Valuing Students as Co-Creators of Classroom Texts : A Case of Special Education Classes at an Inner City High School in Philadelphia

Abstract

Several researchers point out that the cause of minority students' failure at schools in the United States stems from the traditional way of teaching in which school discourse and their home discourse are disconnected (Delpit 1983; Fine 1987). Successful cases of altering pedagogy to fit and value students' home culture have been introduced by Erickson (1990) and Philips (1983). Belenky (1986) also proposes a new teaching method called the "midwife model," which perceives students as resources and solicits ideas from their own experience. This participatory research examines the collaborative learning experience in a special education class where classroom texts were close to students' home culture and the teacher employed the "midwife model." In the fall of 1994, two Japanese graduate students (the authors) worked together with the teacher and the students at Olney High School in Philadelphia to make pedagogical changes from traditional "transmission model," to the learner-centered "midwife model." Data collection included observational field notes, students' journal entries and other written materials as well as interviews with the teacher. The data reveal positive effects on students' participation in the class. These changes can help the students gain the ability to empower themselves by valuing their own experience and help increase their participation and literacy level.