The Complete Caribbean Teacher Literacy S Joel Warrican

The Complete Caribbean Teacher: Literacy S. Joel Warrican

CHAPTER ONE Literacy in the Caribbean Lecturer: <Insert name>

Coming up… 3 The Complete Caribbean Teacher: Literacy l Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education

Opening buzz • How literate do you think this man is? • What evidence supports your view? • What evidence is there of his schooling/proficiency in literacy? Read Opening Buzz on page 2 and discuss the above questions Reference page: 2 4 The Complete Caribbean Teacher: Literacy l Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education

Determining levels of literacy in the Caribbean There a number of different ways of determining levels of literacy. 1. All who did not attend school are illiterate. 2. The number of years spent in the formal education system – literate citizens have attended for at least 4 years. 3. Enrolment figures at the primary school level. 4. Outcomes of examinations taken by students exiting secondary education. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each of these ways of determining levels of literacy Reference page: 4 -5 5 The Complete Caribbean Teacher: Literacy l Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education

The benefits of a literate population in the Caribbean • Economic • Social and

How can we help students to recognise and reach their full potential? Literacy teachers need to be committed to ideals of: • Equality • Freedom • Justice And give consideration to: • Diversity – Language – Home background – Culture – Gender – Cognitive abilities Reference page: 7 7 The Complete Caribbean Teacher: Literacy l Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education

The challenges - Language • Official • First • The • language (Standard English) v. Creole. language base is not English (e. g. French-based Creole). risk of disparaging the language of the students. The balance between the students’ home language and proficient use of the official language, Standard English. Reference page: 8 -9 8 The Complete Caribbean Teacher: Literacy l Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education

The challenges – Other issues of diversity • • Cultural diversity – as teachers we need to embrace the cultures of our students. Home background Discuss what these factors might be and how they might impact on students’ behaviour and performance in the classroom Reference page: 9 -12 9 The Complete Caribbean Teacher: Literacy l Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education

The challenges – Other issues of diversity (cont’d) • • Cognitive abilities: – auditory learners – visual learners – tactile / kinaesthetic learners – combination of senses – planning to meet the needs of individuals and groups of students with similar needs. Gender – awareness of gender differences in relation to reading and writing. Reference page: 9 -12 10 The Complete Caribbean Teacher: Literacy l Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education