I appreciate that this video makes the point that many immigrants are here for important reasons (anything from war to nuclear testing). I've heard different types of negative thoughts and comments on immigration, this video shows that many immigrants went through a lot of hardship to get here. It proves that many immigrants tend to be hard working and eager to be here. It showed a family from Thailand that had to leave everything behind and come to the US or die. They made their home in Arkansas and have stayed faithful to it all this time. In fact, they said most the immigrants that come to Arkansas plan to make it their home and stay here.
Most importantly, I like that they show that our state and economy profits from our immigrants. The profits outweigh the costs, which is a fact that can come in handy in future conversations.
Looking ahead even a decade from now, the natives of Arkansas will be taken care of by this new generation that will be a mostly immigrant dominated population. That's important to take into consideration to give those children opportunities and appropriate education in schools.
Overall, I think this video shed some light on the positive points of immigrants in Arkansas as well as a positive outlook for the future.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Ch. 2 Reflection
When it comes to young children, I won't be teaching the terms found in Ch.2 such as Phonemes, Clipping, Syntax, Scripts, etc. However, I will be modeling many of these things. In learning a language, you have to learn pitches and where to stress certain sounds. We also have our polite, scripted conversations that mirror the usual "How are you?"
Eye contact, turn-taking, a lot of things in language can vary depending on a person's origins. That is why Ch. 2 is important for a future teacher. We must accept that some students may do or say things that we find disrespectful, and in some cases we must realize that these are misunderstandings. If the child has a different cultural background, you will need to let the child know what is appropriate and what is not. In the end, you will both be more knowledgeable about culture clashes and how to avoid them.
Eye contact, turn-taking, a lot of things in language can vary depending on a person's origins. That is why Ch. 2 is important for a future teacher. We must accept that some students may do or say things that we find disrespectful, and in some cases we must realize that these are misunderstandings. If the child has a different cultural background, you will need to let the child know what is appropriate and what is not. In the end, you will both be more knowledgeable about culture clashes and how to avoid them.
Wide Angle Series
I was very fascinated by the Wide Angle Series. I knew that obtaining an education is much more difficult in some countries, but I've never personally connected so much with the reality of the situations children go through. Seeing video footage of children from different places going through turmoil to get to learn allowed me to see a deeper meaning to education and schools.
When I was the age of the children in the Series (in both Back to School and Time for School) I honestly hated school. I couldn't imagine trying to make it there with the consequence of getting acid poured on me as a possibility. Or having to work all day, and leave at night to study in a field while the rest of my family slept. The lives that the children lead are quite extraordinary compared to the typical American child, which is what allowed me to hate school at that age.
I also really want to go to Africa now.
When I was the age of the children in the Series (in both Back to School and Time for School) I honestly hated school. I couldn't imagine trying to make it there with the consequence of getting acid poured on me as a possibility. Or having to work all day, and leave at night to study in a field while the rest of my family slept. The lives that the children lead are quite extraordinary compared to the typical American child, which is what allowed me to hate school at that age.
I also really want to go to Africa now.
Observation
Over the course of our first week attending this class, we were assigned to observe someone who is not native to the US.
I did see several people that are foreign, but I didn't see anything that was very different or out of the ordinary. Sometimes they would dress a bit more reserved, or they would dress just like everybody else, but nothing that really stood out. The most common thing I noticed was that if they were not very good at English, they seemed more shy and quiet and avoiding of eye contact.
That's why I decided to write about someone I work with from Brazil. From my interactions with her, we've found out how funny language can be. She has lived here for two years and before that did not know any English (she speaks Portuguese). She claims that the food in Brazil is healthier than the usual food in the US. She also told me that McDonald's is pricey in Brazil at an average of around $10 per person for a regular meal in contrast to how cheap it is here.
When I think of customers at work and general interactions I have had with foreigners, they all just seemed like normal people to me, except with accents or trouble speaking English. I can tell that coming from another country would possibly imply higher importance on certain values, ideas, etc, than here in the US but I haven't really witnessed any cultural clashes thus far.
I did see several people that are foreign, but I didn't see anything that was very different or out of the ordinary. Sometimes they would dress a bit more reserved, or they would dress just like everybody else, but nothing that really stood out. The most common thing I noticed was that if they were not very good at English, they seemed more shy and quiet and avoiding of eye contact.
That's why I decided to write about someone I work with from Brazil. From my interactions with her, we've found out how funny language can be. She has lived here for two years and before that did not know any English (she speaks Portuguese). She claims that the food in Brazil is healthier than the usual food in the US. She also told me that McDonald's is pricey in Brazil at an average of around $10 per person for a regular meal in contrast to how cheap it is here.
When I think of customers at work and general interactions I have had with foreigners, they all just seemed like normal people to me, except with accents or trouble speaking English. I can tell that coming from another country would possibly imply higher importance on certain values, ideas, etc, than here in the US but I haven't really witnessed any cultural clashes thus far.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Reflections on Ch.1
Chapter I was quite a bit of information to absorb for the beginning of this course. However, I realize all the information as a basic and general foundation for the rest of this course to build on. Obviously, it is very important to be knowledgeable about the Language Learner in classrooms. The book covers so many areas that I will just discuss the factors that stuck out most to me and seemed most meaningful for me as a future teacher.
First off, I love that we discussed "modeling." We shouldn't interrupt children (we should be happy a language learner is even speaking in some cases!) but if they make mistakes we should model back to them what they've told us in a way that they can learn from our language. ie.:
Child: I need going bathroom
Teacher: Oh, you need to go to the bathroom?
When I tried to give an example, I completely blanked out on something a child might say, so I just made up something. The point is, if they say something incorrectly, you model it back to them in a subtle way to help them learn it.
I also believe names are an important aspect of identity as well as a child's place of birth. You should learn the correct order of their names and the appropriate way to pronounce them. You should also take out time to learn the background of a child's country as well as important cultural values to take into consideration when doing lessons that may clash with the child.
Last of all, and just as important to me, use the child's L1!! It is learning for other students as well, but it will help the ELL child to learn English. The use of a L1 will allow the child to build upon that grammar and knowledge to more easily obtain a L2.
First off, I love that we discussed "modeling." We shouldn't interrupt children (we should be happy a language learner is even speaking in some cases!) but if they make mistakes we should model back to them what they've told us in a way that they can learn from our language. ie.:
Child: I need going bathroom
Teacher: Oh, you need to go to the bathroom?
When I tried to give an example, I completely blanked out on something a child might say, so I just made up something. The point is, if they say something incorrectly, you model it back to them in a subtle way to help them learn it.
I also believe names are an important aspect of identity as well as a child's place of birth. You should learn the correct order of their names and the appropriate way to pronounce them. You should also take out time to learn the background of a child's country as well as important cultural values to take into consideration when doing lessons that may clash with the child.
Last of all, and just as important to me, use the child's L1!! It is learning for other students as well, but it will help the ELL child to learn English. The use of a L1 will allow the child to build upon that grammar and knowledge to more easily obtain a L2.
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