Curate the Curriculum: What it Means to be a Teacher Curator
Curate the Curriculum: What it Means to be a Teacher Curator
"We believe that our role as curators must take priority over historical canonical tradition. We must curate to disrupt. We must intentionally select texts that foreground controversial issues such as race, gender, class, politics and religion, for negotiating among diverse perspectives is crucial to sustaining a dynamic, vibrant democracy." -- (Garcia, O'Donnell-Allen, 94)
The word "curate" originates from the Latin word "curare," which means "to care." Chapter 5 of "Pose, Wobble, Flow. A Culturally Proactive Approach to Literacy Instruction" discusses what it means to "curate" the English Language Arts curriculum to our students. Many of the mandatory texts in Language Arts classes are canonical, which are believed to be accurate (yikes) and authoritative (sheesh). As we have learned, many texts in classrooms and school libraries fit the white, Eurocentric, male narrative (awk). What I really like about this chapter is that it gives us examples and ways to fight that narrative with culturally relevant texts while at the same time KEEPING UP WITH STATE STANDARDS.
For me personally, one of my biggest concerns is how do I implement all these amazing ideas that we have learned so far, while maintaining state standards. I think this class in general, but this chapter in particular gives me a better idea of how to do that. ALSO, how to do it in the 21st-century-social-media-centered society we live in. We will all have non-negotiable white, Eurocentric, male, texts we must teach in our classrooms. BUT, we have the power to also introduce controversial, culturally relevant, multi-modal, and STUDENT CHOSEN texts to compare them to.
!!Student choice must be handled properly!!
"Even though we emphasized the importance of choice in the previous section, you are like to wobble around determining what constitutes an optimal degree of it. Too many choices can actually discourage student agency; dumping too much information on students is just as problematic as denying access to critical texts." (101).
This blog post by Jennifer Gonzalez titled "Are you a Curator or a Dumper?" discusses the difference between being a curator and dumper, and how to effectively be a curator. Check it out!!
In today's digital world, 21st century readers are constructing meaning in more modes than ever before. In chapter 3, which Tori brought up in her blog post, media can foster civic engagement. If we can show our students how to properly and functionally use social media for civic engagement, reading, learning, activism, (insert positive outcome here), we can teach students to be curators themselves. Being a teacher curator isn't just about hacking the curriculum and implementing culturally relevant text into your classroom. It's also about EMPOWERING your students to choose what is relevant to them. Allow them to curate their own texts, analyze and compare their chosen texts to the mandatory white, Eurocentric, male texts, and how they can create the change they want to see.
My lingering thought throughout this chapter is how do we take all of these great ideas, and implement them in a K-6 classroom? The younger the classroom, the more of a "gatekeeper" we as teacher curators become. How do we adapt and curate texts for younger students while at the same time encouraging critical consciousness?
-Will Minito
Will, I agree with you. We have learned so much this semester. We are just starting to touch the beginnings of the state standards for literature. It is hard to fathom how many standards we have to follow, which ones we can hack, and what additional school or district standards we will be asked to follow — all the while being a culturally sustainable curator of literature. “Teachers must allow student voices to guide classroom conversations and facilitate an ongoing dialogue” (p. 71) while being culturally sustainable with our every changing 21st-century readers. Being multimodal with our delivery of state standards will be a great quest because society changes faster than the CCSS.
ReplyDeleteI think as a K-6 teacher I will have the greatest chance to become a curator of the curriculum. Especially, in K-3 grades as a teacher is developing reading skills and exposing the students to many different types of literature; such as picture books, chapter books, music, internet, games and community class trips. My experience is that in 3rd grade was the first time my son’s starting reading core knowledge curriculum. Using “managed choice, where the students choose what they would like to read from among a set number of texts” (p. 98) could be implanted in 4th or 5th grade. I think as a teacher I would be less of a “gatekeeper”, because I would want the student to explore as much as possible to develop their enjoyment of reading.
Great post, Will! I've also had the concern of how to implement everything we've learned in the classroom on a daily basis. I liked that chapter 5 gave us some more concrete examples of how to do this. The chapter mentioned "To Kill a Mockingbird" several times as an example of a classic text that students are required to read every year. The book is usually taught in such a uniform and predictable manner that doesn't stimulate students' thinking. It doesn't have to be. We could easily pair classics like that with other relevant or current books. For example, "Go Set a Watchman" (supposedly written before "TKAM" but set after), challenges readers perceptions of Atticus, presenting him instead as someone who disagrees with Brown V Board of Education and integration. Or if, like one teacher mentioned, you have to teach Hemingway, offer supplemental reading materials that challenge Hemingway's notions of masculinity. If we incorporated additional texts like these that encourage students to consider classics in a new and relevant manner, students might actually read the texts.
