CAVES 2005 (1): Reading about the world

Reading about the world:
guided reading for children through non-fiction

by Ian Martin

1. Creating an environment is important: Ss can just pick up a book read anytime.
2. Give variety to reading materials: Boys in elementary schools fairly not like stories; girls do. After moving onto junior high schools, boys’ reading picks up because they are asked to read more non-fiction information books.
3. meaning-focused input: learning a list of words is 1000 times more difficult than reading them in content.
4. To learn a new word: it will take 5 to 10 times (instead of the meaning being taught directly).
5. low frequency words: need general understanding; high frequency words: need to be studied
6. language teaching & study takes: (1) voca & grammar (2) syntax (eg. pountuations...)
7. A suitable new book to read will contain 1 new word in every 16 words you read. (90% of the voca should already be familiar to the reader)
8. meaning-focused input: to read; meaning-focused output: (1) what Ss remember about the book after reading it? (2) can Ss make sentences by using the new voca they’ve learned
9. language study v.s. fluency development
10. Teaching how to read is not just about making Ss learn “new words”, but to teaching the “meaning”!
11. The structure of a story: a conflict at the beginning, a problem in the middle, and a resolution in the end. (A purpose of a story is to create the need to read.)

for better or worse?

After attending the workshops, I felt I learned lots information needed for an English program to run successfully. I only learned a couple games or activities that I would like to try with my Ss, but over all, it was worth the money, time, and effort. I was really impressed by CAVES’ service. They made me feel that they held all these workshops not just to promote books, but also to bring positive influence to the ELT market.

The downside is, the more I listened, the more I realized what a poor program I had been teaching in. For instance, the books I am using now does not teaching phonics in a logical order, and my Ss still have NOT learn any “Simple Present Tense” sentences after being the program for 1 year. Although we buy them readers, there is only “one” reader to read for 8 months.

(Now I am nagging ...big time)

With the hours we have, it is not possible to finish teaching all the lessons, make sure Ss have had enough practice, and teach them “what” should be taught in the way “how” English should be taught. (If the experts mentioned 10 things to do, my schools as maybe accomplished only 1 out of the ten.)

Due to the fact that my school is a franchised branch, we can only teach the books published by the head office. When I took the job at the first place, I didn’t have a chance to know how the books are laid out. (In fact, I was so glad I found a job I didn’t think I cared.) Now, I feel trapped. My owner has discussed with me and made it clear that we would not be able to use whatever book we like in another 2 years. It will be much too late! I can already predict parents complaining how slowly their children are progressing because the books we use keep “recycling” the old sentence patterns for new vocabulary.

I have worked for a different school before which had a good/well-planed program/curriculum. I left that school because the new supervisor was “cold” to the teachers. With the schools I work for now, my supervisor is super nice to me. However, the program is a failure. Both I and the other more experienced teacher agree that the books are pretty “ridiculous” to teach. But, what can we do? We don’t own the school, so I suppose we keep teaching. (Unlike Aprils’ boss, my owner does not teach English herself.)

Does any other teacher feel the same way? Hands being tied? Or what books are you teaching now that’s NOT giving you nightmares when you sleep at night?

Sorry about this passage being so negative. I know Taiwan’s buxibans need more good news, so hope I will have good news next time.