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English to Serbian: Transforming Education through Teacher Leadership, Dr David Frost (ed) General field: Social Sciences Detailed field: Education / Pedagogy
Source text - English Louise Steel’s story: Strategies to develop literacy in Science
Editor’s introduction
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Louise Steel is a teacher at Turnford School in Hertfordshire, a secondary school serving a disadvantaged community in which levels of literacy are a significant challenge. It is arguably problematic that such schools are constrained by a curriculum framework based on the tradition of subjects, one of the side effects of which is that literacy is often left to the English department to deal with.This story is refreshing therefore in that it shows how a Science teacher not only tackled the literacy challenge in her practice, but also, by collaborating with colleagues from different subject areas, she contributed to the development of practice in relation to this issue across the school as a whole. I am also impressed by the extent to which Louise has taken on the responsibility to embed her innovations in the norms and routines of practice within the Science Faculty.
This is so much better than the alternative approach to change where a teacher restricts themselves to improving only their own practice.This approach has two negative consequences: first, the students do not experience consistency in the learning process and so cannot develop their capacity as learners; and second, the innovations are not sustained in the school and simply wither whenever the individual teacher moves to another school.
Key lessons about teacher leadership
• When teachers take up the challenge of enabling disadvantaged students to succeed, they tend to move beyond the traditional focus on subject content and focus on aspects of the process of learning.
• In order to secure sustainable impact, teacher leadership needs to take up the challenge of embedding innovations in the norms and routine practices of the school.
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Studying Science at GCSE level demands a high level of literacy. Examination success depends on students being able to write accurately and to provide well-constructed explanations of scientific problems. Louise wanted her students to succeed in their exams of course, but just as important in her view was the role of literacy in everyday life (Kutner et al.,2007). Proficiency in reading and writing are essential in employment, household management and participating in wider society. Louise envisaged her development work therefore as making an important contribution to the development of students’ life skills.
With such an ambitious agenda, Louise knew that, if her project was to have any chance of success, she would need to engage colleagues. She began by securing the collaboration of other members of her department and asked them to help her to draw together existing resources designed to develop students’literacy
in Science. These were to prove useful in the months to come. Louise was able
to share these resources and ideas within the literacy-coaching group which she joined shortly afterwards. This group included teachers from subject areas across the school who had been invited to come together by the Literacy Coordinator to work on this issue collaboratively.
A cross-school survey conducted by the literacy coordinator proved very useful to
Louise as it allowed her to relate her own development work to the wider focus on literacy across the school.The key outcome of this survey was that students seemed to lack the ability to pick out the key points from their reading. It was also evident that they had difficulty understanding the vocabulary used commonly in Science examination questions. Louise decided to focus on the development of reading skills as she could see that this was an area in which she could most effectivelycontribute to the development of literacy within the school.
The next step was for Louise to trial known techniques for improving her students’
reading skills, such as ‘directed activities related to text’, often referred to with the acronym DARTs (Lunzer and Gardner, 1984). DARTs are well-established techniques for improving literacy such as completion tasks or highlighting relevant segments of text; these had been promoted through the‘Pedagogy and Practice’guidance materials distributed to English schools under the‘National Strategy’(DfES, 2004).These activities are designed to challenge students to read closely and interpret carefully what they are reading. Louise selected key pieces
of texts and tried out a range of these directed activities.They seemed to help to some extent, but she was still concerned that her students were not engaging actively with texts. Her reading provided her with ideas as to how to develop new resources which might help her to overcome this passivity (Davies and Greene,
1984;Wray, 2009).These included designing a new planning sheet and writing frames for students. She also created a planning tool to help students document practical activities and made connective table-mats. She evaluated these activities
by getting feedback from the students and adapted her strategies accordingly. For example, she added connectives and key words down the side of the writing frame.These refinements both supported less able students and stretched those who were more able but were perhaps a little complacent.
It was clear to Louise through her own observations that the students’ use of active reading strategies such as scanning and skimming was becoming
more effective. After using these strategies over a period of several months, 11
Louise asked her students to help evaluate this general approach. She asked them for feedback on how these literacy activities helped themto develop as active readers.The response was very positive; it was evident that the level of students’confidence in reading was rising which was really important given her aim of developing literacy for life. Louise decided it was now time to apply this new-found confidence to the literacy-heavy questions in GCSE Science examination papers.
