Renae Curless, John Phillips, and Mackenzie Remster EDUC 629 Inquiry Project 2 October 28, 2013 The

Scarlet Letter The observed class is a junior advanced placement English class at JR Masterman. The twenty-six-person class is currently reading Nathaniel Hawthornes The Scarlet Letter. Halfway through the book, the students are beginning to form opinions on characters such as Reverend Dimmesdale and Roger Chillingworth, as well as developing insight into the themes used by
Comment [FF1]: You might Hawthorne. Although the discussion is largely plot-driven, DN seeks to make a novel that have is expanded a bit more here on the opinions and themes that have been a part of either ongoing discussions in class or other usually dry exciting and relevant for his students. student talk/writing that has lead up to the one you will analyze here. Providing as much context as possible support your analysis DN, the instructor, opens the discussion as he assigns a paper topic will before reviewing a and will provide the reader of your write-up with a better understanding of nature of discourse around this quiz. Students are asked to choose one character, most commonly either Dimmesdale or novel that has occurred in this classroom.

Chillingworth, and create an argument as to why this chosen character is more than general? If youabominable mean in general, what does this the other. They must provide textual evidence, and the students are also free to choose a different character to condemn if they so wish. After referencing examples of topics chosen in previous years, DN poses discussion by bluntly discussing the male characters of the novel as total jerks. Chillingworth, a plotting witch doctor, and Dimmesdale, a cowardice who refuses to take responsibility for his sins, drive the novels plot.

Comment [FF2]: In this particular discussion, or in generally look like? Again, this contextual information will support your analysis/write-up.

DN: [Discussing a past students writing as he creates a satirical piece on blaming Native Americans for Hesters adultery] Im not going to read the whole passage but it 5 says that the individuals that transcend all other characters prove to be the act of inherent evil within the novel are dot dot dot Students laugh DN: And then he says the abduction of Chillingworth is the 10 first thing and then he talks- oh theres a lot of stuff- well you know right now where Dimmesdale is. When Hesters waiting for Dimmesdale where has he been now? Off with the Apostle Elliot trying to convert lost Indian souls. And the Indians put Dimmesdale in this whole situation of 15 living out by himself in the woods. And it says Dimmesdale falls victim to the witch doctor and fiend Roger Chillingworth. Uh and so it talks about the Indian presence as savage and evil and Chillingworths art of black magic and it talks about without the presence of the 20 Indians the entire adultery scandal would not have occurred. Chillingworth wouldve arrived timely to be reunited with Hester, and she wouldnt have had to suppress her lustrous passions in fear of death for adultery and thus The Scarlet Letter would not have existed. Its so 25 overblown and silly. When he turned it into me, I said this is either pure genius or terrible. And Im still not really sure. I was like you gotta talk to me. Did you mean to be funny? I mean its just so tongue and cheek. Alright so, what I wanna do right now is give you back your quizzes. I 30 want to spend some time talking about them and then I told you I have some highlighted things from the book so grab your copies of the book.

The discussion begins with a review of a test.

Comment [FF3]: How do you react to the tone that DM establishes as an actor in this class discussion? What are your thoughts about how the way in which he positions himself as the leader of this discussion impacts other moments that follow? Comment [FF4]: This is a fairly abrupt transition. Reading back over this, how do you interpret the way DM framed this upcoming writing assessment.

