TE301: Learners and Learning in Context. As a part of this course, I acted 1

2 as a participant observer in [CT s name] s class and had the opportunity to observe [Child s name] in class as well as to work individually with him/her on _[#] occasions. Part II: Data Sources Part III: Data This portfolio is based on the following sources of data: Field notes with observations and interpretations of [Child s name] in class on [list dates] Field notes with observation and interpretations of [Child s name] during individual sessions with me on [list dates] (sessions involved informal reading and writing activities and a learning activity or lesson on [list the ONE Date of the learning activityor lesson] Conversations with [CT s name] on [list date(s)] Writing samples collected on [list dates] (list genres and/or context) The Assessment, administered on [list date] The Assessment, administered on [list date] The Assessment, administered on [list date] This section should include the following three sections: 1. Field notes (of your observations and your conversations with your CT) using the field placement grid as a guide 2. Assessment materials Two writing samples and corresponding memos Three assessments and corresponding memos 3. Learning activity or lesson plan (using template) Memo about the child s response to the learning activity or lesson (i.e., instruction) Please keep in mind the following when reporting your data sources: For this section the focus should be on the actual data, not your interpretation of the data, conclusions you drew from it, or recommendations that follow from it. You do not need to report each and every thing you observed but should discuss many different things that seem most salient. Please reference readings from class as appropriate. For example, if you are identifying a child as demonstrating a particular phonological awareness skill, please reference the source or sources you drew upon to identify that as a phonological awareness skill. You should include not only data on literacy but also data about your child in general, such as dispositions during different instances in the classroom, interactions with other students, or information the child shared about traditions or experiences at 2

3 home. 1 Although we do not expect you to use the headings or all of the categories from the Kanevsky chapter, the chapter should give you ideas about the type of information you might include. Your data on the child s literacy learning must include information about the child during your individual interactions with him/her but also observations during whole class or small group instruction (this instruction may take place with the CT, another teacher or adult, or even you). Part IV: Interpretations This section should be a discussion of a minimum of six major assertions or themes about the learner supported by evidence. These assertions or themes should be roughly balanced between strengths and challenges and focus on what you know about the child. Each assertion should be approximately one page, double-spaced. The interpretations section has two major parts: A discussion of your study child in general A discussion of your study child with respect to literacy in particular Several notes regarding this section: The focus here is primarily interpretation. You are making claims about your study child and supporting those claims by referring back to the data. For example, you might claim that your study child has above grade level skills in word recognition and fluency. You might support that claim with some assessment data, some observations from your one-on-one work together, and comments provided by your CT. As another example, you might claim that your study child might benefit from instruction in navigating informational text. You might support that claim by reminding the reader of incidents, described in the Data section, in which you observed the study child struggle with locating a particular piece of information, express confusion about the purpose of an index, or engage in re-reading from the beginning of a text to find information rather than going to the section where that information would most likely be found. For the discussion of the study child in general, your discussion may include such matters as things that generally support your study child s learning and the strategies, discussions, and texts that seem to interest and engage your study child. It is important to address every major area of literacy development discussed in class as applicable for your study child (concepts of print, phonological awareness, sound- 1 Please note: As a teacher, you should gather information about students from outside-of-school as well as inside-ofschool sources. For example, you should talk with the child s parent(s) or guardian(s), perhaps visit the home, interact with other important adults in the child s life, and so on. However, this is not possible for this assignment in this context. For this assignment you can gather some information about the child s life outside of school from the child directly. Your CT may also share information about the child s life outside of school, but you should be sure to consider and treat this as second-hand information and consider whether its inclusion in your letter is appropriate (please consult with your Instructor if you are unsure about this). 3

