Rethinking the Big Bad Wolf
Written by Molly Branson Thayer
Part 1: Equity and Learning To Read: Starting Together From Common Ground and Following a Purposeful Pathway
As the teacher reads “Little Red Riding Hood” aloud to the class, one student continuously calls out and attempts to ‘read’ the story along with the teacher. The teacher already made clear that the expectations for read-alouds are to sit quietly with hands in laps and listening ears. So each time this kindergartener calls out, she is not demonstrating respect for the classroom expectations. The teacher repeatedly reminds her of the expectation, and while she immediately acquiesces, one moment later she calls out again. She says things like, ‘Oh that wolf better not eat her up,’ and ‘Oh granny, what big eyes you have,’ and then, ‘That’s not your granny!’ Distracted by the constant outbursts and frustrated with this student’s lack of respect for classroom rules, the teacher sends the kindergartener to her desk and directs her to put her head down on the table.
Both the teacher and the little girl were engaging in literacy activities: read alouds and oral or collaborative storytelling. Both activities are based in science, and yet only one is recognized and favored in this classroom. This little kindergartener is participating in class, but not the way the teacher would like her to. The teacher is focused on the expectations she has created to develop literacy and support everyone’s equal opportunity to ‘share’ by raising their hand and waiting to be called on. All children, like this little girl, enter kindergarten knowing how to listen, speak, and think. These skills develop naturally; reading and writing do not. Generally, reading and writing are taught in school, by a teacher.
This kindergartener is entering school, bringing her full self, but it seems there is no room for her way of listening, speaking and writing in this classroom. This student is obviously so into the story and on-topic with all of her comments — this is her literacy bridge into developing reading and writing. This teacher is not taking advantage of that bridge; instead she is focused on maintaining literacy development in a way that aligns with her personal way of being in the world. As the vignette above illustrates, this student's participation is unwanted and viewed as disruptive, but does it have to be an either or?
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Learning to listen, speak, and think are entirely influenced by one’s culture and community. Babies and young toddlers spend most of their time with their families and caregivers. They learn to develop language and thoughts similar to those around them. Their families and communities mostly make up their world and represent the culture in which they are immersed. Recent evidence in brain science helps us understand that listening, speaking, and thinking develop at birth and are fostered within cultures and communities. In other words, we are where we come from. When children come together across cultures in preschool or school, it is critical to honor each of their unique cultures and ways with words in order to ensure each child identifies as a successful student and sees connections between their home and their school. In our report, The DNA of Teaching, we address this foundational approach to teaching in general, not just in teaching children to read. But with regard to literacy development and learning to read, it becomes even more clear how much each child’s experiences, interests, areas of expertise, and ways of being in the world matter.
The developmental literacy trajectory that leads to reading by third grade for typically-developing children is well established. There is both current and past research on the science of reading, as well as converging research about Culturally Responsive and Sustaining Education (CRSE). The developmental trajectory of successful reading by third grade, a benchmark commonly used in education to predict future outcomes like high school graduation, college graduation, and even lifespan, is very well documented. You might ask, if the science is all there, in both reading and CRSE, why does this problem persist? There are two common pitfalls that get in the way of translating this research into practice in the classroom:
Teachers do not always have the necessary training on the science of reading research; and
The well-researched developmental trajectory on learning to read does not always include the importance of cultural awareness or, in other words, students’ social-emotional wellbeing.
Without these two critical components, is it any surprise that students whose culture is different from that of the teachers or the dominant culture (as described above), as well as students with special needs that require deep training and expertise, are over-represented in the group of students not meeting the critical benchmark of reading by third grade?
Strategies for mitigating these common pitfalls include:
Ongoing teacher professional learning (coaching and communities of practice); and
Access to curriculum that is well-aligned with the science of reading but also calls out the need for teachers to apply their expertise to the published lessons based on knowledge of the students sitting in front of them everyday (what we call High-Quality Instructional Materials, or HQIM).