3 DN passes back the students quizzes DN: So these questions were five points each, the speaker 35 and the speakee each worth two and a half points. They were pretty straightforward. Most of you got everything right on the bottom, if you gave me an explanation of the characters and valid support, you got the full six points. So the problem I have right now is that I dont have a copy of 40 the quiz, so you tell me the answers. So, number one! You tell me, whos been watching on the death bed? S1: Hester Prynne DN: Hesters been watching. But why? Who is going to? Students: The governor 45 DN: The governor. Winthrop was like the first governor of Massachusetts, and hes the real guy that gives us the story. Hes the guy that died in 1649 so thats how we know that the plot of the story is seven years. So Winthrop dies, and she cant sew wedding clothes so shes sewing governor 50 clothes for his funeral so it gives you some idea of where Hester is. Where is she during this conversation? Students: On the scaffold DN: Because why? Students: Shes accused of adultery. 55 DN: Right. And he cant sleep so he goes up and this is where he like stands on the scaffold and what does he does thats crazy? Students: He screams. DN: Yes! Alas, he gives the biggest crappy cop out. 60 Seriously, its like inception. Its like oh no just kidding. He screams once out loud, and hes like every person in town is gonna come in and like look at m, but what happens when they hear someone screaming out loud? Here, the students offer the answers to the test questions instead of DN reading straight from the answer key.
Comment [FF5]: He doesnt read the answers from a key, but Im curious to know how you react to the approach that he does take. This might include some discussion of the quiz itself and how the nature of the assessment dictates the talk that occurs in this review session. Were there aspects of these pedagogical choices that indicate problems or possibilities for literacy education? How does this approach sit in terms of some of the readings youve done on hosting classroom discussions?

4 Students: They close their windowsGet creeped out. 65 DN: Yeah creepy witches out at night. So Hester explains why shes there. While theyre up there, something weird and creepy happens. The meteor comes and whats that? A giant A meteor. S2: Its like Sesame Street where they include letters in 70 there. Students laugh. DN: Right. And then theres like a C running down the street. More laughter 75 DN: And then in the light of the meteor what do they notice? Students: Chillingworth. DN: Yeah, Chillingworth just kind of creeping. Student: Hes just standing like on the edge 80 DN: And Dimmesdale goes who is that? And what does Hester do? Students: Nothing. DN: She doesnt say anything. Shes silent. Why is she silent? 85 S3: She promised she wouldnt say anything. DN: Yep. But Pearl comes in, which leads to the next thing, and is like I know who he is! Ill tell you. And so Dimmesdale, I mean just picture the awkwardness of this. Dimmesdale leans up- we already talked about it yesterday 90 a little bit- what does Pearl say? Students mumble various inaudible answers (7:04) DN: And so thats when she follows up with that was not true, you wouldnt promise to take my hand. So for that one, this is the one where a lot of you missed part of the
Comment [FF6]: Im not entirely clear on what you mean by the social nature of the conversation and contemporary feel. I read these as informal and non-traditional, respectively, but you should probably expand on these interpretive phrases to build on your analysis of what occurs.

This moment (lines 65-75) shows a brief moment of off-topic talk. DN instantly moves the attention back to The Scarlet Letter. This shows a positive practice of teaching, as DN does not react negatively to the students off topic comment, but rather, acknowledges the humor and then quickly re-focuses.

The social nature of the conversation lends a very contemporary feel. Students reiterate again and again the language of Chillingworth being a creep, describing his creeping around the village at night, his creeping into Dimmesdales closet, even though they were confused as to what Chillingworth finds in the closet, which DN clarifies as a sort of whip used to repent for his own wrongdoings.

5 95 points, because you needed to make the connection that it wasnt just Pearl saying you need to be a man and own me in the daytime. It was Pearl also saying you werent whole, you werent true. The reason why Im not telling you who that guy is is becauseuh because of that. So it had to 100 somehow connect. Some of you in question two gave me the information that you needed also for question three, but somehow there needed to be that connection. So the last two are from the little Chillingworth, Hester meeting along the beach where theyre kinda walkin around and Pearls 105 bein Pearl. Um, so the first one is basically um Chillingworth saying yeah sorry Imyou know hes kind of owning up to who he is. And what does Hester say? Student: She wants to see if she can tell Dimmesdale who he is. 110 DN: She meets with him to say Im tellin Dimmesdale; Im breakin the promise. And hes like too late now- its not a big deal, because Im already a fiend. And so then, that whole thing, he continues to say to her, if you had met someone other than me first, you wouldve been much 115 happier in life. But hes like if you had met a greater love than mine, then we wouldve never had this whole thing. He says I wronged you, she says I wronged you. Theyve wronged each other, and thats when Hester says theres a way to make it better. How can Chillingworth make things 120 better? S4: Be nice to Dimmesdale. DN: Yeah. Stop torturing him. At least I can be happy, Pearl can be happy, Dimmesdale can be happy. And hes like nope, not gonna happen. So well talk about his- his
Comment [FF7]: What are your thoughts on the extended plot summary and personal reactions that DM engages in here and across his review of the quiz? Approaching his review of the exam this way means that his voice occupies the majority of the discursive space. Some discussion of this approach might be useful here.

