The most important part of this chapter is to understand how important it is for teachers to help students make the connection to what is being learned in the class to the real world. Studies suggest that students understand and remember information ten times better when it is related to a real life situation. A lesson that presents a real life scenario can reach out to students in so many different ways.
I remember in my high school biology class we were learning about trees and why each tree had different leave characteristics. This could have been just one of those lessons where students had to memorize the different kinds of fact for the test, however, our teacher took us out of the classroom into the woods and let us explore the different kinds of leaves. We had to collect five different leaves and compare and contrast the different characteristics of the leaves. Then we had to explain why these different characteristics were important to the trees. This was such a challenging lesson, but in the end we ended up learning so much more than what was expected of us.
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Chapter 9 "When Things Go Wrong"
The most important part of this chapter was summed up in Vance response where she mentions that the most important part of teaching is for the teacher to do his or her job and do it well. Everything else, such as bonding with students and respect for one another, will fall into place if the teacher continues to do his or her job.
I think sometimes teachers worry to much about loosing control of their students, or not receiving the respect they should. To compensate for this teachers try to either become more of a buddy or an authority figure. One tries to win the students over by being their friend the other example tries to force the students to listen and pay attention. If teachers just took the time to do what they are suppose to, such as create lesson that are fun and engaging or challenge their students to dig deeper into a subject, then students will naturally come to respect that teacher.
I think sometimes teachers worry to much about loosing control of their students, or not receiving the respect they should. To compensate for this teachers try to either become more of a buddy or an authority figure. One tries to win the students over by being their friend the other example tries to force the students to listen and pay attention. If teachers just took the time to do what they are suppose to, such as create lesson that are fun and engaging or challenge their students to dig deeper into a subject, then students will naturally come to respect that teacher.
Chapter 8 "Teaching Teenagers Who Are Still Learning English"
What caught my attention in this chapter was where students talked about how their teacher didn't respect their ability to learn because they have a language barrier. Students who are struggling with language barriers are not stupid, and they do want to learn the material, however, it's going to take them much more time to learn something new. It frustrated me to hear that teacher's would offer to give students a passing grade rather than take the time to teach them the material.
When a teacher offers to pass a student because they feel it is unfair to a student who has a language barrier they are doing the student no justice at all. How is this method going to help them; at some point in a students life they are going to have to know the information. Don't feel bad for them or think that they can't do the homework; take the time to teach! A teacher's job is to accept that not all students are going to understand the material that they are presenting to the students, and to take the time to find ways to teach it to them. Students who have a language barrier are no different from the students who don't understand the material.
When a teacher offers to pass a student because they feel it is unfair to a student who has a language barrier they are doing the student no justice at all. How is this method going to help them; at some point in a students life they are going to have to know the information. Don't feel bad for them or think that they can't do the homework; take the time to teach! A teacher's job is to accept that not all students are going to understand the material that they are presenting to the students, and to take the time to find ways to teach it to them. Students who have a language barrier are no different from the students who don't understand the material.
Chapter 7 "Teaching Difficult Academic Material"
"Sometimes teachers think they're the first one to teach you something. They don't realize that we might have been listening for five years to someone else that wasn't you" (Cushman, p 124)I guess this goes to show just how important it is for a teacher to find out about students prior knowledge on a subject before they teach the lesson. Preassessments tend to do the trick when trying to learn what students already know about a subject.
While observing my mentor teacher he decided to teach a lesson on the food pyramid and why certain foods are needed more than others. Most of the students were freshmen so they had probably had at least one maybe two health classes before this one. So my mentor teacher begins discussing this topic, and he thinks that the class is really understanding this subject because they are able to answer all of his questions. Finally about mid way through the lecture one students was completely off task, and when my mentor teacher asked him why he wasn't paying attention he told him that it was because he'd already heard this information about a thousand times before and it was becoming rather old. Most of the other students agreed with this student.
While observing my mentor teacher he decided to teach a lesson on the food pyramid and why certain foods are needed more than others. Most of the students were freshmen so they had probably had at least one maybe two health classes before this one. So my mentor teacher begins discussing this topic, and he thinks that the class is really understanding this subject because they are able to answer all of his questions. Finally about mid way through the lecture one students was completely off task, and when my mentor teacher asked him why he wasn't paying attention he told him that it was because he'd already heard this information about a thousand times before and it was becoming rather old. Most of the other students agreed with this student.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Chapter 6 "Motivation and Boredom"
What stuck out to me the most in this chapter also made me extremely upset when I read it. There is a part in the chapter that talks about how teachers need to be passionate about being a teacher, and about the subject they are teaching."Some teachers act like they don't want to be there. They don't have any spirit, they just make the class do work. Once in a while students want to laugh and have fun" (Cushman, p 104). The teacher sets the tone of the classroom; if he or she is dedicated to helping students learn then the teacher will create an atmosphere where learning can take place.
I can't believe that there are teachers in this world who go to work everyday and hand out worksheets and readings for their students to do, and then they wonder why students resent coming to their class. For those teachers out there who do supposedly teach in this manner I can't believe they get paid. Usually in a profession when someone isn't doing their job very well they are let go; so how is it that there are teacher's in the classroom that are not passionate about teaching, but yet they still continue to get paid? The more passionate a teacher is about their topic the more the students are going to learn; this is a pretty straight forward understanding.
