January 17, 2005
Welcome! Class begins.
Welcome to CIED 3263:
Language Development for Educators.
Classes meet in the afternoon on MW from 2:30-3:50 and T/Th from 2:00-3:20.
Your instructor is Freddie Bowles.
Your textbook is Children Learning Language: A Practical Introduction to Communication Development, 3rd ed. by Rita C. Narmore and Robert Hopper published by Singular Publishing Group, Inc. in San Diego (ISBN: 1-56593-856-9).
We will build a class calendar together to create an optimal learning environment for everyone.
A Motivated Learner
My goal is to create a setting in which everyone wants to participate. I believe each one of you can become an engaged, curious, and motivated learner.
How can you become this kind of student?
Expectations
We begin with the classroom environment. We are going to create a place where you feel welcome, wanted, and important. Your success in this class is the number one goal for me and for you. Your success centers on attitude — an attitude of respect for everyone in our community of learners and an attitude of respect for the topic.
Success
Everyone begins with a perfect grade. It's up to you to maintain that perfect grade by meeting the expectations I have for you and the expectations you create for yourself. My expectations include attendance, engagement, and participation.
How do you attain success in these three areas?
You will want to attend class because it is central to your success and because you are curious about the topic. You will be engaged because the topic is important for your success as a teacher and for the success of your students. You will want to participate because the topic is interesting, your contribution is important for everyone's learning, and because your classmates' contributions can help you learn.
What expectations do you have for yourself?
A Quality World
The first week we will to get to know one another. We will find out how we can create a good place to learn. William Glasser has theorized that in order for a student to have a "quality world," five basic needs must be met: survival, fun, belonging/love, power, and freedom.
What does this mean for educators and students?
It means:
The classroom can become a democracy.
Each learner and the teacher have a role in helping one another be successful in learning the information.
Everyone has input in the process of knowledge acquisition and assessment.
Discussion, activity, argument, and resolution are important.
This class will be an experiment in democracy education.
My Role
Traditionally, the teacher talks; the students listen. The teacher is the monarch; the students are the loyal subjects. The teacher asks questions; the students answer. The teacher is the actor; the students are the audience. The role of student is mostly passive.
The idea of democracy education requires that the teacher give up the role as the sole disseminator of content. The teacher becomes a facilitator to aid students in discovery about the topic. The students ask questions; the students answer. The teacher intervenes when the students need assistance. The role of teacher is mostly passive.
I will be your facilitator this semester. I will assist you in your quest for knowledge about how children learn language. I will guide you through the information that is necessary for you to be an effective teacher in your own classroom. I will model good, effective teaching practices and strategies so that you will have choices and ideas about how you will evolve as a teacher.
My role is to support you through your learning this semester.
Your Role
You will be an active learner. You will have input into the development of the syllabus, the choice of activities, and the way you are assessed this semester. Your participation will demonstrate your achievement in this class.
Together
Together we will create a community of learners. Your success is our success. We are on a path of discovery. Let's make this class one of the most useful and memorable classes this semester!
Ms. Bowles
*This is the next step toward THE One World Language.
Step Sixteen: *Your dangling participle injected with botox.
Planet Gnosis is ruled by Freddie A. Bowles, a professional educator and fellow at the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. An independent entity in the CornDancer consortium of planets, Planet Gnosis is dedicated to the exploration of education and teaching. CornDancer is a developmental website for the mind and spirit maintained by webmistress Freddie A. Bowles of the Planet Earth. Submissions are invited.
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