Asian texts reflect the area’s
increasing economic and cultural significance. Asian statistics are certainly impressive;
encompassing a third of the earth’s land mass, two thirds of the world’s
population and some of the fastest growing economies across the globe. Asia also has a long and
rich cultural and historical heritage which has not always featured highly in school curriculums, especially texts that are actually written by Asians rather than texts written about Asia.
Incorporating Asian studies into schools
and university courses recognises the growing importance inter-relationships between Asia and the West. The New 7-10 Secondary English
Curriculum being implemented into NSW high schools this year, reflects the trend for increasing Asian consciousness in schools in Australia and elsewhere.
Varied influences account for this educational shift, including globalisation, migration
and multi-culturalism. Asian backgrounds also now represent nearly 10% of the
Australian population. Mixed cultural heritage and the ongoing refugee crisis around the world make Asian studies a relevant contemporary
issue in English classes with both literary, non-fiction and media texts.
Using more Asian texts within the classroom helps
develop awareness of important concepts relating to Asia, including the need to
challenge stereotypes, racism and cultural prejudice. Examining Asian poetry,
prose and film prompts discussion and understanding of differing traditions,
beliefs and experience. Examining different types of contextual background could be another area that would engage students. What is needed however is a list of suitable texts written by Asian composers that draws responders into a new world of experience.
Most schools currently teach at least a few texts with Asian themes such as junior year texts like 'Bend It Like Beckham' or 'Chinese Cinderella'. It would be helpful to have the names of other suitable texts for older students, especially poems and short stories that might be useful for more complex language analysis, that teachers could consider using. If you have any good suggestions, send them through and I can post a list for others to use and/or add to. Meanwhile, in the last few days before school resumes, I will continue reading 'Mao's Last Dancer' by Li Cunxin and 'Unpolished Gem' by Alice Pung.
It has been a long time since I have posted anything and I thought it might be an apt time to do so after the horrendous bushfire January we have had so far. Images can never fully cover the emotional anguish that must accompany such an experience but one of the senior student responses I have amongst my resources is a fine example of how words can capture a sense of it. While this is not a fully polished response, the student was able to use personal experience of his own to communicate a bushfire's overwhelming might.
Sacred Land
A
blood red wall rose in the distance, approaching with wicked speed. Flames ravaged
the land before them, climbing trunks with a mastered agility and nimbly licking
leaves with their fiery tongue. Menacing smoke poured out from the red abyss of
the monster before me, leaving the land gasping for air. It loomed overhead, drowning
the light with it’s poisonous smog; an ominous warning to those who lay in its
path.
The
brilliant emerald leaves of my garden lay peacefully in their bed. A sudden gust
of hot wind alerted them to the danger ahead. I ran frantically; the hose I
held moving as a docile snake, clumsily moving through the undergrowth. With a
quick turn of the tap however, it was transformed into a savage python, swaying
with ferocity – aware of the approaching enemy.
I
glanced at Jack’s weathered tombstone in front of me. He had built this beloved
place with his own two hands. It had remained in our family ever since, serving
as a continuous place of happiness and joy. We all had memories of the warmth
and nurturing we had received from this kind home we had lived in together. The
union between us could not have been greater. On windy days, it would sing a
quiet but ever so sweet song, reminding us it was there to shelter us from harm.
With danger so near, I had never before felt so connected to any place.
The
smoke clogging up the air produced a sour tone from the anxious house which sang
with a different voice. I would not
abandon it. I saw the same need to defend this sacred place in the eyes of my
neighbours. As they emerged to wage war on the impending threat to our land, I
knew they shared a similar sense of heritage and bonding to the land. A desire
to defend what defined who we were burned in their eyes. Their courage and
determination bolstered mine. We were a community. We would do this together.
Memories
of family flooded over me as I prepared for the battle. That was the branch
where we had built the old tire swing. I could still feel the rush of wind on
my face as I glided through the soft air but now the air was full of fiery
embers and it moved ominously with each gust. There was the spot where we had
buried old Patch, the most loyal companion a man could have. Amidst the noise
and haste and living colour of the flames, everywhere I looked, there were
symbols of what made this place home and worthy of defence.
The
sound of a car alerted me to the arrival of my two eldest sons, back up troops
in a last ditch battle.
