Barb Retenbach

write a blog entry about the presentation. There are no questions that you should answer but some prompts to help you:

a. How did this presentation change your view of those with Autism?

b. How will you consider autistic children in your classroom in light of this presentation?

c. How does the information you’ve learned affect your future teaching practice?

d. Was this information new, and how do you feel about it

I was really curious as to see what the presentation would be like. I have never been to a presentation like this one before. I thought it was incredible. Before this presentation I really didn't know a whole lot about Autistic individuals. Growing up one of my best friends cousins was autistic and all I remember from that was that she was a really great artist and did not talk much. Other than that I have only studied Autism in my Special Ed class briefly this semester. Barb and Lois opened my eyes to so much. Autistic individuals are brilliant, or at least Barb is and they are capable of so much more than what I had believed to be true. She has so many great ideas and such a wonderful sense of humor. I think a lot of people tend to assume Autistic individuals do not have much going on in their minds or are trapped in their bodies. This is not the case at all. Barb talked about how she is happy and enjoys her life and loves history and thinking. I will consider autistic children the same way I consider those who are not autistic. An individual with likes and dislikes, and knowledge. Just a different way of interacting and conversing. I learned that autistic students sometimes tend to relate to objects more than words. In my classroom if this is the case I will be sure to allow students to keep an object at their desk, or near them that comforts them. Also, I will be sure to find out something they are genuinely interested in and use that as a tool of discussion and learning. I think in my future teaching practice I will be more aware, and will embrace the diverse neurology in my classroom. All students are brilliant in different ways and different aspects. I won't have low expectations for any student. So much information from the presentation was new to me. I really feel like I see things from an entirely new perspective. One that I will carry with me into classroom settings and the outside world. 

Group Differences Forum

Write a brief reflection (1-2 paragraphs) on the group differences forum that you just participated in. Use the following questions to guide your reflection but you do not have to answer them.

• o What did you learn during our forum that you didn’t know before?
• o What would you have liked to learn more about?
• o How do you think the information presented in the forum will help you in your classroom?
• o What could have been done to help you learn more?
• o What suggestions do you have about the forum (changes I should make, articles to pitch or to keep, topics that should be discussed that we did not cover?)

I really liked the group differences forum. There were a lot of points and perspectives that opened my eyes to different sides I have never thought about before. I really enjoyed listening to other individuals perspectives on religion in schools and the classroom because I know my experiences with it are very different from my peers experiences. Also, I didn't know about the 100 Black Men of America group. I really found that discussion to be interesting. I am at Mooreland Heights Elementary right now for my rotation and I have witnessed African American students (Kindergarteners) say they don't like school because their siblings, parents, or other friends do not like school and thus it becomes "trendy" to hate school. I think I would have liked to learned more about poverty and school, and even more on the topic Disablities which was the group that I was in. Even just reading the article for my group I learned so much. I have nevr thought about individuals with disabilities being considered oppressed people, but in certain ways they really are. This forum made me want to know more, and do more research on specific topics. I think we decide we want to be teachers with out thinking about these hard parts of it. Diversity can be a huge hurdle in some schools or states, and learning about ways to create a positive environment will really help me in the future. I learned that we need to reject all stereotypes and assumptions and leave them at the door. To me this seemed obvious, but the group forum opened up my eyes to different types of stereotypes and assumptions that may not be so blatant. I think it was great how there were different groups, and how we got to pick the group that we wanted to be in. I chose disablities because it is something that I am interested in learning about that I haven't had a lot of experience with. I think this group forum was a great way to wrap up the semester as well. A lot of us have so many different experiences that we bring to the table and to use our experiences and knowledge from the course and combine it all in this group differences forum was very interesting. I really like that groups that are there, but I wish we could have covered gender as well. I think next time gender needs to be included, and students are asked if they would mind switching into that group I think it would be ok. All in all I really enjoyed the group differences forum. It is one of my favorite parts of the class because we really get to express how we feel about certain ideas, or what we have experienced through the eyes of a teacher or a student. I think we all learned a lot from eachother today!

PLE 10

Theories in educational psychology promote the idea that language plays a critical role in cognitive development. Examine Table 2.2 (p. 51), paying particular attention to the age range that you are interested in teaching. Consider how you might incorporate or adapt the strategies presented for use with your own students.

