jGR Update – November 2012

5 ALL SKILLS IN 4, PLUS NON-FORCED EMERGING OUTPUT – this is a rare kid who throws out some good unforced French every once in a while. Like if I am in the middle of piling up reps on “She went camping at Wal-Mart”, this kid is the one who says in the target language, “So there is a girl who goes camping at Wal-Mart, right?” and I go, “Yes, that’s it!”, and we go on with no use of English. That kid is a 5 kid. These are really strong co-creators of stories. I would say to this student: “You are giving A+ effort. You play the game perfectly.”

4 (A/B) RESPONDS AUTOMATICALLY, IN TL, TO ALL INPUT, INCLUDING USING “STOP” FOR CLARIFICATION.  THE STUDENT CONSISTENTLY AND IN A CLEARLY POSITIVE WAY NEGOTIATES MEANING WITH THE TEACHER NON VERBALLY. This is the kid who is really involved but not spontaneously outputting speech yet. They are fun, always visually locked on, always there with cute answers, and just a blessing to each class and I tell them so. These are strong co-creators of stories.

3 (B/C) RESPONDS REGULARLY. IN TL OR VISUALLY.  THE STUDENT SOMETIMES NEGOTIATES MEANING WITH THE TEACHER NON VERBALLY IN A POSITIVE WAY, BUT THE NEGOTIATION OF MEANING IS INCONSISTENT. ALSO INCONSISTENT USE OF “STOP” SIGNAL – this kid is also involved but more passively. They show that they are not always on top of all the CI because they let the stop sign slide a bit. This is the kid who used to get an A in my class just for getting 8 or above on quizzes. No more. But good kids nonetheless. These are limited co-creators of stories. They do not blurt out words in English or talk to their neighbor in English. they can be counted on not to blurt.

2 (C/D) ATTENTIVE BUT DOESN’T RESPOND; DOESN’T USE “STOP” SIGNAL – this is the kid who may get a good grade on a quiz but makes me work way too hard. They just aren’t involved. They don’t get how to play the game yet. They occasionally blurt out words in English or talk to their neighbor in English, both of which destroy the goal of the class, to stay in the target language as per the 90% Use Position Statement of the American Council of Teachers of Foreign Languages, which is the national parent organization for foreign language teachers in the United States. But usually they just stare at me in spite of my being practically on my knees begging them for a more creative and energetic response to all the hard work I am doing. These are not co-creators of stories.*

1 (D/F) NOT ATTENTIVE: NO EYE CONTACT OR EFFORT – these are not creators at all of anything. They suck air out of the room. They do poorly on tests. They give nothing to the story. Their chances of failing the course are high. They often blurt out words in English or talk to their neighbor in English, both of which destroy the goal of the class. I would say to this student: “You really don’t add anything to the class; in fact, you might put your head down, come in late, try to do work for your other classes, disrupt others, blurt out in English, talk to your neighbor during class, organize your purse or bag, put on make up, check the time every other minute, try to text, etc.

*One might object that that is just the way some kids are, and are that way through no fault of their own. Fine, but my job, the main clause of my school’s mission statement in fact, includes how my job, my mission, is to “build productive citizens” ready for work in the 21st century workplace. I take that seriously. So if I let those same kids’ stonefaced behavior or blurting go, thus not aligning my assessment with the national standards, I am not properly doing my job for my employer and I should be fired.