Media/Communication Course

Chapter 2 of Hobbs

Hobbs' research was conducted at Concord High School, where, during the 2002-2003 school year, the majority of students performed above average on standardized tests (21). During that same year, the drop-out rate declined, and two thirds of the class were going on to higher education while the other one third of the class was pursuing the military after high school (21). This school was a great selection because students seem motivated to learn, and they are performing at an accelerated level.

This media/communication course that was adopted into this ELA curriculum emphasized the following standards (20):

Active self-directed learners: students inquire creatively about their world, take risks, and examine opinions as they initiate actions and complete tasks.

Effective communicators: students write well, read widely and in depth, listen perceptively, share ideas orally, and use language, numbers, and symbols to convey and receive information.

Effective collaborators: students assume various roles to accomplish group or community goals, using self-knowledge, compromise, cooperation, and respect.

Informed decision makers: students define the issue, research alternatives, consider consequences, and make choices that demonstrate intellectual integrity and rigorous evaluation.

Creative producers: students produce art in the classical, contemporary, and practical traditions using invention, design, and critical assessment.

Life planners: students determine options and pursue career and personal goals including a consideration for physical, emotional, and mental well-being.

Community participants: students understand and practice democratic traditions and values, including respect for human dignity, honesty, and fairness, and who accept the consequences of their actions.

These expectations seem fair, and they seem incredible to put into a classroom. These sound more like learning standards we should have in our own classrooms-not just "they should read Macbeth because Shakespeare is amazing."

We should have objectives that should really value our students' lives and their learning. The objective should not be "to learn symbolism." We always need to know why we're teaching what we are, and this curriculum really stresses and emphasizes this point: they're aiming to "help students become critical thinkers in responding to the world they live in" (27). This Media/Communication class is designed specifically for this.

This class entails the following: they address nonfiction reading and writing, they explore issues of media influence, they examine advertising from a critical perspective, they reflect and analyze visual approaches to the narrative, and they encourage students to "read" the media of their everyday life with a critical eye (27). Students are applying learning inside and outside the classroom. Isn't that an amazing goal?

One of the best facts from this chapter was the closer connection students formed with their teacher as a result of the new course. Students gained mutual respect for one another and the teacher. These two quotations jumped out at me:

"There's a connection with these topics that sometimes doesn't happen when you're talking so much about literature that students are familiar with" (34).

"Students now let [the teacher] into their lives outside the classroom, and that provides [her] with opportunities to understand what knowledge and skills they need" (34).

These student/teacher connections are powerful. The teacher develops a closer relationship to her students so that they are more comfortable sharing and learning in a warm environment. The teacher knows how to push each student so each can excel to the greatest of his/her abilities. The student is pushed to keep learning outside the classroom because learning inside the classroom is fun and relevant. This type of learning is one that students can actually use in the real world. Why else should we be teaching them?