Reading chapter 8 of Deeper Reading makes me think of my lesson at Central on monday of last week, introducing The Great Gatsby. When I began to introduce the text, the first thing I did was ask them if they knew why we were going to read it. The answers I got are most of the ones listed on page 148, which shows how much those answers have been beaten into the students (all of the answers given were spoken like answers they were reciting, not answers they were excited about). I actually told them that those were all at least partially valid, but I introduced Gatsby as a text that dealt with social classes, upper and lower ends, and then we had a class discussion about social classes (which I felt like worked pretty well with that group). Point being, I tried to give them something they could relate to and get interested in, that was in the text. Not sure if this was the best approach or not, but I felt like it worked ok.
The Levels of Reflection part of the text is amazing (157). Of course we want students to be able to relate to text, to reflect on what the author's message means to them. The idea of gradually moving the reflection from self absorbtion to humankind is a great idea because then we are asking students to step outside themselves and think critically about the author's message in relation to the world.
Another thing I like about chapter 8 is the "Most Valuable Idea" section (159). Any time students are asked to read and find the most important idea in the text something important is happening, but especially when they are asked to relate it to the "real world" (such an over-used phrase). Seriously though, can we all agree as English teachers to stop saying "the real world" all the time? "Our society," "every-day life," or "modern times" seem much more applicable anyway.
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3 comments:
You have a point. Maybe we should stop saying "the real world" so much and focus our readers on what they can do to make a difference in "our society" by helping them to study and read with new intentions of that, just as you suggest. That could be the key to opening the door to this. Simpley change the initial outlook.
I like the idea of tossing out "the real world" too. It's a bit overused.
Also, fun fact: Last time I heard a teacher mention "the real world," the students asked her if she knew what city the show was going to be in next.
I'm sure that making the connection to their real-life experiences was effective. That is what i have always liked about some of my teachers. I feel like if i make a connection from the information to my real life, i will have a better retention of the information. I'm sure they loved your lesson!
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