ReplyDeleteThough I like the idea of giving students choices in what they read, I think it's equally important that they have a space to share their reading experiences and reflect on them. A friend of mine recently said that her favorite books are the ones that are about someone who has a different perspective from hers. The best way for younger readers to find out about these books is by sharing what they're reading with each other. Of course, there's always the risk of information overload. I've definitely been an information dumper in the past, sending out carefully curated (but lengthy!) lists. One way we could alleviate this in the classroom could be by having only one or two students share what readings they currently find valuable with the class. Maybe then, the process of discovering, reading, and sharing that one book they've selected for the month would be extra special.
Addy, I completely agree that it is equally important for students to have a space to share their reading experiences and to reflect on them! I also really like your friends quote about her favorite books being the ones that are about someone who has a different point of view. Having students choose what they read is a great idea and will help their passion for reading, but at the same time we want to encourage students to venture out and try something different. I think having students read texts that are from a different perspective of their own, and then having them share and reflect on their experience is a great idea and a great goal to have.
DeleteAddy, I know you are a fellow podhead. I listen to the podcast Will linked to and it is worth following if you are not already.
DeleteI am there with you on the concern about implementing all these ideas we have learned with also staying with the state standards. It is so vital that we are asking these questions now so that when we have a classroom of our own, we can go in with the knowledge on how to hack the system to be the best educators we can be.
ReplyDeleteI really like how you used the word empower when it comes to students curating for themselves. I agree that it is so important that we teach our kids to be individuals and allowing them to have choices in the classroom and with their education. Growing up, we did not have the option to read what we wanted. In elementary school, we used the Accelerated Reader, or AR, system the chapter mentions. It did feel restricting to us because we had to stick to the level that we tested into. I did also see my classmates and peers around the school be discouraged because we would all compare our AR level and scores with each other -- like a competition. However, educators should not make reading a competition between students. We need to teach them that the materials we choose to read is okay, and we need to teach them it is okay to make their own choices on the genre/type of literature they want. I know I would have a completely different relationship with reading now, if I was allowed that freedom and empowerment when it came to reading in school.
Tori I definitely agree with what you said about how teachers should not make reading a competition between students. The mixture of forcing kids to read text that they have no interest in, while at the same time fostering competition, is discouraging young readers. Competition in some aspects of school is okay, but for reading I don't believe it is a good idea. Their is such a large spectrum of readers, that even students who do not struggle with reading can still become discouraged because they're not "the best." While on top of the discouragement, students are forced to read something they have no interest in, which makes it even more difficult to learn. And I feel the exact same way you do, if I had more freedom and encouragement when it came to reading in school, I would have a much different relationship with reading now.
DeleteWill, I think you ask some great questions at the end of your post: “How do we take all of these great ideas and implement them into a K-6 classroom?...How do we adapt and curate texts for younger students while at the same time encouraging critical consciousness?”
ReplyDeleteI think one of the keys to this is through an expanded view of text. Yes, it is necessary for kids to be reading on their own and to learn how to read; however, they don’t have to read everything by themselves. Most elementary teachers are given a reading textbook, which is an anthology of short stories meant to teach reading comprehension, vocabulary, character development, and various reading strategies. This can be a perfect start to curating a text.
I once observed a reading lesson in a 1st grade class. The story was about a little girl who moved from another country and had to fit in with her new class. Within the curriculum, the story was used to teach character development and description (which is a good thing to learn!) and the teacher used to remind the children that they should be kind to each other. However, it didn’t foster or encourage critical consciousness from the students. This would have been a very easy story to start a conversation about immigration. Many of the students in the class were Spanish-speaking and may have experienced firsthand what the story was about. The teacher could have added video clips about other immigration experiences, signs in different languages to show how it might feel to live somewhere you don’t know the language, other stories written about or by immigrants.
Rachel, I really like your idea in your last paragraph about starting the conversation about immigration. It would have been a perfect time to encourage critical consciousness and and easy to discuss and provide examples about all kinds of people who immigrate to different countries. I also like your quote from your second paragraph "however, they don't have to read everything by themselves." You can cover standards like reading comprehension, vocabulary, etc. by reading aloud. It reminds me of Dr. O from last semester. She didn't care that we're adults, she would still read children's stories out loud to us and we each had to do it too. Even if we read aloud to students, they can still have the option of what we read!
