Chapter 14 talked a lot about conferencing. I have not seen much of this in my field experience this semester, but last semester I conference with many different students. I think it is a great thing to do in the classroom. I believe that it helps the relationship between the student and the teacher. When I worked with my students I felt like I got to know them better as a not only a student but a person in general. They would write about things that are important to them and it gave me an inside look into their lives. I also like that the chapter said to keep conferencing short. If teachers take a lot of time with one student it will take longer to get to other students which just stalls the writing process. Also after conferencing I like the idea of the teacher writing down what they talked about so that in the future the teacher can remember where they left off and have written record of what was said. We did not do this in my field experience classroom.
Chapter 15 talked about share time and how important it really is. I agree with the book that share time is very important. Last semester my students had NO share time. Because of this I feel like the students didn’t enjoy class as much, and the teacher and students didn’t really relate. This semester is totally different. My students have time to share many times throughout the day. They have free writing time in the middle of the day and if students want they are allowed to share their story. Because of time only a few students can share but it usually isn’t an issue. Also my teacher allows fellow classmates to ask questions to the student speaking to make sure that other students are listening to their classmates as well as get to know each other better.
Chapter 17 talked about ways to evaluate your students by asking them questions. I have not seen this implemented in my field experience classrooms, but I think it would be a great thing to do. Most of the teachers I have observed ask questions about writing in an exam format but I think it would be just as good if not better to work one on one with a student and ask the student questions. I also liked that the chapter used a scale for evaluating students. Not only do the teachers evaluate the students but they also get to evaluate themselves.
Interesting that your classroom last semester did have conferences but did not have sharing. And this semester sounds a bit opposite. It just reminds me that each teacher finds the right mix for themselves, as you will, too. I think the questions we ask during conferences and assessment can tell us a lot about student learning - the questions they ask us can teach us, too.
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