11/26/11
LAE 4530.001
Tara Payor & Nina Graham
Being in an English Honors class, I have had the opportunity to work with students who are considered more dedicated and advanced in their studies according to a tracking system. Still I have encountered students who are falling behind in the class because they cannot keep up with its pace. Students at the honors level are expected to know certain concepts by heart and not have to be reminded of what they are every time they are used again.
As I was grading journal entries for her, I pointed out to Ms. Rich that some students do not understand the concept of some of the literary devices. She looked at the students I was referring to and nodded in agreement, adding that these students do not belong in an honors class. The assignment was to find a passage in the book they were reading that used a literary device, quoting it and explaining how that literary device is being used there. With basic devices like metaphors and similes, some students were not understanding at all. They would consider something like "You look like your sister" to be a simile. Other mistakes they made were confusing metaphors and similes, other literary devices they frequently misunderstood were personification, allusion, hyperbole, etc.
To help them I would give a simple definition of the device and write an example or two next to their incorrect answers. I also pointed out when they correctly identified a literary device to encourage them and let them see when they themselves did it correctly so that they may use it as an example for the next time. I really hope that such personal and in-depth feedback will be helpful to them.
Still, if they are lacking in literary device identification and application, they must be behind in other concepts as well. The tracking system does not seem to be doing well here. While it is usually a problem of stigmatizing and limiting students who are tracked, in this case the students are moved up when they should be in regular classes where they may excel but at least are not being pushed down too far. Ms. Rich explained that to raise student GPA's (and through them the school's grade), more students are being advanced to higher level classes and admitted to more AP classes than they may be able to handle. A bigger issue may be at hand as well. Schools may also be advancing more students to make sure that each class has less than 25 students.
The reasons for advancing these students are immoral and a detriment to the students. Those whose papers I gave extended feedback had not learned the material well enough and were not going to at this rate. Because she is teaching an honors class, Ms. Rich cannot stop to catch everyone up. With honors and AP classes, it is also expected that the students will take on the responsibility of catching themselves up, something Ms. Rich is not seeing from these students and another indicator that they do not belong there.
To remedy this issue, I would give students the opportunity of returning to a "regular" classroom after a quarter or so of the year. This way they still have an opportunity to raise their grades and GPA. It is difficult for a teacher to have to deal with this as well. At times we want to be superheros and help everyone but some things are simply out of our control and should be attended by the students and parents themselves. One thing a teacher can do in this case though is to recommend the student be placed in another class. Still, sometimes this option is not available in every school.
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