In the past much of the writing required in Science lessons was undemanding (Osborne and Collins, 2000) so Louise could see how the current examinations might demand a different approach. From a discussion with her students she learned that they lacked confidence in tackling GCSE questions which demanded detailed answers. She though that this might be due in part to a lack of technique. Working with the literacy-coaching group, Louise planned some writing frames to give students support in structuring their answers appropriately and extending their thinking. Although these were effective, Louise was concerned that students would not have this support in the examination and so wanted to empower them to become more self-sufficient. She therefore worked with students to develop their skills in developing their own writing frames.
At the end of the unit of work, Louise asked her students to complete a feedback sheet to help her judge the impact of her new strategies. She looked at these comments alongside her assessment of their written work. It was evident that the students’ writing showed improvement particularly when answering more open- ended questions that called for extended writing. Their confidence with writing
in Science had grown significantly and they were exhibiting more perseverance than before.
To develop the work further, Louise planned to collaborate with her colleagues to create more resources. She introduced the use of writing frames with Year 11 students and used them when setting homework assignments.These approaches have now been adopted by almost all members of the Science Faculty who routinely use writing frames to support students in writing up experiments.
She hoped that, ultimately, there would be a set of resources and strategies to upport writing in Science right through fromYear 7 toYear 13.
Louise regularly shared what she had learned with her colleagues in the Science
Faculty. She also continued to meet with the literacy-coaching group to help
the development of literacy in the school. Particular recommendations included the need to develop further opportunities where pupils can develop writing skills through more in-depth, extended writing tasks, the embedding of more active reading exercises into lessons and the further inclusion of students in the development and evaluation of strategies to develop literacy competence and confidence.
Translation - Serbian Pri?a Luiz Stil: Strategije za razvijanje pismenosti u prirodnim naukama
Uvodna reč urednika
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Luiz Stil je nastavnica u Ternford školi u Hartfordšajeru. To je srednja škola koju uglavnom pohađaju učenici iz socijalno ugroženih slojeva i čiji stepen pismenosti nije zadovoljavajući. Dodatni problem predstavlja obaveza škole da radi po predmetnom kurikulumu tako da se pismenošću bave predmeti Engleski jezik i Književnost. Ova priča unosi novinu jer pokazuje ne samo kako se nastavnica prirodnih nauka pozabavila problemom pismenosti u svom radu već i kako je u celoj školi, sarađujući s nastavnicima iz drugih predmetnih oblasti, doprinela razvoju prakse u vezi sa pismenošću. Impresionirao me je izuzetan stepen Luizinog truda i posvećenosti da njena inovacija postane uobičajen i standardan deo nastavnog rada svih nastavnika prirodnih nauka.To je višestruko bolje od alternativnog pristupa promeni, u kojem se nastavnik ograničava samo na unapređivanje sopstvene prakse,budući da takav pristup ima dve negativne posledice: prvo, nastavni proces nije konzistentan, što učenicima onemogućuje razvijanje sposobnosti za učenje; i drugo, inovacija nije održiva jer nestaje kada dotični nastavnik napusti datu školu.
Ključne lekcije o liderstvu nastavnika
• Kada se nastavnik uhvati u koštac sa izazovom da učeniku iz ugrožene grupe omogući da uspe, on prevazilazi tradicionalnu usmerenost na sadržaj predmeta i fokusira se na aspekte procesa učenja.
• Da bi se obezbedio održiv uticaj, neophodno je da nastavnik lider istraje na zahtevnom zadatku ugra?ivanja inovacije u normative i rutinsku praksu škole.
_________________________
U pripremi za ispit iz prirodnih nauka za GCSE1 neophodan je visok stepen pismenosti. Uspeh na ispitu zavisi od učenikove sposobnosti da pravilno piše i jasno obrazloži probleme iz prirodnih nauka. Naravno da je Luiz želela da njeni učenici uspešno polože ispit, ali joj je podjednako važna bila i uloga pismenosti u svakodnevnom životu (Kutner et al.,2007) u kojem je sposobnost pravilnog i tečnog čitanja i pisanja neophodna za posao, vođenje domaćinstva i ućešće u društvenoj zajednici. Zbog toga je Luiz smatrala da će njen razvojni rad značajno doprineti razvoju životnih veština učenika.
