Language and Literacy: Portrait of Student Readers - Essay Example

Language and literacy: Portrait Readers To evaluate the kind of progress that the were making over the term, a variety of tests to evaluate their progress in reading, writing, and spelling was used to test their level of advancement. The date obtained from their test results was then matched to the level of competence that the students had been able to achieve at their time of testing against the expected level of competence for their educational level. To complete this evaluation, the data used examined the progress in three students in year six and year seven. Martin One of the students evaluated was Martin. The data from Martin’s evaluation shows that the student (Martin) had not been able to develop the strong reading strategies that are expected of a student at his level. While Martin demonstrated the ability to understand some of the semantic and graphophonic cues of language, he did not show any clear understanding of the rules of syntax. He lacks the ability to understand the context of the text read, and he does not read ahead to attempt to understand the context and as a result, he has difficulties with understanding vocabulary and comprehension passages. Martin also showed the ability to read and understand basic instructions. His main difficulties are in areas where the curriculum content is in written form. His current level of competence in reading and comprehension is a level of 24. Martin is also seen (from the evaluation of the data) to be working at the Experimental Phase of the First Steps Overview. A student at this phase is expected to be at year 2 or 3. Martin is however a year 7 student. Outcomes: 1. Build a word bank from words known from his surroundings (the farm he lives in). 2. Write grammatically correct sentences that have the proper punctuation. These sentences should be built from the word bank that Martin has been able to build. 3. Edit and proof reed the sentences that he has written. 4. Gain the required knowledge of semantics and syntax which will include word order and organization of text1(Ebersohn,L. Eloff & Irma) Books Because the student has a reading level of 24, he is assigned to read books from Blake Education Sparklers. Alternatively, the student can read books from Rigby Heinemann Harcourt Education ‘Rapid Readers’ books at level 2. These books are expected to help him develop the ability to read and understand because in addition to the story, the books have a glossary of the words used and also have a breakdown of the stories. The books also have activities aimed at the improvement of the student’s reading and comprehension abilities. WEEK. 6 7 8 9 10 Form a word bank from items that occur naturally in his surrounding, and learn the meaning to this words Construct sentences using words from the word bank that was built in week 6. Continue building and increasing the words in the word bank Write short compositions detailing the journey and experiences during the bus ride from home to school. Continue to build on the word bank, with words both in his surrounding and out of his surrounding Make a list of tasks to be completed at the farm in the hours after school. Continue to build on the word bank. Assessment: Testing on the understanding of the words in the word bank as well as on the punctuation. For the assessment, the student will construct a story about the week’s activities on the farm. During the first 5 weeks of the term, the student will be tested using a variety of standardized tests. These tests will help in the determination of Martin’s ability and reading level. The tests to be used will include the Waddington Spelling System which will test his spelling level and secondary tests which will test his spelling level. Martin’s ability to build a word bank will reflect the Four Resource Model (the code breaker aspect). His ability to write sentences will reflect the meaning maker aspect of the Four Resource Model. If the sentences constructed can show that he has knowledge of written texts based on his experiences from the farm, then this will reflect the text user aspect of the model.2 (Townsend, T. Bates, R. 2007). The final assessment of the student after week 9 will be in the form of a written text, where his ability to build a word bank and use words from the word bank to construct sentences will be assessed. If Martin is able to construct correct sentences using words from the word bank, then he will be seen to have gained new abilities. Carly Another student who was assessed was Carly. She is a 12 year old student in year 7. Following her assessment, Carly was found to be fluent and competent in the reading and comprehension tasks, and shows knowledge of word meaning. She was also found to perform highly standardized tests that were given. She was an active participant in the classroom activities that involved discussions but in the writing activities, Carly did very little writing. She has built an extensive bank of known words and is seen to be operating at the Conventional Phase of the First Steps Overview. She can also be said to be working at an 6 and 7 standard, which is appropriate for her as she is an year 7 student. Outcomes: 1. Vary the composition of the text to be suitable for different audiences 2. Work within a student group setting in guided reading 3. Participate more in the writing tasks Books Because Carly is performing at the competence level that is expected of a year 6/7 student, the books that she is required to read are the books that are prescribed for all the year 6/7 students, which are Storm Breaker (Horrowitz, A., 2000)3 or Holes (Sachar, L., 1998). WEEK. 6 7 8 9 10 Form a small group with other students and within the group come up with a manual to be used by year 3-5 students, this will be done with the help of software from the school. Clear descriptions and instructions for playing (in language fit for the year 