Beliefs

We humans have belief systems that drive our behaviour. They are hard-wired, and changing them isn’t easy. Teachers hold beliefs about how children learn.

If you’re new and starting out, here’s an example:

Children learn by … (insert your word/s of choice)

Actually, try that out if you’re a seasoned pro.

Early on, a senior supervisor challenged us newbies by stating, ‘How we teach reading will define our careers.’

It stuck with me through reading overhaul after overhaul. The Australian Curriculum calls it literature. We respond to literature, examine it, and create literature. We interact with literature, interpret it, analyse it and evaluate it. There are informative texts, imaginative texts, and persuasive texts.

We describe the words writers use to create imaginary worlds and how different text features like headings are used. That’s a small sample. I’m sure the curriculum guides in your part of the world share similar features.

I haven’t found a definitive guide that explains how to teach it all. Many commercially available resources set out how, but they are not the curriculum. Whether you work in a government-funded or private school, you are held accountable to one document–the curriculum. Other resources are fine, but assessment and progress are monitored and measured through the implementation of the mandated curriculum.

Curriculum writers keep their beliefs from clouding such a prescriptive document. When we enact the curriculum, we must bring our beliefs to it. Otherwise, how we teach reading will not define our careers.