Course Contract Review #3

1. Over the course of this semester I have maintained a good grasp on the information as well as staying up and along with the pace of the class. I feel I have understood the concepts and am beginning to see how when using theories and information I've gained in class I can apply this in my teaching and creating an educational environment for my future students that is positive and efficient.

2. I feel I have not fully invested in the material. I always say to myself how I wish I could only take one class a semester to really enjoy, read and gain as much as I can from one subject. I realize that Education Physchology could consume that much time; time which I wish I had to invest. I didn't always real every and all parts of the chapters from the text. I think in doing so I could have gained more understanding of how to apply terms and concepts.

3. This semester I had a goal to put in the effort to understand the material. I wanted this class to progress my teaching training and in doing so wanted to information from this class to be retained. I feel I have been able to understand the material, and if I didn't the first time have asked for assistance during discussion and lecture to clarify what I am not fully understanding. I also have done well at retaining information, mostly because of the way information has been presented. Participating in class activities and the individual presentations has helped me to associate those events into my long term memory and recall it latter when I've needed the information in working memory.

4. Specific things I can do in the future to meat my educational goals:
-to prioritize my time and set study higher in priority
-completely study text before class to have class lecture as a review verses a learning experience

5.My motivation honestly is dwindling at the close of this semester. I always bight off more than I can chew. I feel I am intrinsically motivated most of the time to have self mastery, however must admit at this point I just want to do decent on the final to receive an appropriate grade. Oh and something I need to change, allowing myself to have free time! I have big plans for the next three weeks to do nothing:)

Course Contract Review #2 (following test #2)

1. One thing I feel I am doing well in this class is staying interested and involved with the material. Having worked with students in the past I see how important this information is, and how vital student emotion, behaviors, and learning abilities can affect students progression in your classroom. I feel like I've maintained a good attitude through out the course of what feels like a hectic semester. I also feel I have remained caught up on the material and been successful in the project/assignment which have been given.

2. I can improve on my continual dedication to this class. I know what is most effective is to visit this new material and concepts from class often. However, I tend to do one class at a time. I work on ed phsych each week, but do not always work on it progressively and think if I did I would be more prepared for class discussion, test, and assignments I'm working on.

3.I feel I have been doing well on my goals. I more often than not am a perfectionist and always have a suggestion for myself to be better in many areas, but do understand only so many things in my life can be focused on at once. I would like to see myself progressing further, but admit I must be realistic and complement myself on my successes thus far.

4. I need to utilize the time I do have, and study in the best ways which work for me. I work best visually. When taking notes I often write many definitions, even when knowing this doesn't always work for me. I can spend 30 minutes the day of class when I'm home at night reviewing my notes and formatting them in a way I will attain the information best.

5. With the assessment inventory I was intrinsically motivated because I could see my need for practicing and learning the information and discovery within the project. However, at the end of the semester I find myself anxious to study enough for this class to be able to do well on the final exam and score well. I think to some extent this is okay to expect high performance from myself, but need to perform at my best level because I want to succeed.

Field Response Draft Examples of my Responses

4. At which of Kohlberg's levels of moral development are the students in your class functioning? Cite specific evidence and explain your reasoning for selecting these levels. What might be done to help the students advance to higher levels? 

While teaching Mrs. Newsome’s class of twenty one students for my teacher work sample experience, I often had to remind students to stop talking as I offering instruction.  A handful of these students in this class seemed to be in level 1 obedience and punishment stage.  If they were to misbehave according to the established rules for the class, I was to punish them by docking their participation points.  Those students who were particularly good at following the flow of the class remained within Kohlberg’s level 3 social contract.  I observed this while teaching when one student in particular continued to have a conversational with another student while I was speaking myself.  When I walked near her and asked her to stop interrupting, she informed me that she was only trying to help the girl next to her who hadn’t fully understood what was previously explored.  Even though this girl was in fact breaking the rules of the classroom, while talking when I was talking, she had taken upon herself the responsibility to catch up another student even though I hadn’t assigned her to do so.  This action for this particular student seemed to be the right thing at the time.  She intended to avoid having a classmate fall behind when I continued instruction and felt it was ethical or best to ignore the rule and take what action she did.

1. What evidence do you see of specific teacher behaviors that are geared toward Piaget's theories about the developmental levels of children at particular ages? Cite specific examples and make clear connection to Piaget's work.

When observing the Dance 2 class at Timpanogos High School, I assumed the students would have some previous dance experience and a foundation of dance concepts.  However, I have noticed multiple times when observing Mrs. Newsome’s class; she has used assimilation to help students grasp information that is new or unfamiliar.  Kristi has done this particularly during the class warm up when shapes and stretches are related to physical images they’ve previously learned and can picture in their minds as they move.  Examples of this included imagining the curvature of a snake and allowing the curvy spine of a human body to move in this same way.  Doing this helped student’s associate new information with information that was known.  It also helped students retain movement they saw and have previously experienced before, like when a little baby and squirming around.  The teacher recognized these learned movements, even when the students hadn’t kept this information past working memory.  

