The teaching of reading and writing using cooperative learning structures

1. The teaching of reading and writing using cooperative learning structures School-based Curriculum Development (Primary) Section 28 February 2009

2. Shap Pat Heung Rural Committee Kung Yik She Primary School Miss Kelsey Tong P.2 Reading lessons Miss Kinki Tang P.3 reading & writing lessons

3. Setting the scene to cooperative learning in English language teaching • School located in Tin Shui Wai • Has joined small class teaching since 2006 • Small Class Teaching in English in P.1 to P.4 classes • Split English classes for P.5 and P.6

4. About our students • Mainly immigrants from mainland China • Parental support not strong • Exposure to English mainly in school • Low motivation level in learning English • Low self esteem • Individualistic • Relationships among students in English lessons aloof

5. What we want… • Enhance students’ self esteem • Enhance student satisfaction • Promote mastery • Reduce classroom anxiety • Develop positive student-teacher attitudes • Establish inclusion • Develop students’ social interaction skills

6. to cater for student diversity for student participation and interaction to provide quality feedback to promote student learning to give individualized and appropriate feedback How Small Class Teaching helps? Fewer students, more chance …

7. Our SCT experiences • Has joined Small Class Teaching “Learning Circles” since 2006 • Development focuses - 2006 – 2007 Question Techniques - 2007 – 2008 Cooperative Learning - 2008-2009: Using CL structures in P.2 & P.3 classes (reading and writing)  to develop a platform to use CL across key stages in language teaching and learning at the school

8. How Cooperative Learning helps • Our Beliefs: • We need to provide students with an environment in which an integrated approach is used to facilitate all areas in language development (Foyle, Lyman & Thies)

9. We need to create an environment conducive to learning which allows children to feel secure, take challenges, explore and solve problems so as to investigate their world and develop positive self-concepts and self-confidence (Foyle, Lyman & Thies)

10. Cooperative learning provides maximum opportunities for meaningful classroom interaction in a supportive environment that may lead to greater learner achievement, motivation to learn, and overall psychosocial adjustment (Shaaban, 2006)

11. Key elements in cooperative learning • Positive Interdependence • Individual Accountability • Group Processing • Group Skills • Face-to –Face Interaction

12. Cooperative Learning structures Over 200 strategies Involve different schools of thought (Kagan, Slavin, Johnson) Promote student participation and interaction, interdependent & individual accountability

13. Common cooperative learning structures in our language classrooms • Roundrobin/Roundtable • Think-Pair-Share • Numbered Heads Together • Gallery Tour • Blackboard Share • Sequencing • Team Word-Webbing • Think-Pad Brainstorming • Fan-N-Pick • Three Stars and One Win

14. Applying cooperative learning at classroom level Key features for consideration flexible use of various strategies optimal opportunities for student interactions effective time and group management informative/corrective teacher and peer feedback focused self evaluation based on shared learning goal

15. What was in my mind when I planned my lesson? To provide more opportunities for peer interactions To inform students of learning intentions To motivate learning and promote social skills To use time effectively To manage group routines and the lesson efficiently

16. On student participation • Is seating of students arranged in such a way that enables pupils to receive the maximum possible teacher attention and facilitate interaction among students? • heterogeneous learning groups are small (groups of three to four members of different abilities) • group members are “knee to knee and eye to eye” arranged but they all can see the teacher at the front of the room

17. The P.2 Reading Lessons Reader: The mean giant Level: P.2 No. of students: 25 Teaching targets: • To sequence simple given information • To respond to characters and events in simple imaginative texts through making predictions • To develop collaboration skills: be open and responsive to others’ ideas

18. Learning objectives: • Use the interrogative pronouns [what] to find out specific information • Use adjectives to describe people (concept learning - what kind of person do you want to be) • Recycle correct use of punctuation marks

19. The lesson procedures using CL structures Pre-reading • Revisit high frequency words • Teach core vocabulary “colour”: Roundtable Pedagogical purposes: • students share prior experiences among teammates and colour their own rainbow (WS) • team building • develop mastery of the core vocabulary content

20. (iii) Teach core vocabulary “adjectives to describe people”: Think-Pair-Share Pedagogical purposes: • students think of and share adjectives with partners • students are then invited to share their responses with the whole class • students get actively involved in vocabulary building for later application

21. iv) Focus on familiar topics and themes “things at home”:Team Word-Webbing, Blackboard Share and Gallery Tour Pedagogical purposes: • students generate as many ideas as they can on WS • on completion, teams share word-webs with other teams to exchange information and build concept • galley tour enables reflection on learning

22. Focus on familiar topics and themes “animals”:Think-pad Brainstorming, Blackboard Share and Gallery Tour  Pedagogical purposes: • students generate as many ideas as they can on separate think-pad slips • stronger students can help slower teammates generate ideas once they use up their own slips

23. While-reading • Storytelling by teacher  Pedagogical purposes: • teach book concept • use illustrations on cover to predict story • read the story to students and teach the guessing skills through pictorial clues

24. (ii) Guided reading Pedagogical purposes: • train reading skills • teach pronunciation and intonation in reading • develop predicting skills • check for understanding

25. Shared reading Students pair up to share the reading responsibility (interactive reading) Invite a pair of students to role play Pedagogical purposes: • make reading content accessible to all • allow less confident students the chance to read in a non-threatening situation • praise students on efforts using specific criteria

26. Post-reading Check for understanding Students write a new ending Pedagogical purposes: • strengthen creative abilities and imagination • introduce `concept-based’ learning on what kind of person students want to be

27. P.3 From reading to writing Reader: Well done, Max! Level: P.3 No. of students: 20 in 5 groups Teaching targets: • To learn reading skills on inferring and responding to the text • To learn different kinds of foods and sports • To learn how to lead a healthy life

28. What was in my mind when I planned my lesson? How can I provide more opportunities for student-to-student interaction? How can my students strengthen their interpersonal and small group skills? How to monitor the groups and give feedback effectively? How to ensure individual accountability?

