William Cope
Vania Castro
Simon SchroederMATE 2022 Conference’s Updates
Discussion 1: Why Multiliteracies?
Comment: What do you consider the main challenges for ELA educators today?
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So much of what we learned is valuable yet it is difficult to envision it in practice in a world that hasn't conformed to a new way of thinking.
The main challenge I see for ELA educators today is the education system educators come from. In university we study what we are interested in. We specialize in two subject areas and then end up teaching up to eight different subjects. There is not enough rigor to create efficacy in our teachers in what they have to teach. I see this as a math teacher all of the time, and now I am teaching ELA and I have no clue about it. The curriculum is so different, the needs are so different, everything is different. I don't know where to start or how to start. I feel like I am failing my students.
A challenge I have noticed is connecting multimodality teaching practices to the rigid report card assessments done 3 times a year. Putting percentages to students' ways of representing their understanding since their meaning-making can be of variety.
I find one of the main challenges for ELA teachers and teachers in general is teaching students how to navigate the growing prominence of the fake news / anti-truth era. Media and digital literacy is more important than ever.
Keeping students engaged and curious throughout the writing process has been a HUGE challenge. Children's attention spans are decreasing drastically I have found, with social media being their main means of communication and artistic expression.
- Students lack of their own self-confidence.
- Public speaking, speeches, and talking in front of their peers.
- How to get students to believe in themselves and look for self-improvement vs what everyone else is doing?
As a student teacher, one challenge I have noticed is how to reduce students’ anxiety on writing papers.
Increasing student engagement.
Employing technology in meaningful and impactful ways.
Avoiding the pitfalls of technology.
Navigating and implementing the curriculum.