Universes Created by Alcott and Rowling - Essay Example

Little Women (Louisa Marie Alcott) I. Introduction Wingardium Leviosa (pronounced as Wingardium Levi-ooo-sa), magical spell that almost everybody knew. We followed his adventures making him the most loved wizard of our generation, Harry Potter. Behind a great adventure book is a great novelist. It was amazing how Joanne K. Rowling came up with her great story on her wanting to support her daughter’s needs and to fulfill her heart’s desire on her train trip where the idea just took of her then the rest was history. Joanne Rowling or Jo as she was fondly called by her friends shares the same name with Jo March, one of the lead characters in Louisa M. Alcott’s, Little Women. Two different interesting books written by two women driven by their passion in writing intended to impart a part of their lives for the society. L.M. Alcott unlike J.K Rowling with her magical adventure, L.M. Scott’s Little Women was about her childhood. She used her own childhood to appeal to the hearts of both young and old embarking on self-expression and women’s rights. Also, her novel draws the public because it’s story of real people struggling to achieve life’s happiness along with it, to learn life’s lesson (Lkwdpl.org, 2006) II. Sequence of the Lesson Ofofegbu (2004) asserts that teacher motivation is equated with the attitude of a teacher concerning work. It has to do with teacher’s desire to participate in the pedagogical processes of the school environment. Moreover, it is concerned with teachers interest in student discipline and control particularly in the classroom. It can determine the involvement or non-involvement in academic and non-academic activities, which operate in schools. The teacher, is the one that translates educational philosophy and objective into knowledge and skill and transferring it to students. Classroom climate is important in teacher motivation. If a teacher creates a safe, healthy, happy atmosphere in the room with supportive resources and facilities for teaching for optimal learning, he/she tends to participate more than expected in the process of management, administration, and the overall improvement of the school. The teacher takes charge and projects the image of one who improves knowledge and the physical conditions of the classroom through orderliness, discipline and control. He makes a diagnosis of students feelings and attitudes inferred by their behaviour and response in the classroom environment. Classroom management, curriculum, instruction, and teacher–student relationships must create a social context that sets up the pattern for successful motivation strategies. The strategies done must coincide with the teaching process to attain good responses from the learners. In a literature class, conditions must focus on motivational efforts for the students to feel a learning community in class (Brophy, 2004). Classroom contexts can promote engaged reading. Teachers create contexts for engagement when they provide prominent knowledge goals, real-world connections to reading, meaningful choices about what, when, and how to read, and interesting texts that are familiar, vivid, important, and relevant. Teachers can further engagement by teaching reading strategies (Brophy, 2004). As reported by Strong, Silver and Robinson (1995) students want and need work which will enhance their relationships with their family and friends. Students give the most importance about interpersonal involvement. Relationships that are reciprocal - what you have to offer is of value to me, and what I have to offer is of some value to you. The teacher must equate or at least get by with the surrounding created by her students. Biases like generation gap must be avoided because it starts to impede the good relationship among teachers and learners hence affecting the teaching-learning process itself. The typical presentation mode of learning must not be used particularly in literature classes. If the teacher would be doing it in the typical discussion, students will get bored. Also, it would not encourage students to read since teachers will focus on students who have done their reading assignment, those who can connect to what they are saying to get the flow of the discussion continuously. Role playing can be done to get the students more involve. The teacher can break the class into groups and assign each group to a particular chapter wherein they can “re-create or revise” the script of Little Women, to make it more contemporary so it will be easily understood by the audience. Upon role-playing, it can hold the attention of the audience for a time because the events are represented plus students have the first-hand experience of feeling what the character felt during that particular act or event (Artsedge.kennedy Center, 2006a). Aside from role playing, the teacher can create the setting in the story within the classroom Students and teacher wearing costumes during literature classes; also, backdrops at the wall would enhance the setting within the room. This strategy is somewhat similar with role playing, the mere difference is that with this strategy, the class works as one in achieving the setting in the story (Artsedge.kennedy Center, 2006b). Various strategic motivations are carried out to make the students interested with a particular subject matter. Often, to stir up the interests of students would be difficult particularly if the subject matter would entail a lot of reading. Reading novels and time-classis stories can be boring and interesting, depending on the experience. It may be boring in the sense