3-5 students) should be provided. The game is expected to be based on the preferences of the target audience (year 3-5 students). Make a presentation on the plan intended to be followed by the group in the next two weeks as they develop and present their game. Provide a hand written draft detailing the procedures and work that has been done with the year 3-5 students to evaluate the appropriateness of the work done thus far. Come up with small hand written books for the game that has been developed. The books should contain illustrations and drawings in regards to the game. Assessment: A combination of self assessment and peer assessment. This will use instruction booklets. Some year 3-5 students will also take part in the peer assessment. During the first 5 weeks, standardised tests were used to evaluate Carly’s level of competence. The evaluation showed that she is at a high level of competence, which is suitable for her level. This was as a result of the observation of her classroom activities. Based on the Four Resource Model, Carly shows the Code Breaker aspect following her ability to use her computer skills. The meaning maker aspect ill be demonstrated if she can transfer her computer knowledge into the other students to a point where they can make meaning of her written text. The text user information is dependent on how she transfers her ability and knowledge in computer games to the development of the games for year 3-5 students. Her text analysis is dependent on the peer assessment, which will be based on the students’ understanding of her instructions booklets. Is the students can understand and follow the instructions, then Carly has successfully transferred her knowledge to the other students. Simon The next student to be assessed was Simon, who showed a high level of fluency and competency in reading and writing. He is therefore one of the top performers in the class in the standardised tests. He is an active participant in the guided readings in the classroom settings. He is therefore at level 6/7 year standard and can be said to be in the Transitional Phase of the First Steps overview. Simon however struggles with social practices and does not like to be noticed. Outcomes: 1. Be confident enough to host a quiz session in the class. 2. Successfully engage in story reading to a younger audience 3. Expand his oral language capabilities Books: Because Simon is performing at the competence level expected of a year 6/7 student, the books that he is required to read are those prescribed for all the year 6/7 students, which are Storm Breaker (Horrowitz, A., 2000)4 or Holes (Sachar, L., 1998). WEEK. 6 7 8 9 10 Form questions and come up with their answers, based on the book the Storm Breaker. These will be used for the classroom quiz. Form a group with other students and write a play or a short story to be acted to a younger audience (year 3-5 students) Improve on the short story or play and present the improved version to the teacher to evaluate the progress made. Publish the improved text and prepare the materials to be used for the presentation of the text (acted as a play), and plan the presentation. Assessment: A combination of peer assessment and assessment by the teacher on the acting and presentation of the text Simon will continue to take part in the standardized testing. He should however be able to fully integrate in the classroom setting and activities without problems. The Code breaker aspect will be expressed in if Simon is able to identify and use the semiotic systems as well as other rules of grammar live in the texts. The meaning maker aspect will be seen if he can use his knowledge of the class text and apply the knowledge and meaning in his own writing. The Text Analyst aspect will be derived from the personal assessment that he will receive from his peers from the way he will direct the acting. Teacher assessment will be based on his ability to integrate into the classroom and among his peers. Class From week 6 to week 10, the student will be evaluated based on their current levels of competence. All the assessments will be undertaken on Fridays. The students will take part in individual spelling contracts with the exception of Martin who will undertake his individual program (other students are not forbidden to join in using his word bank). The spelling contracts and tests can be obtained from Ozspeller5(Ozspeller.com, date unknown). Books: The books chosen for the class are either Storm Breaker (Horrowitz, A., 2000)6 or Holes (Sachar, L., 1998)7, reading Holes can be accompanied by watching the movie Holes. During the term, the main objective throughout the term will be to integrate all the students in the class in the classroom activities. The emphasis of the program will be to enhance the student’s knowledge in areas that are outside their expertise. The program will also ensure that the students with special needs are able to transfer and use their knowledge both within the classroom and outside the classroom.this is because it is important for teaching in the classroom to have the ability to engage with the students experiences from outside the classroom .8(Cope, B 2000) The matrices choice of program will ensure that the students remain involved in the various activities and exercises that will help enhance their level of competence. Reference list Blake Education Sparklers (2010) Blake Publications, Clayton, Vic Cope, B (2000) How of a Pedagogy of Multiliteracies in Multiliteracies: Literacy Learning and the Design of Social Features, South Melbourne, Macmillan, pg 30-37 Ebersohn, L. Eloff, I. (2004). Keys to Educational Psychology. Cape Town, Juta and company limited Pg 90-94 Horowitz, A., (2000) Storm Breaker, Walker Books Ltd. Sachar, L., (1998) Holes, Frances Foster Books Townsend, T. Bates, R. (2007) Handbook of teacher education: globalization, standards and professionalism in times of change. Dordrecht, Springer. Pg 16-19 Read More