Unlock with PatreonThe Problem with CI
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They Can No Longer Tell Us What To Do
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5 thoughts on “They Can No Longer Tell Us What To Do”
I’m completely with you on the idea of avoiding boring at all costs. The TPRS novels take interesting things and make them tedious and boring. The most popular book. Brandon Brown. Why in the world would any 15 yr old want to read that? Much less be in a class where the entire class reads it for 2 weeks straight?! Things have to be real or as close to real as possible to be compelling. If we’re making up a story, it is driven by students guided by the teacher and it’s real because it’s happening before our eyes. Can’t tell you how many “Holy crap, Ben!” moments I had this most recent semester just allowing kids to come up with the story. Also, I don’t have to light my hair on fire trying to get them to pay attention. When the artist’s work is unveiled, kids are actually applauding! Unprovoked! Any kids ever clap at the end of Brandon Brown?! I don’t think so!
Yah they clap bc it’s over and they don’t have to keep trying to keep up with the fast readers anymore. Those books divide the class down racial and economic lines, availability of books in communities, etc. They are weak pedagogical tools for everyone. But they are million dollar products as well, so there you go.
When I say that the novels and any targeted type of CI instruction “get real boring real fast”, I am telling the truth for 80% of the students in the class, as well as for most teachers. Krashen says that his research reveals a “lessening of interest”.
That is a huge understatement. He said it nicely but inaccurately. Most targeted classes are just plain boring and they put a kind of emotional heaviness to the class that we do not find in non-targeted CI instruction.
People who still target, possibly 98% of CI teachers currently, are trading student engagement for teaching from a list to keep up with some curriculum that is not in alignment with the standards and the research. Why do that?
Craig can I include your comment above, that would be included with something Alisa wrote here a year ago, in the “52 Reasons” article I keep posting here? I really pull out a hammer on the entire million dollar novels industry. I won’t stop as long we have inequity in our country.
Yes of course