Social Reading: Part II

My use of social annotation is the subject of Deerfield High School's Director of Instruction Technology's blog this week. In addition, our principal interviewed me about it. 

Social Reading

For the past twenty-some years, I have tried to find ways to help students become more active and engaged readers. Recently, I have been experimenting with some technological tools that have not only helped students to become better readers, but have helped them enjoy the process.

The most challenging text in Freshman English is Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities. The language is rich, the plot complex, and the pace slow. I have tried many techniques to help students appreciate and comprehend this novel. One of the best ways was I created podcasts in which I taught the text as they read with me. Listening to the text and using their computer, phone, or mp3 player has been a real game changer to help students understand the text and provide an alternative to the many summary websites on the web.

For teenagers, it is all about the people. They like social networks, social events, but perhaps not social studies – or English. So a solitary activity, like reading, might be more attractive if it involved their friends.

A technique I have used that creates a social component to their reading is to take the pages of the novel, enlarge them, and put them on giant pieces of paper and have the students collaboratively annotate them. When using the “big paper,” I asked students to be completely silent and communicate only through their written comments on the page. Students would make the usual annotations; they would note characters, make connections, identify literary devices, and so on. But they were also able to answer each other’s questions and respond to each other’s comments. The big paper sessions not only provided a critical second reading, but also created a silent and social discussion of the text, a kind of low-tech chat board!

Last fall, I attended the National Council of Teachers of English’s convention in Washington, D.C. In a session on reading and writing digital texts, I was introduced to an iPad app called Subtext. Subtext allowed students to do what I was doing with the big paper with any text – and it could do more than that.

The problem was that my students don’t use iPads; they have Chromebooks. Rats! However, I found a way to take one of the main features of Subtext and provide it to my kids using our equipment and software.

While reading Romeo and Juliet, and A Tale of Two Cities, texts that are in the public domain and are freely available online, I copied the night’s reading assignment into a Google doc. I then invited my students to annotate the text using the comment function; our online collaborative social annotating experiment was born!

Students have responded very positively to this new way of reading! Sometimes, students read the work at home, and then come to class and annotate the collaborative documents together in class. Sometimes, they read and collaborate as homework.

Several months ago, I read an article by Grant Wiggins’ daughter, Alexis. When she shadowed a student at her new school, she realized how passive students are in class. At the end of the article, she reflects on how she would change her teaching given what she observed. She says that she would, “[a]sk every class to start with students’ Essential Questions or just general questions born of confusion from the previous night’s reading or the previous class’s discussion. I would ask them to come in to class and write them all on the board, and then, as a group, ask them to choose which one we start with and which ones need to be addressed.”

The collaborative reading document gave me a perfect opportunity to do what Ms. Wiggins was recommending. When students come to class, they review the collaborative annotations and use a second group document to write questions, claims, note quotations and start the discussion. We then let those responses guide and shape our conversation about the text. This process also provides my students with a chance to read complex texts a second time guided by their peers’ annotations. I struggle with the expectation that young readers will have the insight and inferential ability to glean great meaning from texts they have read after soccer practice or between math and science homework. This process lets them help each other to more fully explore and understand the literature – and they do it socially!

Students get to teach each other. They see each other’s annotations, answer each other’s questions, and respond to each other’s claims. My job is to give them the tools to do this – and then stand back and let them read and discuss - together!

A “Good” School

I wince whenever someone talked about a "good" college. Parents and students say this all the time, "I want my child to go to a good school." Who doesn't? What is a good school? 

Some of us have been to college. Is a good school like the one we attended? Is it one we know by reputation? Is it one that will make our neighbors and friends jealous or impressed when they see it on our car’s bumper?

How about reversing the question: names some “bad” schools? Are bad schools the ones that have had scandals recently? Can you condemn the Biology Department because the football coach is doing bad things or the administration fails to properly handle allegations of sexual harassment? Is the school “bad” because there is a bad apple? Or is a bad school the one that admitted “that” kid?

The notion of a good school is conversation filler. If we are going to spend the time and energy to get our children into college, and then spend all that money for them to attend, many people want a clear and recognizable brand. That may be why a vast majority of the students in my community go to nearby universities and colleges; they have heard of them because prior students go to them. I see; good schools are schools people I know attend.

This may come as a shock, but there are no good schools. A good school is one that fits the student and his and her family and resources. What is a good school for my elder child may not be a good school for the younger.

We all have our biases, whether we are aware of them or not. Perhaps we follow college sports and judge schools based on the performance of their teams. While a sports culture may be a part of the college experience, is it a good indicator of the academics? I tend to judge schools based on the students from my school who are admitted and attend there. That is not entirely fair. I often know far more about these students than the schools do and that could bias me in favor or against a school that otherwise might be a good fit for my child.

