Meeting of October 26, 2009 at St. Paul's Episcopal Church

Glen Cove Math and English Department Heads speak at Coalition Meeting

Math chair Gregory Gorman, Coalition president Helen Kotzky, and English chair Ken Cotrone

Glen Cove School District math department head, Gregory Gorman, and English department head, Ken Cotrone, were the guest speakers at the October meeting of the Coalition for Glen Cove.

Mr. Cotrone praised the Readers Workshop and Writers Workshop used in Glen Cove English classes. Because Readers Workshop allows each student to choose books that they like and can understand, students are learning to enjoy reading and are reading more, which helps them to develop better comprehension and writing skills. They keep a journal with responses about the book they are reading, and in class, often work in reading circles to further their understanding of the book through discussion with their peers, guided by the teacher. During Writer’s Workshop, students are encouraged to choose their own topics, developing their personal writing style and techniques for careful editing.

Mr. Gorman emphasized that the goal in Glen Cove is to teach so that every student can understand the material. Teachers strive to differentiate instruction to fit the varied needs of the students. They encourage students to ask questions of the teacher and each other, often working in groups to explore a concept with the teacher overseeing their problem-solving progress. Learning by doing leads to much better understanding than simply being told and shown a series of steps to the solution. Understanding concepts lasts much longer than memorizing procedures and techniques and will serve our students better as they pursue higher level math and science at the high school and college levels.