Language plays a critical role in cognitive development that can be detrimental to a students academic success. The idea that children's language is very limited at a young age and develops over time can be seen throught through an example using animals. When a younger child is asked to describe an animal they are more likely to descrive an animal that has the characteristics of a dog or a cat because they have seen or been around this animal in their everyday life. Once a student has developed more cognitively, and has been exposed to more language and different language they are more likely to describe characteristics of exotic and different animals. Thus, the trend continues the older they become. It is important to remember that a big amount of the words students come into school knowing come from what they have heard and picked up at home. If a student is coming from a professional home where both parents are professionals, they have dinner together, and story time this child is more likely to know more words and to have been exposed to more language. For a student who has a difficult home life, or lower class family the child is less likely to have heard the same amount or types of words as children from the professional home. In my classroom I am really going to try and make a huge effort to find time to read aloud to my students everyday. It is so important to have that reading time for students. I also want to incorporate some individual reading time for my students. This way for the students that are not getting a lot of language support at home, my classroom can help them develop their language skills. For those who have the language support at home it will help them practice. I will also have different reading and language centers in my classroom. I think to have my students surrounded by language will help them develop cognitively with their language skills. I will also use academic language in my classroom, and introduce new words in everyday converstations that can help increase language support. I will also have a word wall in my classroom where words will be added throughout the year. I hope to have a classroom that supports all students in their language development, so that they will develop the appropriate skills to succeed.

PLE 9

How might self-efficacy and self-regulation contribute to the intervention plans you use in your case study?

Lisa has been acting up when put into small groups. I would talk with Lisa and ask her questions like why she thinks she is acting out? and where she thinks her behavior is coming from. Lisa may have a low self efficacy when it comes to working in groups, which could possibly be the reason for lack of effort. The case study states that Lisa gets angry when she does not get the part in the group that she wants. Lisa may have a high self-efficacy for one part of the small group, and may have a low self-efficacy for the others causing her to get angry when she does not get the part she is most confident in. After talking with Lisa, I would figure out why she gets mad whens he has certain roles as opposed to others, and then help build Lisa's self-efficacy for those other roles, and for working in small groups. I would tell Lisa I know you can do this, and I have seen you do this before and give her an example. Maybe building up Lisa's self-efficacy will help her make the right decisions, and participate more in the small groups regardless of the role she is given. Self-regulation would be a good way for Lisa to keep track of her behavior, and for her to be accountable of acting out, getting angry, or not putting effort in. I would sit with Lisa and show her a self-regulation chart, and ask her to fill it out after she is done with her small group. She will rate herself on her performance and improvements. Self-regulation will help Lisa really face the problems she is having, and get a grasp of how her attitudes and behaviors are relating to her performance in the small group. I would let Lisa know I will be chekcing her self regulation chart, and if she improved give her positive feedback and praise. Hopefully, the self-regulation, positive feedback and praise, and positive reactions from her peers in small group will help raise her self-efficacy in small groups and situations with peers.

PLE 8

Consider your CSEL intervention case study. Are there tools from a behaviorist view for either encouraging productive behaviors or discouraging undesirable behaviors that you could apply to the case? What are they?

Now, compare the interventions that you have identified above with what you think might work from a cognitive or constructivist viewpoint (you may need to Google for ideas but it's okay to just speculate based on your prior knowledge). How do they compare to behaviorist tools? What are the benefits of each theory, and what are the deficits? Which theory might play a larger role in how you determine classroom management?

For behaviorists, the teacher could set up an award system for Lisa. Every time she is on task and doing what she is supposed to be doing she gets points, rewards, or a sticker. This can be tricky though because it would have to be done in a way where other students get upset because they are not being rewarded. Also, the teacher can set up a system where if Lisa is not doing what she is supposed to then she has to take homework problems home and do them. When she does stay on task and do what she is supposed to do then the teacher can begin to take away the homework problems as an award. For cognitive theroy the teacher can model behavior that Lisa should have with in her group. The teacher can also model self regulation and self monitoring to help Lisa understand how to keep tabs on herself. I personally think that certain points from both behaviorist theory and cognitive theroy can be used in this case study with Lisa. I think modeling can play a major role with Lisa, and then rewarding Lisa for her performace can help her too. I am not positive but I think that for construtivist the teacher would ask Lisa what she thinks she can do to make better decisions, and let her explore her options based on what the teacher has asked of her previouisly. Behaviorist tools differ because behaviorist tools deal with response and reinforcement of behavior while cognitive is model based and constructivism is student based. I think though that when using behaviorist theories teachers must be careful with using rewards. Lisa might take advantage of her rewards, or only perform well when given a reward. If this is the case, what will the teacher do when Lisa stops performing well when the rewards stop? For me, I think cognitive theory plays a major role for classroom management because if a teacher is modeling appropriate actions and management from the start students are more likely to pick up on such things and keep it alive in the classroom!