4 letter knowledge, fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, composition/writing, genre knowledge and motivation). You should discuss both strengths and needs in each of the areas you discuss. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Below is additional information about the components of this assignment: Field Notes You will write field notes of your experiences in the classroom either while in the classroom or as soon as possible once you have left. Your field notes will encompass both what you are observing about the child you are studying as well as your observations within the classroom (please refer to the Field Placement Grid for specific topics for observation). You will use these notes as a source of evidence for writing and talking about your study child. The field notes should be taken in two-column format: Column 1: observations of your study child in the contexts in which you see him/her (particularly descriptions related to literacy) as well as of the classroom more broadly (again please refer to the Field Placement Grid for specific topics for observation) Column 2: interpretations of your child s behavior, thinking, and development as well as the classroom Field notes should include both observations of your study child in the classroom context and observations of your study child from one-on-one work with him/her. Field notes on each informal literacy activity with the study child should be included. Field notes will be checked on a periodic basis during class, but it remains your responsibility to ensure their quality and consistency. Field notes are considered part of the participation grade for the course and are also considered part of the Child Study Project as they inform the components of the Child Study Project. Writing Samples and Literacy Assessments An important part of learning about children as literacy learners is learning how to assess the development of their literacy skills both formally and informally. As part of your field placement you may be asked to conduct assessments with your study child for your CT. In addition, you will administer assessments and collect writing samples as outlined on the Field Placement Grid. You should write a brief memo about each assessment with the following information/sections: the assessment you chose why you chose it the administration of the assessment your findings (e.g., scores, what child did and did not get correct) your interpretation (i.e., what sense you make of the results) 4

5 Each memo should be typed and be no more than 2 pages. The Letter for a Teacher would include information from the Memos only in summary form. For example, the Data section of the letter would identify an assessment administered, indicate what it was supposed to measure, and what, in summary, you found. The Interpretations section would discuss your interpretation of what you found and related data. Planned Learning Activity In addition to learning how to assess a child s skill level or progress, it is also critical to plan for activities that will continue to scaffold a child s learning while simultaneously challenging him or her. You should engage in a planned learning activity or lesson with your study child on the date specified on your Field Grid. For this component, you will use the Lesson Plan Template (see Attachment A). Each Lesson Plan includes an overall topic, Grade Level Content Expectations, goals and objectives, materials and supplies needed, and the procedures for the lesson (introduction, key events, summary). You should also include support that will be offered during the lesson (academic, social, and linguistic) as well as how you will assess the student. The focus of the lesson should, of course, be informed by strengths and needs you have identified in the child over the course of the semester. As we will discuss in class, one of the most important kinds of information to gather about students in their response to instruction. Therefore, following the planned learning activity you should write a Memo in which you discuss: (a) any differences between the learning activity as planned and the learning activity as carried out; (b) the student s affective response to the lesson; and (c) the student s cognitive response to the lesson, in particular what she/he seemed to learn or not learn from the lesson. Evaluation This assignment is worth 30% of your grade in the course. Points are allocated as follows: Quality and completeness of data sources (appendices) 7 points Quality of thoroughness of data reporting, including references to course material as appropriate 7 points Quality of interpretations, in particular their link to data and course material 10 points Quality of other aspects of overall presentation (mechanics, clarity of expression, organization) 6 points More specific information about evaluation of the project will be provided later in the semester. 5

6 Attachment A: Lesson Plan Template Daily Lesson Plan (NOTE: download electronic version of this form from ANGEL) Your Name: Grade Level: Date: CT: School: Overall lesson topic/title: Grade Level Content Expectation(s): Goals/Objectives: Knowledge Goal: Each student will Capacity Goal: Each student will Commitment Goal: Each student will Materials & supplies needed: Procedures and approximate time allocated for each event Academic, Social and Linguistic Support during each event Introduction to the lesson (What will you say to help children understand the purpose of the lesson? How will you help them make connections to prior lessons or experiences? How will you motivate them to become engaged in the lesson?) ( minutes) OUTLINE of key events during the lesson (Include specific details about how you will begin and end activities; what discussion questions you will use; how you will help children understand behavior expectations during the lesson; when/how you will distribute supplies and materials) ( minutes) Closing summary for the lesson (How will you bring closure to the lesson and involve children in reflecting on their experiences? How will you involve them making connections to prior lessons or prepare for future experiences? What kind of feedback do you want from them at this time?) ( minutes) Post-Assessment: (How will you know the students are progressing toward your identified goals? What are key areas to include in a rubric or other post-assessment?) ( minutes) Academic, Social, and Linguistic Support during assessment 6