FINAL BLOG

PERSONAL LEARNING THEORY
What? My personal learning theory is a combination of all the learning theories we learned about in class. I feel that each one is a necessary component to the learning process. Cognitivists state that learning occurs through memory, reasoning, creating schemas, etc. I agree with the idea that our memory is an important part of learning. In order for meaningful learning to occur we must encode the new information into our long term memory by connecting it with our prior knowledge. I feel that when students can relate what they learn to what they already know, they will be able to recall it better. One other way to recall information efficiently is to create schemas (or categories/concepts) for the information to be filed in storage. When students take information and are able tie that information to a central idea and tie those central ideas together to form a concept, they are able to see how everything fits together, at that point the information becomes relevant.
Chapter 7 discusses the views of constructivists. I agree with the idea that students construct meaning based on their experiences. Students must be allowed to categorize what they learn in order for them to fully understand it. One problem that arises in allowing students to construct their own concepts and meanings, is the likelihood that misconceptions will occur. Often times misconceptions will be overlooked and the student will not get the right idea or simply not understand what is being taught. I disagree with constructivists about the effect of misconceptions. I personally feel that if a student goes into an assignment with a misconception and discovers they are wrong, they will learn more than a student without any prior misconceptions. Using misconceptions to your advantage as a teacher will strengthen your explanation when used correctly.
Behaviorists view learning through the relationships of stimulus and responses. They believe when you learn something you will change a behavior. I feel that this is true, when students learn about recycling they will stop throwing away items that can be recycled. If the students continue to not recycle, then they really do not fully understand what they have been taught. I do not think that classical conditioning should be used to teach behavior to students. I view it as an unethical practice, it does not explain or justify why you should behave a certain way. I am in support of using operant conditioning in the classroom. I like the idea of using positive and negative reinforcers with students. I believe this helps students to decide what is acceptable and what is not without using punishment. I also plan to set up a token economy for my students. I feel this can be a powerful way to motivate students. Cueing is also an important part of behaviorism. I plan to use this in my class daily because it is very subtle and effective.
The social cognitivist theory is discussed in chapter 10 of our book, this addresses how people learn by observing others. I agree with this idea mainly because this was how I learned as a child. I would watch someone get in trouble for something and then I would not participate because I did not like the consequence others had received. This is an example of vicarious learning, which can be very effective for socially observant students. Modeling is also a very effective way to teach. In order for modeling to work students must be able to: pay attention, perform, be motivated, remember it. Self-regulation is also important to a successful classroom. Students should evaluate their goals and classroom work on a regular basis.
So What? In my classroom I plan to encourage learning by using my learning theory which is a combination of cognitivism, behaviorism, constructism, and social cognitivism. To ensure my students are learning I will have my students make connections with the new information they are learning. I can do this by asking 3 basic questions: does this remind you of other texts, do you have any personal stories about this, and how does this effect the world. I will also encourage my students to create schemas by using advanced organizers that visually allow the students to see connections. Creating class webs is a great way to help students sort information into concepts.
To encourage constructivism I will use hands on activites that allow students to explore the concept we are learning. I will allow my students to use manipulative's in math and other subjects to increase understanding. I will also use webquests to encourage discovery learning. I will scaffold my students by giving them little structure so that they head in the right direction. I also plan to use the inquiry model lesson plan, set up so that students come up with definitions and characteristics. Using constructivist ideals in the classroom will encourage higher level thinking.
Learning through behaviorism is also important to a successful classroom. I plan to cue students who are behaving inappropriately in the classrooom. I also really like the idea of reinforcing incompatible behaviors. For example, if a student is coming in late from recess everyday you can assign that student to be the official line leader and praise him/her for doing so. I also think it is important to explain to students why certain behaviors are appropriate or inappropriate. When punishment can not be avoided, I will make every effort as a teacher to choose a punishment that is mild and relates to the behavior. Overall, I want to have a very positive environment in my classroom, reinforcing students for the work and behaviors they exhibit.
I plan to use the social cognitivists view of learning by modeling effectively in my classroom. I will make sure to be competent in all subject areas that I am teaching. I will make the behavior relevant to the learner's life. I also want to model gender appropriate behaviors and bring in professionals to do so as well. I also plan to use flexible learning strategies to promote self-regulation. I also will have my students set goals each term and evalute them at the beginning, middle, and end of that term.
Now What? I took the assigned quiz before I started this final blog. Each of my scores were very close. Behaviorism- 46 points, Humanism- 45 points, and Cognitivism- 44 points. I feel that all of the learning theories play an important role in a student's development. Each theory is reflected in certain areas or aspects of the classroom.
Some things that I would like to learn more about are individual differences. New research is being done daily with individuals to help us better understand their needs. I want to be an accommodating teacher, and to do so I must understand different disorders and disabilities. In order to do this I plan to collaborate with special education teachers. They will be able to help me come up with accommodations as well as to better understand the students IEP.
I also want to learn more about teaching moral reasoning. Learning moral reasoning is vital to a student's social skills. One way I plan to do this are to find books with good moral values and use them to teach literature as well as moral reasoning. I want to let the students stumble onto the idea of moral values.
After discussing Authentic activities in class I decided this is one area I need to work on. I think I do not use these as often because it takes a lot of effort to plan. One way I could lessen time is to find lessons on UEN or share authentic activities with other teachers in my school. I really think that authentic activities require higher level thinking and that is definitely something I want used in my classroom.
During the semester I have learned so much in Educational Psychology. This class has helped me shape my personal theories and ideals. It has also required me to think outside the box. I have learned many things that will be valuable to me as a teacher. I now better understand the brain and human development. I am excited to get a job teaching and use all the things I learned from this class to educate my future students!

