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A Teacher’s Personal Definitions of Literacy, Theories and Philosophies of Literacy, Beliefs about Literacy Learning, and Classroom Literacy Practices I volunteered less for any role in the church, at work, or at school that had to do with reading or writing. Roles such as being the secretary for Youth Fellowship, or the Usher’s Ministry because it involved taking the minutes. My fear of publicly misspelling words or not reading fluently, allowed me to shy away from any role that could possibly lead to my embarrassment. The irony of now being a classroom teacher, having the capacity to make or break a child’s literacy experience, I asked myself; Is there a relationship between my early literacy experience and the type of teacher I am today? I strongly believe that my personal literacy experience has impacted and adjusted my philosophy of literacy and how I practiced literacy in my classroom environment. In order to clearly share my thoughts, I will use three questions to guide my piece: What were my early experiences and idea of literacy? How did I transform from being just a learner of literacy to embodying an effective teacher of literacy? What theories did I learn that supported my practices as an effective literacy teacher?
I remember looking at the series of Children’s Classic story books on the shelves over the bed, just gathering dust. Stories like Black Beauty, Robinson Crusoe, and Six Tales from Shakespeare. Somehow, I was never driven to read them on my own. I enjoyed my mother reading from a book that had a collection of nursery rhymes and short stories, such as Humpty Dumpty, the Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe, Jack and the Bean Stalk, and Goldilocks and the Three Bears, just to name a few. My house was rich with puzzle books, coloring books, story books, and practice phonics books but I was never interested in independent reading. My mother, I now suspect, figured that I had a problem, however, didn’t know how to effectively address it. I did well enough in preparatory and primary school for certain areas to be overlooked.
My struggles became more real in high school, where I was introduced to subjects such as Literature, History, Principal of Business; subjects heavily based on reading, writing, and interpreting facts. I struggled with dictation and my essay writings were colorful with corrected ink, for grammar and spelling. I knew my weaknesses, spelling and pronouncing words correctly enough to read fluently, and a limited vocabulary. Somehow, I was always able to do just enough to make it to the next level. During my period from high school to my early years in college, literacy for me just meant being a good speller, writing good stories/essays, and reading fluently. My three years in college went by so quickly. During this time, I started to gain a truer meaning of what literacy involved. To be honest, I never fully connected the skills I was gaining with my now understanding of what literacy is. I had to develop first an interest in what I was learning. I gained insight from courses such as College English, Emergent Teacher, Chart Making, Psychology, and Technology in Education. These courses allowed me to transform my concept of literacy from just reading and writing. Captured in my three months of teaching practice experiences, was a child-centered environment, rich with prints from children’s work to charts I created. A center of interest filled with art pieces created by the children. The use of technology for music or projected videos or images was incorporated into lessons.
The reading corner is filled with books appropriate to grade and age level. Upon graduating with distinction for teaching practice I knew that some growth must have taken place. Within six months of completing teachers’ college, I now had my own grade three class. My unspoken philosophy is to provide endless and ongoing opportunities for my students to develop the skills to read, write, listen and speak effectively to become rounded individuals in society.
Your past does not dictate your future. I was the same child who did not like to read now pursuing my first degree in Literacy Studies. According to Teale (1982) “Literacy results from children’s involvement in reading activities facilitated by literate adults”. “Also when adults and older siblings read to themselves and to infants and children, they demonstrate the importance and enjoyment of literacy”, (Kontos 1986; Snow, Bums & Griffin, 1998; Strickland, 1990). Personally, this demonstration of how important and fun it is to read was missing from my early literacy development. The materials were provided by home and school however, instructions were inadequate to spark my interest. “Reading is a multifaceted skill, gradually acquired over years of instruction and practice”, Scarborough’s Reading Rope (2001). Gaining insight from these theories and others, I was able to identify students who are at different stages in their literacy development. Therefore, my classroom literacy practices are tailored to allow children to achieve their goals, develop their knowledge and potential, and participate fully in their community and wider society.
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