(Respects students’ cultural linguistic and family background)
Evidence 1: My partner and I took aside our ELL student to record his reading skills. We made it a point to learn about his likes, dislikes, and interests our first day at HOST. As part of our effort to help him learn based off his personal needs, we recorded him to analyze and reflect on his linguistic abilities. We knew we had to observe and listen to his strengths and weaknesses when reading so we could select and design successful instructional approaches for him (Dack & Tomlinson, 2015).
It is my opinion that educators should understand the differences students have with respect to their cultural and linguistic background, in order to better serve them. It is apparent that our student in the video shows some common phonological mistakes that are common in Spanish speaking students. To have him read a passage will help me understand and pinpoint his errors in syntax, semantics, morphemes, and phonemes, which will, in turn, help me teach him to read better. I feel this should be the case with all students, but especially those who may have linguistic needs.
https://youtu.be/v_STr7vAx4U
Evidence 2: I was able to have a conversation with one of the students and as I prompted a few questions to get to know him better, I quickly realized that he became very sad when speaking about his family situation. The young boy explained to me that he did not live with his mother because she could not afford to take care of him. I felt sad about his situation, but I quickly attempted to turn the situation into a positive note, and tell him that he is lucky to have an aunt who takes such good care of him. He got happy and wrote me a note when he was able to go see his mom, which showed me that he trusted me enough to tell me his personal stories. The student knew I cared and was eager to provide me with more information. I respected his family background and gained his trust by starting with easy questions that further encouraged more in-depth responses (Ginsberg, 2007).
As an educator, I find that sometimes the simplest questions allow one to better understand their students. As an intern, I made it a habit to ask every student as they came into the classroom for the day, a unique question. I normally asked a question with the intent of learning more about their family. Many times, my question would prompt answers that would help me understand the student better, and learn their strengths and weaknesses. I have learned that respecting a students family background and individual situation will help me prepare and teach my students more efficiently and with a personal touch, as well as with empathy and understanding.
Dack, H., & Tomlinson, C. A. (2015). Inviting all students to learn. Educational Leadership, 72(6), 10-15.
Ginsberg, M. B. (2007). Lessons at the Kitchen Table. Educational Leadership, 64(6), 56-61.