It's the Final Countdown!

The final countdown has begun! This is the last week of the summer session one and our final presentations happened today. I honestly can say I was a little scared when I saw the amount of work this presentation was going to be. I also was a bit nervous about incorporating a voice over to go with my prezi slides. Once I really got engaged in the development of this project I became intrinsically motivated to develop a project that I would be proud to share with my classmates. I felt excited to share my research on the constructivist theory but I was more excited to develop what my classroom would look and feel like once I incorporated this theory.

I worked hard to explain the approach I would use in my classroom. I focused on the constructivist theory because it involves student activity and social interactions toward constructing knowledge (Woolfolk, 2014, p. 397). I want my students to be engaged in the lesson material. I do not want to be a teacher who lectures the entire time but one who engages her students in inquiry based learning in order to further their knowledge. I feel if students are actively involved in their education they will be well-rounded individuals who are able to problem solve on their own and are prepared for the future problems they come in contact with.

The most difficult aspect of this project was starting the paper. I felt I had to start the paper off with a philosophical theory and its relevance to me. What I found out was if I write about my enthusiasm during this project, the writing will not be difficult to complete. Once I got writing I did not stop until I finished explaining my classroom environment. I was aiming for at least five pages and I was surprised I made it to eight pages. This just shows how being actively engaged in the learning process can spark an excitement in students that they are able to surpass their own goals they set out for themselves.

References 

Woolfolk, A. (2014). Education psychology: Active learning edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Learning 

           Inc. 

Motivation: Be More Awesome

Who doesn't like this kid! He is so inspiring! 

Throughout this course we have been speaking about different teaching techniques to helps students learn. We have spoken about child development and we have spoken about behavior modifications. During the last portion of this course we have spoken about the constructivist approach to learning. Constructivist believe that students should be active in their construction of knowledge as well as have peer involvement (Woolfolk, 2014). A portion of the consructivist approach involves motivation. In order for the students to play an active role, they need to be motivated by the topic or activity.

I watched the video taken from the website Annenberg Learner about motivation in the classroom. In the beginning portion of the video it shows an elementary class participating in a geography lesson. During this portion of the video the viewer sees the students engaging in the activity. Social interactions are evident throughout this geography lesson. "When kids discover something on their own or with a friend, they feel like they own it. They are very proud of themselves" (Annenberg Learner). I remember as a student if I helped another student I felt important and wanted to assist more of my friends. Even today as a graduate student I enjoy the process of student-student interactions and while some group assignment can be frustrating, you come out of them with more knowledge and a different perspective. Being able to create lesson plans that motivate and inspire students will help in their construction of knowledge. By allowing the students to be an active participant in the process they will have a solid understanding of the content.

Resources

Annenberg Learner. Expectations for Success- Motivation and Learning (Episode 12). 

       Retrieved from http://www.learner.org/courses/learningclassroom/session_overviews/motiv_home12.html

SoulPancake. (2013, September 9). Kid President's Pep Talk to Teachers and Students. [Video file].                

       Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwlhUcSGqgs

Woolfolk, A. Educational Psychology: Active Learning Edition (12th Ed). Boston, MA: Pearson

       Learning Inc. 

The Development of an IEP

For cluster 4 one of the active learning connections at the end of the cluster asked me to do a web search on IEP's and a particular area of study. I chose to focus on IEP development in NY state, since I will hopefully be a future teacher in New York.

As you all are probably aware this is what the Individualized Education Plan for NY looks like. During my time at the Mount I have only completed an IEP once during my behavior management class. It was an interesting experience to say the least. Since I had no prior knowledge of filling out an IEP I made sure to pay special attention during the class instruction. "The IEP is an agreement between the parents and the school about the services that will be provided to the student" (Woolfolk, 2014, p. 148). It was an interesting webquest on the topic. Most of the websites I cam across were from a education department but also IEP Direct which uses software so teachers can input the IEP electronically with more ease. IEP Direct has a library of accommodations and goals  already in the system so teachers and teams just need to go to a pull-down tab. While this seems like a great idea, I feel it can take the importance out of writing this document. An IEP is meant to accommodate a students needs in the classroom so it should be completed with the same amount of car as teacher puts into their lesson plans. As long as the professionals completing the IEP have the students best interest at heart then the development will go smoothly.

