I will seek
to initiate classroom discussions with my students as often as I can. I believe that the participation level in the
talk will vary depending on topic and subject area. Hopefully, full participation won’t always require
a controversial topic. I would imagine
the subject of English language arts can get plenty of universal topics that
will open up discussion. A chief goal I have
for coming out of this class is to get my students talking more, and me,
less. At this point it looks easier said
than done but the chapter does give a very clear road map for teachers on how
to make this happen.
We were told on the first day of 493, that teaching lit to adolescents
is never about the teacher and his ego, but about the students. We see this illustrated in the example used
in “Discussion in a Democratic Society,” concerning the DNR order. The teacher was sure he had the moral high
ground on this issue and felt the case was closed. The teacher became student, and a few of the
students became teachers. This is how it
should be, always, if a child is to come away from the class with a firm grasp
of the material. This, I feel, is the
objective. Not so much the democratic
societal aspect.
This “dispositions” offered for a teacher may be right for
democratic participation but are also idea for a classroom of growing
students. Hospitality, participation,
mindfulness, humility, mutuality, deliberation, hope, and so on are excellent
mindsets and practices for a teacher to convey.
It all does start with hospitality, to create “an atmosphere to which
people feel invited to speak.” Of course, not all students will reciprocate and
begin speaking what’s on their mind, if some ever do before the end of the
semester. Nevertheless, the discussion
(or, conversation) needs to be started at a certain point. Class discussions are a useful component for
summative assessments. I myself like all
the dispositions except deliberation.
The reading does suggest that that will only come at the end of the
term, if ever. I personally feel that
disposition may come if everyone has spoken during the term, always feeling
safe to do so and are confident they can have “autonomy” to fall back on.
