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Content Type: 4
Title: Integrating Thinking Routines in the Classroom
Body:
This activity was created to provide support for educators wishing to incorporate thinking routines in their classrooms. It draws upon the findings reported in Ritchhart, et. al (2006) and is appropriate for learners of all proficiency levels.
Learning Outcome(s):
The teacher will be able to:
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Implement one thinking routine in the classroom
Mode(s): All
Materials: Dependent on context
Procedures:
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Begin by researching a series of thinking routines. You may wish to use Observe, Analyze, Extend (discussed in this week’s Topic of the Week) or any of the routines featured on Harvard’s Project Zero site. Select one that you want to use in your classroom.
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Introduce the routine to learners. Be explicit in its purpose and the skills it is supposed to engage and develop.
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Provide space for learners to reflect on their learning and cognitive development in relationship to the routine.
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Repeat steps 2-3 often to successfully train learners in the thinking skills you have targeted. Vary the artefacts analyzed in each repetition, but do not stray from steps of the routine.
Reference
Ritchhart, R., Palmer, P., Church, M., & Tishman, S. (2006). Thinking routines: Establishingpatterns of thinking in the classroom. Prepared for AERA Conference. Retrieved from http://www.ronritchhart.com/Papers_files/AERA06ThinkingRoutinesV3.pdf.
Source: CASLS
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Content Type: 3
Title: Attending to Learners as Intellectuals through Mixed-reality Complex Learning Scenarios
Body:
Stephanie Knight, CASLS Assistant Director
Cognitive engagement and social engagement are interconnected and inextricable from one another (Yáñez Prieto, 2010; Williams et. al, 2013). As such, second language acquisiton researchers and instructors should be supremely concerned with attending to the intellectual needs and development of learners. Neglecting these needs begets cycles of self-reinforcing disengagement and handicaps learners’ abilities to both apply the knowledge and skills they acquire to real-world contexts and to transfer said skills across domains.
Mixed-reality Complex Learning Scenarios (MRCLS) are an intervention that speaks to the intellectual and social needs of language learners in concert. As we have discussed in previous weeks, MRCLSs are immersive, play-based scenarios in which learners engage in multistep tasks to uncover and apply critical knowledge related to target language functions and their associated sociopragmatic norms. Learners engaging in these scenarios must use digital and analog artefacts to arrive at and verify hypotheses related to these pragmatic strategies in order to progress through the experience.
Repeated engagement in thinking routines (see Ritchhart et. al, 2006) provides scaffolding for learners engaged in MRCLS environments. These routines, routines that support the development of a variety of thinking skills, typically engage learners in intentional progression from cognitively simple (e.g., observing or listing) to cognitively complex (e.g., hypothesizing or extending) tasks. Though it is not explicitly stated as such, Ishihara and Cohen (2010) provide a routine for the teaching and learning of pragmatics: Observe (gather and take inventory of L2 artefacts), Analyze (through analysis and comparison, discover L2 sociopragmatic norms at play), Extend (either practice the language function at hand, keeping sociopragmatic norms in mind, or engage in further investigation to acquire a deeper understanding of those norms).
To understand how Observe, Analyze, Extend might apply in an MRCLS context, the example of using text messages to figure out target language suggestion strategies that we provided a few weeks ago is beneficial to consider. In this example, learners are charged with reading a series of text messages between a missing agent, Agent 23, and both her boss and her friends. In an observation phase, the learners will take note of what they can objectively discern from the messages (e.g., what suggestion phrases are used and the relationship between the interlocutors). In the analysis phase, they are required to compare and contrast the context in which each suggestion strategy is used in order to discern any emerging patterns that indicate the sociopragmatic norms at play. At the extend phase, they are required to create their own utterance that conveys a suggestion in a given context.
While MRCLSs still need to be empirically validated, training learners in epistemic routines empowers them to tackle situations that require complex cognitive and social engagement. The potential for this empowerment to facilitate risk taking within and beyond the classroom is clear.
References
Ishihara, N. & Cohen, A. (2012). Teaching and Learning Pragmatics: Where Language and Culture Meet. London and New York: Routledge.
Ritchhart, R., Palmer, P., Church, M., & Tishman, S. (2006). Thinking routines: Establishing patterns of thinking in the classroom. Prepared for AERA Conference. Retrieved from http://www.ronritchhart.com/Papers_files/AERA06ThinkingRoutinesV3.pdf.