I find that, when people use the term “good schools,” what they are really talking about is schools with snob appeal. They want that look of awe and admiration when they say, “My child is attending Stanford.” They want to be able to brag. Some of them are graduates of these highly selective colleges. Most are not.

Choosing a college based on this kind of reputation is akin to only purchasing clothing from high priced name brand stores. Yet, plenty of people do that. These clothes function as well or poorly as clothing without expensive labels. They also communicate a great deal about class and value. What is the message communicated by wearing clothing that advertises where it was purchased? What is the message communicated by selecting a college based on how others will perceive it?

What it comes down to is the question: why are we sending our child to college? Is it to move up in social status? Is it to mingle with the powerful and wealthy? Is it to look good? For me, the learning is more important the label! 

As I continue the process of searching for a college that is a good match for my son, I must avoid the superficial and tempting “good school” trap. I want to look at the real substance of what each institution offers and how my child will learn and live. While one can buy an expensive shirt with a designer label, one can also purchase a nearly identical product, without the logo, for a fraction of the cost and with far less fanfare and flourish. It will still look good, but some people may not be impressed. Screw ‘em; it fits!

Education Finance Reform: Tip the Teachers

We are going about reforming the education system in entirely the wrong manner. Our focus on teacher accountability through standardized testing has clearly failed. The tenure system protects good teachers and bad. There must be a better way. All we need do is look to other forms of compensation for public servants to give us the clear solution to the problem.

What if teachers were paid a minimum wage and received most of their compensation through voluntary contributions from individuals and families? This would motivate teachers to be more responsive to specific students and their parents. In this manner, we could reduce property taxes so they only pay for the buildings themselves with a very modest base wage for the teachers.

Consider the benefits: Instead of teachers doing what was good for themselves, they would focus on keeping the contributing students and their parents engaged and happy. Families would voluntarily thank the teacher through monetary gifts. Poor teachers would not stay in the profession because they would not be able to make enough money.

Of course teachers are ethical people and all students would be treated equally. Some students would simply be more equal if their parents pay more. That should not be an issue in a free market system like America. If your child needs more attention in class, pay more. If your child wants to be a starter on the team or the star of the show, pay more. If your child wants better grades, less homework, a little help on the ACT, or a chance to go to the bathroom, it is only appropriate that you help the teacher since the teacher is helping your child.

A wonderful side effect would be that teachers would have to compete for parental dollars. Rather than the same dull curriculum in all classes, teachers would be forced to innovate and be creative! They would find new and interesting ways to get their students (and their parents) attention. Think of the motivation that money would provide! Instead of lectures and tests, we could have field trips, movies, and other fun educational experiences. If parents have resources that could help, I’ll bet they’d be quick to assist! Perhaps parents who own fast food franchises, publishing houses, educational services, and media sources would contribute to teachers so that teachers would use their products and services. What a fresh and new educational landscape would be born!

Think of how the dynamic among the faculty would change, too. Instead of just any teacher assuming leadership, the teachers who get the most contributions from family would have the resources to affect the building and district at large. Clearly, these will be the teachers who have most pleased parents and members of the community. These teachers’ success could breed a new and more fiscally responsive approach to learning.

If this model succeeds in education, perhaps we could use it in other areas. Tipping police and firefighters would motivate them to take better care of our communities. Tipping our public works departments would mean that the streets that really need plowing or repairing would get attention, as long as the residents make sure that those who are doing the repairing are well repaired!

This system has proven such a success with our elected officials that we should make voluntary contributions our primary way to fund everything! The success of Congress stands as shining lighthouse to the nation. It is time for us to set our country’s course directly to that beacon!

Schnorrer Syndrome

The Yiddish term schnorrer has come to mean many things. Urban dictionary lists synonyms as freeloader, beggar, sponger, moocher, and my favorite, “Someone that always shows up just in time for a free meal.”

We have all dealt with schnorrers. They are the people who want the benefits but are unwilling to pay for them. They are the folks who are pleased with getting away with something, going around the system, or paying less than their fair share.

My neighborhood has a voluntary homeowners association whose primary task is to maintain the common landscaping. I am always upset by the schnorrers who get good prices when they sell their homes, but won’t pay the $75 a year to help make the neighborhood look good, even though that good looking landscaping certainly assisted in the sale of their homes.  

And while these small schnorring annoyances may bother me, I wish I could see them as the exception rather than the rule. Of the 152 homes in our neighborhood, only about a dozen don’t pay. They are the unfortunate exception, not the rule.

