Thanks, Janet, for pointing us to the PD list.    It has been many years, 
but I remember that you did lots of interesting work wtih project-based 
learning in the years that I was following your work.    Woudl love to see 
some of the models you've created-- I know they'll be good!

Gail Weinstein




Janet Isserlis <Janet_Isserlis at brown.edu> 
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Gail and all

This dovetails nicely with another conversation on the PD list about 
project based learning.  It helps illustrate ways in which writing can 
move beyond a one-draft wonder to a thoughtful process ? both in terms of 
thinking, organizing and considering opinions, as well as working with 
writers to see what it is that writing can do and how it is that writers 
can come to do it.

thanks

Janet Isserlis

From: Gail E Weinstein <gailw at sfsu.edu>
Reply-To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
Date: Fri, 14 Sep 2007 07:49:54 -0700
To: <specialtopics at nifl.gov>
Subject: [SpecialTopics 636] Re: Last Day of InternationalPrograms 
Discussion


Sally, you make a great point about the need for soem students to move 
toward mastery of expository prose.  I have always focused on 
"non-academic" language for immigrants, which never got much attention in 
my own teacher training, but you are absolutely right, that many learners 
want access to academic settings. 

I love some of the early writing of Ilana Leki and Rebecca Mylnarczic 
(sorry, Rebecca, whereever you are, I know I've butchered the spelling 
terribly) who explore the connection between personal and academic 
writing.  Lekij, in  a wonderful little gem that appeared in the TESOL 
Journal,  laid out a very compelling progression which she calls 
"sequenced writing assignments". Learners begin by writing an opinion 
about something they feel persinally and deeply (i.e. about smoking when a 
parent has died of lung cancer).  Then they construct and carry out a 
survey of 10-20 people in their community on that topic.  Then the begin 
their literature search to see what has been written about the topic. Then 
the write an "essay" or "research paper", in which they use traditional 
conventions of citing research, but they begin from a stance of personal 
investment, exploration of the voices of those around them, and then embed 
it in scholarship.    This model argues that the best "essay" and academic 
writing can and should be deeply personal, and that the work is most 
powerful when the author's voice is strong and clear -- even (or 
especially) when the work is academic and research-based. 

Have you ever worked with this model?  In your own struggles to move 
learner toward expository writing, what do you find helps students stay 
invested and see the discourse mode that is somethign that is still for 
and about THEM and the things that matter to them most? 

Yours, 
Gail 
San Francisco State University. 







"Gabb, Sally S." <sgabb at bristol.mass.edu> 
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Hi Gail and all:  I have always supported the idea of learner?s Lives as 
Curriculum ? however I want to encourage moving to more expository writing 
to enable higher level students to gain further writing skills beyond 
narrative.  Using a thematic approach, students could write their 
narratives, then look at issues that affect their lives and work on 
essays, gaining instruction/guidance for the kinds of writing that are 
required at a post secondary level.  In my current work at the community 
college, I am finding these kinds of ?bridge? instructional efforts are 
extremely important for those who want to move on to higher level academic 
pursuits.  Just a thought!!  Sally Gabb, Bristol Community College 



From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov [
mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of Gail E Weinstein
Sent: Friday, September 14, 2007 8:16 AM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 630] Re: Last Day of InternationalPrograms 
Discussion 


Hi Friends. 

Sorry to join very late in the discussion. 

I'm interested in Eric's comment about community publishing and using 
learner writing. I'm working on a model I call "Learners' LIves as 
Curriculum", where teachers are trained to collect and use learner 
narratives as the basis for developing mateirals.  I"ve been developing 
this for immigrnts in the United States, first in the form of 
traditionally published textbooks, but now with much more interest and 
emphasis on teacher training, to connect materials developmetn with 
learner narratives to professional development as they work in teams to 
write the material. 

We're working now on collecting narratives from immigrants about memories 
of floods, earthquakes, etc. to develop disaster preparedness materials, 
and are training immigrant learners to collect some of the stories.  The 
next project in line is to develop health literacy materials beginning 
with "stories of courage and hope" from immigrant cancer survivors as a 
way into mateiral about screening and resources for cancer.  The purpose 
of this model, is, as Eric comments, to weave learner writing and learner 
stories into the fabric of the curriculum itself. 

A couple of our graduated students from the MATESOL program at San 
Francisco State got fascinated with the model and want to try it out in 
Japan.  We'll be presenting there in November.  I've also presented the 
model in Turkey and Israel, and have received very enthused responses from 
teachers there, who are exasperated with materials that have been imported 
from foreign contexts. 

Would love to discuss this more with interested colleagues. 

Gail Weinstein 



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[SpecialTopics 627] Re: Last Day of International Programs Discussion 



 





>From what I have seen in Japan - 


8) They are not thinking about jobs with a future, or jobs at all. There 
are no long range plans like that in most programs. 

9) Students get a place to feel comfortable and supported. They get a kind 
ear. They get to feel like part of a community. They also get language 
skills, literacy skills and content area knowledge. 

10) Assessment is a tough issue - and raising it can cause a room to 
empty. Most programs don't reallly want to talk about assessment. I 
suppose the government might talk about how many people have graduated 
from programs, but they don't often get involved at that level. 

What I am interested in checking out is community publishing. Many 
programs produce books of student writing, and I would like to check back 
in with them to hear more about the reaction and how they are used. My 
sense is that they are more of a way to document students' work and as an 
awareness raising thing. I don't think they are used as materials in the 
classroom. 

Erik Jacobson



-------------- Original message ----------------------
From: "David J. Rosen" <djrosen at comcast.net>

> Special Topics Colleagues,

> 

> Friday, September 14th, is the last day of our discussion about what 

> adult literacy education programs in the U.S. can learn from literacy 

> programs and initiatives in other countries.  Our discussion has 

> touched on many different experiences, ideas and issues, cultures and 

> countries. Brenda Bell has suggested that one good framework to look 

> at this wide range of issues across countries is  Part II of the 

> Oxfam book, Developing Adult Literacy: Approaches to Planning, 

> Implementing and Delivering Literacy Initiatives. I urge you to take 

> a look at this part, indeed the whole book.  It's available free, for 

> now at least, as a download from

> 

> http://publications.oxfam.org.uk/oxfam/display.asp?K=e2007030715391164

> 

> Subscribers and guests: what will you carry away from this 

> discussion?  What new information or ideas? What has whetted your 

> appetite for more? What might you try out in your program?

> 

> Some of our guests may be checking in on Friday so if you have more 

> questions there is still time.  Some of our guests, too, may have 

> other thoughts or comments they would like to share. And I do hope 

> some of our guests can address the last three questions I posed:

> 

> 8.  How are other countries managing to embed language and literacy 

> development into services designed to help adults get jobs with a 

> future?

> 

> 9. What do participants most get out of the programs that you have 

> been involved with?  Conversation skills, reading skills, writing 

> skills, employment skills, empowerment, preparation for postsecondary 

> education, computer skills?

> If you have been involved in developing integrated curriculum, what 

> are the main goals of curriculum development in international contexts?

> 

> 10. How is success measured in programs in other countries?  What 

> sorts of metrics are used?

> 

> 

> On Monday we start a new discussion, on adult numeracy.

> 

> 

> David J. Rosen

> Special Topics Discussion Moderator

> djrosen at comcast.net

> 

> 

> 

> 

> 

> 

> -------------------------------

> National Institute for Literacy

> Special Topics mailing list

> SpecialTopics at nifl.gov

> To unsubscribe or change your subscription settings, please go to 

> http://www.nifl.gov/mailman/listinfo/SpecialTopics

> Email delivered to ejonline at comcast.net


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