“Are
you sure you want to do this?” I asked them, already knowing the answer
“Yes
Dad,” they both replied, “we’re family ain’t we.’ We rushed off to get additional
supplies. Venturing into the house, I slowed down and came to a stop in the
kitchen. Could this be it? Could this be the last time I would see my home
still standing? Though old and a bit rickety in places, I loved this place. I
wanted to leave a mark of thanks for what it had given the family over the
years. I quickly scrawled the word ‘home’ on a piece of paper and nailed it to
the kitchen beam. If we were to lose the coming battle and the wicked monster devoured
what we loved, what it signified would mingle with the ashes.
The
enemy loomed ever nearer and like archers firing on a distant opponent, water
jets clashed with the hot wrath of our opponent. Neighbours stood abreast, fighting
back the common foe, challenging its red armour as it roared at us and mocked
our efforts with hellish crackles. The sky came alive with shades of russet
orange, crimson and black, tendrils of flame marching across the garden’s
green.Rallying after occasionally being
forced to retreat we stood firm, defending our ground as its hot breath burnt
our faces.
We
would not give up. This land was ours, and nothing could take it from us, even
its fiery wrath. Only together could we drive it back and reclaim what was
rightly ours. As we glanced one to the other, we sensed that together we would
fight it, and together we would win.A
distant and faint battle cry was heard, snatches of sound that triggered a
shared sense of relief. Through the flames and thick smoke, the glimpse of
revolving lights gave hope of a mechanical saviour.
Using Real Life Emergencies in the Classroom
Bushfires can be a brilliant teaching unit for it enables teachers to examine a wide range of literary and media text-types. Non-fiction memoirs, first-hand accounts, editorials, lfeature articles etters and so on enable an examination of conventions and language use. There are also a great deal that can be done with government warning brochures, guidelines and similar social texts in terms of language analysis.
Poems, prose passages and short stories enable comparison with narrative devices and stylistic techniques for communicating characterisation, situation and atmosphere. I have often used news broadcasts and video clips to demonstrate the differences between fact and opinion and journalistic language use.
Concepts relating to courage, heroism and compassion are also valuable topics of discussion with many newspapers doing feature articles about the work of the volunteer bushfire men and women. Examining regional newspapers is often better than sticking to only the bigger, city papers as there will often be more personal stories and recounts available for classroom use. It often enables a teacher to explore human resilience and fortitude in the face of adversity. Resources need not be related to current bushfires for the strength to endure is often repeated every summer here and in other danger spots around the world. Even using the song lyrics, such as the Cold Chisel song used below for the 2009 slideshow clip can be an effective trigger for discussion and writing.
Visual literacy is another area that enables an imaginative response from students. The story above arose out of a series of dramatic images I used in a slideshow to trigger possible response scenarios. With the wealth of visual and textual texts that are being posted online in relation to the current crisis in NSW, Australia, it could be an excellent topic for class discussion as Term begins.
I hope you find this useful as the days count down before school resumes.
Enjoyed a Wilfred Owen Workshop yesterday, exploring the prescribed HSC poems. Discussion highlighted the continuing conceptual relevance despite changing context as echoed in the following BBC remembrance news clip. Dehumanisation and the overwhelming 'pity' of war are subjects that are examined in powerfully distinctive ways. Making use of different poetic forms, techniques and style, he acerbically condems and satirises the preparation, waging and consequences of unprecedented slaughter. Poetry becomes his vehicle for exposing the propagandist falsehoods and awakening social conscience and outcry.
For workshop participants, additional resources and the email list can be obtained by sending me an email for access details to the Owen website.
While there are many, many 'readings' of Owen's verse, the following is one of my favourites.
Stories remain a popular unit with all age groups and I have stumbled across an engaging site that covers the five essential elements most of us use in the classroom. The comments below the clip indicate that it has been extensively used with upper Primary but I am sure it would be equally effective with years 7 and 8. It enables you to download the clip and the lyrics and even offers some very simple templates to use as follow-up. So if you are looking for a way to liven up your short story unit with the juniors, have a look at a rap version of the five key elements of short stories.
It is a long time since I posted but with Term 4 looming large, I thought I had better explore how I could best integrate more ICT into teaching and expand my own limited skills in best using technology to maximise student learning. There are increasing pressures for using the vast range of tools that are available but many teachers are still hesitant for a number of legitimate reasons, myself included, to really embrace what is on offer. For ICT to be really effective as a teaching and learning tool rather than gimmicky, support needs to be offered at the school and professional development level. ICT Tool lists such as the one I have put together for blogging are available but they take time to investigate and some are certainly easier to handle than others. Micro-Blogging Tools
Micro-blogging enables users to publish brief text
updates such as Twitter. The simplicity and ability to post frequently are
attracting users. A close competitor to Twitter isJaiku but a range of other similar tools
are also available.
