Week 17- Morphology, Cheetahs, Brains, Assessment, Wine Tasting, and Hiking "Community not competitors"

 

Cheetah

April 29^th- Part II of the 3^rd year students’ education class:  Using Morphology to improve decoding, spelling, and vocabulary. I thought we would start class with the students sharing out their mini-lessons for phonemic awareness and phonics…unfortunately, only 3 students (out of 152) completed the assignment. Inserting diatribe about the state of education here in South Africa.

After shaking my head and telling them they are the future of South Africa, I said that if they don’t take their role seriously then they will be the reason that 9 out of 10 students are not considered literate. I mentioned the Economist article that said,  “A study of first-year students by Higher Education South Africa, the universities' representative body, found only half the 2009 intake to be proficient in “academic literacy” and barely a quarter in “quantitative literacy”, while no more than 7% were deemed to have the necessary mathematics skills.”

Eventually, I got back on track in the class and we talked about theories and perspectives in literacy. I then went over literacy domains from birth to grade 2 for phonemic awareness, print, reading, and writing. We talked about Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills (BICS) and Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP). I shared the study (Hart & Risley, 1995) that investigated the connection between parents' communication style and children’s expressive language. A child whose parent was considered “professional” was exposed to 33 million words in 3 years versus a child whose parent was considered “welfare” was only exposed to 9 million words.

Then I moved onto the morphology portion…learning morphemes (prefixes, roots, and suffixes) has shown to increase the level of vocabulary, decoding, spelling, and comprehension (Beck & Juel, 1995; Foorman, Francis, Fletcher, Schnatschneider, & Metha, 1998; Rothstein, Rothstein, & Lauber, 2007). I created an activity using the common morphemes (about 200) based on a book I use with my reading class (Vocabulary through Morphemes, Sopris West Educational Services, 2004). I told the students that I was giving them this assignment because this would help anyone who is an English language learner to improve their English as well. Also as a teacher, morphemes are a powerful tool. The class seemed to have fun as we practiced the prefixes, defined them, and came up with words using the morphemes.

King Cheetahs

To finish up the class, I went into a description on assessing a learner: finding out whether the learner is at the independent, instructional, or frustration level. Basically, a learner is at the independent level if they get 90% or more correct. They are considered at the instructional level it they are between 70-89% and frustration level is below 69%...as I was explaining this I had an aha moment. Many of the students in class graduated and came to matric with far below 69%...many of the students in this class were receiving less that 69% and were still passed to the next level, most of South Africa fell below 69%...being in frustration level was “normal” for many of these students. Aha- of course only 3 people had finished their homework, many of these students didn’t see the point, didn’t understand, and were not used to asking for help. Had they been in frustration level due to my accent, different style of teaching, and truancy issues? Is there some way I can scaffold for this?

April 30^th- After speaking at the Innovative Teacher’s Institute last Thursday, one of the participants of my seminar asked if I would be willing to work with her school in Soweto. The principal of the school called and asked if I would be willing to work with them, then asked how much I charged. I told him I was here as a Fulbright Scholar and if I decided to take on his school, there would be no charge. We arranged for someone to escort me to the school site at 9am. I was shown where the school was and met the principal, heads of department, and some other school representatives. I explained that I try to learn about schools before I make an offer of what I think I can do to support them. I gave him a copy of the survey I developed that asks about the amount of training educators have received from their credential program, district, and outside agencies. More specifically, it asked about their confidence in working with diverse learners (auditory, visual, physical, emotional, and language issues). I also asked about adaptations to curriculum and current supports available in the school. Finally, I asked the educators how I can be of service to them and their practice. I agreed to return on Friday to pick up the surveys and develop a plan on working with the school.

That afternoon when I returned to the office, I had a line out the door of students asking if they could have another copy of their assignments from last week. I found myself giving the same lecture as I handed over the handouts. The next day was a holiday, Worker’s Day (similar to our Labor Day)…it is always weird to have a holiday on a Wednesday and the number students who make it to school that week decreases.

May 1- Seema, Agata, Maxime, and I went to the Ann van Dyk Cheetah Centre- De Wildt just outside of Pretoria. It was established in 1971 by Ann and she has been “married” to her cause ever since. They are famous for breeding endangered species (wild dogs and cheetahs), promoting public awareness and scientific investigation, and working at re-establishing animals into the wild. The tour began with a dramatic movie comparing a cheetah to the fastest car in the world (forgive me for not writing it down)…the cheetah is faster at running short distances, turning, and stopping. They can reach up to 120 km/h (74mph) and one stride is 6-9 meters (18-27 feet). We had the option of petting a cheetah, but I wasn’t convinced that it wanted to be touched so I decided not to bother the cheetah.

There were cages with caracels (they look like house cats, but would destroy a house), they actually “kill just to kill.” Our guide told a story of when the cats killed 11 sheep, not because they were hungry, but because they were there. They can jump 3-5 meters (and kill birds).