DeleteGreat post Will! This is one of my biggest concerns as a future educator. I feel like I’ve learned so much in our program about culturally relevant teaching that I sometimes forget about the standards we have to meet. This definitely makes me feel nervous and question whether or not I can hack the curriculum and be culturally. I like in your post how you emphasized that teachers have the power to implement culturally relevant material in the classroom. Especially the power to empower our students to be “curators” of the own readings. We know that books available in our school’s bookrooms constrain students’ reading choices in schools. Pose, Wobble, and Flow on pg. 94 says “carefully curated texts provide an ideal vehicle for helping students develop negotiation skills that can transfer beyond the classroom.” I like this statement because it mentions how skills can be transferred beyond the classroom. It’s important not to rely on the traditional texts which only transmit information that is soon to be forgotten.
ReplyDeleteThis blog post by Jennifer Gonzalez titled "Are you a Curator or a Dumper?" made very good points about dumping too much information on our students, especially in our techy type of society. I can totally see where teachers are just over whelmed with so much information. Therefore, it would be easier for them to dump too much information on their students. This definitely made me look back on my times teaching golf. I had a phrase of “sometimes more is less.” It’s very easy to get way too caught up in all the mechanics of a golf swing and not work on the things that matter the most. Now for teaching in our schools, it’s way more important not to overwhelm our students but instead focus quality and relevant learning.
Doug, I like how you brought up the Jennifer Gonzalez blog. You're definitely right, most teachers these days can be overwhelmed by so much information and research (most of which is conflicting) that it can be difficult to teach this information to students. I also like the quote you mentioned about transferring beyond the classroom. Of course we want to start these discussions and to empower our students in our classrooms, but the main goal is for it to transfer out into the world where students are empowering themselves and others!
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ReplyDeleteCute post, Will. I too share the concern about applying what we have learned while also adhering to state standards. I think there is wiggle room there for us to hack the canon, but it is hard to anticipate what that will look like in the classroom. I have faith that once I am in the classroom the pieces will fall into place. Leap and the net will appear, right? My first thought reading chapter 5 was that this is a comforting approach because it frames the development of relevant curriculum as a work in progress. I often feel overwhelmed when I think of all the things to consider when planning lessons or units, let alone a whole year of teaching. Seeing myself as curator is like gardening. You learn new things every season, encounter problems you hadn’t anticipated and know nothing about so you must research to find answers. Every new season offers an opportunity to apply what you have learned to refine your process. It is continuous by nature which offers many opportunities for improvement. Educators are also gatekeepers of knowledge which means what we chose to bring into the classroom shapes how students view the world (Garcia, 2015). Being mindful of presenting texts that are diverse and inclusive is a necessary first step.
DeleteWill, your lingering questions are my exact thoughts with the book - the examples seem to be for older grades. I'm wondering how all of this will work with younger students, especially with the example you mentioned, being gatekeepers. I felt like we were going to learn some practical ideas in the article for this week ("Critical Texts in Literacy..."), but the authors didn't quite address the idea like I wanted them to. However, the article did mention to bring in critical texts, don't be afraid of not knowing everything, and stay in contact with other teachers attempting to do the same thing. However, that doesn't answer how we would know what texts are too mature/appropriate/etc.
ReplyDeleteSo, I'm at a loss, too. I want to hack the system, but I want to be careful with young kiddos. I have a feeling, though, that we will be able to "feel out" what is not appropriate/appropriate once we get to know our students. What are your thoughts?
Will, this was a great post! It's actually very comforting to know that I'm not alone in feeling overwhelmed with how to apply everything we are learning in these classes. I can't help but feeling like I'm are learning all of this, but it's all going to crumble when I actually get in front of all of my students and I'll just fall back into habits I'm used to based on ways I was taught when I was in school. The discussions in these classes always get me excited and fired up about building a culturally sustaining pedagogy for my own curriculum but then reality sinks in and I'm reminded of the struggles teachers face from policies, parents, and yup, you said it, KEEPING UP WITH STATE STANDARDS! After looking over all the state standards for Literacy in the last session, it was like bam! SO OVERWHELMING! HOW ARE WE GONNA DO THIS?!
