It is one thing to know what to teach but another thing to execute a lesson effectively in literacy. One of the most exciting part of our LIT course is having our lecturer teach mini lessons where the class pretends to be a different grade per mini lesson and she acts as that particular grade teacher. We had exposed our low level of self esteem with regard to teaching literacy from last semester and so we requested that she model to us good teaching practices. This proved to be very helpful. We are able to see the lessons unfold from introduction to conclusion and this creates a more meaningful approach to teaching.
Our final class for the week was very interactive. In this class we pretended to be grade 3 students and likewise our lecturer pretended to be a grade 3 teacher. She modelled writing the first draft from the story map she had outlined from the previous class. We had also outlined our own story map in pairs using her model as a guide, which we used to write our narratives. Towards the end of the class, each pair read aloud their stories. These stories reflected the fabulous job done by our lecturer in teaching us narrative writing.
The modelling process
Modelling is one of the most effective strategies used in teaching. It is an appeal to students for imitation. According to a recent research review of teaching practices that increases students engagement in Preventing School Failure: Alternative Education for Children and Youth, the writers revealed that while many desired academic and social behaviors are abstract concepts for students, when teachers model using explicit examples, they reduce student confusion and enhance understanding. Modeling is a twofold process that includes demonstrating a desired skill or behavior while describing the actions and decisions being made throughout the process. It is a very interactive process because it makes concepts accessible to the learners through structured, guided practice and reflecting learning and also because it increases on-task behaviour. Research has found that modeling decreases student error, positively affects the perceived importance of a task and increases self-regulated learning. For effective modeling, teachers should use think-alouds to make important connections and share their expert thinking with their students.
As we continue our LIT course on the different types of writing and becoming effective in teaching those genres of writing, we would recommend that our lecturer continue modelling as we believe that it is a very effective strategy which is helping us become exceptional in the teaching of Literacy. We would also advise current teachers as well as future teachers to use the modelling process not just in literacy but across the curriculum. It is a process that has been proven to work as witnessed personally.
 Our lecturer models narrative writing. Written by Shaquille Aldonza, Jina Jonas, Leah Giman-Satoute |
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
Modelling - A teaching tool
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Modeling refers to the process through which teachers demonstrate a new skill before having students practice it on their own. The teacher models what he or she expects, which gives students a starting point and provides them with access to the ideas that will help them begin the writing process.As teachers of writing, we often neglect the powerful strategy of
ReplyDeletemodelling in our classrooms.
As stated in the blog, the modelling of writing shows students what they are expected to produce at the end of a lesson with minimal errors. I reflect on my standard two year back at the primary level where I was "told" how to write narratives. This was a difficult task to accomplish. I would suffer from mental blocks and would not be able to shift my pencil to write one word. This experience was shared among other students in my class. We felt inadequate. We were told that we were not able to write. We did not possess the skills that were necessary to write.
The writing process can be a very tedious task to teach students. There are many skills that are mandatory in order to be effective writers. Teachers of writing must teach the five stages of the writing process (brainstorming, drafting, revising, editing and publishing). Each skill must be taught on its own especially at the lower grades. Since each skill is essential to writing an excellent piece, the teacher must model exactly what he or she expects before the student immerses himself or herself in writing. The writing process requires plenty of teacher modelling for each skill to produce students who are very much competent when it comes to writing.
Becoming a student and experiencing our COM and LIT lecturer demonstrating everything that she teaches is a breathe of fresh air. Everything becomes as clear as day when she teaches the different courses. This just further justifies why modelling as a teaching strategy is important. Knowing the content and executing the content are two different processes.This is why our lecturer takes her time to model how to teach elementary students to write. I can say that I have acquired more confidence to teach students how to write. As I look in retrospect at my time in standard two, I ask myself, were we the ones who had a problem with writing or was it the teacher who lacked modelling skills which made us incompetent writers? Analyzing my past experiences along with my present at teachers' college, I realize that modelling is an effective strategy that should be used in the classroom especially by literacy teachers. “Nothing, absolutely nothing you will ever do as a teacher will be more powerful than modelling writing in front of your students.”
— Vicki Spandel
https://youtu.be/DKvTQ79OIo4
This is a link to a YouTube video, where a teacher briefly models how to implement dialogue in a narrative piece.
