Motivation #2 third

``````````okay third times a charm right?~


Once again I will try this blog post without it being deleted and sent off to a faraway land that cannot ever be recovered! 
I was asked to complete this blog to add to my first motivation blog as there were some details missing. 
I was asked how and what is intrinsic motivation...intrinsic motivation must come from within the student.It means that some of my students will not be satisfied with a simple thumbs up good job approach but will need some other type of motivation to keep them working. 
  
The assignment has to tap into a general interest of the student in order to motivate him/her.  I understand there are many things that can hinder a students ability to become intrinsically motivated, but with these following ideas I hope to be able to reach all my students. Some of these factors that may hinder this could be beliefs, values and what they attribute success to. It could be possible they are taught that to be educated means to be a respected person in the community and has nothing to do with education as we may believe. 
In addition to the previous notes I feel that by having an understanding of each of my students backgrounds before they enter the classroom will show that I am truly interested in their education, by making home visits and explaining my expectations to families will show families as well that I expect their student to succeed in my class. 


I will speak to the students the first day and let them know why it is important to get grades and by modeling the tasks that I expect my students to follow and by giving the students options in their work, I hope to develop their sense of intrinsic motivation. 
In making the students have a choice in their work I mean that I would have different assignments that all meet the same requirements, but the student would feel that he/she did it their own way giving them a strong sense of pride in their own work. 


  I believe that first and foremost each and every student must feel that you genuinely care for them and that you want them to succeed. Making student aware that you care and value and respect their opinions is the first step to get your students intrinsically motivated. If your students are feeling comfortable in the classroom they will want to please you and that will result in getting tasks done that are asked of them. Making them feel good about their work, by having others take notice of the students work will make the student feel appreciated and recognized. Many times this is all the student wants is to be known that they are there. 


I believe that by having my students work in groups as stated in my first blog I am creating a sense of community and by arranging the seats in this manner students cooperation level will rise,through cooperation students will learn valuable interpersonal skills and a sense of accomplishment when they are helping their peers. By understanding that each of my students bring valuable resources and experiences to the classroom each student will have a sense of value and want to please the teacher.


Creating ice breaking activities the first day to get all of my students acquainted with each other on a more personal level will help bring a sense of community within our classroom. My curriculum will be in line with standards but I will try and think out of the box to make the lessons more relevant to my students daily lives with the same end goal in mind.
I believe with these examples of creating a positive classroom climate, building good relationships, giving rewards sporadically, and incentives that the class has came up with together will create an overall positive climate and students will become intrinsically motivated.

Standardized Tests Yay vs Nay

    Standardized testing has been the norm for many school districts across the nation and it may be time to ask when we get into the classroom is this the right approach for our students. When I think of standardized testing I think of the typical (here in Iowa) ITBS that is given once a year to third grade students and up, and the grueling week of testing. I think of the rallies and treats as well as the breaks that were allowed during testing times and the weeks before testing when the teacher would constantly go over with us on how to correctly color in the bubble!

    Throughout all this preparation I never felt like the hindsight of the prep made me do any better on the tests than what I would have normally done. Most standardized tests are long drawn out and biased in several ways, beginning with how the questions are asked. Some of the language used in the testing is confusing therefore causing students to be confused and after awhile the students just start to fill in the bubbles, skipping from A, to B to C , then to D and making various patterns so that it doesn't look to conspicuous.

    I feel that while these types of tests can be useful in the means of finding exactly where our students are, because of the bias within the tests the results are not always reliable. A student may completely bomb a test but have vast knowledge of the subject matter and is not a good test taker or does not do well with the stress of test taking.

    I believe that when I have my own classroom , developing ways beyond the standardized testing to assess my students will be my number one goal. knowing the benchmarks that are expected of my students by the end of the year and go from there. I understand that I will not be able to have the ideal classroom with all of my students at the same ZPD level ( no one will as this does not exist), but being able to assess my students on an individual basis so that I know where that child is and not necessarily in comparison to the rest of the class but with the end goal in mind. This way I know what each child will need to work on and tackle that one thing with each student.

   An example of this would be if I was in the Kindergarten classroom and the students are to know their ABC's before going on to first grade (not a requirement as they do not do retentions) but upon doing an individual assessment with a student and I see that consistently that student is mixing the letter D with a B (which is again common) I would work with that child on this particular issue.
I believe that by assessing  my students monthly on the concept that is being taught in addition to the benchmarks randomly, I will have a vast knowledge if my students are making progress or not on an individual basis which I will have a more in depth knowledge of each student to be able to share with the teacher for the following year.
