Building on Best Practices
As I was reading chapter 4, section 11 of Reading Essentials by Routman, I couldn't help but to think about how many band wagons we have jumped on and how it always points back to "best practices". Routman said "whenever I talk with teachers, in whatever part of the country, there is a sense of resignation and helplessness. Teachers go along with programs and practices they know are not working well for many of their students because their energy is spent meeting the rising demands of curriculum, standards, and high-stakes testing. Time for collaboration and reflection-- necessary for all good teaching and advocacy--is missing"(Routman, 186). Wow that really hit the nail on the head. Are we willing to stand up, even though we feel defeated and exhausted? Routman said we should build on best practices to teach reading. "There is no best program or perfect model of teaching reading"(Routman, 186). Routman stressed that programs should be resources. We as teachers are to pick and choose what works best for our own classroom.
Yes, we have jumped on so many "band wagons" in the past 31 years and as I stated in the above post, there have been times when I wanted to stand up and say, " This is NOT what is going to work for our children." Routman is right when she says there is no best program or perfect model for teaching reading!! We need to use RESOURCES and choose what works best for our own classrooms!!! :)
ReplyDeleteJenni,
DeleteI agree!!!!
This year, we have had time to collaborate with other teachers during our planning periods as we are working in data teams. This has really helped to be able to work with other teachers and share ideas. To be honest, this is something I have seen very little of from high school teachers over the years, but it is so important.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree, the time spent working together to discuss and look at what is working best for our students has allowed both teachers and students to see growth. What works for one may not work for another, in our teams we discuss a number of methods to reach as many of students as we can. You use the particular method with the given student. The growth seen has been amazing!!!
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ReplyDeleteHi Rachel,
ReplyDeleteI agree 100% with Routman's words here for educators and I believe that we not only have to advocate for our students, but we also have to advocate for ourselves and our colleagues in providing students with thoughtful, intentional, and targeted instruction that works with what our kids' needs are and what we currently know about reading research.
Thanks,
Dawn