Cooperative Learning

Cooperative learning is a skill that is taught as soon as you teach a young child to share their toys or work with their siblings to clean their bedroom. It is imperative that people know how to work together in order to get anything accomplished these days. There are very few careers that call for individual work and people should know that in order to get ahead in their careers, they must learn to work cooperatively. In my classroom, I implement problem based learning on a regular basis. I believe that by having students work together to solve a real life problem, they are building skills that will last a lifetime. They divide tasks and put their heads together to come up with possible solutions.
One aspect of technology that I plan to implement this school year is blogging. I hope that my students will learn to share their thoughts and also to accept responses from their classmates. It is a wonderful alternative to journal writing with paper and pen. It will also give them an insight into how useful technology is to them.

Social Constructivism

Social Constructivism plays a vital role in the classroom of today. Working cooperatively is a crucial skill to be taught. When students learn to work together in groups, they are being set up for a lifetime of social skills that they will need to survive. In this week's learning resources, I enjoyed reading about the Problem Based Learning strategy. By giving students a problem to solve together, they are able to each use their strengths to bring to the table endless possibilities. Students who can work with others who are not neccessarily like them are better able to succeed. It is important for the teacher to always choose the cooperative groups to make sure that students are working with a variety of people. By doing so they are not only learning acceptance of others but also that it is important to be able work with others to achieve a common goal. Peer collaboration is something that they will not be able to avoid once they are in post secondary schools and also in the midst of their careers. The sooner this skill is taught, they better off our students will be.

Behaviorism in the Classroom

Behaviorism is a powerful instructional theory that has been used for ages and still has a place in today's classroom. Personally, I have found Behaviorism useful in my classroom when disciplining my students. I use behavior contracts and reward them for their positive behaviors. I have also used the technique of cueing in the past with some of my more troubled students by "providing either verbal or non verbal clues as to the appropriateness of a behavior" (Orey, 2001). Also, I am a firm believer that "behaviors can be unlearned and replaced with new behaviors" (Orey, 2001). High school students are not exempt from this rule. Many of my peers believe that by the time they are teenagers, their behaviors cannot be changed. I disagree with them because I have witnessed it on many occasions. The majority of our students have never had a positive role model to follow. I try to be that for my students. I act in a manner that they should follow.
Instructionally, I use drill and practice when teaching new skills such as grammar and vocabulary terms. Technology offers many resources for behaviorist instruction. There are many software programs that offer tutorials for any subject that allows students to practice what is being taught in the classroom. These tutorials offer students a way to be instructed that is far more interesting to them than me lecturing them in the classroom.

Orey, M. (Ed.). (2001). Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/

A Self Evaluation on Culturally Responsive Teaching Practices

I would love to think that after ten years of teaching, I would be able to say that I am doing everything that I possibly can to be an effective teacher for my students. However, the reality of it is, there will always be room for improvement. After taking this course, I must admit that there a lot of areas that I need to take a look at and work to improve if I want to give all of my students the educational opportunities that they deserve.
While reflecting on Dr. Garcia's CREDE standards and assessing myself using the checklist provided, I discovered that I am weak in some areas and strong in others. In standard one, Joint Productive Activity, I am sometimes reluctive to have the students work in cooperative groups although I know that it is good for them to do so. When I do have them work in groups, I never let them choose who they want to work with. I make sure that the groups are diverse in an effort to ensure that they learn from working with peers who come from different cultures. While ELL students are not an issue in my classroom, it is still necessary to promote acceptance of other people and cultures. I also make sure that the students work together to accomplish tasks even if they are simple ones like putting the classroom in order or rearranging desks.
Standard two, Language Development is an area that I feel I am competent in. I always allow the last ten minutes of the class period for "catch up time" in which the students and I catch up on what's going on at home and in their lives. Everyone gets a chance to share if they want too. I also make an effort to respect the mannerisms of each culture. If a student is not comfortable with eye contact, I respect that. I also provide multiple opportunities for students to practice vocabulary, write in journals, and speak often in order for them to become comfortable with the English language.
Standard three, Contextualization is an area in which I could use some improvement. I think it would be a great idea to encourage parents to come into the classroom to help with various tasks but have always thought that they would not be interested so have never asked. Also, I would love to get the community involved by developing community based learning activities. These things take a lot of planning, time, and effort but my students would benefit from the opportunities.
Standard four, Challenging Activities is an area in which I am both competent and need improvement. I give my students clear and directive feedback and make sure that my students see the whole picture when I am instructing them on a topic. However, sometimes I do not challenge them enough. I need to give them more challenging standards to follow and expect more of them. This will help them when they leave high school and enter either the work force or a post secondary educational setting.
Standard five, Instructional Conversation is probably the area that I feel the most competent in. I understand the importance of holding meaningful conversations with my students. It helps to create a positive learning environment and makes the student feel comfortable. I utilize the act of guided conversation in every lesson that I plan. I encourage my students to state their opinions and to speak freely as long as it is not disruptive. Student understanding can be assessed by listening and I take advantage of this on a daily basis.
Dr. Garcia's standards create a guideline that all educators should follow. One should never grow complacent and comfortable in their teaching career. There will always be room for improvement and growth. I for one, took the self evaluation to heart and will make changes in order to become a better teacher and person.

Reflecting on My Culture continued...

Being an African American woman who is an educator, I feel an awesome sense of responsibility. I am one of the few African American teachers in a school that is predominately impoverished African Americans. I must constantly be aware of the way I present myself to my students. I try my hardest to lead by example and to teach them that they way they are raised does not have to define them. I want them to know that they can accomplish anything they set their minds too. They can be who they want to be and do what they want to do once they leave high school I have been told by former students that I inspired them to do positive things in their lives. That to me makes being an educator worth every single struggle that I've encountered.

Further Reflection on My Culture

I teach in a Title I school high school. The majority of my students are African American. I find myself frustrated a lot of the time because of the attitudes that these students have towards education. Because my parents stressed to me the importance of education on a daily basis, it amazes me how unmotivated my students are. It is sad to say that the majority of my students fit the stereotype of the "ghetto black person". I find myself constantly trying to get through to them the importance of getting their high school diplomas. They seem to all think they will be famous rappers, professional basketball players, etc. Whatever is the easiest way to get rich is the route they will take even if it involves illegal activity. It saddens me that these students represent my race. They do not however, represent my culture. It is possible to have many cultures within a race. Unfortunately, many people stereotype all people of a race into one broad category and the educated members of a race are the ones who suffer because of it.

A Reflection On My Culture

I remember vividly the day I realized I was black. I was nine years old. From the time I was born until I was nine, my family lived in an area that was predominantly white. For some reason I never realized that I was different. I was never treated differently by anyone and the thought never crossed my mind. At the age of nine, my parents divorced and I moved with my mother to an area that was predominantly black. I remember the moment like it was yesterday. I came home from my first day at my new school and I said, "Mom, there are so many black people at my school." She looked at me with amazement and said, "honey, you are black too." I remember feeling like I finally "got it" even though I had no idea what "it" was. At this point I became interested about learning everything there was to know about my culture and my heritage.

Growing up, we moved a lot. I was constantly changing schools and was able to become a "chameleon" wherever I was. I had both white and black friends. I enjoyed spending time with people of all races. I never dealt with racism during my youth. My parents taught my brother and I to respect all people and that differences were okay. While we were never wealthy, we were certainly middle class. We were taught that some people had to deal with hardships but that you can always rise above them with a good education. Getting the most from our education was mandatory in my house. I appreciate all my parents did to instill in me the importance of accepting diversity.