The park features the King Cheetah, named for its solid stripes caused by the recessive gene in the bloodline. They do not survive well in the wild because they are not camouflage with their long black stripes. They are fed with horse meat…and they are considered fat with their life on the farm. By the way, did you know a cheetah can go from 120-0 in one stride????

There were also vultures, or predator birds. They open up carcass for many of the predatory animals to eat. We saw Egyptian and Cape Griffin vultures. The Egyptian vultures are becoming extinct in South Africa and the Cape Griffon vultures are sometimes poisoned and end up with neurological issues. They say their coloring is a mood indicator- if they are happy they are blue and if they are angry they have more of a red color.

The reserve has two brown hyenas named Claude and Cindy. Brown hyenas are nocturnal, mute, and prefer fruits and vegetables. They are from Namibia. There were also Ostriches. Interesting fact:  the females are grey and they sit on the eggs in the day and the males are black and they sit on the eggs at night- now that is a partnership in parenting. The impalas seem to hang out with the ostriches.

A highlight of the park is the African Wild Dogs…people seem to really love these animals. They make a kind of chirping noise rather than a bark. They are endangered because of land loss (due to settlements and farming), hunting strategies (they can actually hear individual hearts beat), and the fact that they regurgitate their food and that spreads diseases quickly. The dogs just had pups born 2 weeks ago and the father was letting the mother eat all she wanted for her and the pups before he had food…that was kind of sweet.

Thursday May 2…the day after the holiday- I was scheduled to give a professional development to the teachers from Funda Ujabule School. Funda is a teaching school connected with the university, they have been building their program from grade R (Kindergarten) and now they are up to grade 4. Isizulu and SeSotho are the languages of instruction. The plan was for me to provide two workshops with the school. For the first seminar, I wanted to focus on empowering teachers through balancing mind and heart when teaching. We started with the warm up activities- pictures that elicit emotion, fill in the blank stories, expressing yourself with less words, and personal descriptions. The warm up activity ended up taking longer than I had planned because the discussions the teachers were having were so rich. I also gave them a small square of paper and had them write their name, an African word (with English translation), something about how they grew up, and one thing that helps them learn. I used these papers during my presentation to relate the ideas to their “past” and “learning style”…and I tried to use all of the African words they wrote for me. It was a fun challenge for me- I was able to include: Ngiyabonga (I give thanks), Yebo (yes), Unbuntu (Community), Dumela, o kea? (good day, how are you?), Kgotso (peace).

After we finished the “warm up,” we discussed the basic functions of the brain and how a normal developing brain learns and retains information (short video included as well). We then went into a discussion about what could hinder “normal” development, hence the experience of diverse learners. The teachers were heated when they realized many of their students experience trauma, poverty, malnutrition, lack of safety, and many other factors that could lead to challenges in development. They wanted answers on how to help their students…this brought us to the activity on strategies. We talked about how we couldn’t feed or give them all a safe place to grow up, but there are things we can do in our classroom to encourage pride, increase self-esteem, and give the learners a sense of accomplishment (see the mind and heart connection???).

I then tried to connect these ideas to the different subject areas and skills taught at school by splitting the teachers into partners to developed their own ideas and identify strategies that work to help learners with barriers. I gave each partner a list of strategies Sousa (2007) wrote about in his book, How the Special Need Brain Learns. In Math, we discussed using music/dance, manipulatives, giving different types of examples, begin with simple concepts then move to more difficult ones, flashcards, and using cooking/recipes to encourage community and learning. I also mentioned that when learning math, each learner is different in how they want/need to approach it- there are quantitative and qualitative styles. Quantitative styles mean the learner prefers routine, parts (steps) rather than the whole equation, and they tend to be linear. Qualitative style means the learner prefers concepts, looks at the whole, can find multiple approaches to the same problem, and may have mistakes in their calculations or explanations, but they can give another level of understanding to their peers.

In Reading, we talked about explicitly teaching sounds/letters, small groups, constant assessments of skills and achievements, positive feedback, songs and rhymes, and using the “I do, We do, You do with help, You do alone, Assess, and repeat as necessary” strategy. Finally, we talked about the importance of not just repeating activities if students are not getting the concept, rather to come up with different methods for presenting the material.

In Writing, we talked about students having a hard time with hand-eye coordination, lack of concentration, low vocabulary, and difficulty completing writing tasks. We discussed giving extra time for struggling writes, sentence starters and word banks, brainstorming ideas and using metacognitive techniques to model how to use a brainstorm to write in a coherent manner. The group came up with graphic organizers they can use in the primary grades and of course how to use Cloze (fill in the blank) activities to help students learn format and apply their knowledge. Also, we talked about how to reduce copying and increase writing skills by using the 5 step writing process (prewrite, draft one, edit/revise (proofreading), draft two, and publish).

The last group talked about positive behaviour management, especially with students who seem struggle with attention. They identified the need for checking in with learners who seem to be stressed or uneasy, having explicit and clear expectations, using positive words of encouragement, giving respect, teaching problem solving rather than punishment, adapting curriculum to meet the students’ skills, needs, and abilities.