I know a teachers day is already short in regards to free time. There is a lot of expectations put on teachers and most teachers take their work home with them. The work week does not end when that bell rings on Friday at 3:30 pm. Here is an article I found on Facebook about a teachers summer time off. It has nothing to do with this blog but I felt it was an interesting read.

References 

Goodman, L. (2015, January 19). Why Teachers Deserve the Summers Off. Retrieved from

        http://boilsdown.com/2015/01/19/why-teachers-deserve-their-summers-off/

Woolfolk, A. (12th Ed). Educational Psychology: Active Learning Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson               Learning Inc. 

Constructivist in the classroom! (Cluster 10-15 Fieldwork Assignment)

Currently I am observing a second grade classroom. The teacher uses the constructivist approach to learning not entirely but for particular portions of the day. Her room is set up in three groups of eight students. The students desks are formed into a rectangle and throughout the day she has them engage in group activities. "Social interactions are important in this knowledge construction process" (Woolfolk, 2014, p. 397). This teacher involves the students in group activities during lessons that involve content she wants the students to completely understand.

I observed this technique being used during a math lesson involving subtracting. The students were subtracting double digit numbers and were learning the process regrouping. She presented the lesson to the students and then broke them into groups to work on the remaining questions. The teacher then walked around the classroom listening to their conversations about the questions. The students were allowed to use their place value charts or they could work out the lesson by drawing their representation. This technique allowed the students to be actively involved in their learning, which is an important part of the constructivist approach (Woolfolk, 2014, p. 397).

Although this teacher did use social interaction and active learning to help the students construct their knowledge, she could have used more of the constructivist approach throughout her day. I only really saw this approach used in the math lesson. I feel that this approach can be used for science and domain lesson as well. Allowing the children to explore their environment and become actively involved in their learning with give them a deeper understanding of the content. There are so many tests involved in education that giving the students a break to engage in the learning on their own or socially makes it less stressful. Learning will then become a fun activity instead of a chore.

References 

Math & Learning Videos 4 Kids. (2013, June 5). Subtraction with Regrouping - Math Video for    

            Second Grade. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Buyaqe_L5-Y

Woolfolk, A. (12th Ed) Educational Psychology: Active Learning Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson        

            Learning Inc. 

I think I can, I think I can...

Listening to Anita Woolfolk's podcast on academic optimism made me instantly think of the picture above. I enjoyed the podcast because it brought in the teachers effect on student achievement. There are many debates on teacher efficiency going on today. The government wants to based fifty percent of a teachers evaluation on their students performance on standardized tests. Although this is a controversial issue, Anita brought up an important point regarding a students overall achievement in school. She said that if a teacher has high academic optimism then there students will likely perform better on tests. Academic optimism is "positive belief that you can make a difference in students lives by emphasizing academics and learning, by trusting students and parents to cooperate and by believing in your own capacity in overcoming difficulties" (Woolfolk, 2007).  This involves the teacher playing a role in the student achievement not strictly by instruction but from developing a relationship with your students and their parents. Research has shown that "teachers who have a higher sense of efficacy are more devoted to their profession and participation in a students achievement" (Woolfolk, 2007). I thought this was a great point. There are many teachers our there who love what they do and have a real passion for helping children gain knowledge. There are also teachers who have lost sight of the reason they entered into this profession and may not have a high sense of efficacy anymore. We as teachers are in our students lives to help them construct their knowledge on topics, learn new topics, and but also develop a relationship with the student and their family. It is important for teacher candidates to understand the impact low academic optimism can have on their future classroom.  If you would like to listen to Anita's podcast on the topic click on the link provided. 

Resources

Woolfolk, A. (2007, April 13). Anita Talks About Teaching [Podcast 13]. Academic Optimism. 