Or are they?

I am worried that the schnorrers’ numbers are increasing. There are more and more people who want the good stuff, but don’t want to pay for it.

Politicians are now pandering to the schnorrer voters. Why should states like Illinois, which is deep in debt, increase income tax? We can do more with less! Except that we can’t. I want good schools, but I don’t want to pay teachers. I want police, fire, and public works services, but I don’t want to pay the taxes. I want healthcare at a reasonable cost, but only if others can’t access it. I want, I want, I want. And he debt mounts up!

We should be able to provide more, with less, they tell us. Under the guise of financial responsibility and efficiency, they find reasons why they shouldn’t have to pay, but they should still receive their free meals. My grandmother used to say, “You get what you pay for.” Yet, more and more people want to get what others pay for. Their version might be that a free lunch is worth is what someone else pays for it.

The schnorrer rejects the concepts of duty and obligation. The idea of social responsibility is a critical part of our social fabric. Schnorrers justify their miserliness by pointing out their own traits in others; if some entitlement programs have some schnorrers, does that mean no one should get assistance? Should each of us have to build our own roads, sewer systems, and schools?

I want my children to be generous. I want them to understand that their taxes take care of them by taking care of all of us. We are all better off when we are all better off! We have an obligation to pay for what we take or use. We have a duty to take care of those who take care of us. We have a responsibility to take care of our communities! Rather than being stingy schnorrers, I want them to the people who will help, give, and look out for those who struggle.

Does that make them suckers? Does that make me a sucker? I would prefer to be a sucker than be a schnorrer. I’ll be the nice guy, even if I finish last.

Fight the schnorrer syndrome. The Yiddish word that is the opposite of schnorrer is mensch. A mensch is a good person, the kind you’d like your children to find as partners and friends.

If some people are taking advantage of welfare, we should not cut welfare. If some bad teachers are protected by tenure, we should still protect the good ones. The system should not be focused on foiling the cheaters, whiners, and schnorrers.

There will always be schnorrers. Let’s make sure they remain the irritating exception rather than ruling the rest of us!

Am I Missing Anything Important?

Hey Mr. Hirsh

I have a doctor’s appointment tomorrow and won’t be in class. What am I missing?

Student Y

Hey, Y

I wish I video recorded class so I could replay it for you. Unfortunately, it would take me an hour or two to type out what we did for fifty-eight minutes without you. So instead, I asked several of your classmates to join me and we are reenacting the class you missed as a play in the studio theater tonight.

Admission is $42.

See you then,

Mr. Hirsch

Mr. Hersch

My family and I are going to Sunshine and Beach Resort next week, so I won’t be in class. I will check your website and keep up with assignments.

See ya! 

Student Z

Dear Student Z,

The class and I took a vote; we are coming with you. Please inform your parents that, since the materials on the website can only list assignments, activities, and targets, it would be far better for your education if the entire class joined you in the sun. I have attached a class list so your parents can purchase the needed airplane tickets and hotel rooms. By the way, we all want single rooms and at least economy plus if not first class, please.

See you at the airport,

Mr. Hirsch and the Fourth Period English Class

Hello Mr. Hirch

I am sorry that I am going to miss class tomorrow. There is a special program that is just too good to pass up. Can I meet with you the day after I get back so I can get caught up.

Thank you,

Student L

Hello, Student L

Thanks for being so responsible. Unfortunately, my meeting schedule has backed up due to student absences. I am currently meeting with students who took an extra day or two or three after Presidents Day. Those appointments will take me until the middle of next month. I can meet with you to discuss this absence in about a month and a half - right after spring break. Bring your notebook.

Mr. Hirsch

Hi! Mr. Herch

I just wanted to let you know that I will be leaving early before winter break. I will also be coming back a week late. Please let me know what I will be missing so I can do the work while I am gone.

From

Student T

Hi, T,

I called the school board and told them that, if we extended winter break to an entire month, we could get much cheaper airfares and it would justify the added expense of greater hotel costs. They agreed and we now have from Thanksgiving through Martin Luther King Day as winter break.

We will have first semester final exams upon our return and the school year will end on July 4^th.

Enjoy your holiday,

Mr. Hirsch

Deer Mr. Heersh,

I am sorry that I will miss class this week. Am I missing anything important?

Your student, 

Student X

Dear Student X,

No, we did not do anything important. Come to think of it, we never do anything important. Seems like the whole concept is a bad idea, and we should give it up. Don’t bother coming back; we’ve canceled class permanently.  

Mr. Hirsch