6 125 revenge plan in a little bit. But flip it over. Dimmesdales constant habit is what? S4: Putting his hand on his eye. DN: And I love Pearl. Pearls always like why is he always putting his hand on his eye? Is it for the 130 same reason that you wear an A on your chest? And Hesters like no, no, no. So theres that whole thing. Uh Chillingworthuh this question is kind of hyper specific here. This is Hawthornes humor...thats not saying much. 135 Students laugh DN: What does som mean? It means sleep. Insomnia means you cant sleep. Somniferous means it makes you go to sleep. So if its published in the somniferous school of literature, what does that mean? 140 Students: Boring. DN: Yeah, its really boring. Isnt that funny? Isnt Hawthorne just hysterical? Students laugh. DN: So hes so sound asleep theres like drool coming out 145 of him. Chillingworth rips open his shirt and sees something that we never really know what it is, but he dances like the devil. But like the devil when he wins us over in Hell but with more look of wonder and merriment. S2: But whats in Dimmesdales closet? Like its talking 150 about his closet. DN: Yeah, whats goin on in Dimmesdales closet? S2: Is it like a whip? DN: Yeah, hes got like a lash and he keeps constant vigil, so he lashes himself. He, you know, wanders at night. It 155 says he like beats his hands on stuff. And Chillingworth
Comment [FF9]: I agree. How might he have restructured his review to push the level of student dialogue in this way? Would it mean completely changing the approach he takes? Would it be something small that he might have done? Comment [FF8]: If laughter is any indication, they definitely seemed engaged and confortable, but how do you know that this approach helps students to understand the questions that DN poses? If there are indicators beyond their laugher and the short responses that they voice that indicate this aspect of his approach, you might want to elaborate on what these are. This may be an accurate interpretation, but as a reader of your write-up, Im not clear that this is necessarily the case.

DN uses conversational elements like humor, sarcasm, and casual language to lead the discussion. The discussion has a very conversational tone to it, which I think helps students understand the questions that DN poses and allows them to answer in a way that is familiar and comfortable. There is a lot of student laughter throughout the test review and discussion, showing that students are listening and engaged in what DN is saying.

This exchange (lines 21-26) clarifies the tested plot points. Having students answer each others questions would incorporate more voices and input into the discussion.

7 finally catches him in his sleep, and at that point Chillingworth knows. Whatever he saw is evidence that Dimmesdale is the dad. And so Chillingsworths whole plan changes and so this one, Hester lies to Pearl. Okay so 160 this one is kind of hyper specific. She doesnt tell the full truth on a lot of things. But there is an actual line in the book where Hawthorne says this is the only time where Hester really lied. And so I was looking for that although Iyou know- if you put anything about her not telling the 165 whole truth, there is only one time where she says something deliberately wrong, and thats the A. Pearl asks why do you wear the A. And whats Hesters response to her? S5: Its got fine gold. 170 DN: Yeah, it has fine gold embroidery. The whole yes, I met the black man once, is sort of a lie. I mean when you think about it, she danced with the devil. I guess thats what the kids are calling it these days. She couldve said yeah I danced with the black man once and youre the product. So 175 the one time where Hawthorne says she really lies is when she says the A looks nice and she chooses to wear it. And so the last one where she goes into the woods and shes waiting by the creek to tell her sorrows. This is a literary mechanism, and well talk more about it later called 180 pathetic fallacy. Its the same root as pathos, you know like highly emotional and a fallacy is false. So basically a pathetic fallacy is a fancy word for personification. When you give inanimate objects human emotions, its false, and so thats called pathetic fallacy. And this example of the 185 brook that tells everyone their sorrows is that whole idea of personification thats overblown. Its like a hyper
Comment [FF11]: What are your thoughts on his method of introducing this new term to students? Comment [FF10]: Where are you seeing students showing sympathy for Prynne and Pearl? Is there something else going on in the class beyond DMs talk here that doesnt get communicated through the transcript? Is your interpretation based on some other data/previous conversation? Your comment here definitely needs some expansion/clarification.