Williams, L., Abraham, L., & Negueruela-Azarola. (2013). Using concept-based instruction in the L2 classroom: Perspectives form current and future language teachers. Language teaching research, 17(3), 363-381.
Yáñez Prieto, M. (2010). Authentic instruction in literary worlds: Learning the stylistics of concept-based grammar. Language and literature, 19(1), 59-75.
Source: CASLS
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Content Type: 4
Title: Enhancing Quality by Focusing on Process
Body:
This week’s Activity of the Week is designed as a wrap-around activity that allows students to re-examine and extend previous work that they enjoyed and want to enhance.
The graphic organizer below extends participation with a project or assignment previously completed by students. The process of reengagement allows students a self-directed opportunity for self-evaluation and frames the ever-present possibility of reflection, revision, and refinement of previous work—in other words, continuous improvement.
Outcomes:
- Learners will identify a preferred assignment and describe why they wish to revisit it.
- Learners will identify their growth in the time interval since their interaction with their chosen assignment.
- Learners will embellish the original work (revisions, alterations, ethnographic annotations).
- Learners will self-evaluate and identify areas for improvement of the original work.
- Learners will playfully explore opportunities for self-directed engagement and continuous improvement.
Resources:
Enhancing Quality by Focusing on Process Graphic Organizer
Procedure:
1. Have students identify a previous activity/project they enjoyed and would like to spend more time iterating on.
2. Once students have identified and obtained the assignment they want to re-work, have them use the graphic organizer found in the resoruces link to facilitate the process.
3. In groups of two or three, have students work through the graphic organizer with peers.
Source: CASLS
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Content Type: 3
Title: Three Suggestions for Maintaining Rigor for All Students
Body:
Stephanie Knight, CASLS Assistant Director
The heterogeneity of any given student population can be difficult to contend with in the classroom, particularly when it comes to considerations related to diverse cognitive and physical needs. The most obvious way to contend with said diversity is to differentiate based on the difficulty; the learners who perform the highest are given the most challenging work, and other learners are provided with easier tasks.
While this approach may seem logical, it neglects to recognize learners as intellectuals; it likely perpetuates the status quo. Learners who perform well get to experiment and extend their knowledge, while those who don’t perform at the same level are forever stuck gathering and evaluating information. If they are never given the opportunity to think and process beyond that box, they will likely remain entrapped in it forever.
To promote more equity while still allowing for differentiation, I offer the following three suggestions:
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Practice and model higher-order thinking skills as a class: Use a think aloud protocol to show learners how you reason through texts and problems at hand. Ask your learners to do the same; this approach allows them to cultivate intentionality, interact with critical content frequently, articulate their points of confusion, and build awareness of learning strategies.
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Differentiate expectations (in lieu of tasks), but only in secret: Spanish I was only offered as a standard class in my school district, and as such, the learning needs in any given classroom were expectedly varied. The first year, I handled this reality by using three separate rubrics with differentiated expectations for my learners. I quickly realized that execution of these rubrics mattered; if learners realized that I had lower expectations of them than their peers, they quickly became discouraged. As such, I developed an approach to using the rubrics in which the learners were not aware of how they compared to other learners (the criteria were differentiated, but there was no other indication that one rubric might be different than the others). I saw increased engagement and the development of a growth mindset.
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Protect high-level engagement: Language learning is simultaneously cognitive and social. One way to ensure that all learners engage socially and in higher-order thinking is to scaffold. For example, some learners might need sentence starters to begin communicating. Other learners may need to connect a central concept to something with which they are already familiar in order to engage in higher-order processes. For ideas of how to operationalize these approaches, check out the AVID website (https://www.avid.org/).
Differentiation is difficult, and certainly some approaches that I articulated here don’t fully contend with neurodiversity and physical limitations. However, if their spirit is embodied, the spirit that all learners CAN DO more and achieve more, we will be one step closer toward achieving equity for all of our learners.
Source: CASLS
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Content Type: 4
Title: Think Aloud Protocols and Scaffolding: Promoting Rigor in the Classroom
Body:
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Demonstrate understanding of the main idea in a short text
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Verbalize their thinking as they read
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Identify what they know and want to know about the topic before reading
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Identify what they learned after reading
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Begin by selecting a written text for your students that is related to targeted classroom content for your students. News articles, blog posts, short stories, and even social media posts are all good places to begin. For example, to explore fashion and self-expression, you could use a blog post like https://chroniclesofher.com/editors-blog/signature-style/.
