Henney 1 NCSC FLC 2010

North Central State College

Faculty Learning Community 2010-2011: Redesigning Courses for High Risk Students Pamela Henney, English Adjunct Problem An English as a Second Language student in my basic writing class this summer shared an observation that changed my understanding about her misuse of the English language that she studied as part of the official curriculum for Philippine schools from kindergarten through college, but which also transcended her experience to even native English speakers. She said “if you learn English from someone who speaks broken English, then you learn broken English.” Her observation emphasized the many understandings of the English language that all students, even native English speakers, bring to a writing class. That accompanied by the numerous interpretations and usage choices of standard English grammar and punctuation rules instructors share can only serve to confuse the student whose grammar, vocabulary, and writing skills are already weak. But, there is so much to learn from each of those literacy understandings and communities. These differences can actually help students learn standard English in the same way an investigating report seeks out the various different witness statements to find the actual sequence of events – or to find common ground. Standard English is that common ground when sharing our thoughts and ideas in writing. Using the literacy differences to find common ground and master standard English is a challenge, but I propose bringing groups of basic writers with varied skills together to teach each other, learn from each other and support each other will be as beneficial, if not more so, than the traditional method of individuals review grammar rules and completing exercises using those rules.

Proposal Understanding one of the main challenges to successfully mastering grammar as a student is the traditional practice of exercise-based learning models. These models often create a gap in

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understanding for all students, but especially high-risk students. The gap is apparent when students tackle paragraph, essay, or any longer writing assignments. Additionally, it has been argued by leading composition researchers that an individualized approach to learning grammar is more effective than a classroom approach. Each student has his own set of writing concerns, including specific grammar errors, and each student comes to standard English from a different literacy background, whether it be dialect or regional usage, which influences his correct and incorrect usage and understanding of standard English. However, individualized instruction for hundreds or thousands of students per term is a challenge for the limited number of teachers hired to teach in a traditional classroom setting. Therefore, more alternatives to teaching grammar should be considered. One option is a collaborative approach organizing students into study groups with their particular writing and grammar challenges in mind and designing projects for them both collaboratively and individually. One could counter argue that grouping students by writing issue would only serve to perpetuate those issues. One could also counter argue that peer teaching is a concern overall. However, I contend that peer teaching can be successful when one considers the theory that one can only teach a concept once one has mastered it. Additionally, grouping students with similar issues together would provide familiarity, support, and understanding for each member within the group. Plus, the group‟s mission to clarify and overcome specific writing errors would be unified unlike in a group with more diverse writing concerns. For my FLC project, I would like to study collaborative work with students to overcome grammar-related writing issues using my WRT 116 and ENG 101 courses. The division will be noted in the study and each course will be reported separately. Without separating the data, it will be skewed by the fact that students in the WRT 116 sections of the paired classes will be

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working on their grammar issues twice but ENG101-only students will only be working on their grammar issues once. Other issues will possibly arise too. There are two sets of paired classes to be studied with one set to be the control group taught with a combination of one-on-one and full class grammar work, while the other group will be taught with the addition of collaborative grammar work. The same assessment test will be given to both groups at the beginning and end of the term. This will be studied over two terms with two different sets of courses. Literature Review Most of the literature regarding collaborative learning that I reviewed suggests positive outcomes. There are also challenges of “the blind leading the blind” nature, which cautions the lack of an authority of knowledge; as well as student participation in general, grading individuals for their work within a collaborative learning environment, and whether or not such lessons have positive effects on pass rates in the end. These concerns, according to the literature, should be alleviated with careful planning of assignments, emphasizing individual accountability, and providing the genuine knowledge rather than allowing a consensus of knowledge to be the final authority. However, the benefits of helping students learn to bridge their own gaps in understanding offers long term benefits to a student‟s confidence as well as abilities. Composition theorist Kenneth Bruffee quotes personal correspondence of fellow theorist John Timbur, saying students should learn not only how to join established discourse communities but also “something about how this social transition takes place, how it involves crises of identity and authority, how students can begin to generate a transitional language to bridge the gap between communities” (557). Such critical thinking skills – and practical use of those skills - are what we need our students to have in the end and a necessary part of understanding how and why a common language is essential for clear communication. This does not in any way negate the concerns but emphasizes the importance of planning and focused implementation on the part of the instructor.

