Adolescent Literacy in the Era of the Common Core

I really enjoyed reading this article--I thought it really illuminated some of the effects that the implementation of the common core is having in schools around the nation, and in suffice to say, I am a fan.

I read this through two specific lenses, one as a college student who has heard for years about the value of a solid foundation in written expression, the second as a language learner myself.

Throughout my four years at Trinity, I've heard a multitude of times how important it is to be able to express yourself through writing. There's a kind of joke that floats around campus that I'm sure others have heard; professors who teach common curric classes can always tell a science from a humanities major based off of their paper writing abilities. Likewise, my father always insists that I include writing as a skill on resumés, because "that's what the rest of your generation lacks!", etc. He's dramatic about it, but I definitely feel that writing well and putting together coherent thought is something that is lacking in public curriculum--something that I think the common core is trying to combat. By implementing a curriculum that stresses the building of extensive, content-specific vocabularies alongside ensuring a solid foundation in academic expression, I think students will enter both college and "real-world" environments with a better chance of success.

I was also really about to identify with this article as a language learner. I know through my own experiences that it is nearly impossible to have a conversation about anything unless you have specifically studied how to discuss that particular topic. If you don't have the vocabulary, you can't do it. When I studied abroad, I found myself floundering to do the simplest of tasks out in the real world,  like trying to put minutes on a cellphone, or asking directions, but then found myself having fluent conversation about gender inequality or voting policies in class-because that was what I had studied. I was labeled advanced, but couldn't survive at a 10-year-olds level in the world. Knowing the advanced words doesn't mean that you're more capable, it just means that you can throw together an essay. If teachers want to prepare their students for success, they need to ensure that they are providing a well-rounded experience for them. Teachers can no longer assume the knowledge of standard words and phrases. Students talk a lot about the relevancy of what they're learning (the eternal, "but am I ever going to useeee this trig as an adult?!?") so I think it's great that the common core is finally seeking to address the problem of interdisciplinary literacy in school. As the article says, the achievement of adolescents is not the task of  a single teacher, but the task of teams, departments, and schools.

Finally, one other thing that I think is really important from this reading is the discussion of spoken expression. Last semester I had an interesting conversation with a teacher who had taught ELA at the high school level for many years, and she shared with me the importance of developing an environment in which students were allowed to practice their speaking and debating ability, as such an environment allows them to develop their own views and identities. This article touched on that towards the end, mentioning how important it is to structure opportunities for the students to have directed conversation that forces them to use their minds, and uncover unclear answers. It is through those conversations that students stop being passive learners, and take an active role in their own education.