29. The reading lesson procedures using CL structures Pre-reading • Stimulation To activate students’ background knowledge of different kinds of food (Whole class teaching & Questioning)

30. (ii) Brainstorming (Roundtable) - To use nouns to identify food items Pedagogical purposes : • Be certain that students give as many responses as they can • Be certain that every student understands how to describe different kinds of food • Monitor students’ responses

31. Pre-reading (iii) Answer sharing: (Gallery Tour) Pedagogical purposes: • students’ vocabulary bank can further be enriched • students can check their mastery of word spelling • Recycling book concepts and prediction skills: (Whole class teaching & Questioning) • Develop prediction skill as an aid to reading comprehension 

32. While-reading • To teach the pronunciation and meaning of the words(Guided reading & Shared reading)  (ii) To teach and recycle inferring and predicting through interacting with the text & picture clues (Think-Pair-Share)Pedagogical purposes of CL structures: • students are provided some think time • students can rehearse a response with a partner • students participate in the whole-class sharing • to better motivate students in reading the text

33. While-reading (iii) To respond to the text & check for understanding(Fan-N-Pick)  Pedagogical purposes of CL structures: • Read out the questions – speaking skills training • Think of an answer reading and speaking training • to rehearse a response with a partner learn from each other, equal opportunity to share ideas, high degree of interaction

34. Post-reading/ Pre-writingTo build up the bridge from reading to writing (i) Stimulation- To activate students’ prior knowledge of ways to lose weight (Whole class teaching & Questioning)

35. The read-write lesson procedures with CL structures Post-reading/ Pre-writing (ii) Brainstorming and organizing of ideas (Word-Webbing) Pedagogical purposes of CL structures: ~ self reflection upon personal experiences ~ group discussion about topic ~ list out vocabulary to be used in writing later on ~ build up the connection on writing (iii) Sharing of ideas (Blackboard Display)- to learn from others’ work

36. During-writing (i) Drafting with the help of teacher (Whole-class teaching & Questioning) • To learn the writing frame • To gain greater confidence in developing a piece of writing in groups

37. During-writing (ii) Group Writing of ideas (Jigsaw)  Pedagogical purposes of CL structures: • each team member becomes responsible for specific lines of sentences • shares their writing lines • discusses the writing materials • checks for the completion of writing

38. Post-writing • Proofreading and Editing I(Gallery Tour, 3 Stars and 1 Share)- To give and get peer feedback Pedagogical purposes of CL structures: • to read the others’ work • to be encouraged to check punctuation, spelling and grammar • to discuss and think critically during proofreading • to give positive peer feedback

40. Post-writing (ii) Proofreading and editing II  (Whole-class teaching) - Teacher gives corrective & informative feedback • appreciation on others’ good ideas • a better understanding on the use of language • improve the content of writing such as adding details, combining ideas, rearranging ideas, substituting words or phrases with more appropriate ones

41. Post-writing (iii) Independent writing - To complete a writing task on one’s own • Some examples of students’ work

42. Student works Ways to lose weight First, I can go running. I can go running in the playground. It is wonderful. Second, I can go swimming. I can go swimming in the swimming pool. Third, I should eat more fruits, vegetable, mangoes and apples. Next, I shouldn’t eat too many sweets, pizzas, chocolates, french fries, pasta and hamburgers. I can eat more vegetables at home and restaurant. I can buy more fruits in the market. I am happy. Then I can lose weight.

43. Ways to lose weight First, I can go hiking. I can go hiking in the park. Second. I can go swimming. I can go swimming in the swimming pool. Third, I should eat more pears, and, salad, and sandwiches. Next, I shouldn’t eat too much chocolate, beefsteak and pancakes. Then I can lose weight.

44. Ways to lose weight First, I can go swimming. I can go swimming in the swimming pool. It is fun. Second, I can go hiking. I can go hiking in the hill. Third, I should eat more mangoes, apples and pears. Next, I shouldn’t eat too much sweets, chips and pizza. Then I can loes weight.

45. Ways to lose weight First, I can go running. I can go running in the park. It’s worderful Second, I can ________ Third, I should eat more vegetables and good food Next, I should eat too much pizzas. Then I can lose giant weight.

46. Ways to lose weight First, I can go swimming. I can go swimming in the swimming pool. It is worderful. Second, I can play badminton. I play badminton in the badminton courts. I am happy. Third, I should eat more apple and vegetables. Next, I shouldn’t eat too much chese cakes, salad and French fries. Then I can lose weight.

47. Ways to lose weight First, I can go swimming I can go swimming in the swimming pool. It is wontoful, second I can ________ Third, I should eat mlik and apple. Next, I shouldn’t eat too many hamburgers and pizzas. Then I can lese wight.

48. Focus questions for reflection • Did we make instruction relevant and students responsible? • Did students work in groups / pairs to accomplish particular learning objectives and are interdependent for successful completion of the objective?

49. Did we emphasize intrinsic motivation as a key element in teaching and learning? • Did we create a learning atmosphere in which students feel respected and connected to one another?

50. Did our teaching enhance students’ self esteem? • Did students help each other? • Did we provide enough time for reflection and discussion of students’ errors or misconceptions?