  
    One of the biggest downfalls with the standardized testing is that the teacher with the most ELL's and Sped students in the classroom is at a downfall regardless of the greatness capabilities she may have. The scores of these tests are sub categorized into four different sections, low SES, ELL, SPED, then it is even subcategorized into ethnicity. Although this may seem to give an in depth look at teach demographic in the classroom and how each student did on the tests, the results for the entire number of students are looked at in each classroom regardless of the subcategories. This is the main reason why when a child is put into a classroom before entering the class race, gender, low SES, Sped is all looked at and given an effort to give an equal balance in each class. This also compresses the teacher whn the schools are looked at in regards to making AYP and if your class is not than everyone looks at you and what you are doing wrong. (NCLB)
  If we did not look at standardized tests to get information on each student we might be able to come up with a way to develop a tests that can truly let us know if our students are making progress or not. Many times in my past experience, I have had teacher come to me with concerns about "Charty's" work in the classroom and looking at tests she was doing very poorly her reading level was 2 grades below her grade level, she wasn't able to comprehend many tasks in the classrooms, but when assessed on an individual basis taking into account she just arrived in the country three years ago and can write, spell and read knowing that in her home language they don't use letters, Charty has made HUGE strides, but this was unseen in standardized testing. Was this fair to her, No but it was what it was a comparison to her classmates even though she was doing great.

  

NEVER AGAIN!!! EDUC 107

Okay I was thinking about not even posting this "rant" but I can't help myself. I know that I am not the only one who had the same feelings but I hope that Professor Kruse never has to have a sub again! Everything he has taught us so far about good teaching vs bad teaching we had the example right in front of us on Tuesday!
Let's begin with how our EDUC 107 class started and right away, I felt as if I was back in high school and that the only knowledgeable peer was the person in the front of the classroom. We were explained why we had a substitute but then the comment that followed was what got to me. The Sub told us the process of what Professor Kruse was doing and followed it up by stating, " I don't expect any of you to know this". Now I understand we may not be knowledgeable in the process, but you don't have to  point that out as it makes it seem as if we are all unintelligent beings waiting on every word that is spoken to gain knowledge only from her, as if  had no knowledge before we walked in the door.

As if this wasn't enough the entire class was taught off a power point and a laser! The sub mentioned how she likes to keep blanks in her power point in order to ensure that we are paying attention? I don't believe that one person in the class was as many were falling off their chairs sleeping or on the edge of sleeping.

I know that we had talked about not shooting down your students answers in the classroom and how we appreciated the fact that professor Kruse takes our ideas and we have built off of them to get to the point that he wants to make. On more than one occasion Joe had made a comment while the sub listened she responded with Thats a good point but lets think of it this way. She then continued her rant that had no reference to Joe's comment he made.

The activities we did seemed pointless and she referred to the chapters in the book which we have not even read. When we were asked to do the activities she put them on the elmo only to make marks across them and tell us what we did wrong. At my group even though we followed directions the sub walked over (WOW she walked away from her podium)  and stated how we didn't follow directions and repeated what we had to do a bit slower, I didn't realize we had learning problems as what we did was exactly what she wanted.
So I say let's not be gone again Professor Kruse! We have used up our sick days and aren't looking forward to Thursday's class!!!

Keeping Students Motivated in the classroom

   As each new teacher steps into their classroom on their first day on the job they wonder how they will keep all students motivated within the classroom. In this blog I will give a few examples of how I plan to manage my classroom, but I will always keep in mind that I have to be flexible and if it doesn't work, I need to be willing to change it.  
I believe that if you build a sense of trust in your classroom and treat the Ss with respect, keep the content relative for easier understanding and continue to assess their understanding at least once a week in manners other than tests the motivation of the students will not be a factor.
 As a teacher I will need to watch carefully the language used to ensure that it is not above my students ZPD, thus grasping a better understanding of the content. Making learning more relative can come in many forms, in doing this is where my background knowledge of each student will be beneficial. I will have a better understanding of my students ZPD's and work within those means so all students will be actively mentally engaged in the classroom.
To ensure all students are motivated I would portray a respectful, safe and caring environment that each student will enjoy coming to class each day waiting to see what we are going to be doing next. Sometimes I feel this may be a stretch to think I can pull this off, but I believe in seeing many classes firsthand I know what kids will respond to and in what ways.
I believe that the way the classroom environment is set up on the first day will tell wether or not your classroom management skills will work. Seating arrangements need to be thought out. A classroom that has rows vs pods. In the rowed classroom children who are seated further back from the teacher is much easier distracted and there is less stimulation going on as they are further from the teacher, although if you are a great teacher, you will not be in the front of the classroom very much as you will be circulating around the class. 
