Module 1- Observations from Gulf Shores, AL

My first blog post for Educational Psychology was supposed to be the "Trinity Christian College Field Experience Form", but due to NAIA Nationals for track, I am unable to start my aiding this week. Instead of posting my form, I plan to sum up what I read in Anita Woolfolk's book Educational Psychology, how it has related to some past experience I have had, and how I plan to apply it to my life. 

First of all, I thought I would share a little bit of the sunshine,beach, and ocean from Gulf Shores with you all. (I am trying to do some homework to distract me from being nervous for the steeple chase that I will be racing in tomorrow evening.)

In chapter one of Woolfolk, she gives us an idea of what the classrooms look like today, what good teaching is, and the role that educational psychology plays for us all. In addition to this, this chapter summarizes the No Child Left Behind Act. I specifically liked the section on what makes a teacher a good teacher. On page seven it says, "The effects of teaching were cumulative and residual--that is, better teaching in a later grade could partially make up for less effective teaching in earlier grades." The reason why I share this quote with you is because it hit home for me. When I was younger, I really struggled in school and felt like I was slipping through the cracks. When I was in middle school, I was given extra help and was caught up. I sometimes ponder how different school would be for me now if I would have been given help earlier. Good teachers can help catch students up to where they should be, but it can never fully make up for what was lost in the earlier grades.

As a future teacher, I plan to be a good teacher, who makes sure each student is being given a chance to learn to their full potential. This entails pushing those who are doing good a little further and helping those who are struggling. I experienced this in one of my placements this past year. I was in a first grade classroom and there were quite a few ESL students. When students were given reading and writing time, these students never knew what to do because they did not even know their alphabet yet. I helped my teacher by pulling these students out and working on their alphabet with them all and trying to get them caught up to the rest of the class. This was an awesome opportunity for me to help my teacher and these students succeed.

In chapter two in Woolfolk, she talks about different types of development. Some of these types are brain, cognitive, Piaget's Theory, and Vygotsky's Theory. Piaget was a psychologist who studied children's thinking and helped us form what we think about cognitive development today. He claimed that there are certain ways of thinking that are quite simple for an adult, but not so simple for a child. He also said that there are four stages of cognitive development, sensorimotor stage, preoperational stage, concrete-operational stage, and formal operations. On the other hand, Vygotsky recognized that culture shapes cognitive development by how and what the child will learn about the world.

Both of these psychologists help us future teachers better understand how to teach our students and how their brains are developing. I plan to continue to keep in mind these stages of development and culture habits that help my students learn in the best way possible.

Finally, in chapter three, she talks about physical development, identity, and moral development. In this chapter, I specifically liked the section on self-concept and identity. On page 95 it says, "For adolescents, both their overall academic self-concept and their subject-specific self-concept may influence their actions and motivation."  It is important for students to be able to find that they can do things and do it well. If they feel like they do something well, it will help them find motivation to do it because they feel confident.

In my future classes, I hope to encourage my students and find what they are good at. In addition to this, I plan to find what they struggle with and help them realize they can be good at those things too. If they feel like they can, then they will. The difficult part is figuring out how to show them they can. I plan to do this, depending on the situation, through one-on-ones, extra help, class games, encouragement, and observation.

As I get involved in my field experience placement next week, I plan to keep an eye out for how to apply these three chapters to what I am doing and observing in the classroom. For now, I continue to be nervous for my race, enjoy the sunshine and ocean breeze, and read Woolfolk's book on Educational Psychology.