Week Eleven: A case for proper spelling

This week I read an article on NPR's website about an interview they did about whether or not proper spelling should matter anymore. The article was aptly tag lined Duz Prawper Speling Mader Nemor. I have to admit I was shocked that people were even considering getting rid of or loosening spelling and grammar rules. I think as future English teachers my peers and I were probably all a little shocked at reading this article. In both reading and writing, two core skills developed in an English classroom, spelling and grammar are the backbone. You cannot read or write a coherent piece of text without following the standards and rules of both of these English conventions. I think it would be impossible for a teacher or any other person for that matter, to read a piece of writing that did not follow the rules we have been taught in school. 
In the article Lee Simmons, a copy editor, argues that "standards are what make communication and understanding possible." In order to communicate effectively with your audience you have to use the standards and rules set in place for spelling and grammar to assure that everyone will understand you. Since we have all been taught the rules and standards through formal schooling we are all presumably on the same page. I agree with Simmons because I think there are so many variations in text language that we could never all be on the same page. To convey something as simple as laughter there are several variations including haha, hehe, lol, lmao, lmfao, and rofl. I am sure I have missed many more because text lingo is constantly evolving and changing. Even though I am a part of the millennial generation I still find myself confused at some of the new abbreviations that pop up in my inbox.
In addition I think the formality of standard English conventions are what display professionalism to others. Students need to learn the rules of spelling and grammar in order to succeed in higher education and any future jobs. While text lingo is fine when communicating with friends you need to show that you are professional and intelligent when speaking with your boss, co-workers, or perspective clients. Teachers might soon become lax in their grading or spelling and grammar errors but I don't think it would be possible to affect change in the language used in professional settings like companies, law firms, or hospitals. It is unfair to our students to allow them to make simple mistakes now when they won't be allowed to in the jobs they apply for in the future.

Week Ten: HOT Blogging

This week I read the article “HOT Blogging” by Lisa Zawilinski. When I think about incorporating blogs into my classroom I also worry that my students’ interest will fade. As with any learning activity that is going to be used over time, teachers need to think of ways to keep students’ interested. Blogs are important to incorporate because they allow for literacies to continue outside the classroom. They create a bridge between school and home. They provide an authentic audience for students because the entries they post will be seen by classmates, other peers, and anyone else who accesses the blog site. This is similar to the blogs we post for this class because our peers read what we post as well as our teachers. It is more personal than writing in a bluebook during class and gives students’ ownership.

All of the teachers at my school have a class website through the school that serves as a classroom news blog that is mentioned in the article. They post homework and assignments on the site for parents to see as well as students. I think the type of blog I would use the most in my classroom is literature response blogs. I would have students write an entry based on the day’s reading or the reading they were going to do for homework. It would get the students involved with the reading outside of school. The prompts I used would be critical thinking questions to promote higher order thinking.

One idea from this article I really liked was having students include posts about their outside of class reading. Often times in school students have to give book talks on their independent reading books. I have seen this many times at my internship and it is a requirement for students to stand up and orally present a summary of a book and their rating of it. I think it is good to have students do this but I frequently see their peers disinterested during the presentations. Perhaps an alternative or a supplement to this could be having students blog about the book. It would give them a chance to craft their summary and opinion of the book without the pressures of an oral presentation. They could also include multimedia resources on the blog like pictures, clips, and interviews. To get students to review each other’s summaries and look at the blogs a teacher could require students to read and review another’s choice. For example, first trimester all the students would select their own independent reading book and write a blog post review. For the next trimester the teacher could have students read their classmate’s reviews and based off of them select a book to read and write their own review. They could relate back to the original review and say whether they had a similar or different opinion and whether their rating was the same or not. This would allow students to reflect on other’s posts and synthesize new comments and ideas.

Overall I think teachers need to consider using blogs because they provide so many opportunities for enrichment outside of the classroom. Although it may seem like a daunting task they are easy to set up and user friendly. The article includes many types of blogs that can be used in a variety of classrooms not just Language Arts.