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Results Problems 1. Because of the priority instruction in class, we didn‟t start on schedule. We started four weeks late. 2. Because of weather in Winter term, absences were high. Additionally, several students either dropped or stopped attending class. Attendance, therefore, was not consistent, nor conducive to group coherence. Groups had to be reformed. 3. Because of priority instruction in class and the weather forcing repeated instruction and reviews, there was no time to do the presentations. Only one group presented in each class. 4. Because of the increased demands on Paired Class students, the stress level of that portion of the class was higher than it was for the non-paired students. That stress, however, crescendoed in both sets of students. 5. All of the above made grading a bit of a quandary. Observations 1. I was concerned about all the problems and was considering the project a failure. Getting started late, regrouping because of attendance, and forgoing presentations all contributed to the sense of failure. 2. However, when I stepped back and looked at what was happening, the project seen in different terms was actually successful. A. Only two groups had to be reformed. Each of those new groups worked out. B. Each group still focused on the writing issue and the students having problems with that issue.

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C. Each group met in class three times and reportedly had several email and/or phone/text conversations outside of class time regarding their project. D. I noted marked improvement overcoming the writing issue for each student in each group. E. I observed each group opted not to directly use one of the various PowerPoints I posted on Blackboard or exercises in The Successful Writer’s Handbook regarding specific writing issues. Instead, they reviewed the PowerPoints for organization and exercise examples. They also reviewed both The Successful Writer’s Handbook and The OWL information on the writing issue as well as the exercises. However, and notably, each group opted to use for their incorrect examples specific writing errors marked in their graded essays. Then, they corrected it. Putting both into their own PowerPoint presentations. Plus, they did consider my suggestion of identifying a writing error, discussing how to find it, and discussing how to fix it. This too became part of their presentation. F. Most of the students I observed during peer editing in class of student essays utilized what they‟d learned in the grammar group to both identify writing mistakes in other student papers, but also in their follow-up discussion with the other student actually pointed out how one finds such issues in one‟s own writing and how to fix them. In fact, some students illustrated this for the other student using the PowerPoint in creation for their group project. G. Once the interaction in F started happening, specific grammar group members were sought out in peer review sessions for a second or third

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peer review specifically for a particular writing issue. The group members had become „the experts‟ in class to consult. Even what in my class are called “public service announcements” regarding writing issues for the group as a whole became the means for students to find the right experts. Several times while working one-on-one with a student, I heard “hey who‟s in the comma splice group. Can you look at this sentence?” or “can someone in the word use group tell me if I got the right „then‟ or „than.‟” H. Additionally, I noted in a couple of the groups that the student in the Paired Class actually teaching the rest of her group something we had discussed in WRT 116 about the writing issue but had not discussed in ENG 101. Recommendations 1. Using group grammar in ENG 101 but not in Paired Courses 2. Using group grammar but not planning presentations in Paired Courses. 3. Using group grammar as a means of creating a set of “experts” on a grammar issue which students may reference in class. 4. Using group grammar as a means of improving problem grammar issues for students within the group (original basic intent) without the presentation aspect. 5. Credit the group work as peer tutoring credit (doing it or getting it).

Works Cited Bruffee, Kenneth. “Collaborative Learning and the „Conversation of Mankind.‟” The Norton Book of Composition Studies. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2009. Print. 545-562. Haller, Cynthia, Victoria Gallagher, Tracey Weldon, and Richard Felder. “Dynamics of Peer

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Education in Cooperative Learning Workgroups.” Journal of Engineering Education, July 2000: 285-293. Academic Search Complete. PDF. 27 July 2010. Kinsler, Kimberly. “Structured Peer Collaboration: Teaching Essay Revision to College Students Needing Writing Remediation.” Cognition and Instruction 7.4 (1990): 303-321. Academic Search Complete. PDF. 27 July 2010. Peck, Wayne Campbell, Linda Flowers, and Lorraine Higgins. “Community Literacy.” The Norton Book of Composition Studies. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2009. Print. 10971116. Taylor, Maurice, Judy King, Christine Pinsent-Johnson, and Trudy Lothian. “Collaborative Practices in Adult Literacy Programs.” Adult Basic Education 13.2 (Summer 2003): 8199. Academic Search Complete. PDF. 27 July 2010. Trimbur, John. “Consensus and Difference in Collaborative Learning.” The Norton Book of Composition Studies. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2009. Print. 733-747.

Faculty Learning Community 2010-2011: Redesigning ...

NCSC FLC 2010. C. Each group met in class three times and reportedly had several email and/or phone/text conversations outside of class time regarding their.

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