Making this connection for the students didn’t necessarily occur successfully in the beginning.  Some students in this class were at lower levels than others.  A particular group with minimal to no dance experience was unable to grasp the information given to them, and were unable to replicate the movement assimilated.  This required Kristi to accommodate instruction for these students and create a completely new mental pathway for these students to understand the incoming information.  Most students in this class were, according to our class text, in Piaget’s stage 2 with others in stage 3 of development.  They were unable to interpret logic and have adult like responses while still remaining within concrete reality.  At this level I didn’t observe students working in the formal stage or taking the information given and attributing abstract ideas.    

 

Neuroscience

Judy Willis is an individual who researched a form of instruction know as RAD teaching.  RAD is broken up into R: Reticular Activation System, A: Amygdala, and D: Dopamine.  These are centers in the brain or chemicals which have specified functions.  

These functions provide organization, and emotion to help students connect, retain, and process incoming information.  The Reticular Activation System receives 2000 stimuli per second of sensory intake for the individual.  Knowing this, Judy explains in her research, that the goal of a successful educator is to control the amount of information the student receives.  This can include the students environment, emotional state, and attention span.

Learning about the research that Judy has done, I want to create situations in my classroom that allow for efficient learning.  To my understanding this includes pealing away extra information and facts students receive in the classroom that are not imperative to was is needed for the given unit.  I will also try to use the element of surprise, novelty, and differentiation to get the attention and focus of my students, as well as using color coded visuals and instruction materials where students can easily sort groups and patterns with instruction. 

Course Contract Review #1

Looking at the results from my first exam with earning full points the first attempt it would appear as if I was following my original course contract completely.  However, I have been unable to make the time commitments I calendared for this class.  In my defense I have found time in the evenings to come to the library where I have directed my time towards ed psych.  I feel I need more time to study for this course.  I am getting the definitions down, but not fully understanding the concepts behind these terms.  In order for me to find this in my study time I have to read once, then review a second time, even sometimes a third time to grasp all that I am reading and make connections.

I feel I have maintained a focus on the goals I have placed for my personal success in  this course, but also have to realize my time and direction of study needs to be done differently.  I need to change my approach to the material in this class.  First giving myself the proper amount of time to study, second to use all materials needed to grasp information, and third to be more prepared mentally for class as we review sections I was studying during the week.  I find my self tuning out sometimes at the allotted 3-5pm class time, but will try to use various techniques to stay alert which include... healthy snacks, keeping body temp cooler than whats comfortable, taking notes, and possibly sitting in different areas of the room.

I feel that I have a mixture of mastery and performance goals.  Over all I want to succeed in ed psych because as an hourly teacher I can see the importance of understanding the student and their personal needs, but I am also motivated to do well in the class as far as assignments and assigned letter grades.  I feel its important to be balanced in motivation, but to be aware that there are always improvements like those I've listed above.

Field Response Journal Q6

At Timpanogos High School there is a wide variety of economic backgrounds and the boundaries for the school feed from a range in neighborhood economic status.  In the class I observe, Dance 1, there are many cultural differences.  This is an elective class students are interested in who have some dance experience.  The great thing about the dance experience these students do have, is that most of the dancing they are familiar with is from their ethnic and cultural backgrounds.  These cultural backgrounds include Latin American, African American, and Caucasian students. In the dance 1 class so far they have not yet studied cultural dance and are still working on the basics.  However, at Timpanogos these students are given opportunities to form clubs as long as they have a supervising teacher.  

Kristi Newsome the Dance 1 teacher supervises the break dance club.  Other clubs offered at THS include Latin American club, and a Multicultural Dance club.  These students meet after school two to three times a week.  This year there has been a big push for these clubs to participate in school performances and assemblies.  Kristi mentioned to me how great the break dance club is for students who don't seem to "fit in" anywhere else.  These after school clubs give students a place to be after school hours where they are learning skills to problem solve, of team work, and creative thinking. 

Motivation

I am here in the Education Program at UVU to pursue my knowledge and skill in dance education.  Being a dancer for almost 18 years I never imagined myself as a dance educator.  However, last year I received a job in teaching dance at Timpanogos High School.  This has been an experience I have loved and enjoyed.  I want to better educate my students, get them excited for learning, and be and influence for creative thinking and problem solving in their lives. 
I am motivated to do things that I enjoy and get caught up in, know as flow.  I can often be extrinsically motivated to accomplish certain tasks if I can see the reward in sight (like cleaning my kitchen), and am intrinsically motivated to participate in activities I enjoy the process of.
Tasks that I am extrinsically motivated for don't necessarily end in failure, but at times are what seems only short time minimal happiness.  When I succeed it is because I have put in my best effort.  This occurs mostly when I have been original, been unafraid to be wrong, and gone for the task full speed, because no matter the outcome I was going to enjoy myself and what I experienced.
The study goals I have established for this class are goals I have made for myself so that I can receive the most benefit from this class.  I feel this is a Mastery Oriented goal because I want to be a better teacher.  I want to understand my students better and find ways to connect with different individuals.  I am not studying for this class to do better than the individual in the seat next to me.  I want to be an educator that is looked up to, that makes a difference, and I hope inspires students to succeed.
A mindset I need to change is that just doing the assignments and reading will be sufficient.  I know that education goes much further than this kind of effort.  I need to be willfully committed to giving more than one hundred percent.