Here, students read from their quiz papers to give the answer.

Casual and student friendly language (lines 45-6)

Students seem sympathetic, even admiring, towards Hester Prynne and her daughter Pearl.

8 personification. Um so the last four, anything that you put probably wouldve worked. So you couldve put, some of you put that Pearl is a sweet, innocent, cute girl. And others 190 put that Pearl is like Satan incarnated. Um either one of those is fine as long as you gave examples. You could say she broke birds wings, threw rocks at Puritans. Or you could say how she frolics with animals in the woods. Yeah, shes dancing in the woods with foxes and stuff like that. 195 So, any questions? Okay so I want these back, but for right now, grab your books DN: You guys did solidly well, so again, um, well over half of you got an A, and almost all the rest of you, uh, were a solid B, and so Iat least from this there seems to be 200 indication that you get the reading and understand and are doing wellAyana continues to put the rest of you to shame.seriously, with the rest of you, if theres a curve in the class you would have to beat her up before a testshe doesnt miss stuff. Im going to have to ask you questions 205 to make you miss stuff. Ayana: Mr. DN(laughing) DN: There are a bunch of things that I want to talk about with you that are all tied to specific pagesso if you can open first to the hhmmmuuuhwe already talked about 210 that.turn topage 121 please. This is the scene where Chillingworth and Dimmesdale are talking and looking at the window and Pearl and Hester kind of show up. Um, tell me their discussion S6: Its so 215 DN: What are they S6: Theyre talking aboutI cant remember exactly in the beginning, but they started talking about howwhat if In lines 214-7, the student seems to try and answer a plot-based question with an interpretation. In line 87, DN again requests for the descriptive answer to the question instead of the students continuation of her interpretation of the conversation between Chillingsworth and Dimmesdale.
Comment [FF13]: Thoughts on this singling out of Ayana?

The review of the quiz could have been more student-centered. Because, as DN says, the students did so well, they could have shared answers that he had praised on the paper. The review started studentcentered, but ended with long, explanatory monologues.
Comment [FF12]: What would a more studentcentered review have looked like?

9 someone has a secret but they really want to tell it. Chillingsworth is like, well they should just say it. I 220 dont know. DN: What does Dimmesdale say that you should do? S6: (interjecting) Its pretty obvious DN: If you have a secret, what should you do with it? S7: Well, Chillingsworth says that the black weeds are 225 growing in the guys heart because he didnt confess his sins, so, because, hes like, why wouldnt you confess your sins before you die? DN: Whats Dimmesdales response? Why dont you confess your sins before you die? 230 S8: Isnt it like, it doesnt matter? DN: Yeah, you can be forgiven by god, and its even better thanif you confess to god, and you get his graceits like the weasel-iest pastor answer imaginable. Hes the guy whos supposed to be the spiritual guide for everyone, and 235 whats he saying? DN: Just keep it inside, and then at the last moment you can celebrate in joy with god. And all of these things. But then, they talk about the laws and following the laws, and thats at the top of 121, who do they start talking about? 240 A few students mumbling: Pearl DN: Pearl. And what kind of stories do they tell about her? S1: Shes an imp DN: yeah, shes an impdid they ask, is the imp evil? S7: Does she have feelings? 245 DN: Yeah, does she have feelings? Does she have a purpose? Does she have any discoverable principle of being, they say Students laughing These lines (239-247) are an example of leading questions. Most of the questions clarify plot points, as this one about how the other characters in the novel view Hesters daughter Pearl. Some of the questions track the novels progression and clarify the sometimes-confusing language. DN puts the plot points in terms that students easily understand.
Comment [FF14]: Again, I would encourage you to hedge on your assertion about student comprehension. It may be more accurate to say that he attempts to put these points in terms that lead to improved comprehension.

