- Articles from The English Journal
1) New Voices: Creating Connections: Helping Students "Discover" Their School
Tiffany J. Hunt, Bud Hunt
This article speaks of how rural and other small-town schools should develop and foster an idea of community and continual connections between the local populace. Schools can teach their students about the positive aspects of growing up in the country and teachers can encourage students to help diminish the unfair stigma of inferiority that is observed statistically in rural schools. Instead, teachers can teach of the pride, unity, and respect for small towns that they themselves have.
Not only does this article outline what would be a great, dispositionally fortifying formula for increasing school pride and extrinsic goal orientation in schools, but it also provides some brain food about how the local geography of a school district and its consequences (ie. population, culture, etc.) can affect the behaviors and motivation for students. How would these rules apply for an inner city school? A suburban one?
http://www.ncte.org.libproxy.library.wmich.edu/library/NCTEFiles/Resources/Journals/EJ/0936-july04/EJ0936New.pdf
2) Research for the Classroom: Seize the Data: Embracing Information
Julie Gorlewski
This is a fascinating article about our archaic perceptions on the practicality of data and introduces unique and compelling thoughts on how teachers can control the way they use data in their classroom. Teachers can "control the reforms that occur in their classrooms" through the accurate recording of and practicalization of data, despite being urged to overlook their own ability to report meaningful data about student performance from pressures to conform to Common Core/NCLB reforms.
With the growing presence of data-driven practices in schools across the country, it would be wise to consider how one might best use what could otherwise be perceived as non-pedagogical number counting for the educator's and classroom's benefit.
http://www.ncte.org.libproxy.library.wmich.edu/library/NCTEFiles/Resources/Journals/EJ/1006-jul2011/EJ1006Research.pdf
3) "The Brain within Its Groove": Language and Struggling Students
Kathleen D. De Mers
"In this article, the author discusses how technology can stretch the boundaries of normal access to include people living with disabilities." When in the teaching profession, it is a surety that you will encounter students who have a more difficult time making sense of the at times mystifying complexity of language, persuasion, conversation, and thoughtful expression. This articles outlines how technology can be most adequately implemented in classrooms to facilitate the learning experience for those struggling students.
New practices and methods are being implemented in our schools in an effort to minimize the academic faltering of struggling students, and technology is a multi-media, highly differentiated resource that can and should be used to its greatest extent to address such concerns.
http://www.ncte.org.libproxy.library.wmich.edu/library/NCTEFiles/Resources/Journals/EJ/1002-nov2010/EJ1002Brain.pdf
- On-Line Lesson Plans
Judi Moreillon, Diane Roderick
Masks can be found in the majority of the histories of the people of the world, and the symbolism and simulacra of those masks reflect the culture of the people who make them. This unit teaches students not only of the cultures of the world, but the accompanying poetic exercises help the students get in touch with their own creative expressionism through a very unique muse.
http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/behind-masks-exploring-culture-395.html
2) Discovering Traditional Sonnet Forms
Jacqueline Podolski
In my 9th grade ELA course, there will be at least a month and a half dedicated to the works of William Shakespeare, including a full read-through of Othello and a close analysis of that which defines a Shakespearean sonnet. This unit discusses the commonality between different forms of traditional sonnets and what sets the Shakespearean sonnet apart while introducing the students to basic to intermediate poetic scansion.
http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/discovering-traditional-sonnet-forms-830.html
3) Writing about Writing: An Extended Metaphor Assignment
Traci Gardner
This unit would be perfect with which to open an ELA course! Students are introduced to metacognitive writing practices by being asked to write about their own writing, how they view themselves as a writer, and what they believe being a "good" writer means. Additionally, there is an added creative benefit to this unit through the implementation of extended metaphors and the close analysis thereof.
http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/writing-about-writing-extended-905.html