I finished the seminar with talking about my “bag of tricks” and went over a few for working with students with processing challenges such as speaking slowly (yes, this is a challenge for me at times, but seeing I am the one with the thick accent I do my best to pay attention to my pace all the time). When students are in a crisis or struggle with language, I try to use short sentences, eye contact, and non-verbal communication. Increasing my “wait time”…how long I wait for an answer after I ask a question. Repeating myself when necessary and creating visual cues so I have to use less words. Finally, not only having high standards with as much support as is reasonable/feasible, but showering my learners with love and appreciation whenever possible. I gave each of the teachers the same small papers we used in the beginning for my “language lesson” and I asked them to write an appreciation for the person whose name appeared on the paper because when it comes to the end of the day we will do far better if we acknowledge and support our colleagues for the wonderful job they do teaching everyday.

That night I met up with a friend for dinner…as I was leaving the restaurant (after 11pm), a policeman pulled me over. He said he believed I was lying about drinking and that I needed to let his partner in my car, drive to Hillbrow to take a test for alcohol, they would arrest me, put me in jail, take my passport, and someone would need to bail me out of jail. I asked him why, if he thought I had been drinking, he would have me drive another officer in my car to find out. He said it was protocol. I told him I was not disagreeing that this was his protocol, I believed him, it just seemed strange and that I have to follow my protocol. I explained that I am here with support of the US Embassy and before I let anyone in my car I would need to let them know, also because they would be the only people who could bail me out of jail. I said I do not carry my passport around, he said I could bring it to the station later. Then he asked if I was resisting arrest…I assured him I would comply to protocol, I just needed to make a phone call first and could I please pull to the side of the road (he was talking to me while I was blocking traffic). He let me pull over then I said, “Oh, I know sometimes police pull people over because they want something, is that it?” He said, “You think I want a bribe from you? Do you have 100,000 Rand?” R100,000 (about $10,000). I said I didn’t think I had R100, I am basically a volunteer working with schools in South Africa. He asked what I do, I said I am here working with educators at the University of Johannesburg Soweto campus and schools in Soweto, in helping students who struggle with learning. He walked away from the car, then returned and told me to go home. I drove away in a state of shock and relief.

The next morning, the radio station was talking about police harassing women. One caller said it is sad, but women should not drive alone at night, another reported the police arresting and then raping women, then I heard about people stealing police uniforms and cars trying to get bribes. Yikes. A week or so later, some women and I met up and they told me do not even roll down your window if the police stop you, just drive straight to the nearest police station.

In my presentations, I have pictures from the newstories that have been highlighted since I arrived…one is of a taxi driver from Mozambique who was beaten and dragged by the police and the Marikana mines where the police shot and killed 44 miners who were protesting. Those were both dramatic stories in the headlines, but the fear from the police is much more intense because the stories are common. I have been asking the question, how do our learners feel if the people who are supposed to keep them safe aren’t safe? When you experience fear, the brain releases chemicals (including cortisol- fight or flight hormone) in heightened state of awareness. High levels of cortisol affect one’s ability to learn and retain information (Cheatham, Jennings, and Van Kirk, 2010). Just another level of understanding…

Friday morning I spent the day at Bapedi Primary School. Being around happy children can be such a healing experience…it is hard not to smile and feel good when kids are so happy to see you. I was there to observe classrooms and interview some of the people from an after school program about how they were supporting Bapedi. In one of the classes I observed (which was in Sepedi…with some English mixed in), they were practicing reading. I listened for sounds and letter correlation, students who were “hiding” behind the other readers, and, when in English, I listened for comprehension skills. At one point, the teacher had the class doing a choral reading activity (where everyone reads at the same time). When some students tried to race ahead, the teacher stopped and said, “Remember we are a community, there is no need to be a competitor, we are together. We support each other.” The class was reading out of their government issued readers- they reminded me of the scripted reading programs in the United States- just a bit less interesting. I also met with the director of the program called, Shoes of Wisdom. They are a non-government organization working at improving the literacy, visual arts, sports, and technology access for underperforming learners. She said that although that was their mission, they needed help with the literacy skills area. I asked her how they were assessing learners, she said they had tried to give them a spelling test, but most of the kids couldn’t spell any of the words. She asked if I would come to her office and meet her team the next week. I agreed.

Just to have a little fun, Agata, Caz, and Lilly went to a wine bar that evening…and on Saturday I was up and out the door at 6:30 for a hike at Hartbeespoort Dam with Seema and Cristines. Seema had found the announcement for the hike on MeetUp.com. There were over 20 of us, so the hike was slow going (not to mention the smokers and the out of shape people). By the end, we left the group and headed back to the car. We met an American lawyer named Diana and a German food technician named Constantine on the hike that day. On Sunday, Cinco de Mayo, I found a Mexican restaurant (in Melville) and got a group together to celebrate. Unfortunately, the night before the restaurant had run out of limes, so no margaritas (I did ask why they didn’t go to the store and buy more, they said they had a lime guy who would be there tomorrow- This is Africa!).