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Re: Abandon literary circles
Posted by L. Swilley on 7/21/08
If students can produce for themselves the important
factors in a work of literature, what need have we of
teachers?
Let the teacher begin with a very short work, a very
short story or a poem - one that he himself finds
fascinating, with points that he thinks others should
appreciate; let him/her read this through with his class,
making sure that every word is understood. Let him then
begin asking questions of individual students to lead the
class to an understanding of the points he wants them to
see. (If the story is one to be read the night before by the
student, let the teacher give a "cranky" 5-minute quiz -
e.g., a matching test with 10 items on one side and 13 on
the other - to determine who has read the story carefully
and who has not.)
There is no other way to approach and teach a work of
literature - unless the teacher is Dame Judy Dench or Sir
Lawrence Olivier and can make the work dramatically "live".
Students do not teach one another in the classroom but by
being asked by a teacher (who knows what she wants the class
to learn) to respond to an answer given by a student who has
just answered a teacher's previous question, both the
previous question and the present one directing the class to
factors the teacher knows they all should know and
appreciate ("If you agree with what Sally has just said,
what should we think of ..... in the story? If you don't
agree, please tell us what in the story contradicts her
remark - then give us an answer to the question I just asked
her.")
L. Swilley
Posts on this thread, including this one
- Lit. Circles--talk to me..., 7/15/08, by GA/8.
- Re: Lit. Circles--talk to me..., 7/15/08, by in the same boat.
- Re: Lit. Circles--talk to me..., 7/15/08, by Chele/5/SoCal.
- Re: Try these links...more inside, 7/19/08, by cam.
- Re: Try these links...more inside, 7/21/08, by JGS.
- Re: Abandon literary circles , 7/21/08, by L. Swilley .
- Re: Abandon literary circles , 7/21/08, by Confused.
- Re: Confused, 7/21/08, by Really? I thought Swilley was very clear + on target! nfm.
- Re: research points to the value of student based learning, 7/21/08, by cam.
- Re: research points to the value of student based learning, 7/21/08, by JGS.
- Re: Chele--Lit. Circles--talk to me..., 7/21/08, by Wanda.
- Re: Chele--Lit. Circles--talk to me... for Wanda, 7/21/08, by Chele/5/SoCal.
- Re: Implementing Lit. Circles, 7/24/08, by Laura.
- Re: Implementing Lit. Circles - Q for Laura, 7/24/08, by new teacher.
- Re: Implementing Lit. Circles - I'm not Laura, but... :D, 7/24/08, by Chele/5/SoCal.
- Re: Implementing Lit. Circles - Q for Laura, 7/25/08, by JGS.
- Re: Implementing Lit. Circles - Q for Laura, 7/25/08, by Laura.
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