PLE 7

Think of an activity or lesson component that explicitly teaches one or more metacognitive and one or more problem solving skills.

An activity that I have done with a class before that I absolutely love is based off a lesson about inventions. I would start off with talking about inventions with my students, and asking them if they knew what it means to invent something. This would be used to activate prior knowledge. Then I would read a story called "Incredible Inventions". After this I would begin the activity. I would give students different supplies to work with such as paper, glue, glitter, tape, paper clips, buttons, paper towel tubes etc. and as them to make their own invention. In doing this, students are working with metacognitive skills and problem solving skills. Students are thinking about using materials they are farmilar with to create something no one else has ever created before. This gives students a chance to be creative why building knowledge on what they already know with the given materials. Students will have to critcally think and use problem solving skills to create their own invention. Students will have to use problem solving skills like breaking the problem into two or more subproblems. Since I will provied them with tools they are farmilar with they will have to look at all of the materials activate prior knowledge and recognize what they are normally used for, and then brainstorm different ways to use the materials in a way that has never been done before. An acitivity that involves problem solving and thinking outside of the box like this allows students to think divergently and creatively. This activity provides students with a great deal of metacognition or thinking about thinking. Since students are inventing something new they will have to be thinking about what they are thinking about inventing!

Chapter 7

Make a list of the sequence of skills necessary for ultimate mastery of the content of your lesson through a constructivist approach.

Which of these learning activities/skills lend themselves to student’s individual or group construction? How might you structure learning activities that lead students to discover these skills/these principles?

 

The lesson that my group and I created in class involved Reading Comprehension for first graders. We said we would have students read a certain short story and follow up with an activity to assess comprehension. Before reading the story, the teacher will introduce the text with the aid of visuals, props, or videos with closed captioning (that relate to the story). Next the teacher will do a picture walk and ask students if any of the pictures look farmilar thus, activating student prior knowledge. Activating students prior knowledge will allow students to construct their understanding of the text and build on their existing knowledge.

 

Students will collaborate in groups to talk about the story, and give different view points and ideas about the text. This group construction will help other students construct more knowledge based on their peers views and understandings of the story. The students will then do an activity where they create a comic strip about the story they just read, illustrating main points and ideas.

 

 Making this comic strip will allow the teacher to see if students are really comprehending the story, and understanding what a main point vs background point is within texts. After collaborating, the students will work individually on their comic strips which will allow them to construct their own knowledge and answers based on their prior knowledge, the text, and group construction.

Chapter 6

What are the essential skills and/or learning outcomes you want your students to know and be able to do that relate to cognitive learning?
A major concept when it comes to cognitive learning is making deeper connections. I think it is an essential skill for students to try and make connections with the topic at hand, and for teachers to provide them with examples of connections and related real life situations. Instead of just teaching lessons on new topics I believe it is very important to set up connections prior to the lesson, and to ask students what they already know about the topic for the day. Talking about connections is important because students may not realize they know a little bit about the new topic unless we talk about prior knowledge, or show examples for the students who do not have prior knowledge. Prior knowledge leads to making connections which leads to keeping those connections and the new content in ones memory. I want my students to be able to relate topics back to real life situations. Most anything can be related to something else, and even if one student does not have a relatable situation to the topic another student in the class will. When we get our students to share their prior knowledge they can help other students who have no background information of their own to grasp the concept better. This stems from a  lot of cognitive theory being based off of learning and observing one another. To me the most important thing is connections! In an article it lists developmental cognitive milestones elementary school students can reach at each grade level. I thought this was interesting, but I do not think that there is a specific time for every developmental milestone.

Morin, Amanda. "Developmental Milestones for Elementary School".
http://childparenting.about.com/od/schoollearning/tp/developmental-milestones-elementary-school.htm

How might your knowledge of the memory processes guide your instructional decisions?

 

Again, I believe that prior knowledge is key especially when it comes to memory processes. The book says memory is the ability to mentally save something that has been previously learned; also, the mental "location" where such information is saved. In the article "Working Memory and Academic Learning: Assessment and Intervention" by Milton J. Dehn, It is important to remember that "the key to successfully educating and retraining the brain for memory is enrichment and treatment at critical developmental stages". In my instructional strategies and cognitive lesson plans I will be sure to activate prior knowledge, set objectives, and build connections. I think it is important to train students with different thinking and memory strategies to enhance long term memory storage.