chapter 9 learning log

What? Chapter is all about behaviorism. Behaviorism is the theoretical view that learning and behavior are explained through stimulus-response. At the beginning of class Dr. Cox walked around the room with a bag full of candy. She had us all smell it. Then she asked us what the most important thing we learned about in class was. She waited until someone said the brain and then she gave them a piece of candy. Then someone else in the class said the brain and they also got a piece of candy. It took 4 people doing that until I said the brain too, and sure enough I got a piece of candy. After everyone in class said the brain and all had candy she explained that was an example of operant conditioning. In class we learned that operant conditioning occurs when a response is reinforced so it increases that response’s frequency. We also discussed classical conditioning. Classical conditioning is being used when an unconditioned stimulus leads to an unconditioned response (UCS to UCR). Then a neural stimulus is presented right before the UCS. Before long this neural stimulus triggers the UCR which now makes it CR. Together this develops into CS to CR. Dr. Cox gave us worksheet to complete in groups with different scenarios. We had to decide whether it fit classical conditioning or operant conditioning and then explain why. This really helped me to deepen my understanding of the two. While both deal with conditioning they are done in completely different ways. We also discussed different types of reinforcers. One way to reinforce extrinsically is using a token economy. Token economy is when students are given tokens for work or behavior that later they can trade in for some type of reward. Dr. Cox shared the example of her daughter’s hot tickets. This is great to motivate students, but we should be trying to also reinforce intrinsically. We also discussed cueing which a great skill because it reminds students of what to do in a discrete way.
So what? As teachers we need to understand behaviorism in order to manage our classroom behavior. Teachers must be aware of the different types of reinforcement manifest in their classroom. Setting up different types of behaviors will help our students to become better learners in school. We can use operant conditioning with our students when teaching appropriate school behaviors. For instance, calling on a student when they raise their hand, and ignoring students that shout out. When a student gets reinforced with attention they will remember to raise their hand to get that attention. Our classes must go through shaping in order for us to see success at the end of the year. By shaping our students we can change the behavior that gets reinforced until we get to the terminal behavior that is desired. I also think it is important for teachers to apply the saying “Don’t smile until Christmas”. I think it is important for teacher to establish their expectations by strictly enforcing the rules. Once the students understand what the teacher expects and how the class runs, you can slowly lay off on the strict atmosphere.
Now What? I want to use positive and negative reinforcement to manage the behavior of my class. I want to avoid using punishment whenever possible. I want to keep a positive attitude as I go about shaping the behavior of my students. I will use a token economy in my classroom, but I will not give tokens for every assignment or every good behavior. I want to keep a balance of intrinsic and extrinsic reinforcement. I will be strict when enforcing my classroom expectations; this does not mean I will be mean, just consistent. As a teacher I will be aware of the different needs of each student. Some students will need individual behavior plans. I want to accommodate these students by collaborating with special education teachers. Managing behavior is a key component to having a successful classroom.

