November 17

My final project is going well. I am observing at Kingsley Junior High approximately eight hours a week and writing my observation reports. I also have the opportunity to teach parts of lessons, and the teacher and I work together quite nicely. Over break, I will begin connecting my reports to the readings we have done in class.

Kuma's chapter 11, Ensuring Social Relevance was my favorite reading this week. He talked about the politics of language, being aware of all contexts that the language is being taught in (international, national, ethnic, political, religious, etc.), as well as English as a global language, the home language's role in the classroom, and the use of appropriate teaching materials. It is important to know the role English plays on a global level so that we avoid the standardization that he describes in detail. At the end of all of the talk about how a language gets standardized, he says, "Standardization is essentially a political act over which teachers may not have direct control...The least teachers can do is to recognize the rich linguistic and cultural heritage the learners bring with them and use them as resources to build bridges between what is known and what is new" (249).

He also talks about the use of the L1 in the classroom, which I thought was extremely interesting. This is something I have observed at KJHS and I was very confused about. He says that it is actually beneficial and in most cases not used to its potential. We can see how in the episodes he lists. They show instances of using the L1 to recognize their own cultural differences, making the students feel more comfortable by encouraging them, and more (see list on p. 254). He quotes Elsa Auerbach when he says, "...both research and practice show that the use of the L1 in early L2 classes is critical not only for later success but also to a smooth transition to the target language" (254).

The final point in chapter 11 is the use of appropriate teaching materials. He says that textbooks are not a neutral medium and talks about the use of materials that represent both the local and global cultures rather than the culture of the target language community. This chapter was so helpful for me. I learned so much about best practices and how to make sure the pedagogy of possibility is upheld in the classroom.