Talk in the Classroom

Since I have not gotten my field placement yet, I am going to focus on the talk that occurs in my university classes and that I have noticed from my previous field placements. In most of my university classes, a recitation type discussion usually occurs. However, my CT teacher last year really incorporated response-centered talk into her classroom. Rather than recalling known information, she strived to have the children discover and construct a new understanding about literature. Instead of reciting facts and information from the story, the students were able to make connections and use their previous background knowledge to reflect on the story. After watching the two videos in class on Tuesday, I can say that my previous CT was just like the second teacher in the video. Unlike the students in the first video, my previous CT’s students were always engaged while she was reading a story. When asking a question during the story, she would always pause and let the children have a chance to answer the question. If a child got stuck on their answer, she would explain to the students how she was going to call on another classmate to help them out. The students all knew that they could build on what each other said, and no answer was a wrong answer. I felt that my previous CT did a very good job in engaging every child in the discussion. Since she made every student feel comfortable, they were not afraid to answer, even the shy students.

I believe that it is very important for a teacher to know how to incorporate “good” talk into their classroom. According to McGee, “Good talk can do more than provide children with a forum for showing what they know; it can provide a space for children to learn – an opportunity to develop and use reasoning and problem-solving”. Both McGee and Gibbons both stress the point that productive talk does not just happen, it needs to be deliberately and systematically planned out. So before a response-centered talk takes place, the teacher needs to carefully plan out how she wants to start the talk. In order for response centered talk to begin, the teacher needs to begin with an open-ended question, encouraging comments from all students. Additionally, the teacher needs to set rules and expectations before beginning the discussion. The teacher is not supposed to evaluate the correctness of a child’s response, but rather encourage all students to participate in the discussion.

Also, just like McGee stated, it is very important for children to set the agenda for a response centered talk, having their comments initiate topics for discussion. I think this is what worked so well for my previous CT. Just by observing the students, it was clear to me that they really were able to set the agenda for the discussion, allowing them to feel more comfortable and confident in the discussion. During response centered talk, children are really able to build off of one another and create a common understanding of the book. One reason that I don’t think some teachers do well with response centered talk is because they have a hard time standing back, not talking, and letting the students take control of the discussion. However, if needed, the teacher should step in and provide guidance to the students, raise the level of talk, or make explicit the children’s thinking.

I believe that there will be children in my classroom that need particular types of scaffolding. In order for a response centered talk to take place, children need to be willing to talk in the discussion. However, if a child is an ELL, they might not feel comfortable of confident to speak. In this case, the teacher might need to call on them during the discussion and help them out while they answer. Just like in my university classes now, there are many “shy” students who never participate in the discussion. On the other hand, there are many “loud” students who never are quiet during a discussion. So, I believe it will be very important for the teacher to make sure that everyone is equally participating in the discussion.