chapter 7 learning log

What? At the beginning of class we went to the tutor lab and did a webquest individually. We as students were given the site and expected to come up with answers and some resources on our own. Then we had to design a mini webquest based off of what we had learned. When we finished and came back to class, Dr. Cox told us we had just experienced discovery learning. Discovery learning takes place when students are allowed to explore concepts and come up with definitions and characteristics on their own. We also discussed the big downfall to discovery learning and that is misconceptions. Common misconceptions should be addressed before starting any lesson. The main idea talked about in class was Constructivism. When students come up with definitions, explore concepts, and make connections students increase understanding and construct knowledge. Dr. Cox talked about allowing our students to construct by using authentic activities. Authentic activities are: hands on, require synthesis, use real-life situations, demonstrate cause and effect, involve reporting, and find solutions. In class we learned that using authentic activities is very effective with students, however we also learned that teachers do not often use them. This is because it takes a lot of time to create authentic activities as well as it is hard to make the activity within every student’s zone of proximal development. We also discussed the constructivist lesson plan set up, which is: THE 5 Es Engage- get interest (hook) Explore- student-centered
Explain- work together to analyze (student) Elaborate-student-centered, deepen
Evaluate-check understanding. The father of constructivism was Jerome Bruner and he thought that you should use content as a medium for learning. One other thing we discussed in class was the process of education. This included structure, readiness, spiral curriculum, intuition, and motivation.
So what? Discovery learning should be used in classrooms to teach curriculum. This should be done with scaffolding to increase the student’s chance for understanding. When teachers guide the discovery we can be sure students arrive and knowledge we want them to. Also teacher must be aware of their student’s prior knowledge and zpd levels to create discovery learning tasks and authentic activities. When teachers make the task outside the student’s ZPD the task is not causing them to learn effectively. For every discovery learning task the teacher should make a list of possible misconceptions and address before students begin working. This will promote student growth and understanding. I think that because authentic activities are hard to grade teacher need to make rubrics to make it easier. Rubrics can even be used by the students to self-evaluate making it less time consuming for the teacher. I really like the 5 E idea that is presented by constructivism. It is important to engage the students by allowing them to explore and explain the content they are supposed to be learning. If the students do this they are more likely to remember it long term as well as to apply those skills to other problems they might face.
Now what? As a teacher I want to use Discovery learning in my classroom. I will make it appropriate for my students’ ZPD by grouping students for different assignments if necessary. I will try to make it as individual as possible so the student has to explore and explain at their level. I will use authentic activities in my classroom. This will engage my students and make them want to learn more. One way I plan to do this is to create webquests to go along with my lessons so the students can explore on the web. With the webquests I will have them fill out charts with data so they can analyze the information. I want to not only teach my students the core curriculum but I want to teach them how to learn new things and categorize the information they learn. I think that by doing this I will be using Jerome Bruner’s theory, as well as teaching my student to problem base think and become life long learners.