Here, students draw from the text to support their answers in the discussion.

10 DN: And this is the hysterical scenewhere Pearl looks up 250 throughthrows a prickly bur through the window at the Reverend Mr. Dimmesdale up above, overlooking, and it says, the sensitive nervous man shrunk from the white missile Students laughing 255 DN: And then, whats Pearl do? S9: She says, dont worry mom, were not gonna S10: She claps DN: She clapslook at the black man! Whos she talking about? 260 S9: Chillingsworth DN: Chillingsworth. Look, dont let him catch you! He caught the minister, and shes like, oh lets run away from the evil manI mean Pearl does not hold back, does sheand he can not catchshes like the gingerbread 265 man! Students laughing harder DN: Running away, skipping dancing frisking through the bollocks of the dead people, dancing in the graveyard, woo hoo, yay, and so umtheres a lot at the bottom of the 270 page. What does Chillingsworth say about Hester? Second to last paragraph Pause S11: What was the question? DN: What does Chillingsworth say about Hester? Is she 275 less miserable because of what? Students: Because of the letter DN: Do you think Hester is better off wearing this A? Students interjecting: yeah
Comment [FF15]: How would you assess what all of this student laughter indicates about the pedagogical stance that DM takes toward running classroom discussions? Are their possibilities and problems with such a stance? What approaches to analysis is he teaching here? What does he seem to communicate to his students about what he values in terms of analysis?

The students paraphrase the text in their own language

The discussion has a lot of student laughter. This shows that the students are connecting with what the instructor is saying and are receptive to his commentary.

This pause happened as students were looking through their books to answer the question.

11 DN: She doesnt have any hidden sins! So whats 280 Dimmesdales response? Students: [murmuring] yeah DN: Absolutely. So Hesters much better off than anyone else that has hidden sins S5: What are you saying, Dimmesdale? 285 DN: yeah. Whats the public perception of this man? Bunch of students: Hes a good guy; hes the hero. DN: Hes the hero of the town. And whats he saying? Student whispering incoherently DN: My life sucksand so Hester, Hester has no friends at 290 all, no one even looks at her, and hes like yeah, Hesters much better off because she doesnt have hidden sin. S12: But is it like DN: yeah S12: If she didnt have the A, wouldnt that be a huge 295 amount of guilt if people didnt know? Pause DN: So? S13: yeah S12: Im not saying that one is worse than the other, but 300 wouldnt sayingarent they equally hard? I mean I would rather have DN: Right, rightthe fact that Dimmesdale is so quick to say, oh yeah, shes better off is a little frustrating S4: Thats when he kind of says, she can wear paint on her 305 face but other people who cant express it hold it all in their heart and it kind of eats away at them from the inside DN: Yeah. I mean, the audacity of this man to sayyeah, shes been rough. He says to her in the passage youre Several students usually contributed at a time (line 158). This could be because the questions were mainly plot based and several students found the answer at the same time, or because they feel comfortable chiming in with each other.

12 about to read in chapter 17 or 18 or something, happy are 310 you Hester who wears the A openly S3: Isnt the guilt making him sick? Hes so sick that hes holding his heartDying, it seems like sosomaybe thats why he thinks its better to have it out in the open? Because its 315 DN: Absolutely. Yeah. S3: Like, five minutes ago he was like, yeah ok, people who sin shouldnt confess, then hes like, no, it would be easier if you did confess DN: Nohesa couple of you wrote that Dimmesdale is 320 highly hypocritical that was your description of him, and this is all evidence S8: You kind of want to feel bad for Dimmesdale, because hes sick and whining and whatever, but its his fault and he could confess if he wanted to, but he thinks hes so 325 much better off like, but hes like a minister, hes a its not like someone made him do this and like, oh my life is so hardits his fault DN: yeah. Its all his choice and hes trying to get pity for it. Julian, what do you have 330 Julian: I feel like, he cant confess thoughat least he shouldnt because like everyone looks at him so highly. First of all I think it would be hard for him to accept that hes the one who slept with Hester, but then also like if he said it, it revoked everything hes ever done 335 DN: What happens when he does it says repeatedly that he confesses. S13: He tries to do it, when he... DN: When he...? Youve been reading this book too much. A conversation that started with DN going over quiz questions turned to heavier topics, posing potential actions that each character could take and what that would mean for the story.
Comment [FF16]: It also appears that there has been a shift here in terms of the amount of discursive space in the conversation that student voices now occupy. Any indication about how this transition came to be? Was there a pivotal moment? Has DN shifted his positioning in the conversation in some way? Could the nature of this conversation have been more balanced from the start, regardless of the fact that this started out as a straightforward review of a quiz?