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Guided Vocabulary Exploration: Have students form groups of 2-3. Ask that they only highlight all of the words that the know and/or can figure out. Then, discuss three challenging words as a class and help the learners break it down by asking the following questions: 1) Does it sound similar to a word you know?; 2) Is the root or prefix or suffix familiar?; and 3) For character-based languages, is there a radical you are familiar with? What is it’s meaning?
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Pre-reading: Before reading the text, students should complete the K and W parts of the KWL Chart, filling in what they already know about the topic of the text and what they want to know. In small groups, have students share their responses with each other to broaden both their pre-reading knowledge and expand their curiosity. Students may use the sentence starters provided.
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Model the Think Aloud Protocol: Using the first paragraph or first few sentences of the selected text, model a Think Aloud Protocol. As you read aloud the text, verbalize how you are reasoning through the text. For example, periodically stop and summarize, ask yourself what a passage was about, what a word means, what you are wondering, or note if something surprises you.
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While reading: Once you are done modeling, have students read/think aloud themselves. They are welcome to use the sentence starters to help them phrase their thoughts, as well as give them ideas for the types of things they might want to think about. As students are reading, be sure to make yourself available to help students who find themselves stuck, whether that be with comprehension or a particular word.
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Post reading: When students have finished reading, have them fill out the L portion of the KWL chart, writing out what they learned from the text. Again, in small groups, have students share their responses.
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Class discussion: Finally, conduct a full class discussion regarding the think aloud protocol and whether the learners were able to articulate how they know and understand what they know.
Source: CASLS
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Content Type: 5
Title: Looking Forward: 2020
Body:
Less than 25% of people commit to their New Year’s resolutions for more than 30 days (Prossack 2019). Rather than focusing on New Year’s resolutions, the CASLS team has chosen to instead focus on what they are looking forward to in the coming year.
I’m looking forward to continuing to work with great educators and a great team to create and implement lots of engaging student experiences. And hitting the number 50 for the total number of escape rooms completed!
- Julie Sykes, Director
I am excited to continue working with our team and with teachers to explore new ways to extend language learning.
- Stephanie Knight, Assistant Director
I’m looking forward to putting the mixed-reality complex learning scenarios into production and refreshing CASLS’ brand.
- Mitra Dunn, Graphic Designer
I’m looking forward to working with friends, old and new, to continue crafting ecologically and socially relevant language learning experiences.
- Christopher Daradics, Development and Learning Strategist
I’m looking forward working with amazing people and helping manifest the big ideas generated here at CASLS. I also have a stack of books at home that I hope to read before the end of the year. Now, if I can just quit adding to the stack!
- Mandy Gettler, Associate Director
What are you looking forward to? Let us know on Twitter (@casls_nflrc), Instagram (@casls_nflrc), or Facebook (@casls.nflrc).
Prossack, A. (2019, January 1). This Year, Don’t Set New Year’s Resolutions. Retrieved December 10, 2019, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/ashiraprossack1/2018/12/31/goals-not-resolutions/#1ac7b97b3879.
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Content Type: 5
Title: 2020 CARLA Summer Institute Programs
Body:
Registration for CARLA's 2020 Summer Institute Program opens on January 6, 2020.
The Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition (CARLA) at the University of Minnesota provides high-quality professional development opportunities for foreign/world language teachers through its internationally recognized annual summer institute program. In 2020, CARLA will offer a wide range of summer institutes that link research and theory with practical applications for the classroom.
CASLS Director Dr. Julie Sykes and Assistant Director Stephanie Knight will present the July 20-24 workshop on Meaningful Portfolio Implementation.
Join us for the 25th annual CARLA Summer Institute Program in 2020!