Chapter 3 LEARNING LOG

What? I absent the day of our class lecture on this chapter. So I read Chapter 3 on my own as well as I went through what was on blackboard. Chapter 3 is about personal and social development. One important thing that I read about in the case study is that students may have differing social and academic levels. Personal development refers to distinctive behavioral styles, while social development deals with understanding people and society and more internalized behaviors. An important thing to know is the difference between personality and temperament. Personality is the way an individual behaves in circumstances; personality is largely influenced by environment and also heredity. Temperament is a Genetic trait that deals with responding to social and physical environments. Different parenting styles were also mentioned in the chapter, the important style to know and use in the classroom is Authoritative. This type of parenting includes high expectations and standards for performance and includes children in decision making. Erickson’s eight stages are presented in this chapter. The 4th stage is seen during the elementary school years. This is known as Industry vs. Inferiority. Within this stage the child either becomes diligent, puts work before pleasure; this occurs when teachers praise and encourage students. Inferiority develops in a child if they ridiculed or punished for their efforts or they can’t seem to meet expectations. This inferiority will affect a student’s progress through the entire school years. Many different types of aggression are mentioned in the chapter. Relational aggression is an action the affects friendships and other interpersonal relationships. Proactive aggression is very deliberate and is used to obtain desired goals. Other types of aggression are mentioned as well. I had no idea that aggression had so many forms; it was really helpful to be able to break it down. Kohlberg’s view of moral reasoning is also discussed in the chapter. He designed a theory with 3 levels with each level having 2 stages. Moral reasoning deals with the motivation behind the choices we make regarding right and wrong. Most students at the elementary level will be in the first 2 stages; punishment avoidance and obedience and exchange of favors. Occasionally in the upper grades students will reach the 3rd stage of good boy/good girl.
So what? Knowing the difference between personality and temperament is very valuable to a teacher. One example of this would be when a student goes into a new 3rd grade class that is different than a previous class; the student might be quiet and shy or really boisterous. This is something they really don’t have instant control over. Students must be taught by the teacher they way the class functions. It will probably not happen instantaneously. Recognizing that there are different forms of aggression is also necessary when dealing with aggressive students. Teachers need to determine if the aggression is proactive, relational, physical, or reactive and then deal with the situation accordingly. Studying Erickson’s stages I learned that what happens to a child’s sense of self effects them for a lifetime. This implies that teachers have an enormous impact on the students at the elementary level. Teachers need to be positive when giving feedback and must also be encouraging. One way of doing this is setting up a token economy with extrinsic motivators. This leads into Kohlberg’s Moral reasoning stages. If students get rewards for assignments then they are being educated in the 2nd stage exchange of favors. The students receive rewards and in turn do homework. This shouldn’t be every time you ask them to do something, however it does help to motivate students.
Now what? As a teacher I will give the students time to adjust to my rules and expectations at the beginning of the year. I want to do this because children need time to adjust to their environments; every temperament will be manifest differently in the students. When students are aggressive in class, I will examine the situation before disciplining the student. There is a reason for each type of aggression and if I can eliminate of lessen the cause, then aggression will be decreased in my classroom. When I become a teacher I will encourage my students by praising them. I want to be positive so that they become industrious. I will value each student and try to help them have a good sense of self. I will teach students a stage higher in moral reasoning than they currently are. I want to devote 10 minutes each day to social skills development. I feel social and personal development are an important part of the curriculum.

FIELD EXPERIENCE

I am loving it! I have learned so much working with Miss Baer's 4th grade class the past couple of weeks. The students have been so willing to do whatever I have asked. They have great behavior and that has made teaching my lessons so much easier. Miss Baer has been wonderful to work with, she is willing to answer any questions that I have. She has set up her class in such an organized manner it is easy to pick up where she leaves off. My partner Kirsten has been a lifesaver through it all.We have been teaching all about mountain men. We taught why they came to Utah, We talked all about what they wore, ate, how they lived, etc. We even had a whole lesson on mountain men vocabulary. The kids really enjoyed when we talked about Jedediah Smith and Jim Bridger. We were able to show our digital story at this point, because we created our story based off the life of Jedediah Smith. The students loved it. They learned so much, and they thought their teachers were so cool because we could make movies. I did not expect our movie to be that effective, but I was wrong. They learned so much.Throughout our unit on mountain men the students have been able to earn beaver pelts to spend at our class rendezvous. This was the reward system we used for behavior as well as work completion. They really loved this. Positive reinforcement is the way to go. The rendezvous was a great chance for the kids to experience what is was like to be a mountain man. They got to eat cornbread, trade for equipment, leg wrestle, make necklaces, and more. The principal even stopped by for the event. The teepee Kirsten brought was a nice touch. The kids loved reading tall tales inside of it.For our technology lesson we decided to create a Keynote Presentation with hyperlinks, so they could do a scavenger hunt about mountain men online. It took a very long time to get the presentation on each computer and that was frustrating. However, once we got the ball rolling the kids loved it. Miss Baer was impressed as well. The technology use, really engaged the students and increased their love of learning about mountain men.I cant wait to get back and hear about everyone's experiences.