 

Dehn, Milton J. "Working Memory and Academic Learning: Assessment and Intervention". John Wiley & Sons Inc. New Jersey. 2008

Chapter 14

Assessment is such an important part in the classroom. Does it all have to be formal? I think that formal assessment is needed in the classroom, but I don't believe that is the only type of assessment that should be present. Reading is such an important part of our students education. It is something that individuals can struggle with for the rest of their life if the right teaching methods are not there to help them. I took Reading Ed 430 last semester, and absolutely loved it. We learned so much that we could use in the classroom! There are many different types of assessments that can be used for Reading. I think it is important to include formal assessment even if they aren't any fun. I would some short story or text for my students to read, and then answer questions on it to turn in. These question can be asking to analyze the story to see if they really understand it, comprehension questions, or even sequencing questions. Another formal assessment I would use would could involve something like the Accelerated reader program, or a group presentation or project about a story where each student is assigned a different task. Another formal task I would use for reading would be running records. When I first got into education I was not aware of all of the great ideas there are out there for informal assessments. For reading there are many different assessments that can be done in centers, or small group activities. Assessments can be based on fluency, comprehension, vocabulary, phonics, and so much more. There are many websites that can be used for informal assessment for example, storylineonline.com where celebirties read stories online. Students can listen to the stories and listen to each readers fluency to help practice their own. For comprehension a great informal assessment for students would be asking them to draw a picture or a comic strip of they main and key ideas within the story. For things like vocabulary and spelling students can be at centers or in small group where they are asked to put like words together, or draw pictures for what vocab words mean and then turn them in for assessment. There are so many resources that teachers can choose from to help enhance assessments in the classroom. I'm sure most of us are more farmiliar with the formal reading assessments out there so I found an article from Scholastic.com that talks about informal reading and writing assessments. This article talks about the importance of informal assessment "Informal measures are best results are specific as to what you need to teach instead of just one solid score" (Scholastic). This article includes ideas for assessment for grades K-5. For example a suggestion for K-2 comprehension is " present the student with a cloze passage (words are left out of the passage) as the student to pick out words that can fit in the sentences and relate what is happening in the story" (Scholastic).

Weaver, Brenda. "Informal Reading and Writing Assessment Ideas". 2013
http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/informal-reading-and-writing-assessment-ideas

PLE 2

I was really interested in talking about makng my classroom and comfortable learning enviroment. Like we talked about in class I think it is extremely important to make the classroom warm and inviting. I want to try and make it a comfortable and warm enviroment for my students so they are excited to come to class everyday. It is important to me to for my students to also feel that the classroom is a safe place for them. I believe that when students feel comfortable and safe in their surroundings they will thrive more in the classroom. To make my classroom an enviroment of success I plan to have my classroom procedures up on the wall somwhere, just for those students who don't remember or always "forget" or classroom rules. I would like to also have objectives on the board, and a wordwall to help guide students in different parts of their lessons and activities. Talking about students and misbehaving in class brought up so many situations I had never thought of. So, naturally I was nervous! I think it is important to have a set of steps to follow and consequences, and to be consistent with students. An article I found called "Responding to Misbehavior" had some really great tips in it. Some strategies when dealing with misbehavior include "visual and verbal clues, increased teacher proximity, and logical consequences" (Responsive Classroom).  This article talked about the Responsive Classroom and stated, " in the Responsive Classroom the overarching goal is to keep the focus on learning while maintaining a classroom that is physically and emotionally safe for all" (Responsive Classroom). I think it is important to try and not put the student on the spot in front of his or her classmates. You do not want the student to think you are against them by any means, but the student needs to know that his or her actions are not on par with what you know they are capable of (following the rules). I do not think that means that students should never be singled out. I think teachers really need to get to know their students and understand what types of consequences work for some students, and what types of consequences work for others.

For the Elementary Education Case Study there are a few things I would do. First, I think it would be a good idea to talk to Lisa about it at some point in the day. I believe it would be a better idea to talk to her at the beginning of the day or a time where it would not be obvious to other students what the conversation is about. I would ask her to explain why she thinks her group is having problems, and then ask her why she feels the way she does. Then I would explain to her what I have observed and lay out the behaviors and choices she can make. I would wait until the students were in groups again, and if I noticed Lisa causing problems I may use some visual or verbal cues to let her know that I am watching, and she is not making good decisions. I believe this would be considered a warning. If it continued I would then walk over to the group and ask them how they are feeling and maybe make an announcement to the class that I can see some people are not making the right choices and either stand near her desk or tap on her desk when I said this. This way I am not calling her out in front of everyone, but it is enough for her to know I am talking to her. If it continued I think I would have to call her to my desk and talk to her, and then the last step would be to put her in another group, or by herself and talk to her parents or guardian about it. I think I many have some things to work out in my continnuum, and some more to learn, but as of right now that is how I feel about my case study and the misbehavior.

