Presentation from Class 5 highlighting Andrews' language exploration and awareness approach to teaching language!

1. ECI 430: Methods & Materials for Teaching English Language
Arts in the Middle Grades
CLASS 5: Name Inquiry: First Person Application, Andrews LEA
Approach, Grammar In Context, & Inquiry Continued
Fall 2012 – Dr. Young

2.  "Intention unlocks tacit powers."
-- James Britton
tacit ?
def.: implied,
not explicit but
understood
What does he mean?

3.  Origins of your names… First and last…
◦ What did you find?
◦ Where did you find it?
◦ What are your ideas for applying name inquiry in
middle grades ELA and SS contexts?
First-Person Mini-Inquiry

4. LANGUAGE BY PROXY WWW.WORDLE.NET

5. For our purposes, we will expand
the notion of language study to include
awareness and exploration of…
 morphology –
◦ study of words (parts, sounds, origins, etc.)
 syntax –
◦ study of sentence structure (of which traditional
grammar is only one small part)
 semantics –
◦ study of forming patterns, making connections, and
creating meaning
Intended Outcomes:
To increase students’reflective or metalinguistic
awareness and overall ability with the totality of
language. To increase the syntactic complexity of
students’ writing.

6.  1. The study of genuine authentic language instead of abstract
& contrived textbook examples and models.
 2. An insistence on premise that language learning activities in
schools must be student-centered rather than teacher-
centered.
 3. A requirement that students make observations of authentic
language, then formulate generalizations based on those
observations.
 4. A recognition of the linguistic fact that good English is a
rigorously enforced but floating social standard that is attained
through varying uses of language depending on their diverse
contexts of use. A social tax is assessed against those who
violate the expectations and requirements for Good English,
standards that are embedded in every communication event.
 5. A basis in the proposition that as students’ language
continues to develop, their growth in language also helps
them to grow through language.
CHARACTERISTICS OF
ANDREWS’ LEA APPROACH:

7. Origins of
English Language
 Robert Lowth and the Enlightenment Tradition
◦ A Short Introduction to English Grammar (1762): prescriptive, evaluative,
critical of Shakespeare, Milton, Donne, etc.
 Self-appointed experts and “mavens”
◦ Rather than consensus
 Based on Greek and Latin Models
◦ Including multiple, sometimes conflicting grammars; not of its own origin
 Assumption English was a decayed form of classical
languages
◦ Not the standard at that time—irony of it being considered decayed form!
 No acknowledgement of language development and
change over time
◦ Instead, language was steeped in hierarchical control and characterized by
prescriptive rules and fixed notions
NOTE: On next slide, Language Tree Frontpiece Image Source: Webster, Noah. (1969). Webster’s New Twentieth Century
Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged. New York: World Publishing Company.

8. Origins of English Language (continued)

9.  LEA activities emphasize meaning.
 LEA activities use authentic language
found in genuine social circumstances.
 LEA activities provide for a developmental
view.
 LEA activities develop awareness of
several aspects of language.
 LEA activities are student centered and
inquiry oriented.
 LEA activities require reflection.
Language Exploration & Awareness:
The Criteria

10.  1. Language study should focus on
genuine and authentic uses of language;
◦ (rather than decontextualized, disconnected
examples)
 2. Language success (“correctness”) is
determined by the application of multiple
criteria of effectiveness;
◦ (rather than just one)
 3. There should be more opportunities in
classrooms for student talk.
◦ (rather than just the teacher)
3 Prerequisites
for the LEA Approach:

11.  observe language
 ask questions about how and why
language forms are used as they are in
various contexts
 make closer and more focused
observations
 form tentative hypotheses
Andrews’ Lea Model:
The best way for people to learn
about language is for them to…

12.  the many reasons why we use language
 where language comes from
 how it changes and varies according to
CONTEXT…
- who is using it
- their purpose
- their audience
- the setting
 and, the ways of assessing language
effectiveness in these changing contexts
A balanced language curriculum will include
numerous opportunities to explore:

