1. “Dear White Teacher”
A Cultural/Ethnic Examination of Oral Language Development and Student Voice

2. Student Voice is a Measure of Belonging and Relatedness
Group One: “The one doing the talking is the one doing the learning.”
Group Two: “Children of color know all too well what it feels like to be a problem in school.”
Group Three: “The soft bigotry of low expectations on students relegates them to failure.”
Group Four: “Your academic and relational approaches to your students shape their successes and challenges.”
Read the “Dear White Teacher” article.
In your group, examine and discuss your quote using the questions you have been given.
Use the lens of student voice as a measure of belonging and relatedness to support your ideas.
Have them personalize.

3. Group One: “The one doing the talking is the one doing the learning.”
How are the students in the article silenced, and in essence, prevented from learning?
How does the author support the view that the one doing the talking is the one doing the learning?
What are the real ways in which the notions of belonging and relatedness are violated for these students?
Go back to Cultures stuff
Caring as academic empowerment rather than soft bigotry
Will have seen the Every Opportunity Video.
Dear White Teachers, your own experience, thevideo
Seen as academic strategy OR as relationship…instead of

4. Group Two: “Students of color know all too well what it feels like to be a problem in school.”
How, specifically, do students experience this feeling?
How does the experience of seeing oneself as a problem decrease motivation, engagement, and achievement?
What are the real ways in which the notions of belonging and relatedness are violated for these students?
How does this manifest itself in your school, your classroom?

5. Group Three: “The soft bigotry of low expectations of students relegates them to failure.”
In what ways is the soft bigotry of low expectations conveyed to the students?
What is the impact of insistence on silence and compliance on these students?
What is the effect upon these students of being ‘exiled’ from the classroom?
What are the real ways in which the notions of belonging and relatedness are violated for these students?

6. Group Four: “Your academic and relational approaches to your students shape their successes and challenges.”
Warm Demander: Earns the right to demand effort & engagement
Sentimentalist: Shows personal regard for students, but makes excuses for lack of quality performance
Technocrat: Holds high standards and holds students accountable but does not develop relationships with them
Elitist: Views cultural differences as intellectual deficits, and holds low expectations of culturally diverse students
Which of these types best describes the author?
What descriptions fit the other highlighted teachers?
What best describes you, and how does this benefit or challenge your students?

8. Predictors and Voice Insert your school’s Predictors Graph
Aimes Webb…student growth potential
Formative assessment

9. Grade Level Graph Example
In the high voice classroom, students have almost 3 times the opportunity to talk about content with teachers and peers than in the low voice classroom.

10. Grade Level Graph Example
The higher voice classroom offered significantly more opportunities for students to engage in vocabulary, comprehension, modeled fluent reading, reading to self and metacognition – all key indicators that support on grade level reading.
Discuss the different experiences students have in the high voice classroom vs. those in the low voice classroom.

11. Opportunities for Oral Language Development & Student Voice
Structures
Morning meeting
End of day reflection
All about Me/sharing
Interest Inventory
Community Service
Announcements
Classroom jobs
Conflict resolution
Small group
Data binders
Interactions/Instruction
Oral Language
open-ended questions
feedback loops
math talks
Peer Collaboration
Reading Buddies
Academic games
Partner work
A few ideas ……………… what ideas do you have for generating higher OLD & Student Voice?
Develop language skills, opportunity to discuss learning and build relatedness.
Key for formative assessment.