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FOR OUR FINAL BOOK CLUB I would like to look at how book club can be used with informational texts. Typically we think of book clubs in the ELA classroom as something used for reading literature, but book clubs are essentially just a group of people trying to figure out what something means. It's low-key groupwork.
There are a lot of reasons to embrace small-group reading strategies: 1) students are happy to not do work for a teacher, but they don't like to look like the slack-ass in a small group--not usually; 2) students actually feel better about themselves when they realize they are not the only one struggling; they'll have conversations about what confuses them with peers much more often then with a teacher; and 3) students actually figure things out together--what one student doesn't get another does and then another student understands something else and by the end of the conversation, everyone has a better idea about the entire text. These are things that make reading difficult informational texts easier and, thus, an excellent recommendation for the use of book clubs for this kind of reading. WHAT TO POST: So for our final book club, post your summary and analysis of Asou Inoue's introduction to Antiracist Writing Pedagogy. Do your best to determine what he means by "antiracist" and how that intersects with writing pedagogy. Try to determine what he means by an "ecology of assessment". Feel free to write about what you don't understand in the text as well. Finally, this is the introduction. It sets up a lot of argument but offers no details. What questions would you like answered in the rest of the text? We'll use these questions to shape discussion around the rest of the text (each person in class will only be responsible for reading one other chapter for our last week of class). RESPOND: to at least one other classmate. You have two options for responding. You can try to clarify a point that is confusing to your classmate--or at least try to offer some clarity. You can also validate, expand, or tweak someone's question about the rest of the text.
18 Comments
Sarah Egan
6/16/2021 07:17:48 am
Antiracism should be promoted in a classroom through writing assignment. Though people may try to say that racism is not a problem, it is becoming more prevalent with each day. Teachers need to design writing assignments that are socially for any students, they also need to understand how to “assess fairly the writing of their diverse student populations, which include multilingual populations, working class students, disabled students” (4). Racism is normally a topic avoided in conversation, but Asou Inoue's believes that this needs to happen and especially in writing assessments. The author talks about writing programs in the country that are racist for students in all grades and this can be seen as whites have a drastically lower failure rate than Blacks, Latinos, and Asians. A teacher does not have to actively be racist for their writing assignments to be racist; racism in writing will not go away until it is addressed first in writing. When designing writing curriculums, teachers need to recognize how it will function in the course and how students will relate to it. Asou Inoue describes responses is more beneficial for evaluation because it allows for freedom. He states, “evaluation is even more restrictive by being more judgmental and summative than assessment, while grading is the most limited of them all, since it is one-dimensional and not descriptive” (15). Assessments should be taught to students so they can understand the significance of value and judgement, this will help to strengthen their writing and students should be involved in this process.
Alexis Medeiros
6/17/2021 11:12:51 am
Sarah, I really enjoyed reading your post! You're right! Racism should not be ignored, instead it should be implemented in the classroom. I feel like teachers don't even think this is a problem in the classroom or that they should bring these concepts into the classroom. I see it first hand the amount of pressure teachers have that often times these concepts and practices get lost within the classroom. As teachers, we tend to prioritize different things over the more important ones. We have to keep in mind that at the end of the day students won't remember the material we have taught them but instead they will remember the bigger lessons such as this one. Assessments should be taught so that way students see the significance of them but we must first teach ourselves! If we don't teach ourselves the right way we can't teach our students to do the same either.
Gabriel El Khoury
6/17/2021 01:06:16 pm
Like Alexis, I too enjoyed reading your post, Sarah, and you are, of course, correct - racism is an inarguable reality and should not be ignored. Having now read Inoue's introduction to Antiracist Writing Pedagogy, do you foresee yourself implementing any of his strategies for combating racism in a classroom setting? As classrooms become increasingly diverse, likely Inoue's writing increase in importance and come to impact a great many classrooms in the future.
Lauren Wrigley
6/16/2021 12:37:26 pm
In his introduction to Antiracist Writing Pedagogy, Asou Inoue argues writing assessment needs to be redesigned and transformed into an ecology. Based on his definition of ecology-- a complex system made up of several interconnected elements-- Inoue suggests that this same structure would serve as a valuable form of assessing writing. His argument is grounded by his commitment to antiracism, striving to promote social justice and equality in education. He proposes the idea of writing assessment ecologies that involve an “interconnectedness among everything and everyone, with explicit racial politics that students must engage with.” Because many students come to school with different backgrounds and therefore use different discourses, Inoue believes the assessment of their writing should be valued accordingly. Historically and presently, systemic racism has affected students of color in education through conventions such as SEAE and large-scale tests, assessing students using discourses that differ from their own, and in turn result in white students being identified as performing significantly better than students of other ethnicities. Ultimately, assessing such diverse writing should involve a sustainable and fair way to evaluate all writing. Inoue mentions the 7 elements of discourse ecologies: power, parts, purposes, people, processes, products, and places-- I would want to gain more insight on these specific elements, as well as particular ways in which a wide range of discourses can be assessed on a ‘connected’ level.
