I always enjoy learning a little about history, so I found much of this chapter of Wong pretty fascinating as it spoke about some of the historical philosophical roots of Critical Pedagogy. Some of the things that the philosophers discussed seemed a bit out there to me, a bit over my head (for example, the talk of "the sign" in regards to Bakhtin; I'm not really sure what exactly it is). However, other points in the readings made perfect sense and could easily translate into classroom lessons of today.
Mao's belief in knowledge from practice is one such idea. A student can never fully learn if a teacher simply lectures to them all of the time, and they take notes (or pretend to). Rather, each one needs to be engaged in an activity in order for that learning to be more fully activating. In regards to the subject of math, this transition can easily be made. In English classes, it may seem a little more difficult, but discussions, group works, and other activities in regards to literary activities an serve this purpose. The "banking pedagogy" is something that all teachers should strive for-- that teacher-student relationship that emphasises mutual discovery and exploration. The simple fact that we can be labeled teachers in no way means that we know everything; rather, we can learn from the insights and backgrounds of our students just as much as they can learn from us.
I also found the discussions on reading extremely interesting, particularly because I am intrigued by the task in regards to second language learning. The text discussed how reading can be in social forms--from read alouds to shared reading--so that social interaction helps stimulate the activity. I have also read that one could consider the relationship between the person and the text itself to be a sort of social interaction, so independent reading could potentially fall under the social category, as well. To many people, reading is viewed as a solitary activity, but this activity can easily be placed within socially significant and culturally aware contexts in order to connect to the identities of the students and foster a better learning environment in the classroom.
I also made critical meaning through Mao's ideas in this chapter. The knowledge of practice is such an important concept, and it truly can be applied to many different areas, not solely TESOL.
ReplyDeleteYou also mentioned the idea of 'banking pedagogy'--I recall from reading Freire's 'Pedagogy of the Oppressed' that he mentions a similar idea, but I cannot remember what is is called specifically, perhaps just 'banking'. I believe it goes along very strongly with the idea of 'banking pedagogy' because those ideas cross-reference eachother in the index. It focuses on the relationship between the teacher and the student(s), workig together to mutually create learning--almost like reciprocal learning or teaching. I think this is a very important concept that is not only to be stressed in TESOL- in my education class that I am taking right now, we have to present sample lesson plans to one another. A concept that I am focusing on observing and using is reciprocal teaching in order to help my student-peers learn in the best way possible since they don't have much experience in the specific topic I will be presenting.
I also commented on the "knowledge from practice" idea. The verb "to engage" is such a vital term in regards to student learning. Depending on the age group being taught, sometimes certain activities are not as successful because the students get side-tracked. But back to the drawing board! It is so important to provide as many opportunities that are authentic and contextualized.
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