[etni] Re: writing - in hebrew and/or english
- From: Michele Ben <mggben@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: saragabai@xxxxxxxxx
- Date: Tue, 23 Jun 2009 12:34:01 +0300
I think that this new form of "lashon" test is very positive, and likely
that eventually it will make teaching English easier. At the end of school
meeting we were told that the kids in the seventh (and maybe eighth) grades
will now be learning a subject called "Ivrit" 6 hours a week. This is the
old "lashon" and "habaah" which was taught 2-3 hours a week. The six hours
will be either 6 weekly hours per class or 4 weekly hours as a full class
and one hour a week in two halfs. Or 4 hours four everyone and two more
hours for kids who need it. This is a very positive development - the
better the kids know their native tongue, the easier it will be for them to
learn English.
Michele
On Mon, Jun 22, 2009 at 8:48 PM, sara g <saragabai@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> last week i proctored a matkonet test - lashon bet (the new test) - for
> 11th
> graders.
> the tests consisted of a 3 page unseen - about migraine headaches,
> with 5 comprehension questions - very much like our unseen questions.
> and then a choice of 2 topics to write a 1-1.5 page essay on.
> (then there were grammar and syntax question, with some of them based on
> the
> unseen test - interesting.)
> the idea of a choice of topics for the writing is nice, but that's not what
> i want to write about. i want to comment on the level of the kids' hebrew
> writing. i teach about half the kids who were doing the test. so i looked
> at
> their writing. these are weak to average 5 pt kids, some of them are strong
> 4 pt.
>
> the topics were connected to the topic of the unseen. one topic was about
> alternative medicine, and the other was about addictive behaviors.
>
> these are kids who have FINISHED learning "written expression" (haba'ah)
> in
> their native language. they are supposed to know how to write a basic
> essay.
>
>
> but - a lot of them write the whole thing as one long paragraph.
> some of them started a new "paragraph" for each sentence . (sound
> familiar?)
> some of them wrote in outline form, like this :
> opening:
> cause 1:
> cause 2:
> for:
> against:
> conclusion:
> some of them were not sure, when the instructions said to write about
> CAUSES, if it was enough to write about one cause, or did they need to
> write
> about two.
>
> of course, some of them wrote wonderful essays, as to both form and
> content.
> but there were enough problems that i wondered - if this is how they write
> at the end off the 11th grade in their native language, what can we expect
> from then next year, in english?
>
> i am not blaming the lashon teachers. and this is not against the lashon
> teachers at our school. i know they are wonderful, devoted teachers. i know
> they taught them about paragraphs, and how to read the topic in order to
> understand what you are supposed to write.
>
> but - if the kids don't "get it", then we have to go over everything in
> english. i think it would be nice if ALL our 12th graders understood what a
> paragraph is. then we would have more time to teach english as a foreign
> language . and maybe even literature, and some hots etc.
> (and why didn't they have to define what HOT they used in answering the
> questions?)
>
> anyone agree? or disagree?
>
> --
> sara g in israel
> sarag@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> saragabai@xxxxxxxxx
> Visit us at The E Zone
> http://clickit3.ort.org.il/ganyavneenglish
>
>
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