Disciplinary Literacy- History and Arts

Synthesis:

Jetton and Shanahan Ch. 8
This chapter explores the reactions of two students, Brad and Ayesha, as they read two different and somewhat conflicting history texts.  Because the students have different protocols for reading history, their comprehension not only differs from each other, but also from expert history readers.  On the one hand, Brad makes assumptions that the history textbook is superior to all other history texts.  He accepts information from the textbook as fact and disregards personal accounts because, in his mind, the narrator of history textbooks is always omniscient.  Ayesha, on the other hand, does enjoy entertaining other perspectives about history as she reads.  She wants to read all of the available texts first before making a decision about any of them.  However, though she considers other perspectives, Ayesha does not have effective strategies for determining which text is the most reliable.  Furthermore, Brad's and Ayesha's personal identities have much to do with their interpretations of a text.  The authors then go on to describe the protocols of expert history readers.  These readers realize that texts do not always mean what they say and that texts must be read in the context in which they were produced.  Even when expert readers do come to a conclusion about a set of history texts, they must be prepared to revise their conclusion as they source, corroborate, and contextualize.  Because history texts often contain so many biases, students such as Brad and Ayesha must be directly taught how to form appropriate protocols for reading them.

Jetton and Shanahan Ch. 9
This chapter discusses literacy in the arts, specifically music and the visual arts.  The underlying theme of the chapter is that teachers and students must reconsider what is "text" and "literacy."  Literacy in the arts is important because art can be included in other disciplines and because the arts help adolescents make sense of their worlds (p.232).  The chapter first talks about music texts, which include many non-traditional texts, such as hand signals, scores, sheet music, and mime.  The Common Core standards for music emphasize performing, listening, contemplating, and creating literacies.  There are many ways to ensure that these standards are met.  Some of them include improvisation, notation, rehearsal, and sight-reading.  The constructivist approach is widely accepted in music literacy.  This approach allows students to create their own understandings of music (p. 249).  As with music, the visual arts contain many non-traditional texts.  Because pottery, sculptures, and paintings are all read to be interpreted, they can be considered texts.  However, traditional textbooks and technical books are still important.  Standards for the visual arts emphasize creating, problem-solving, reflecting, and critiquing.  Similar to music, students are encouraged to create their own art in order to have a more meaningful understanding of it.  In both music and visual arts, modeling is extremely important.

Hinchman and Sheridan-Thomas
Before students reach high school, it can be argued that they read and can get away with approaching virtually all types of texts in the same manner.  However, once students hit ninth grade, it becomes increasingly more important that they read a history text differently than, say, a science text.  In history texts, the authors have different purposes.  They might be trying to convince the readers to take a certain perspective on an event.  Readers must consider this as they source the history texts.  Also, readers must learn to corroborate, or compare the text with others written about the same topic.  Finally, they must contextualize.  It is always important to consider the context in which a text was written before determining its validity.  Adolescent readers of history must also carefully consider the vocabulary that is used in history texts, as it can be used to persuade them a certain way.  Some of the words used are ones that we do not necessarily include in our daily vocabulary anymore, and the sentence structure of history texts can be tricky.  In short, readers of history texts need to remember that history is not just a list of dates and events.  Its complexity must be considered, as there can be many causes and effects for the same event, and that events can be correlated, but one did not necessarily cause the other.  

Responses

Text-to-Text
The readings this week were quite unlike any I have ever read before, so I had never even considered many of the things that were included in the chapters.  However, it does seem that most of our readings in this class mention the importance of direct instruction for reading strategies.  This point was especially emphasized in the Jetton and Shanahan chapter about history protocols.  Students cannot be expected to create effective protocols on their own; this skill, like many others, must be modeled and practiced.

Text-to-Self
I am looking at history entirely differently after reading these chapters!  I always have seen the textbook as authoritative and have hardly considered other perspectives.  I never before viewed history as a story; instead, I saw it as a list of events that happened in a certain time and place.  I'm sure I would have enjoyed history a lot more in school if I had had some of the reading protocols described.  Also, I was in band for much of my life, so I am a fluent reader in music, but I never before considered that "reading" was, in fact, what I was doing.  To me, music notes were music notes, not text.  I have no memories of art in middle school or high school.  Obviously, it did not make a big impact on me, and I do not think that my teachers made an effort to include in it their classrooms.

Text-to-World
I truly believe that music and art are both so valuable, especially to teenagers who are trying to make sense of an often senseless world.  Hence, it is so important to teach them how to access the texts found in these subjects.  If they are not literate in music or in the visual arts, two avenues of communication are essentially cut off for them.  I have often thought that music expresses thoughts and feelings from the soul that words cannot.  This goes to show that "text" is not necessarily just words.  Literacy is literally everywhere.

Questions

1.  Why are students in elementary school required to take music classes but not art classes?  To me, both seem equally important, and a love for either often starts at an early age.

2.  What are some practical ways for me to include the visual arts in my classroom when I do not feel literate in them myself?  I feel fairly competent in my ability to include music, but the arts is a whole other subject!

3.  What are some good sources for history texts beside the textbook?  I'm thinking of websites that maybe list primary sources, etc.