For the past year or more, I have gotten away from using my guitar to teach English in the migrant camps. As we talk more and more about pre and post assessments and measurable objectives and outcomes with regard to migrant education, I think I have become too caught up with this educational jargon and forgotten how effective music can be as a tool to teach and learn a second language.
I can hear the State Director of the Migrant Program South Carolina asking why does it have to be an either-or situation. Why can't you do a pre-assessment of what parts of the body an ELL knows before the song and then a post assessment after the song is over? Of course it can be done this way, but these measurable objectives seem to interfere with the joy of the moment at times. At the same time, I know that we are moving away from migrant education programs that are more like summer camps to MEPs that are more outcome based. I just have to combine the joy-of-the-moment with a planned lesson with measurable objectives in a way that students are having fun while learning at the same time (and I can show that they are learning. . . and the State MEP and the Feds know they are learning too . . . and more importantly, my migrant students are beginning to realize that they are learning meaningful skills while enjoying a simple tune at the same time.)
Eyes and Ears and Mouth and Nose . . . Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes.
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