Johann Wolfgang von Goethe once said, "The decline of literature indicates the decline of a nation." The majority of my students admit to never reading on an individual basis. This decline in the enjoyment of literature is certainly changing the dynamic of the high school English classroom.
My students live in a rural, farming town in South Louisiana.
They come from diverse backgrounds, varying ethnicity, and different academic abilities. Many homes in the area represent low socioeconomic levels and are limited in technology and Internet capabilities. Typically, students are being raised by a single parent or even a relative. The majority of students do not receive help at home and must master all concepts through engaging instructional activities. I teach English 2 Honors and all English 3 classes. These students are very bright and have high goals and ambitions set for themselves. They work hard and show a strong desire to learn, despite the limits and struggles they face. Every day in the classroom is a challenge that they continue to overcome.
My Project
With the new vision of the 21st century classroom, E-readers will allow students to engage in a more individualized way. I plan to utilize the E-readers in several different ways. Every day, students engage in Silent Sustained Reading. The use of E-readers would allow students to have a larger selection of reading material, to continuously read in a quicker, more familiar way, and even to vary reading levels anonymously. Students also read during intervention with one-on-one teacher assistance. During this time, we could work together to enhance comprehension, work on vocabulary, and learn new reading skills. The E-readers would assist these goals by helping students to annotate on texts they would not otherwise be able to write, define unknown words using the dictionary tools, and make notes to refer back to for assignments. During class, students could also use the E-readers to find evidence that supports claims. This is a large push with the new assessment standards/requirements.
If awarded these E-readers, I hope to bring reading to the next level for my students.
I believe that E-readers would be a valuable asset to the classroom that will spark a newfound interest in reading. Since many of my students come from homes with limited literature and technology, reading is not something they consider fun or even necessary in life. Through my class, I really hope that students will see how valuable reading is, how fun the classics can be, and how technology combines the two.
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