13.  1. People (their formal and informal
relationships).
 2. Their purposes (to convince, describe,
apologize, please, flatter, obscure, etc.)
 3. The general discourse rules
through which the conversation
operates.
 4. The particular talk being used
(intimate, informal, or formal).
Neil Postman’s 4 Elements of a
SEMANTIC ENVIRONMENT
(Andrews, p. 56)

14. Examples of 3 Different
Semantic Environments
 a batter’s box
 a witness box, and > Each of these has its own
/ definite purposes and rules
/ that are implicitly understood
 a confessional box / by its respective participants.
Breaking the rules in a given environment
results in a semantic disruption.

15. Semantic Disruption (humorous example; they’re
not always humorous)

16.  Spontaneity – one’s ability to speak freely and with confidence
so that the speaker allocates more attention to what is being
said, the message being shared (opposite: reluctant)
 Precision – using a more expanded repertoire of words to
speak more directly and cogently to accomplish purposes
(opposite: vagueness)
 Elaboration – ability to use more complex language structures,
weaving phrases that provide support, subordination,
clarification, and greater specificity into the natural fabric of a
sentence or series of sentences; demonstrates ability to
combine and coordinate several ideas and propositions in a
coherent and cohesive manner and draws upon own
knowledge about the larger frames of discourse effectively
(opposite: fragmentation)
Andrews’ 3 Essential Long-Term
Goals for Language Learning (pp. 62-63):

17. What is “Good English?”

18. “Good English” is…
 marked by success in making language choices so that the
fewest number of persons will be distracted by the
choices;
 appropriate for the speaker’s/writer’s purpose;
 appropriate for the context;
 comfortable to both speaker and listener/audience;
 appropriate for the format/genre used.
Ignoring any of these results in the speaker / writer being
judged and having to pay a “social tax” which can range
in severity from being embarrassed to being thought of as
insensitive to being thought of as uneducated. Also
referred to as a “sin tax” – a play on…
syntax!

19.  Common Core State Standards for ELA
by Grade Level
 Local Curriculum Requirements /
Standards
 Weaver’s Minimum Approach for
Maximum Benefits
 Status-Marking Errors
 Most Frequently Occurring Errors
 Address needs of your students!
Ways to Narrow the Focus
of Grammar Instruction

21. Weaver’s Minimal Approach for Maximum Benefits (continued)

22. Weaver’s Minimal Approach for Maximum Benefits (continued)

23. Status-Marking Errors (Hairston)

24. Weaver’s 4 Examples of Ways
to Teach Grammar in Context
 Incidental Lessons – mentioning grammatical terms and connections
incidentally or casually in the course of discussing literature and student
writing [i.e., way we will discuss terms and patterns in some of the model
poems and student poems in class]
 Inductive Lessons - guiding students to notice grammatical patterns and
connections themselves in literature and student writing [i.e., when we not
only read but discuss some of the stylistic and grammatical patterns in
literature we read with students]
 Conferencing with Students – conferencing one-on-one with students
provides an opportunity for the teacher to focus on a particular student’s
individual needs in terms of language growth and grammar ability [Lisa
Delpit found this to be the second most important feature of writing
instruction for African-American students.]
 Writing Mini-lessons and Extended Mini-lessons – means of presenting
new and useful information to students which may involve opportunities for
them to trying out or applying the concept as a means of promoting greater
understanding [Delpit found this to be the most important feature of writing
workshop for African-American students!]

25.  Mini-Inquiry on Inquiry-Based Learning
Strategies
◦ Your Secret Dossier: Team Work Presentations
◦ MSL Methods Wiki Inquiry Activity
◦ Remember!
 Turn your dossier in afterwards!
Mission Possible Presentations

26.  Paul Harvey’s The Rest of the Story
◦ The first podcaster?
Inquiry in the Media

27. See you next time!