13 Girl 2: No, like, he says, guys, you shouldnt even follow 340 me, because Im actually a really bad person and Ive done bad things, and theyre all like, wow, if hes done bad things, then I must be going straight to hell as soon as I die. DN: He uses it, because he never gives the whole truth, he kind of leaves stuff out. Habi, you had something? 345 Habi: UmDN: Or did we lose you? Or did we go somewhere else? Habi: You lost me. DN: All right, Taylor? Taylor: Well yeah, I think when he tries to confess, I think 350 the only person who like, could actually convince them that Hester, shes not the one. Julian: If he does confess, would that mean Hester would die? Students: No. 355 DN: No, thats a really good question. Whats going to happen to her if they Maybe theyre keeping her alive to see if they can find the guy. S15: It said that Roger showed up and told her. He said its further proof that it happened. So now, that would just 360 mean that the proof is all there. DN: So whats going on with Hester and the town right now? S9: Shes able. DN: Shes able. Just like the A stands for angel, the other A 365 stands for able. Things are good. But wouldnt that just remind everyone again of the bad stuff? I dont know. Its not going to be pretty. S9: I dont think hes trying to protect Hester by not saying anything. I think he really cares about her. Here, DN recognized that a student had her hand up and returned to her later in the conversation.

14 370 Julian: But the actual price for adultery is death. DN: Yeah, but yeah. Julian: I mean, technically, by law they would both have to die. S16: But arent they sparing her because they think that her 375 husbands is dead? I think it may not be a crime. DN: And it has not been seven years, since her husbands death. Remember that rule. S9: So now they could. DN: So now they could conceivably have a relationship. 380 S9: Oh. DN: Because seven years have passed and the husband never showed up. [Unintelligable] DN: What? 385 S3: But Chillingsworth doesnt know ifDN: Yeah, ChillingsworthThe husbands not going to stand by and say, Oh yeah, Im dead. S7: But doesnt Chillingsworth then get punished for coming in with a false identity for seven years? 390 S9: No one has to know that hes Chillingsworth. S7: But the only way so if Dimmesdale comes out and says, Im the father, and theyre either going either going to punish him DN: This really is Jerry Springer. Then Chillingsworth 395 comes around and says, Im the husband. S7: But if Dimmesdale admits to it, and they enter into whatever weird possible relationship they could have, Chillingsworth isnt going to allow that. Hes either going to do something to Dimmesdale which would get Interestingly enough, DN was the person in the classroom making jokes about the book, more than any of his students. While the students definitely appreciate the jokes, they arent taking advantage of DNs lax classroom to push the limits of the classroom.
Comment [FF17]: Why do you think this is the case? Why dont they take advantage of this lax classroom? I think it might be useful to work through why this might be.

This ability for students to make jokes is due in part to the manner in which DN manages conversations. While students feel free to speak openly in his classroom, DN makes sure that he has a hand on the route of the discussion. He understands that digressions are necessary, but he also realizes when to bring the conversation back to the topic at hand. Luckily for him, his students make that task easy.