Sarah Egan
6/17/2021 10:01:28 am
Hi Lauren!
Elizabeth Cheesman
6/16/2021 02:25:28 pm
Inoue argues that the process of becoming an anti-racist human cannot be done without incorporating it into writing instruction. Inoue discusses how many people avoid talking about race and schools oftentimes brush over it. His suggestion is to not just encourage but force these conversations into the classrooms, especially writing. Inoue has observed that race has not been in “writing assessment circles” and the aim of his book is to close this gap. Inoue’s assumption is that literacy teachers need to diligently create writing assessments “both theoretically and materially.” I think the argument is without proper investigation of each step in an assessment, educators cannot set up each student for academic rigor and success. Inoue calls this the “ecology of assessment” and if ecology refers to relationships between an environment and living things, then “ecology of assessment” must mean that assessments are made to interconnect all skills and knowledge to strengthen achievement. Assessments may have a relationship with not only content but also critical thinking and interpersonal skills that all contribute to equity. When white students score higher rates than all other races, this tells us that writing assessments are not equitable. Inoue argues that racism is everywhere around us and anti-racist instruction is a start to have a lens of inspiring schools to watch what they say and teach, asking if it is truthful and admitting that some texts may be toxic and too colonial without positive BIPOC representation. We must think about how we strive to not be racist, but racism is everywhere we go, whether explicit or hidden in texts and gestures. I would like Inoue to explicitly answer what ecology assessments mean and why it was chosen as a baseline for this long book. Also, what specific steps do I take to create equitable assessments?
TEN
6/16/2021 07:55:16 pm
I like how you said "Inoue discusses how many people avoid talking about race and schools oftentimes brush over it. "
Aliyah Pires
6/17/2021 07:17:48 am
I also would like to know exactly what ecology of assessment means but for insight this is what I thought it would mean. I stated that I believe he is referring to the make up of the class being taught or the different aspects that make up the assignment. Each have different working parts that have an effect however this is just my guess.
Aliyah Pires
6/17/2021 07:13:18 am
Writing assignments in the classroom need to not simply avoid racism but rather promote antiracism. In Inoue's writing he describes antiracism as s a teacher not only do no harm through their writing assessments, but promote social justice
Lauren Wrigley
6/17/2021 08:00:18 am
I like the point you make about considering the background of the writer being assessed. I think to Inoue, doing this is a way of promoting antiracism. His introduction sheds light on the systemic racism in education in the form of standardized language that disadvantages non-white students. The diverse population of children bring to school with them their unique discourses and are then mislabeled and oppressed at the hands of assessment that fails to consider these aspects. So, when educators do consider the cultural backgrounds of their students, they can instruct and assess with the guidance of that knowledge, providing a more positive and successful learning and teaching experience.
Alexis Medeiros
6/17/2021 11:08:52 am
Elizabeth Cheesman
6/17/2021 11:54:50 am
Alexis, your response really made me think about anti-racism with a better understanding. Your last sentence moved me to the point where all I can say is, yes! I think you are spot on that a part of being anti-racist includes the ability and strength to read something for what it is without denying it or changing the message to be what we want. I have a different interpretation of assessment ecology. Although, you make a great point that the assessments need to be in a relationship with students in addition to the individual steps that go into creating an effective assessment. Maybe it is a strategy that includes combining students and the methodology and theorists behind the assessments that create equity in literacy assessments.
David Golden
6/17/2021 06:37:53 pm
Alexis I thought that your piece was wonderful. I loved your analogy with your ecology assessment and writing. Every reader has their own interpretation of what a piece means. That is what is so wonderful about writing. Students should not be prohibited from coming up with their own methodology. Teachers should instead welcome assessments and give their students the tools to be successful.