- Transitioning to Teaching Language Online (online course) • June 22–July 20, 2020
- Using the Web for Communicative Language Learning (online course) • June 29–August 2, 2020
- Secondary Dual Language and Immersion Continuation Programs • June 22–24, 2020
- Assessing Language Learners' Communication Skills via Authentic Communicative Performance Tasks • July 13-17, 2020
- Creativity in the Language Classroom • July 13-17, 2020
- Foreign Language Literacies: Using Target Language Texts to Improve Communication • July 13-17, 2020
- Using Technology in Second Language Teaching (online option) • July 20–24, 2020
- Meaningful Portfolio Implementation • July 20–24, 2020
- Critical Approaches to Heritage Language Education • July 20–24, 2020
- Culture as the Core in the Second Language Classroom • July 27–31, 2020
- Teaching Language Through the Lens of Social Justice • July 27–31, 2020
- Teaching World Languages and Cultures in Elementary Settings • July 27–31, 2020
Find out more about the 2020 CARLA summer institute program: carla.umn.edu/institutes/
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Content Type: 5
Title: Thank you, Carl Burnstein!
Body:
This week we would like to say thank you to Carl Burnstein, CASLS Software & Systems Engineer, who will no longer be working at CASLS after 9 years. We will miss him greatly! Carl started at CASLS as a student worker and worked his way into a central role as lead software and systems engineer. In his time at CASLS, Carl has made a tremendous impact on CASLS' ability to develop and deploy innovative language technology. A few of his accomplishments:
- Vault: Augmented reality app development
- Catalyst: Professional development platform development
- Open-source AV recorder development
- LingroToGo: game-based mobile Spanish curriculum development
- Intercom: newsletter redesign & maintenance
Most of all, Carl worked tirelessly to develop and maintain useful technology in support of language and culture learning. He has laser focus and an amazing ability to get things done. He has been a tremendous asset to our center, and we have all learned a lot from him. Thank you, Carl, for your expertise and dedication throughout your 9 years at CASLS!
Source: CASLS
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Title: CARLA Summer Institute Spotlight: Assessing Language Learners’ Communication Skills
Body:
From: http://carla.umn.edu/institutes/2020/assess.html
Assessing Language Learners’ Communication Skills via Authentic Communicative Performance Tasks
July 13-17, 2020
University of Minnesota
Minneapolis, MN
After learning how to design communicative tasks, develop rubrics, and evaluate student performance on a variety of tasks, participants will develop their own standards-based Integrated Performance Assessment (IPA). By the end of the institute, participants will be able to:
- Compare characteristics of performance and proficiency as they relate to the meaning of “performance towards proficiency” in the world language classroom;
- Design receptive and productive communicative tasks for beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels of proficiency;
- Identify commonalities among the ACTFL, CEFR, and WIDA performance descriptors for world language and ESL learning contexts;
- Evaluate the quality of several performance assessment tasks and rubrics, making suggestions for improvement as appropriate;
- Create formative assessments used in daily lessons to monitor learner progress in communication skills; and
- Design a standards-based integrated performance assessment (IPA) with appropriate rubrics and scoring guides.
Presenter: Donna Clementi (Lawrence University, Wisconsin)
- Find out more about Assessing Language Learners’ Communication: http://carla.umn.edu/institutes/2020/assess.html
- Register by the Early Bird Deadline: April 24, 2020: http://carla.umn.edu/institutes/registration.html
Join us for the 25th annual CARLA Summer Institute Program in 2020!
Source: Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition (CARLA)
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Title: CARLA Summer Institute Spotlight: Foreign Language Literacies: Using Target Language Texts to Improve Communication
Body:
From: http://carla.umn.edu/institutes/2020/literacies.html
Foreign Language Literacies: Using Target Language Texts to Improve Communication
July 13-17, 2020
University of Minnesota
Minneapolis, MN
Participants will learn how to use target language texts (such as movies, infographics, poetry, music videos, magazine articles, and podcasts) to develop students’ communicative abilities, critical thinking, intercultural competence, and language awareness. By the end of the institute, participants will be able to:
- Define principles related to foreign language literacies and literacies pedagogy and discuss their importance in twenty-first century language education;
- Apply principles related to foreign language literacies and literacies pedagogy to your own teaching;
- Examine target language texts and instructional materials, and assess their appropriateness for your instructional context; and
- Create text-based instructional materials that develop students’ communicative abilities, critical thinking, intercultural competence, and language awareness.
Presenters: Kate Paesani (CARLA–University of Minnesota) and Mandy Menke (University of Minnesota)
- Find out more about Foreign Language Literacies: http://carla.umn.edu/institutes/2020/literacies.html
Register by the Early Bird Deadline: April 24, 2020: http://carla.umn.edu/institutes/registration.html
Source: Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition (CARLA)
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