15 400 Chillingsworth in trouble, or he would come out and say hes the husband, but thats not going to happen. S2: No. DN: All of this assumes that Dimmesdale is going to confess to anything. 405 S2: Hes too serious. He had such a high power in the town and hes so scared about what people think of him. DN: Right. So, Rachel and then Rachel: But also, why does it matter because nobody cares anymore? Seriously, everyones been quiet about it and no 410 ones going to just bring it up. Hester has a good role in the town, shes looked upon highly. I think she has friends. I feel bad but nothings going to make it better. Or someone saying that hes the father. It would be stupid. DN: You all are going to talk as we transition. Open your 415 books to page 126. Go to 126. This is probably so I give two different quizzes for my two classes. And the other class, the question that stumped everyone is on page 126 and that is, what is Chillingsworths plan for revenge? What specifically does Chillingsworth hope to do? Its kind 420 of buried on 126. So take a look and tell me whatsNow that Chillingsworth knows, whats his plan? Karen? Karen: To make him him to be the one testedDN: So it lead him to imagine a more intimate revenge than any mortal had ever reaped on any enemy. Its really 425 not that big of a deal, but, so start with the make himself. Someone explain that to us in contemporary English. S10: To be his friend. DN: Right, to be his best buddy, to Iago him on some level. S10: Kind of making him feel so comfortable that hell 430 confess everything to him and hell just turn it on its back. The impressive part of the high levels to which the conversation travelled is that all of it is kept in the context of the story. The students are aware of the culture in which the story takes place and their discussions are informed by the time period and Puritan culture. The conversation in DNs class modeled both types of talk

16 DN: He wants to be the recipient of the confession. He wants to be the one trusted friend that Dimmesdale confesses to. So then he does what? When you confess, what do you think will come out of that? Whats the whole 435 purpose of- You want forgiveness, dont you? You confess to a sin, you want forgiveness. Julian: Its the greatest feeling. DN: So he wants to have Dimmesdale finally open up to Chillingsworth so that Chillingsworth can do what? 440 S10: ForgiveDN: So he cannot forgive him. S10: Oh. DN: He wants all of those things expelled in vain. Listen, so he says, All that guilty sorrow, hidden from the world, 445 whose great heart would have pitied and forgiven, to be revealed to him. So the world would have forgiven him so. Its not a big deal any more. But if he confesses only to Chillingsworth, to him, the Pitiless, to him, the Unforgiving. He wasnt to be like the one who doesnt 450 give forgiveness. And that would make it even worse. Well talk about these chapters more tomorrow. As VanDeWeghe suggests, the classroom needs both types of talk at times, but DN avoids one of the pitfalls that many teachers stumble into by making sure that he doesnt spend too much time on his own questions. Had he done that, the classrooms energy would have decreased severely. Especially with a book as potentially dull as The Scarlet Letter, a teacher cannot spend too much time on the nuts and bolts.

17
Comment [FF18]: This a fairly The discussion of The Scarlet Letter manifests critical literacy at work. Defined as thesweeping claim to

facing of the social aspects of a text (Christensen, reading and writing and delves into the dissection

make. I think youd probably be better served to stick to focusing on specific aspects of the discussion that 1999), critical literacy transcends the of literacy indicate where aspects of acts a critical framework for teaching emerge. I think this could been to embedded in Students the process notes/comments of a book and its have relation society. that you make throughout.

are urged to compare the novel to previously read pieces by Hawthorne, as they ponder the patterns present in his works. Nodding in agreement and understanding as students voice their opinions of the morally corrupt and spineless males featured in the novel as well as Hester Prynnes social acceptance that increases over the course of the text, they mull over the idea of forgiveness and how authentic such an act truly is. In Developing Students Critical Literacy: Exploring Identity Construction in Young Adult Fiction, authors Thomas W. Bean and Karen Moni explore how classroom discussion is best framed to heighten adolescents search for identity and development of morals. In a world where teens are disconnected from traditional values and instead are constantly on-the-go and immersed in social media, Bean and Moni calls teachers to recognize that books are also a tool of the media and may be used to dictate what adolescents value and these values may be shaped through the lens of critical literacy. However, Bean and Moni develop critical literacy theory further by discussing Critical Discourse Analysis, which focuses on hidden dimensions of text. Critical Discourse Analysis examines the social context, ideologies, and overall effects of a text (Bean & Moni, 2003). By discussing Hawthornes aims at the hypocrisy of societys institutions, the theme of adultery and its presence in todays society, and the general tone of The Scarlet Letter, students gain a more seasoned perception of the work. The observed lesson operates on an entirely dialogic level. DN does not stand before his class lecturing, nor do his students behave in an unruly, chaotic state. Creating a casual and