Da bi uspešno ostvarila tako ambiciozan plan, Luiz je bila svesna da u njega mora da uključi kolege i koleginice. Počela je od nastavnika iz svog aktiva koje je zamolila da joj pomognu da prikupe postojeće resurse namenjene razvijanju pismenosti učenika u prirodnim naukama. Ti resursi če se pokazati veoma korisnim u narednim mesecima. Luiz je prikupljene resurse i ideje podelila s grupom za podršku razvoju pismenosti, kojoj se naknadno pridružila. U ovoj grupi bili su nastavnici različitih predmeta koje je koordinator za pismenost okupio da bi zajedno radili na tom pitanju.
Rezultate istraživanja koje je u celoj školi sproveo koordinator za pismenost Luiz je iskoristila da svoj razvojni projekat stavi u širi okvir pismenosti u celoj školi. Ključni rezultat pomenutog istraživanja bio je taj da učenici nisu u stanju da izdvoje ključne stvari iz pročitanog teksta. Pokazalo se i da slabo razumeju vokabular koji se obično koristi u ispitnim pitanjima iz prirodnih nauka. Luiz je odlučila da se fokusira na razvoj čitalačkih veština jer je uvidela da je to oblast u kojoj može najdelotvornije doprineti razvoju pismenosti u školi.
Njen naredni korak bio je isprobavanje poznate tehnike za unapređivanje čitalačkih veština svojih učenika, kao što su „vođeni rad s tekstom” (engl. “directed activities related to text” DART) (Lunzer and Gardner, 1984). Vođeni rad s tekstom koristi proverene tehnike za poboljšavanje pismenosti, kao što su: upisivanje odgovarajućih reči na prazna mesta u tekstu, završavanje rečenica ili podvlačenje relevantnih delova teksta. Te tehnike preporučuju se u vodiču „Pedagogija i praksa” (Pedagogy and Practice) koji su sve engleske škole dobile u okviru „Nacionalne strategije”(DfES, 2004). Aktivnosti u okviru vođenog rada s tekstom osmišljene su tako da navode učenike da revnosno čitaju i pažljivo interpretiraju pročitano. Luiz je odabrala ključne tekstove i isprobala niz tehnika vođenog rada s tekstom.Te tehnike donekle su pomogle, ali Luiz je još uvek smatrala da se učenici nedovoljno aktivno udubljuju u tekst. Literatura koju je pročitala dala joj je ideje kako da razvije nove resurse za prevazilaženje te pasivnosti (Davies and Greene, 1984;Wray, 2009).Osmislila je, između ostalog, nove planere i šeme za pisanje koje će učenici koristiti. Takođe je osmislila alatku za planiranje koja će učenicima pomoći da dokumentuju praktične aktivnosti i napravila tabele pomoću kojih učenici mogu povezati pojmove i gradivo. Zajedno sa učenicima evaluirala je ove aktivnosti i, na osnovu njihovih komentara, doradila svoje strategije. Na primer, na marginama šeme za pisanje upisala je ključne i vezne reči. To doterivanje pomoglo je lošijim učenicima i podstaklo bolje ali lenje učenike.
Luiz je primetila da učenici sve efikasnije koriste aktivne čitalačke strategije kao što su skeniranje i letimično čitanje teksta. Nakon što su učenici nekoliko meseci koristili te strategije, zamolila ih je da evaluiraju takav pristup. Tražila je da joj kažu kako im je ovaj rad na pismenosti pomogao da postanu aktivni čitaoci. Odgovori su bili vrlo pozitivni; bilo je očigledno da nivo učeničke sigurnosti u čitanju raste. To je bilo zaista veoma važno kad se ima u vidu Luizin cilj da razvije „pismenost za život”. Tada je Luiz odlučila da ovu novostečenu sigurnost primeni na tekstove ispitnih pitanja za završni (GCSE) ispit iz prirodnih nauka.