ReplyDeleteBut then I just try to remind myself how rewarding it will be when students grasp a concept or talk about enjoying a lesson in class and how much they've learned. I love that the book talks about curating texts so they reach beyond the requirements and state standards we are faced with as educators. And to remind ourselves that "the texts that count in your classroom and in your teaching practice are the texts that you curate as valuable" (Garcia, O'Donnell-Allen, 2015, 93). This last bit, "that you curate as valuable" seems to carry a lot of weight. Because what we see as valuable can mean anything; a podcast, a TEDtalk or other sort of YouTube video, someones Twitter or Instagram feed, anything we curate as valuable to our class. In regards to how we will apply this to elementary school students, I'm still not 100% sure how this will look. But I'd like to think if we really start asking ourselves what critical learning opportunities we think our students will face, we can start to think critically about the texts we curate (pg 103). Recognizing that many students deal with issues of bullying, self esteem, academic or athletic competition can hopefully help us to focus on ways in which we can curate the canonical texts we are required to teach them and make them more relatable and approachable. "Reflecting the vibrant language that occurs in the "real world" in the texts you curate enhances students' capacity to effectively read, interpret, and interact in their civic world" (Garcia, O'Donnell-Allen, 2015, 93).
Will, thanks for posing these questions! They are definitely thought provoking, overwhelming, and made us a feel a little less alone.
DeleteEmma, the first paragraph of your comment may be exactly what was going on in my inner monologue as I read this chapter and then reiterated by Will's post! Especially when you said, "The discussions in these classes always get me excited and fired up about building a culturally sustaining pedagogy for my own curriculum but then reality sinks in and I'm reminded of the struggles teachers face from policies, parents, and yup, you said it, KEEPING UP WITH STATE STANDARDS! After looking over all the state standards for Literacy in the last session, it was like bam! SO OVERWHELMING! HOW ARE WE GONNA DO THIS?!" It does seem incredibly overwhelming and that I could easily miss the mark since this in counterintuitive to how my schooling was.
I think this idea goes back to what Dr. Magee said in our last class that teaching is a practice and it is going to take A LOT time for us to get our bearings as culturally relevant or sustaining teachers. We're going to make mistakes, we're going to miss the mark, probably more than we would like to. Maybe not everyone would agree with this idea, but as with most things in life this is going to be small step after small step. But if we keep trying it improve and remind ourselves of these theories and ideas that seem so far out of reach right now, I believe we'll eventually begin getting it right (whatever right looks like). I think by at least asking the questions Garcia and O'Donnell lay out for us on page 97 when we're choosing books is a great baby step.
Will, I think you bring up several great points. As I was reading through chapter 5, I had similar thoughts/questions throughout the reading – How could we adapt these ideas to best fit the elementary grade levels? What do these look like at the K-6 grade levels? And of course, how do we effectively implement Garcia and O’Donnell-Allen’s ideas into our classroom?
ReplyDeleteAs I considered these questions, I was reminded of several readings (and ideas) from last semester. In Wood Ray (2004), she suggests the use of writing workshops as a time for students to create stuff provides room for them to “make choices about exactly what they will do during this time…developmentally, being able to choose activities from a range of options is very important for young children,” she goes on that “children will learn that during workshop time they may do different kinds of research on a topic, have conference with a peer, read books for ideas on how to craft their writing, and more” (p. 8). Utilizing writing workshops to introduce culturally relevant text and materials, and providing children the opportunity to choose the activity, topic, materials, texts, and so on that are important to them. Engaging in research, collaborating with peers, and reading a variety of texts (environmental, multimodal texts, videos, blogs, and so on) on a topic provides the opportunity to obtain, be exposed to various perspectives.
During Read-Alouds and/or reading workshops, ensuring we choose critical and culturally relevant materials and texts. I think these workshops and Read-Alouds are the forums in which we can begin introducing the ideas from chapter 5 into our classroom. Just as the example Garcia & O’Donnell-Allen provided (with a teacher at the high school level), I think we can move beyond the canon here and we can make “culturally proactive pedagogical decision(s)” and “emphasize the differing perspectives authors have portrayed over time on shared questions with no easy answers” (p. 95), in our K-6 classrooms. We can curate our text selection in a way to introduce topics that are controversial, culturally relevant, multi-modal, and STUDENT CHOSEN and enable our students to compare them to non-negotiable white, Eurocentric, male, texts that we must teach in our classrooms. I believe these are areas that will allow us to introduce topics such as race, gender, class, politics and religion, as well as for us to encourage and enable students to analyze and compare their chosen texts to the mandatory white, Eurocentric, male texts.