When and Where Did I Find It: I didn't really find this term, but it is one that came up in conversation recently and I wanted to remember where I found it. I went back to my files to locate an article I remembered a student from a LTED 625 (back in 2008) brought to class for his Reciprocal Teaching discussion.
Full citation
Walker, B.J. (2003). The cultivation of student self-efficacy in reading and writing. Reading and Writing Quarterly, 19, 173-187.
What It Means: "Self-efficacy refers to people's beliefs about their capabilities to carry out actions required to achieve a confident level of achievement (Bandura, 1993). Specifically, they are beliefs that individuals have that they can do something like read a book, write a poem, or dance. Self-efficacy beliefs refer to specific judgments rather than more global judgments like being a good reader, writer , or dancer. In fact, self-efficacy often refers to specific situations within a learning environment based on learn goals" (as cited in Walker, 2003, pp. 174).
Level of Familiarity: Even though I am familiar with this concept, I was glad to find the article so I could refresh my memory of the full meaning of the term.
Do I Want to Know This Word Well and Why? Yes. As Walker states, "Understanding the situational nature of self-efficacy can help teachers design classroom procedures that reinforce positive attributions for specific tasks" (p. 174).
Do I Think Others Should Know This Word Well...if so WHO and WHY? I definitely think this is an important concept for teachers to understand. Again, to quote Walker directly: "...students who are efficacious are more likely to work hard, to persist, and seek help so they can complete a task. These same students use cognitive and metacognitive strategies to increase their understanding. ... Self-efficacy is also linked to motivational beliefs like interest, value, and utility, as well s positive affective reactions. Collectively these characteristics of self-efficacy demonstrate a relationship between self-efficacy and academic performance." (Walker, p. 174)
When and Where Did I Find It: I found this term in an article I recently reread for research project I am working on. "A digital story is a multimedia text consisting of still images complemented by a narrated soundtrack to tell a story or present a documentary; sometimes video clips are embedded between images" (Sylvester & Greenidge, 2009, p. 284).
Full citation:
Sylvester, R. & Greenidge, W. (2009). Digital storytelling: Extending the potential for struggling writers. The Reading Teacher, 63(4), 284-295. doi: 10.1598/RT.63.4.3.
What It Means: The term digital story is used to describe a specific type of digital or multimedia text which includes the following or a "combination of these seven elements:
1. Point of View
2. Dramatic question
3. Emotional content
4. Economy
5. Pacing
6. The gift of voice
7. Sountrack. (Sylvester & Greenidge, p. 287)
I found a very interesting web-based presentation on the concept of Digital Storytelling online: http://pwoessner.wikispaces.com/Digital+Storytelling
Level of Familiarity: I had heard this term prior to reading the article, but honestly, it wasn't until I read this piece for the first time that if finally "clicked" for me how this particular type of story was very different from traditional stories or narrative texts.
Do I Want to Know This Word Well and Why? I think this is such an important term to fully understand. At first glance, one would assume this term implies we are talking about digital narratives (like a film); however, these digital narratives or digital stories that are most frequently created and published are NOT full narratives. Instead, they are a mix of elements of biography and narrative. It is important to be able to distinguish between this particular type of "story" and what a reader would expect to find given most people's traditional understanding of story/narrative.
Do I Think Others Should Know This Word Well...if so WHO and WHY? I think all teachers of writing should understand what is meant by this particular term. Too often the term "story" is used when creating writing assignments, without much thought to what is expected. If teachers were more careful and purposeful in how they talked about the genre of narrative, then perhaps students (K-12 and beyond) would develop a deeper and more principled understanding of the various types of works that can be produced under the very large umbrella term of "story."
When and Where Did I Find It: This is one of the key terms I asked LTED 625 students to revisit as a part of the Jigsaw Activity during Session 4. The word is found in the Fisher and Frey (2009) chapter I had students read. The authors introduce this term as part of a quote from "the National Research Council's (2000, p. 11) report How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience and School" (Fisher & Frey, 2009, p. 3). They quote the following passage:
"The new science of learning does not deny that facts are important for thinking and problem solving....However , the research also shows clearly that "usable knowledge" is not the same as a mere list of facts. Experts' knowledge is connected and organized around important concepts (e.g., Newton's second law of motion); it is "conditionalized" to specify the context in which it is applicable; it supports understanding and transfer (to other contexts) rather than only the ability to remember. (National Research Council, 2000, p. 11 as cited in Fisher & Frey, p. 3).
Full citation Fisher, D. & Frey, N. (2009). Background knowledge: The missing piece of the comprehension puzzle. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
What it means: The term is partially defined in the sentence cited above. "conditionalize refers to the state of being able to specify the context in which something is applicable." To further detail this discussion the authors state: "background knowledge must be conditionalized -- that is, the learner must know where and when to apply it." In addition, it is important to note that if a person is motivated, he is more likely to apply what he knows almost automatically." (Fisher & Frey, p. 5).
Level of Familiarity: Honestly, even though I have spent a great deal of time over the course of my academic/professional career studying schema theory; I cannot say that this term "conditionalized" is one that I am very familiar with. As I read this chapter I had to spend a great deal of time thinking about how this feature of background knowledge is different from the features of being organized and transferable.
Do I Want to Know This Word Well and Why?
Yes, I do think this term (along with the others) are useful to have a working understanding of. It gives me a more fuller way to conceptualize Background Knowledge
as well as a more targeted description which I can use it with my students.
Do I Think Others Should Know This Word Well...if so WHO and WHY?: I certainly think my LTED 625 students (as well as all teachers) should have a deep and principled understanding of what Background Knowledge is -- and how the three factors, including CONDITIONALIZED -- interplay as well as operate in unique ways.
When and Where Did I Find It: Although most people would think they know what the word, "words" means but I have no doubt it is a tacit understanding. I found this word when revisiting an old version of the McKenna and Robinson text, Teaching Through Text (2002). The authors state, "Words are symbols for concepts...a schema is all the information and experiences that an individual has learned in association with a given concept. ...The written symbol itself does not 'carry' meaning; rather, the reader bringsmeaning to the symbol (Smith, 1988)" (as cited in McKenna & Robinson, 2002, p. 99).
Full citation McKenna, M. C. & Robinson, R.D. (2002). Teaching through text: Reading and writing in the content areas (3rd ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.
What it means: The term is defined in the sentence above. "Words are symbols for concepts; words themselves do not carry meaning, rather the reader brings the meaning to the symbol" (McKenna & Robinson). To further detail this discussion the authors state:
"Words therefore come to have many associations for us. Those associations concerned with the word's general meaning and which are likely to be shared by most users of the word are said to be denotative. The word's dictionary definition is sometimes called its denotation. Associations that are not directly connected to a word's denotative meaning are described as connotative. Such associations vary with individuals because their experiences vary. To some, the word golf might connote doctors, presidents, and country clubs. To thers it might connote frustration, fatigue, and wasted hours...Both denotations and connotations are very much a part of a student's schema for a given word." (McKenna & Robinson, p. 99).
Level of Familiarity: I am familiar with this concept, but I think it always good to be reminded of the symbolic nature of words.
Do I Want to Know This Word Well and Why? Ha! I love that the word, "word" is in this prompt. Yes, I want my schemata for this concept to be well developed. I think understanding the symbolic nature of words is key to becoming a strategic teacher of vocabulary.
Do I Think Others Should Know This Word Well...if so WHO and WHY?: I certainly think my LTED 625 students (as well as all teachers) should have a deep and principled understanding of what words are -- as well as how best to learn them.