Gabriel El Khoury
6/17/2021 01:00:48 pm
By forwarding in the introduction the term “ecology of assessment” (3), Inoue seems to be saying that teachers should cultivate robust environments for their students, specifically for their more often than not excluded students of color. Inoue's Antiracist Writing Pedagogy is rife with insight for prospective teachers “to address racism in their classroom writing assessment practices” (3). Inoue’s central argument is that, while he believes that there is “no biological basis for [race]” (3), “[r]acism … is real” (4) and should be snuffed out wherever it may be found in the classroom. Inoue also forwards the term “antiracist” (9), or the active challenging of racism in the classroom, offering as a countermeasure what he calls an “antiracist classroom writing assessment ecologies” (11), his holistic solution. Because “students of color ... are often hurt by conventional writing assessment that uncritically uses a dominant discourse” (16), Inoue desires to offer these disaffected students writing assessments which catered to their long neglected needs. The chief takeaway from Inoue’s Antiracist Writing Pedagogy is that teachers must actively promote writing assessments that enable students of color to succeed. More often than not, evaluation is punitive, that it is “restrictive by being more judgmental and summative than assessment” (15). Inoue’s arguments intersect with much of our discussions pertaining to pedagogy. As classrooms are becoming increasingly more diverse, educators must seek to accommodate these changes by offering their students a robust teaching strategy, an “ecology of assessment” (3) that promotes freedom of expression and limits judgement. Inoue’s call for educators to be “antiracist” is a daily commitment; it is not a passively accepted label nor is it a badge of honor but an active devotion to expunging racism from the classroom.
Emma Healy
6/17/2021 02:34:27 pm
Gabriel, I think acknowledging the increase of diversity in US classrooms like you did is central to Inoue's argument. By promoting antiracist writing assessments, this will limit the struggles students of color face in classrooms everyday through assessment. Educators can only provide effective assessment if it promotes the needs of all students, like you stated.
Emma Healy
6/17/2021 02:27:10 pm
Inoue’s expresses the importance of encouraging social justice and antiracism through writing assessments in the classroom. The book is directed at writing teachers who want to address racism in the classroom through writing assessments. He describes these writing assignments as “ecological projects” because they emphasize equality and sustainability. Teachers need to understand how to assess in a fair manner based on a diverse student body as antiracism is promoting racial equality. Connecting racism to writing pedagogy I would think means how students of color endure challenges academically where white people have more privilege. I think the ecology of assessment is the relationship between the student and assessment. Inoue is interested in structural racism that focuses on students of color and what they relate their educational struggles with. He argues that every person expresses their racial identity in different ways linguistically. For that reason, a student isn’t just defined by their race or gender. The racist effects in the United States are intertwined with the writing programs. He poses the question why do Blacks, Latinos, and multilingual students relatively perform worse on writing assessments than white students and are the writing ecologies racist? Racism in our classrooms cannot be removed if we don’t address it in our writing assessments. Good, fair assessment plays a major role in the classroom that determines the learning environment of the classroom. Assessment of writing is about cultivating complex systems that are about fairness in a diverse classroom, not just about rubrics or portfolios. The significance of assessment revolves around meaningfulness and ethicalness. Inoue describes the four types of judgement of writing as assessment, response, evaluation, and grading. He claims we must do better in the classroom, using new theories, to understand racism in writing assessment. The goal is to get rid of racism and the racialized hierarchies, starting with writing assessments. I would like to know more about how he believes refraining from old theories to new theories will be beneficial for understanding antiracist writing assessment.
TEN.S
6/17/2021 06:05:35 pm
When I was reading this article Inoue , the author talk about how becoming anti-racist human and how it's can't be incorporating in the writing. Just today me and my manger was talking about how people or just avoid racist, as like the same way as Inoue talk about. I feel this is common senes and mom and dad should teach their kids about not to be racist, and accepted each other. Inoue believed that this should not be force in the classroom but, should talk about it in writing. Inoue observed that the race should not be in any assessment especially in writing . The teachers need to create a writing assessments that can help the students with their theoretically and materially. "Ecology of assessment "- that what Inoue call it because it's get the students to become a rigor and success. The relationship between environment and living things , than ecology assessment.
David Golden
6/17/2021 06:31:01 pm
Asao Inoue's "Writing Pedagogy" is a thrilling piece of literature that tackles the difficult issue of racism. Inoue is an advocate for Antiracism. He believes that writing and incorporating that can help mediate the spread of racism. Inoue suggests that racism should be taught in our schools and force these difficult conversations to take place. In schools, there is very little that is said of race. It is almost like it is forgotten and that it does not matter. Social justice is an important discussion that our youth is being left out of. Inoue stated that race has been absent in our process of writing. Different races are scoring higher than others. These assessments are not what students are capable of. I believe that it is the job of educators to give their students an opportunity to learn. To teach them to love reading and writing. Educators have to inspire their students to learn the significance of listening to their own judgment. It all comes down to improving the lives of students and prepare them for what comes ahead. Leave a Reply. |
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