I can't believe that there are teachers in this world who go to work everyday and hand out worksheets and readings for their students to do, and then they wonder why students resent coming to their class. For those teachers out there who do supposedly teach in this manner I can't believe they get paid. Usually in a profession when someone isn't doing their job very well they are let go; so how is it that there are teacher's in the classroom that are not passionate about teaching, but yet they still continue to get paid? The more passionate a teacher is about their topic the more the students are going to learn; this is a pretty straight forward understanding.
Chapter 5 "Teaching to the Individual, Working with the Group"
My favorite part of this chapter is where the author, Kathleen Cushman, describes the different kinds of students: the eye-roller, the wallflower, the hand-waver, the dreamer, the con artist, the goof-off, and the workhorse. As I read Cushman's description of the different kinds of student behaviors images of certain kids faces pop into my mind. I completely understood what she was talking about when she explained each category.
I think it is important to recognize the different types of student behaviors, like the con artist, because that way teachers can better understand how to deal with each of these students individually. The more teachers know about why students behave in this manner the better equip they are to provide the kind of attention and learning styles necessary to engage each child, from all of the categories, into the lesson. Take for instances the child who is considered a dreamer; if teachers understand that these students usually enjoy staying in their own world then create a lesson where the student could write a fictional story describing a make believe place. Also, teachers need to provide opportunities for the students who are afraid to participate. That's why it's important to mix up the way lesson are taught to the class, so that the teacher can reach out to all the different types of student behaviors.
I think it is important to recognize the different types of student behaviors, like the con artist, because that way teachers can better understand how to deal with each of these students individually. The more teachers know about why students behave in this manner the better equip they are to provide the kind of attention and learning styles necessary to engage each child, from all of the categories, into the lesson. Take for instances the child who is considered a dreamer; if teachers understand that these students usually enjoy staying in their own world then create a lesson where the student could write a fictional story describing a make believe place. Also, teachers need to provide opportunities for the students who are afraid to participate. That's why it's important to mix up the way lesson are taught to the class, so that the teacher can reach out to all the different types of student behaviors.
Chapter 4 "Creating a Culture of Success"
The part in the chapter that really stuck out to me was when it mentioned that most students are sensitive to not only being criticized in front of others, but also receiving praise from the teacher in front of their peers. When a student receives praise from the teacher that sends a message to the other students that they didn't work as hard or do as good of a job as this particular student. That can be a ton of pressure place onto a student, and if teacher are not careful students may sometimes stray away from performing well to avoid praise.
I know that this concept seems rather odd because who doesn't love being told that they have done a great job and their work has defiantly paid off, but when people are worried about fitting in they don't want to make others resent them because they understand the material and their friends don't grasp it. I think that there is a time and a place where teachers can still offer individual praise, such as pulling a student aside after class or leaving positive notes on a students paper letting them know they are doing a good job. Criticism, I think, should also be handled in the same manner. If there is something that a student is not understanding it makes no sense to put them on the spot in front of all of his or her peers. Students tend to shut down when a teacher addresses their weaknesses in front of others.
I know that this concept seems rather odd because who doesn't love being told that they have done a great job and their work has defiantly paid off, but when people are worried about fitting in they don't want to make others resent them because they understand the material and their friends don't grasp it. I think that there is a time and a place where teachers can still offer individual praise, such as pulling a student aside after class or leaving positive notes on a students paper letting them know they are doing a good job. Criticism, I think, should also be handled in the same manner. If there is something that a student is not understanding it makes no sense to put them on the spot in front of all of his or her peers. Students tend to shut down when a teacher addresses their weaknesses in front of others.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Chapter 3 "Classroom Behavior"
The part of the chapter that had the greatest impact on me was when the author, Kathleen Cushman, mentioned the importance of being clear on classroom behavior and expectations. Teacher need to make sure that they clearly explain their expectations, don't assume that the students know what is appropriate behavior or not, because there will be one student who will try to get away with something that wasn't mentioned. If rules are established, understood, and continually enforce by the teacher, classroom behavior will be less challenging.
This part of the chapter sparked my attention because for the past three weeks I have observed a wide range of classroom behavior and lack of discipline that was in place. The discipline was inconsistent; some days students were allowed to blurt out answers, and other days they had to raise their hand or else they were in trouble. Students tend to pick up on things such as this, and when they realize that the teacher doesn't follow through consistently they will resent him or her. After reading the chapter I found that the best way to avoid this would be to establish clear rules and expectations.
This part of the chapter sparked my attention because for the past three weeks I have observed a wide range of classroom behavior and lack of discipline that was in place. The discipline was inconsistent; some days students were allowed to blurt out answers, and other days they had to raise their hand or else they were in trouble. Students tend to pick up on things such as this, and when they realize that the teacher doesn't follow through consistently they will resent him or her. After reading the chapter I found that the best way to avoid this would be to establish clear rules and expectations.
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