One of the most important things to do on the first day of class is be organized!! This includes all of the following and then some!  Always BE FLEXIBLE!

• Brainstorm class expectations
• Arrange desks
• Pin up bulletin boards, notices, etc.
• Write lesson plans for the first week OVERPLAN to have something to fall back on 
• Duplicate materials for first week
• Write daily schedule, date, and your name on the board
• Prepare files for parent correspondence, school bulletins, and sub teachers

1. Know what you want and what you don't want.
2. Model for your students what you want.
3. When you get what you want, acknowledge (not praise) it.If used to often praise will soon become devalued.4. When you get something else, act quickly and appropriately.

    I have had previous students from 7/8 years back that I taught with respect and nurturing environment and got to know their families etc. that still as they see me now come up hug me, thank me for being tough on them as we sit back and recall some of the things they did when they were with me. I think this is just one type of proof that I know how to handle the students as they walk in the first day Here you will find a few ideas for great classroom management that work in all classrooms. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCuYH6b-o2E 

Learning theories in the classroom setting

    I have always tried to gather information on my past experiences in the classroom to determine how I would manage my own classroom. I have seen good examples and some not so good examples and some extreme examples where I can honestly say I would never have my class ran in that way.
I think to begin the year off I would try and create an open classroom where the student's and their families feel they are welcome and safe. In doing this I plan on getting to know my students and their families by doing home visits before school starts. In doing this I believe it will give me a better understanding of each students background and develop a strong connection with the families.

    I do not want the students to come in thinking I am a drill sergeant, but that I do expect respect. I also know that in order to get respect from my students I must give respect to my students. My students will know that I have high expectations for each and everyone of them and that through this mutual respect there is a sense of genuine care for all. I would love to set my classroom up as a sort of "family" environment with students grasping the understanding that this is our classroom and that we are all responsible for what happens within the walls of the classroom. Classroom rules will be displayed on the walls for easy reference and the rules will be followed by all including myself. I will model the expected behaviors on a daily basis thus being a from of DLT as a concrete example and give rewards to students as they demonstrate these behaviors on a random basis leading to BLT in the classroom. I would constantly model these behaviors for children to see what is expected and instead of just telling them (abstract) the behavior would be modeled (concrete).

   I have seen many classroom settings in my past experiences and one that I always refer back to is the pod seating, where children are set in pods of four students. In doing this type of seating arrangement the children will feel more confident in using their more knowledgeable peer (SLT) in the classroom and they can refer to students in their pods to ensure they are grasping the contents being taught. In addition to basic classroom seating charts I would pay more attention to my language to ensure it is comprehensible to all students and when it is not I would go back to DLT and provide concrete examples of the terms not understood.

  I believe my goal to visit each of my students home before the school year starts will give me a better understanding of each child's (CLT) background. Finding out how the student's family dynamics work and take that into considerations when planning my classroom. Who has access to what materials and what I need to do as a teacher to ensure that all of my students have the same opportunity to succeed. I believe if I have a small understanding of each studnets schema I can work off that ensuring sucess for all.

 Many times I hope that as I become a classroom teacher I would be able to model the type of classroom management found in movies such as "Freedom Writers" or "Stand and Deliver" with James Olmos another great one was with Morgan Freeman in "Stand by Me" and another great one is Ron Clark who developed the Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta, Georgia.  I know it seems like a dream but that is eventually my goal to be the type of teacher that they write stories about... good ones of course.

Grading

So our EDUC 107 professor wants us to grade our own papers???/ UGHHH I keep wondering what type of grade to give myself without being too critical as if we grade to high we have to "talk" as he says as well as if we grade to low we again have to "talk".  Keep wondering how many students will give themselves an A and how many of us are willing to be truthful and give ourselves the grade we truly deserve. What are other peoples thoughts on this new grading critique?

Lessons in the classroom

Okay okay so I didn't blog last week for Educ 107,  and just doing this weeks blog now. Last weeks class was interesting to say the least and seeing the different types of lesson plans classmates came up with was quite interesting.
Last week group one  (Spelling) I felt was not a very engaging activity and felt that people were put on the spot, not sure if this would work well in a classroom setting as there are a variety of levels in the typical classroom. I felt that the instructors were not very well prepared as many words were put out and they did not have the correct spelling. Although a good point was made out of this lesson.
Group #2 Social Norms - Loved the videos and great classroom discussion.
Group #3 Speeches- Not very well organized and at times looking for volunteers for the activities, ran out of time.