Consider again the teacher who was reading “Little Red Riding Hood” to her kindergarteners. She had classroom expectations that were based on her experiences in the world, including listening quietly to stories read aloud, raising one’s hand, waiting to be called on, and making sure everyone gets a turn. These beliefs shaped her expectations for a well-behaved and productive community of learners. The little girl in front of her had different experiences around stories being shared. In her experiences, those stories were often verbal and collaborative with multiple voices joining in. There was sometimes commentary and humor sprinkled in. Her community of listeners looked and behaved very differently from what her teacher expected. Between this teacher and student, there is a definite cultural clash.
However, there is also a power dynamic. The teacher has the power and may not be questioning whether or not her expectations are appropriate for all children and their cultures. The teacher has the luxury to not question her own way of being, and instead, she puts the onus of changing on her student. In fact, this teacher doubles down on the classroom expectations in place for a productive community of learners, and the child is disciplined. She is ultimately removed from the learning experience which potentially contributes further to the cultural divide and certainly does not align with the teacher’s desire for a ‘community of learners.’ The student is left sitting alone at her desk, outside of the group. She may even feel shame around how she participated (or who she is) and/or believe that she does not belong. Teaching involves high-quality instructional materials (HQIM) and the ability to see children in their entirety, allowing the diversity of literacies to enhance the published curricula. This is the expertise that is attainable and necessary.
The white kindergarten teacher in this story was me. I say this not to center myself but to call attention to what I believe might be occurring in many classrooms across the country given ~84% of our teaching force looks like me (white and female). In classrooms across this nation, there are students just like Portia, the student in the story. This experience occurred in the beginning of my first year of teaching. I recognized that I was not making room for other ways of being and learning and that I did not know the science behind teaching reading, despite my teaching certificate.
It hit me like a ton of bricks when I realized that teachers are left on their own to manage these big issues. It also made me angry. Not arming teachers with culturally-responsive professional development and deep knowledge in the science of reading is unintentionally creating big bad wolves in teachers’ clothing.
This particular story has a happy ending.
I stopped getting Portia in trouble and made room for her to be herself and to be successful. I adjusted, and she thrived. Her mother and I became allies in supporting Portia’s education. Personally, I dove into learning about Culturally Responsive Teaching and Dual Language Learners. I learned about what I clearly did not understand, but needed to understand, in order to be an effective teacher to all of my students, not just the ones who had an upbringing similar to my own. I sought out courses on reading development and, soon after that experience, came to understand more about culture and literacy development. I have a master’s and doctorate degree, and I am still learning about this. We at Teaching Lab dedicate ourselves to supporting other teachers in their learning journeys, attending to their heads, hearts, and habits in service of equity in education. Hence, the creation of this blog series.
Intelligence is not set at birth, as once believed, but instead developed over time through input from adult and caregiver interaction, communities, and experiences. This unique growth period in brain development over the first eight years, combined with the science of learning to read, offer a clear literacy developmental trajectory. This developmental literacy progression includes developing teachers’ expertise, High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM), and each child’s unique culture and identity combined and represents a pathway to reading achievement — one where all children are immersed in challenging instruction with supportive encouragement. We want to help you understand our approach, which combines culture and literacy and helps to translate the research from all of these domains into a practitioner-friendly pathway.
Stay tuned to learn more about this pathway in part two of Equity and Learning To Read: Starting Together From Common Ground and Following a Purposeful Pathway, where we will explore:
The first three years of development;
The transition to traditional schooling;
High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM); and
What teachers need to know to put this all together so each child can be successful and reach that third grade reading benchmark.
Molly Branson Thayer, Ed.D. is the Sr. Director of the Early Literacy Innovation Lab at Teaching Lab and leads the early literacy strategic vision, ensuring that Teaching Lab is a trusted voice in early literacy and plays a critical role in supporting all educators to develop strong readers across the country.