Pownce - Allows messaging as well as easily shared links, files, or events
Tumblr –is
a similar but slicker micro blogging platform which allows users to share text,
photos, quotes, chats and even video.
MySay is
verbal rather than textual, allowing people to listen via phone, e-mail, or the
web.
Emotionr gauges and shares happiness ratings
on a sliding scale with those around you.
Using Blogging within the classroom
Teachers have come up with a
host of inventive ways to use blogging with students and I will endeavour to explore some of the ideas outlined on the following sites as time permits.
Have a look at some of the
following sites for possible ideas to use:
I hopefully will extend my ICT skills in the next few months but I think some valid points have been raised on the following science teacher blogsite. He has extensively examined the role of ICT in the classroom and the website has a lot of material.
'The incorporation of information and communication technologies (ICT) into the classroom, it is increasingly important that teachers are able to use these tools effectively.
In 1999, a study done in 1999 (Cox, Preston & Cox), interviewed teachers in the UK and found that the most common obstacles to implementing effective ICT in the classroom were the ICT literacy of the teacher, interruptions to classes due to technical issues and availability of resources (p3). These are summarised in the diagram below, where the advantages of using ICT in the classroom are shown in green, and the disadvantages in red:
Our classrooms and resources may look different to the one shown here but the workload however, seems even more onerous despite class sizes having dropped. I cannot remember my early teaching days being as frenetic in pace as now experienced by teachers. Marking and programming was thorough but less regimented and there was more teacher autonomy and scope for creativity with fewer deadlines enabling real engagement with texts, language and heaven forbid, even grammar. The schools of today seem driven by an Assessment heavy curriculum with teaching towards exams like NAPLAN and HSC dictating things rather than teaching for learning. For all the push in this direction, it is ironic that statisticians tell us that Australia's international educational status has dropped; certainly not due to any reduction in how hard teachers are working. Holidays allow a time to rest but also for catching up for unfinished teaching chores and preparation for a new HSC cohort and no doubt a new round of changes imposed from above to this, that and the other.New Scheme teachers seem unnecessarily overloaded with time consuming paperwork along with the eternal round of marking, programming and reworking assessment tasks. Perennial arguments regarding single or mixed sex classes, graded versus ungraded, set rather than flexible texts raise are voiced with little attention paid to the anecdotal experience or wishes of teachers themselves. Whatever form the New Curriculum actually takes, it can only be hoped that it will usher in productive change that will benefit students and teachers alike rather than the bureaucrats. The Holidays beckon and every teacher in the state and across the country will breathe a collective sigh of thanks once that Friday night arrives.
"The best teacher is the one who suggests rather than dogmatizes, and inspires
his listener with the wish to teach himself." Edward Bulwer-Lytton
'Satire' is finally available on the shelves and I think that most schools will have received details in the pre-holidays mail-out from Phoenix Education. It has taken me longer than anticipated but I am really pleased with the range of classic and more contemporary texts that I have included. There were many others that I would have included but that would have taken two volumes instead of one. Satire used to be a very popular and successful and productive unit of work in high schools in earlier years but it works well as a Preliminary AOS in preparing analytical response skills and conceptual links across varied texts. Now that it is finished I can begin working on the next project before the new HSC text list is distributed about this time next year and the preparation begins for the first new cohort beginning in Term 4, 2014. Teachers are obviously concerned about the percentage of new and familiar texts but also the conceptual framing for each of the modules as well. It takes so long to read, research and develop resources that the lead in year is frantic, especially with so many experienced teachers reaching retirement age. When combined with speculation about the changes ushered in with the introduction of National Curriculum and what it will generate in terms of teacher workload, the next year or so will be busy. I am looking forward to the upcoming holidays and along with all teachers, the absence for a short time of bells, staff meetings, assessment tasks and marking deadlines. Perhaps teachers need a great satirist to point out the follies of political educationalists who often fail to make goals achievable or at times even appropriate. To quote Edwin Percy Whipple:
"As
men neither fear nor respect what has been made contemptible, all honor to him
who makes oppression laughable as well as detestable.—Armies cannot protect it
then; and walls that have remained impenetrable to cannon have fallen before a
roar of laughter or a hiss of contempt."
I have extensive experience as a teacher, writer and lecturer. My publisher is Phoenix Education and I present HSC English workshops for Teacher Training Australia or TTA.
Tailor made workshops school sites can also be organised.
My other sites include:
www.stannersenglishmatters.wikispaces.com
www.stannersenglishresources.weebly.com
