The title of this blog is a reference to the fact that I had to go BACK to visit our class and experienced it via the transcript and going through the archives. I wasn't there for the live session, the interaction, and I missed out on that to be sure. I love being able to react live, but it was still a wonder that our class can be made so available. I did feel like I missed the portion of live interaction, but enjoyed the fact that I didn't "miss" the content and the conversation of my classmates.
Now, to the actual class. I thought any conversation on literary quality and the value of books for our lives, and the lives of teenagers, is a worthy one. I really enjoyed the thoughts of my classmates and how well they argued for certain books, characters, and writing to be considered. I continue to see that different people just have different perspectives. That is why we read and write. Because the things we notice and see and experience will be different than anyone else. I might have felt one thing while reading Will Grayson, Will Grayson, but I'm assured that my classmates noticed something else and I can only learn about that through sharing and conversation. I made such an effort to talk about the Cardturner because I had a perspective that I thought was worth sharing. I'm glad my classmates felt the same about the various books and points they made about them. Great class leading up to the awards.
bookhenge
I think your take-away message from our class's voting process is a good one to lead into our discussion of the promise and peril of YA lit, Scott. Teachers often assume that what they take from a book is what their students will. They "teach" the book and expect students to learn the same lessons. We all take something different away and the beauty of social constructivism/social learning is that we can then share and learn from each other to take away a richer, more faceted experience.
ReplyDeleteThanks again for being such a strong advocate for The Cardturner. I think most people, including the teens, were amazed at how deeply touched the teens were by the book. The book won several big awards including "Best Male Character in a Supporting Role" (Uncle Lester aka Trapp) and "Best Female Character in a Supporting Role" (Toni Castaneda), and, of course, "Lifetime Achievement Award" for Louis Sachar.