Monday, June 9, 2008

Literacy Training: Follow Up Visits

Here is a note from Lucila, the lead teacher in the Professional Development Literacy Workshops for teachers in the San Ramon school system:

Hello dear friends from Henniker,

I wanted to let you know that I am very content with the way we are going about this training and I consider this to be the way to work with teachers who don't seem accustomed to having follow up or supervision.

During these last few weeks I have been visiting schools and observing [many different] classes.... Many teachers sought more support from me, asking me about doubts that they had and also asking for my intervention so as to show them how to work a certain area. I feel that this work in the classrooms is very enriching for the teachers because when it comes time to do activities sometimes questions arise and can be resolved with a little help. At the same time many teachers continue giving their classes the same as they have for years (despite having enjoyed the workshop, indicating on their evaluation forms that they believed they could use what they had learned). Doing school visits is a way of ensuring that they begin to put into practice these new ways of teaching.

I have also seen some brilliant classes in which teachers gave a lot of importance to the meaning of texts, using and expanding the activities introduced in the workshop, thus facilitating greater reading comprehension. This, on a personal level, makes me very happy.

Thanks for giving me, and us, your trust and the possibility of doing this work with the teachers of San Ramon. I hope that we continue together on this path of encounters, hope, and solidarity, and that with our shared efforts we help to make things more just. Ok, now I say goodbye hoping to meet you this summer and share more about these interesting experiences lived in San Ramon. Thanks again!

Until soon,
Lucila


Lucila and Jason have been conducting follow up visits to classrooms and schools in the San Ramon's countryside.

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