Ranijih godina pismeni zadaci iz prirodnih nauka nisu bili vrlo zahtevni (Osborne and Collins, 2000). Luiz je shvatila da je za sadašnje ispite neophodan drugačiji pristup. Iz razgovora sa svojim učenicima saznala je da nemaju dovoljno sigurnosti da odgovaraju na GCSE pitanja koja traže detaljne odgovore. Smatrala je da se to može delimično pripisati nepoznavanju odgovarajuće tehnike. Radeći sa grupom za podršku pismenosti, Luiz je osmislila smernice za pisanje koje bi učenicima pomogle da bolje i detaljnije razmisle i strukturiraju svoje odgovore na odgovarajući način. Smernice su bile delotvorne, ali Luiz je znala da učenici na ispitu neće imati takvu pomoć pa je želela da ih osnaži da se više oslone sami na sebe. Tako je počela da radi na razvijanju veštine učenika za samostalno osmišljavanja strukture pismenog odgovora.
Kada su završili taj deo rada, učenici su popunili evaluacioni formular da pomognu Luiz da proceni uticaj svojih novih strategija. Dobijene komentare je upoređivala sa ocenama njihovih pismenih radova. Bilo je očigledno da su učenici napredovali u pisanju, naročito u odgovorima na otvorena pitanja, koji moraju da budu duži i detaljniji. Samopouzdanje za pisanje radova u prirodnim naukama bitno im je poraslo a postali su i uporniji nego ranije.
Za dalji razvoj rada Luiz je planirala da, u saradnji s kolegama i koleginicama, osmisli još novih resursa. Smernice za pisanje uvela je u 11. razred a učenici su ih koristili i za izradu domaćih zadataka. Te nove tehnike prihvatili su gotovo svi nastavnici prirodnih nauka te sada rutinski koriste smernice za pisanje koje učenicima pomažu pri opisivanju eksperimenata. Luiz se nada da će, konačno, postojati komplet resursa i strategija za podršku pisanju u oblasti prirodnih nauka za sve razrede, od 7. do 13.
Sve što je naučila u saradnji sa ostalim članovima aktiva nastavnika prirodnih naukaLuiz je redovno prenosila drugima. Takođe je nastavila da radi u grupi za podršku razvoju pismenosti kako bi doprineli razvoju pismenosti na nivou cele škole. Glavne preporuke obuhvatale su: osmišljavanje više mogućnosti za razvijanje veština pisanja putem temeljnih, opširnijih pismenih vežbi; redovno korišćenje vežbi aktivnog čitanja i veće angažovanje učenika u razvoju i evaluaciji strategija za razvoj kompetencija i samopouzdanja za pisanje.
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1GCSE (General Certificate of Secondary Education) svedočanstvo je o završenoj srednjoj školi koje se dobija polaganjem ispita iz engleskog jezika, matematike i prirodnih nauka. Taj ispit je obavezan za državne škole a u zavisnosti od postignuća učenici imaju prohodnost za dalje školovanje (prim.prev.)
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Translation education
Graduate diploma - Faculty of Philosophy, Zagreb, Croatia
Experience
Years of experience: 32. Registered at ProZ.com: Jul 2018.
Born and raised in Croatia I have graduated Psychology and English Language at Zagreb University, Faculty of Philosophy. Croatian is my first native language. Having moved to Belgrade, Serbia I have quickly acquired Serbian variation of then Serbo-Croat language. Thus, both Serbian and Croatian are my native languages. Following move to Belgrade I have been switching between my two fields of expertise – from hands on experience in teaching and counseling to interpreting at a construction site in Libya, where I have quickly acquired civil engineering vocabulary, managing domestic and international education projects with English being a working language. Along with my regular employment, I have started to translate books and scientific papers mainly in the field of education and psychology, thus combining my graduate subjects and hand on experience. Although I have not advertised my translation skills they have become known by the word of mouth so that I have been sought out by educators and pedagogues/psychologists who wanted reliable and adequate translation of their work. I am retired but still very much in a translation business, ready for new challenges.
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