"Responding to Misbehavior". Excerpt in "Rules for Schools"  in the "Responsive Classroom Newsletter". Nov 2011.

Motivation

I really like the topic of motivation, and I believe it plays an extremely important role in the classroom. I really believe in both intrisic and extrinsic motivations. I think intristic is most important, and is something that hopefully people have throughout their lives. I think in younger grades it is important to have extrinsic motivation here and there. I did not agree with the teacher in the case study that we read on Thursday. Though I thought he had it all figured out and truly felt he was doing the right thing it really didn't sit well with the students and hurt their motivation more than helped it. Stickers on papers or little things like that are great from the classroom. I really believe in extrinsic motivation being group oriented. If the class as a whole does better than their previous tests, or if the averages grades go up then the class gets rewarded as a whole. When the class as a whole is working toward the same goals it becomes a collborative situation instead of a competition. Extrinsic motivation is going to get the students to work towards something, and I think if teachers carefully pick what this reward is it can be a great motivation process. I really don't want my students to expect to have a reward for everything they do, and my main goal is to help them develop intrisic motivations within themselves. I am really interested in learning how to help students develop intrinsic motivation because I think it can take you a long way. I think self efficacy ties into the idea of intrinsic motivation. Like we said in class younger kids believe they can do anything and have a high self efficacy which means they are willing to try, and if they fail its not embarrassing its just another reason to try again. If we as teachers can help improve students self efficacy, or find a way to keep it high I think it would lead to a lot more intrinsic motivation. This of course, is way easier said than done! I really think that teaching can have an influence on intrinsic motivations, and I am very interested and learning how I can help my students develop it. I found an article called "The Impact of Teaching Strategies on Intrinsic Motivation" that discusses and researches different concepts, ideas, and situations in which teaching can or cannot influence intrinsic motivation. The author states "self-motivation (intrinstic) can lead the student to go beyond the scope and requirements of an educational course because they are seeking to learn about the subject, not just fulfill a limited set of requirements." This article also gives models and ideas to enhance intrinsic motivation. This is so interesting to me, and if I can find a way to help my students in this area I would love it!

Bomia, Lisa., L.Beluzo, D. Demeester, K. Elander, M. Johnson, and B. Sheldon.
"The Impact of Teaching Strategies on Intrinsic Motivation." ERIC. 1997.

PLE 1

Our first class was very interesting! I am really excited to jump into Ed Psych because I think it is going to strengthen my skills and provide me with new knowledge for being a future educator. I am very interested in Motivation. I know this is one of the first topics in our class that we will cover, and I think it will be very interesting. Growing up, I had a hard time staying motivated in school until I came across some amazing teachers who really helped me thrive and changed my view of school forever. I am really interested in understanding the different types of motivation because I think it is so incredible how students think, and how different motivation can effect them differently. An article "Punished By Rewards: The Trouble with Gold Stars, Incentive Plans, A's, Praise and Other Bribes" by David Rouse, Rouse discusses Behaviorism and the idea of "doing something for something". I find this to be extremely interesting because I feel as if a lot of children fall under the cateogory of behavorism in one way or another. Who doesn't want a Gold star? Rouse states that "the behaviorism system will fail eventually in one's life. In the workplace good employees do a good job, and money isn't the point" (Rosue).  He states "pay is not the motivator, rewards discourage risk taking, incentive systems tend to reward short term performance" (Rouse). He continues to develop a theory in which he " believes intrinsic motivation is the most gratifying, and lasts the longest" (Rosue). I am interested to go deeper. I do think that rewards like Gold stars and stickers are great, and I am not against rewards, but I would like to learn more about intrisic motivations. I would like to see if there are ways that I as the teacher can help guide my students towards that motivation! I am very curious about motivation because I feel as if it is a major key to being a successful teacher. I know it is easier said than do, but I am very interested about learning the psychology behind these motivations, and hopefully understading them better so I can help apply them in my classroom.

Rouse, David. "Punished By Rewards: The Trouble with Gold Stars, Incentive Plans, A's, Praise and Other Bribes". 15 Oct 1993: 396+. Professional Collection.