I recently attended the 45th Annual TYCA-SW Conference in Laredo, Texas. The Two-Year College English Association is one of the constituent groups of NCTE (National Council of Teachers of English). I've been attending the regional conferences for several years, but this was my first trip to the Southwest's Regional Conference (I formerly taught in the Midwest, so I attended their conferences). Like my past experiences with TYCA regional events, this one proved to be well worth the time and energy. Not only did I get the chance to meet and converse with two-year college English faculty from across the southwest, but I also was inspired by the great work my colleagues are doing.
On the national level, TYCA representatives are advocating for people like me and institutions like CMC. Sandie McGill Barnhouse, the current TYCA National Chair, and David Lydic, TYCA National Regional Chair, shared many great ways for us to get involved. The National Gallery of Writing is one way that we can make our voices heard. Perhaps you are working with a writing project in your classes, and you'd like to have your students' voices resonate outside the classroom walls. You can start your own gallery!
If you are a member of NCTE or want to know what's happening in the English discipline, you may want to check out the newly developed Connected Community. And, having checked it out myself, I can tell you that you don't have to be an English teacher to find valuable teaching resources here. Subscribe to one of the discussion forums, read an article about bullying in schools, share a teaching resource. We're all connected!
One of the other valuable insights from the conference came from Marlea Trevino of Grayson County College, who presented on her research into the composition backgrounds of non-native students. Trevino reminded us that many of our non-native students come into our classes with little to no knowledge of rhetorical concepts we practice in composition, little to no practice in critical thinking, little to no practice in using technology to compose and research. They also may be disconcerted by the level of informality in our classes as well as with discussions that require opinions on issues or peer critiques. Instructors need to be mindful not to make assumptions about what our non-native (and native) students have already learned. We need to have patience and give our students opportunities to share differences rather than demand assimilation. Trevino recommended the works of Jeffra Flaitz, who has written widely on working with non-native students.
Thank you to the CMC College-Wide Professional Development Committee for taking the time to review my application for funds and then granting me the opportunity to participate in this conference.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
Aloha Erin,
I am currently teaching online students in English 101 for a small, private 4-year university in Hawaii. I have many students for whom English is a second language, or perhaps a secondary language. This is due to varying situations including immigration to to Hawaii from a pacific island nation or Japan, U.S. birth or citizenship within a home where English is not the primary language, or because they have grown up in Hawaii, speaking a creole or what is called "pidgin" English in the islands. Many of my students need help with basic grammar and I am interested in whether you have come across websites that help you with non-native students as you shared one in your blog. I did visit this Michigan website, but thought the information was for face to face classes. If you have any interest or are experiencing a situation with non-native speakers yourself I would love to begin a dialogue as I am eager to find ways to help my students become successful in their college English.
Colorado Mountain College (CMC) has a mission "to create a better future for our students, our communities, our partners and our team members." The CMC professional development funding program shows a commitment to that mission and to truly creating a better future for all team members including adjunct instructors who are an important and substantial part of the CMC team.
I have had the honor of teaching as an adjunct instructor at the Alpine Campus for over 11 years. During that time I have been fortunate to have been funded for two professional development awards. Several years ago, I received funding to complete the certification preparation course and certification exam to earn my Certified Hospitality Educator (CHE) credentials from the American Hotel and Lodging Association (AH&LA). The Alpine Campus Resort Management program utilizes AH&LA curriculum so that our students earn both a CMC degree and certification from the lodging profession's credentialing body - the AH&LA Educational Institute. In earning the CHE designation, I learned many tricks for becoming a more effective teacher, but I would like to share one model that you may find of interest.
Donald Kirkpatrick's Levels of Learning
1. Reaction - Did the students/employees like the learning.
2. Learning - Did the students/employees increase their knowledge, did they learn anything.
3. Behavior- Did the students/employees change behavior as a result of the learning.
4. Results- Because of the student/employee learning and behavior change, were the desired results of the organization (employer) achieved.
5. ROI - Return on Investment (not in the original model - added later) - As a result of the learning, behavior change, and desired results; was there a quantifiable financial return to the organization.
Kirkpatrick's Levels of Learning helps us to identify good instruction as addressing students needs at all five levels. I believe in order for the education that students receive at CMC to be the most valuable to the student, it must produce behavior change that creates tangible employment-based results that return a financial payback (to the student's current or future employer). Payback for employers flows through to increased earning capacity and payback for the student. Education that creates Results and RIO will make our students more "highly employable." I believe this is a critical goal for CMC given the challenging economic situation our students will be facing.
Post a Comment