that much focus is aimed at the details of the story rather than digging up the emotions or ideas that the writer wants to convey. The class can be interesting as well, if teachers can appeal to the hearts of his students trying to embark the ideas and emotions that the writer wants his readers to learn and appreciate (Artsedge.kennedy Center, 2006b). In the teaching-learning process, the teachers must ensure that it would promote student-centered discussion or presentation. The teacher must think of how he can impart the lesson that would be highly effective for his learners. Motivational devices or activities arouse and maintain interest in the content to be taught. Fewer motivational devices are needed for students who are intrinsically motivated, satisfying their inner need or interest (Ornstein, 1992). Teachers must prepare their learners. Most learners will need help in making the leap from teacher-guided close study of graded short texts to authentic literature. They should encourage learners to think about their approaches to reading and how they can enhance their self-esteem. Allay fears they may have about not understanding every word by telling them that 100 per cent comprehension is not equated to understanding the full meaning of a given book/story. They should use all available clues from the language, the context and from the illustrations, where relevant, to help make sense of the book. The teachers must bear in mind that training of pupils to be hopeful and robust in the face of a challenge, and to develop and use strategies to deal with difficulty is very much the teachers responsibility (Rixon, 1995). After reading the book, the teacher can give questions about life which can be easily aimed at since learners are fascinated to talk about their lives, to share what they have gone through and to let people know that they cry and laugh in their life’s journey. How important is the family as a unit in society today can be the starting question leading on to other questions dealing with family’s importance and how these roles have changed. The book concerns not only family but mainly one’s self, on how a little girl struggled against life’s obstacles as she faces womanhood. Like the characters in the story, one can clearly see the changes in a girl’s priorities as things around become more difficult as the little girl questions his family, gender, spiritual beliefs and friends. Many questions about life may be raised based on the topics presented in the book (Metromagazine.com, 2006). Older students are often said to be deficient in study skills. There is nevertheless a consistent suggestion in research using inventories and questionnaires on study processes that mature students show more desirable approaches to academic learning. In particular, mature students seem to be more likely than younger students to adopt a deep approach or a meaning orientation, and conversely they seem to be less likely to adopt a surface approach or a reproducing orientation towards their academic work. Three reasons for this are: that mature students are more motivated by intrinsic goals; that younger students obtain a surface approach to learning in the final years of secondary education; and that the prior life experiences of mature students encourage a deep approach towards studying in higher education (Richardson, 1994). Films can probably be used in teaching literature classes. After reading the book, film showing (if available) can be done for comparison purposes. Role-playing is time consuming, entailing preparation while film watching can be done spontaneously achieving the same end results. The teacher must see to it that he watches the film before it is shown to class. Guide questions can be done for the sharing of ideas after reading the book and watching the film (Richardson, 1994). As for Little Women, comparison of the film done in 1901 and at present can be done to further stir up discussion. Upon doing so, learners will be able to compare various elements of the story done in the past and at present. References Brophy, J. (2004). MOTIVATING STUDENTS TO LEARN . 2nd ed. LAWRENCE ERLBAUM ASSOCIATES, PUBLISHERS. New Jersey, London. Ofoegbu, F. (2004). Teacher motivation: a factor for classroom effectiveness and school improvement in Nigeria. College Student Journal. Retrieved February 13, 2007, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FCR/is_1_38/ai_n6073200 Ornstein, A. (1992). Strategies for Effective teaching. Loyola University of Chicago, Harper Collins Publisher, New York. Richardson, J. (1994). Mature students in higher education: I. A literature survey to approaches to studying. Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis Group. 309-325. Rixon, S. (1995). What is "Too Difficult" for young learners of English to understand?, The Journal, Vol.2, N° 1, TESOL France in association with the British Council Strong, R., Silver, H., and Robinson, A. (1995). What do students want (and what really motivates them)?. Educational Leadership. Retrieved February 13, 2007, from http://www.middleweb.com/StdntMotv.html Lkwdpl.org. (2006). Retrieved February 12, 2007 from http://www.lkwdpl.org/wihohio/alco-lou.htm Artsedge.kennedy Center. (2006a). Retrieved February 12, 2007 from http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/content/2332/) Artsedge.kennedy Center. (2006b). Retrieved February 11, 2007 Website: ( http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/content/2478/ Metromagazine.com. (2006). Retrieved February 11, 2007 Website: (http://www.metromagazine.com.au/metro/studyguides/files/Little_Women.pdf Read More