Group#4 Verb conjunction in Spanish- Lesson was overall okay but unaware of what grade level this was gearing towards. I did feel that the lesson needed to be more engaging as it seemed as it was more lecture than a lesson, in addition many words that were taught, I as a native speaker don't use as that is formal Spanish and not what is spoken outside of schools.

This last Thursday my group presented on the topic of Healthy Eating Habits, I felt we did a good job, but that we over-planned. I felt that we had an interesting topic that we covered and used a variety of technology to help engage our fellow classmates mentally.  The poll went very well as did the bags of lard on the table. if this were a real classroom setting I feel that there could be much more done with this topic and it would be able to be expanded into all areas of the curriculum.

Where am I going again?

  We were asked in class to write about something that we do with no apparent reason as to why we do it. Of course I would love to say I am perfect and do none of this but after racking my brain, I found that there is something I used to do all the time. I used to work for a school on the South side of Des Moines before and it was a route I traveled every day Monday through Friday. I found on many occasions that even when driving down E. 14th street as I approached my regular turn I found myself turning on my signal light to make the unnecessary turn. This would happen any time I came in close proximity to my previous workplace even on the weekends.
 
As soon as I noticed my signal light was on to turn and that cars behind me were slowing down I quickly accommodated my train of thought and continued on to where I was originally set to go. Now that it has been four months since having to make this daily commute, I no longer slow down or my signal light no longer turns on while approaching my old turn. I believe in these actions I am using CLT when I feel that I need to turn at that intersection as I had prior experience with this intersection for many years, and I had yet  to change my schema.I used CLT in order to accommodate my mode of thinking after no longer needing to make the turn at the intersection.  I still am struggling on how this would fit into the other learning theories and I believe I may be able to stretch it when I say DLT is used as this route is very familiar to me .

Thinking out Loud

Professor Kruse asked s this week to ask someone how they would solve a problem/thinking out loud as we did in on of our previous classes I asked my daughter who is in 2nd grade ths year about a math problem she was doing for the night's homework. In class they have been studying doubles plus two ex 4+6. When she told me how she solved ths problem she said she thought about solving 4+4 first and she knew that was eight from what she has been taught in the past. She said then he knew she had two more to add to that so she came up with 4+6=10. Right away I knew she was using CLT without realizing it. From her background knowledge of what 4+4= she then added the knowledge of adding on two more. May be a stretch but I think by her breaking down the math problem into more familiar terms she was using SLT. Now the use of DLT is still a struggle, I know tha when using DLT it is when it starts concrete and moves to more abstract, so not sure if when she was figuring the problem out and th7e problem of 4+4 was the more cncrete as that was what she already knew then moving to 4+6 without thinking and wrote the answer was the more abstrat part. Any thought?
educ#107

Teaching with SLT and DLT

In the past seven years I have worked with children from Kindergarten all the way up to fifth grade. I have seen good use of both SLT and DLT and through these experiences I have had, I have a good understanding of how I would use both in my future teaching. I am currently working on my reading and ESL endorsements and have worked in the ESL field for many years.  If I am teaching a 1st grade ELL class vocabulary, I would begin with a concrete object (realia) for the child to understand the meaning of the word and be able to put that English word to the actual object.
  We would begin to start with another small word such as like and we would begin to use this in a variety of sentences. Ex. I like to play, I like to eat, I like to run. In addition I could write the sentence on a sentence strip and have the children repeat on their own sentence strip. Then we would cut apart the whole words. From here we would then have "puzzle pieces" that have a word on them and we would practice to put the sentence together while saying the sentence.http://brainathonemporium.com/order/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=68_69&products_id=356
  From this as the child progress I could use SLT by beginning to engage other students repeating after me, I like apples. This would make me the more knowledgeable peer and gives the student a correct model of which to base their performance on. I would praise the children as they begin to come along in their sentence structure. EDUC#107

Developmental Learning Theory

      These last few class sessions in educ 107, we have gone over what exactly is DLT. I think back to my previous job as an ELL tutor/translator and how much I used DLT on a daily basis without knowing it. Breaking down the material for easier comprehension for my students, whether it was showing actual pictures (realia) or just going over in depth words, phrases that were not understood, then bringing it all back together so the student was able to undertand the question/assignment.
      I have seen many educators in my work experience as well as my college years not take this approach with DLT and many times they have students in their class sitting back and not able to comprehend anything that was just "taught". Many educators believe if they just talk at the student and not to the student they will eventually "get it", but we have found over and over that is not the case. We as future educators need to keep in mind that not all of our students are going to be able to learn in the same manner so we really need to try and differentiate our instruction to better fit the needs of our students.
      I believe if we use DLT in all aspescts of teaching our students will in turn have a better understanding of all subjects being taught.