            Podcast retrieved from https://anitatalks.wordpress.com/

Intelligence and its Versatility (Cluster 5 Fieldwork Assignment)

https://www.thinglink.com/scene/663917311702335489

According to Howard Gardner intelligence is "a biopsychological potential to process information in certain ways in order to solve problems or create products that are valued in at least one culture or community" (Woolfolk, 2014, p. 134). For our fieldwork assignment I asked four different people the same question "What are three characteristics that would describe an intelligent person?". The answers I expected to get involved testing and IQ scores but the answers I received were of wide variety. Some said an intelligent person is creative and driven, while one person said they were socially awkward. Gardner believed that intelligence in hows individuals react and process information. I was particularly interested in this cluster after taking Rachel's quiz on learning theories. I found out that I am an auditory learning. I normally have referred to myself as a visual learning but have been misguided. I was able to reflect on that score and now have created helpful study skills geared towards my type of learning.

Just as these four individuals showed different opinions and ideas, our students in the classroom will exhibit different opinions and ideas. We, as teachers, need to be aware of the different intelligence's and types of learning. In the classroom I am observing, it is filled with a variety of learners and all the students are intelligent. Some students seem to be more academically intelligent while other have great abstract skills. I spoke with the teacher and asked what she does to promote the different intelligence and types of learning and she said "I make sure to have different situation occur in my class. Meaning I encourage group work and also individual work when appropriate". She uses visuals and manipulatives during her lessons in order to help the children follow the instruction.  She is aware that each of her students are intelligent in particular aspects and does her best to promote those qualities in the classroom.

I've got skills, they're multiplying...

Above is a short video on basic addition skills for children. During the video it goes through a sequence of simple addition problems, presenting the mathematical sentence as well as pictures symbolizing the sentence. I choose this video because it has to do with the topic of automated basic skills.

Automated basic skills is defined as "skills that are applied without conscious thought" (Woolfolk, 2014, p. 343). This regards the skills such as tying your shoe laces or write the letters of the alphabet. Once you have mastered the skill, there is little thought put into the process on a day to day basis. It was interesting to read about this topic because of the demographic I work with. I work with preschool aged children, and the skills I dismiss as everyday activities are difficult for the students. For example, one student of mine has just learned how to tie her shoelaces last week. She is still in the cognitive phase of this process of mastering the skill. The cognitive phase relies heavily on "declarative knowledge and general problem solving strategies to accomplish our goal" (Woolfolk, 2014, p. 343). I can tell my student is in this phase of the process because her concentration is on only tying her friends shoes when she is performing the action. Many trial and errors have occurred during the past week or so.  This is the step of the learning process where teachers play a key role. The teacher has the ability to help encourage the cognitive process. Due to many trial and errors occurring during this step, the teacher's role is to make a learning experience out of each misstep. An example is mathematics involves learning the numbers both physically on paper and abstractly in their minds before being able to add two numbers together to make a number sentence.

The second portion of the process of automated basic skills is the associated skill where "the individual steps of a procedure are combined or clunked into larger units" (Woolfolk, 2014, p. 343). This step involved the steps become smooth transitions for the next one. An example of this is writing letters. Writing the letter "A" involved three lines; once the student starts the first angled line its cues the next two lines directly after. You would not write the first line of the "A", move onto another letter, and then come back to finish the "A".

The final portion of this process is called the autonomous stage. This stage is where the skill can be accomplished without much thought or attention (Woolfolk, 2014). Adults are in this stage of the process when it comes to tying our shoes or performing simple mathematical problems. For younger children this stage may not come easily. In my class I have half the students going to kindergarten and half the students staying for another year in our head start program. Even within the kindergarten group, some of my students have not mastered writing their name and yet some can write their name without a visual guide. As the teacher I am able to help the students who still need the help problem solving while observing the students developing automated basic skills. In order to assist your students in developing these skills your lesson plans must reflect the different stages of this development. If the content being taught is new, the focus should be on the cognitive stage since the students have no prior knowledge. If the content is prior knowledge, then the students might be able to work independently on the tasks being assigned. All in all the teacher needs to be aware of where her students are in the process of automated basic skills in order to benefit from the instruction.