Melissa J's Post - Chpt 1

The first section of this chapter that made me stop and re-read was when Gallagher was discussing how teachers are forced to cover so many benchmarks, that schools would have to go from k-22 instead of k-12 (pg. 11). This has been one of my biggest concerns, and the system's biggest problems, to making our students genuine learners. I've also recently noticed that it's really only English that holds students to such a high expectation. Not everyone is required to take the highest level science, math, and history courses, yet our benchmarks clearly demonstrate an expectation for each of our students to be the next Robert Frost or Emily Dickinson. When only 13% of American adults are capable of performing complex literacy tasks (pg. 3), perhaps we really need to focus on remediation for our country, not to mention reigniting a love for reading a writing!

It is in this section of the chapter that Gallagher also discusses that we need to develop a genuine interest for a subject matter in our students...sometimes I wonder how in the world I fell in love with English, because I know exactly what Gallagher is describing when he talks about sprinting through benchmarks, instead of developing an understanding, and potentially love, for a subject. Both of these issues (speeding through materials and not having time to love a subject) can be summed up very quickly in how we teach writing. When we first discussed the difference between assigning writing and teaching writing, I think the truth of the fact that most teachers assign a piece with little to no instruction for how to complete it was a pretty well accepted fact. This reflects that same idea of how we are trying to rush through so many benchmarks, that we aren't taking the time to teach our students in depth. This also results in the assignment of rather rote, and ultimately boring essays. No wonder our students hate to write, not to mention our teachers! Time and time again, my colleagues are the first people to moan and groan at the thought of writing during a professional development session. What happened to loving to read and write?? It's like going cross country, but never slowing down under 60, and never making any stops...how in the world can you actually ENJOY the trip without being able to see and experience the amazing things you're flying by?!

Gallagher's discussion about standardized tests sounded like the same arguments teachers have been stating for years; I just don't understand why they haven't been listened to! It is an undeniable fact that standardized testing does not improve education, especially in a struggling district. It has been proven and discussed 10 thousand times over, to the point where even the most oblivious of politicians should be able to get it!! So why haven't they?!

In closing, I will have to admit, that my first few years teaching were certainly spent teaching Gallagher's "Readicide Curriculum". It's how I had been taught, it was what I was taught to teach, and it's what I was most comfortable with. Over the last few years, I've strayed further and further from that routine, and have seen a marked improvement in my students. Not only are they showing more interest in their reading, but their holding themselves more accountable for actually DOING the reading. I think the hardest part was getting past the testing and quizzing to be sure the reading was done. I still bite my nails every once in a while when I notice a student blowing off their work, but I've found that peer pressure from those completing their work is even more successful in changing these students around. Whether it's because their peers are showing genuine interest in the literature, or it's because they're afraid of being caught unprepared again, has yet to be determined, but it's working. Gallagher lists a bunch of difficult questions at the end of chapter one, and I feel that if every teacher took the time to consider this list, it may create this change in a few more classrooms. We keep trying to teach our kids to look outside the box, and go beyond the book report of literature to get the most out of it...so why aren't we looking outside the box of frameworks and standardized tests to give our students the most out of our classes?