Piagetian Tasks

I decided to perform the piagetian tasks on my 7 year old cousin Troy. My younger sister was also there when I had him perform the tasks. She is 8 years old and the difference between them was astounding. I had never realized how big of a difference one year can make, especially in the first few years of life. I really enjoyed performing these piagetian tasks. I really do think that Jean Piaget has some really great theories and stages for cognitive development.
1. The first thing I did was fill two glasses with water. I used the same style of glass with the same amount of water. Then I got a different type of glass and set it to the side. I set the two glasses out in front of him and I asked. "Do you think there is the same amount of water each glass?" He said yes and then I asked him "Are you sure?" He nodded his head yes. Then I took one of the glasses and poured it into the 3rd glass I had out. I then asked him "Does one glass have more or less water, or is it still the same amount?" He pointed to the "different" glass and said that one has less water in it. I then tried to get him to rethink his answer by asking " Are you sure this glass has less water, you dont think its the same amount of water?" He told me of course it is a different amount of water. Look at it amber!! Meanwhile my sister was laughing saying of course its still the same troy. She didnt put any more water in or take any out, all she did was switch the cups. :)
2. I wanted to use playdoh for this task but I didn't have any so...... I got creative. I decided I would take two mini candy bars and open them and then I would smash one and ask him if it still had the same amount of candy. So took two snickers candy bars and put them out on the table. I asked Troy "Are these candy bars the same size with the same amount of candy?" He said yes. Then I took my hand and smashed one of the candy bars. (which by the way had both kids laughing) Then I asked him "How about now? Do both candy bars have the same amount of candy?" His response was the same as the last time. He said the smashed candy bar had less candy. I asked him "Are you sure?" He said yes. My sister said it is still the same. She even told Troy she would eat the smashed candy bar and he could eat the other one, because she still would get the same amount of candy. :) He still wasnt convinced.
3. The last task I performed with Troy was with marbles. I used green and yellow marbles. I had 8 green marbles and 5 yellow marbles. I told Troy to count the marbles. He did not have to use one to one correspondence. Which is great!! He told me there were 8 green marbles and 5 yellow marbles. Then I spaced out the line of yellow marbles farther apart than the green and asked him "Which color of marbles do I have more of?" He said green without even thinking about it. Then I asked the question "Do I have more marbles or green marbles?" Troy took his time in answering this question. After about 30 seconds he told me there were more marbles than green marbles. I found it interesting that of the 3 tasks he could perform only this one with ease. My sister Lexi said "You're right Troy you're right!"
One note I want to add is how hard it is to ask the questions without implementing the answer. This was a great assignment to better understand Piaget's stages of cognitive development.

LEARNING LOG 10-6-08

What? We started off class talking about the human brain and neurons. Neurons are brain cells. Neurons have many different parts. Each neuron has a cell boy and axon (which can be coated with myelin) and dendrites. The gap between neurons where information is transmitted is called the synapse. After discussing neurons we were introduced to Jean Piaget. I learned that he was a cognitive constructivist. He believed that children learn through experience, so he thought that teaching should be done with a hands on approach. We also discussed the process of equilibration. How you must use either accomodation or assimilation to reach equilibration. Another theorist we were introduced to was Vygotsky. He was a social construtivist who largely based his theories off studying his own children. He believed children gained knowledge through social interactions and that group work was the greatest teaching tool. He also said children learn to become like adults through play. Vygotsky also came up with ZPD (zone of proximal development. A child is in ZPD when things are not to easy or to hard, and tasks can be performed with assistance. We also discussed Linguistic Development. Heredity is a factor of a childs ability to learn language. Noam presented the idea of a most people being born with a language acquistion device which enables them to learn linguistically. There are crucial times in a childs life where language should be learned (even second languages).
So What? Learning about Piagets different stages made me think about how important it is as teachers that we know what stage(s) our students are in so that we can best suite their needs. I really think that teaching should be more individualized. When we discussed Vygotsky's ZPD and did the worksheet activity deciding whether or not the child was performing in their ZPD, I thought about how it is critical we set up our classrooms so that kids can perform in their ZPD. This can be done by making groups for certain subjects at skill level. Scaffolding must take place in order for this to work. I also realized how crucial it is that language skills are developed at a young age. Children learn so fast and absorb so much more in the younger years. We as teachers just need to constantly be exposing them to language.
Now What? I will use a combination of Piaget and Vygotsky in my classroom. I think that the better I understand these theorists, the better I will be able to customize my classroom to fit my own theories. I will use groups in my classroom that allow students to function in ZPD. I also will provide many hands on learning activities to engage and teach my students. I think that by following the advice of both theorists leads to using the multiple intelligences as well. I want to to talk more with children at an adult level so they will get the language exposure necessary to develop linguistically. I know view playtime as not only fun, but work for the child. It can be used to teach so much socially and that is great.