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.