I share some of your sentiments. One may have the content knowledge but may lack adequate skills to teach a particular concept. In retrospect, I do not think that my past Language Arts teachers utilized the most effective pedagogical practices with regards to the teaching of writing. I believe that my writing skills was thwarted because I was not exposed to the five stages of writing: brainstorming, prewriting, drafting, editing and publishing
Deletegood night,
ReplyDeleteWell articulated and researched literacy bees! What particularly stood out was the diagram included because it somewhat resembles the gradual release of responsibility model where the teacher explains and models, then gives guided practice and then activities for independent learning. I have never come across a lecturer who is so passionate about literacy and modeling like Miss Polius. I enjoyed this session and realized how uncomplicated writing can be as she modeled story writing one there is a clear, organized plan. I have also grown to realize how modeling is instrumental in learning, skill acquisition and greater conceptual understanding and that as a teacher, demonstration should be of paramount importance. Undoubtedly, modeling is a powerful strategy that increases student engagement and attainment, boosts confidence and retention and forces us to emulate some of the most effective practices that have been modeled. It also encourages us to engage in reflective learning, examining some of the practices that we adopt and their effectiveness. As a teacher in training, I believe that this strategy can cater to the diverse learners that exist in a classroom as it can take a multi-sensory approach.
This is very informative. I have grown to realize how valuable and powerful modeling is as a teaching strategy. Modeling encouragers learners to live vicariously through their teachers, replicating some of the same techniques and processes that they use. Some students are visual and they rely on teacher demonstrations to help in the acquisition of knowledge.Through modeling, educators can help lessen some of the challenges that students grapple with. Assuredly, I am more confident now to teach writing because of the enthusiasm that my lecturer has for literacy and most importantly modeling.
ReplyDeleteThis piece is very enlightening. Going through the modeling process model is at teacher explanation and modeling is at the top of the hierarchy and goes side by side with questioning and feedback and developing independence. This is clearly indicative that pupils' success is highly dependent on these. Of course if we want our learners to demonstrate the level of reasoning that we desire, reproduce the very same behaviors and strategies, we must as efficacious teachers model. I remember struggling with an assignment but then our lecturer modeled what was desired and so everything was elucidated. Sometimes we may have the knowledge and not be able to apply it because we have not been taught how to transfer it. This is on technique that must form part of my pedagogical practices.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your post as it is very informative in great detail. I appreciate the fact that you placed much emphasis on the teacher in modelling the writing process. Firstly, writing is a process and as a teacher of writing you should be able to model this process before your students so that they can observe it directly and then apply it to their writing. Students will therefore understand what is expected of each part of the process and the challenges they may encounter in each step. However, with the teacher as the coach and facilitator, students should not fear writing!
ReplyDeleteWritten by: Ryan Bicar.
This was a detailed post.The comments made on the group's post are also insightful. Keep it up bloggers!
ReplyDeleteMs Polius
This is a well written piece that is very informative. The modelling aspect of this lesson was very compelling. So far, this has been my best lesson. My love for narrative writing continues to grow everyday. Hats off to our lecturer! She did an excellent job.
ReplyDeleteIn reading this post the first thing that came to mind about the lecturer's modeling practices was the tried and true Gradual Release of Responsibility Model. Through the use of this model I have experienced students' excitement as they grasp concepts and link theory to practice both in and out of the Language Arts classroom. This was a very insightful post on the benefits of modeling.
ReplyDelete--Brittany H.
This piece speaks volume in relation to modelling. I honestly believe that modelling in the classroom by the teacher is a great way to encourage learning. The value of modelling can be seen in the quality of work produced by students. One can agree that when students are given tasks to perform in the classroom, some are clueless as to what is required. Hence, if the teacher models the students have an idea of what to do. Great use of the gradual release model where "I do it, we do it and you do it" is needed in the classroom, especially in delivering writing instruction. Good piece!
ReplyDeleteWritten by: Abigail Bascombe
This piece is very informative. Teachers are obligated to model what they need the students to grasp. According to Eggen and Kauchak (2001), modeling is an instructional strategy in which teachers demonstrates concept or appraoch to learning and students learn by observing. To emphasis this point, when a teacher demonstrates a concept for a student, that teacher is modeling, Haston(2007). As a visual learner, this lesson was informative as I was able to understand the narrative writing process holistically.
ReplyDeleteResearchers on the theory of modeling suggests that it is an effective strategy which allows the students to observe the teacher's thought processes. Bandura (1986) suggested that modelling engages and encourages students in the learning process. Most of our behavior is learned through observational modelling. It provides an example of what the teacher expects of the stduents. It can be done with the use of visuals, auditory,tactile and kinaesthetic instructional strategies in gthe classroom.