18 comfortable atmosphere by allowing students to simply call out answers as they go over the quiz, helps to quicken the time allotted for the quiz so the lesson may progress into a more in depth discussion of the novel. The Scarlet Letter may be frowned upon in some literature classrooms, as being dry and dated, yet this classroom breathes fresh air into the novel, using contemporary words to interpret the story and focusing on the immoral and moral portrayals in characters. DNs class does not hesitate to delve into the deeper questions that the book raises. The Scarlet Letter is a complicated novel, so much so that a teacher could very easily spend the majority of the lessons on the book simply making sure that students understand the content. In DNs classroom though, the conversation weaves back and forth between questions about content and comments about higher-level discussions. The conversation in DNs class modeled both types of talk of which VanDeWeghe speaks, going back and forth between questions with predetermined answers and other more open questions. VanDeWeghe describes two different types of classroom talk, Whats on my mind? and Whats on your mind? (VanDeWeghe, 2003). In the former, teachers ask questions that are meant essentially just to see whether or not students did the reading. In the latter, the questions the teacher poses dont necessarily have answers. Thats why, as the discussion went on during DNs class, his voice became less prominent as the discussion becomes more focused on these questions that allow students to question what exactly is on their own minds. As long as discussion stays focused on the book, it is much better to have students talking about the moments and questions that interest them, and DN accomplishes that goal.

19 Works Cited
Bean, T. & Moni, K. (2003). Developing Students Critical Literacy: Exploring Identity Construction in Young Adult Fiction. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 48(8), 636-648. Christensen, L. (1999). Critical Literacy: Teaching, Reading, Writing, and Outrage. Making Just Our Project: Teachers Working Towards Critical Whole Language Practice, 54-66. VanDeWeghe, R. (2003). Classroom discussions of literature. English Journal, 93 (1), 87-91.

20
Education 629.002 Fall 2013 Inquiry Project II: Critical Inquiry into Teaching Literature/Reading: Planning, Teaching and Analyzing Classroom Literature Discussions Feedback for Renae Curless, John Phillips, and Mackenzie Remster A check indicates your paper meets this expectation. A check + indicates you met this expectation particularly well. + Collaboration: Project shows evidence of thoughtful and balanced collaboration; collaborative aspect is used to further inquiry and deepen analysis. Transcription: Transcript is included and some aspects are integrated in paper to explicate key themes. Use of split-page journal, or other method, to demonstrate consideration of emergent patterns, themes, questions, etc. Observation involves both content and process: Multiple levels are attended to, including lesson content, delivery, teacher stance, students relative interest, involvement, silences, topical and nontopical classroom talk, etc. Connections with teaching frameworks in course readings: Analysis shows a process of making problematic key concepts such as literacy, learning, teaching, language, adolescence, culture, reading, writing; methods are considered in light of critical framework. Inquiry raises insights/questions/issues about English/language and literacy teaching: Implications for future teaching are raised, with consideration of ways to increase student equity and engagement in productive classroom talk.

Additional Comments:

Group, I saw a lot of improvement in terms of analysis and interpretation as I progressed through your transcript and the double-entry notes that you logged along the way. I think that some of the connections that you voiced in the closing paragraphs of your write-up would have been more useful had you discussed them in ongoing ways throughout the transcript. Had you done so, I think you would have ended up addressing some of the questions I posed along the way and your observations about content and process would have been richer. As they stand now, these final paragraphs seem a bit disjointed from the flow of the transcript. What I would like to see a bit more of in the final paragraphs of your write-up are your thoughts on what specific approaches/methods for orchestrating classroom talk that this discussion indicates might be useful/problematic for your own teaching. In the individual reflections that you complete for your portfolio for this class, Id like to see you address some of the questions I raised across your paper and hear some of your individual perspectives on what performing this inquiry has indicated might be fruitful for your own teaching.