I haven't had a lot of experience with people who have autism. I wasn't a peer leader in high school who worked with those kids, I see them at the grocery store sometimes, occasionally see someone with special needs at the restaurant where I work. A lot of people, myself included, don't think that people with autism have the capacity to communicate or understand what people are saying to them. Barb showed me that thoughts like that are really misguided. Barb wasn't able to talk to us, but she WAS able to type to us. A big part of her being able to communicate was just being given the chance to. She told us that autism is lonely, and I don't doubt that.
My friend's little boy was just diagnosed with autism earlier this year. He turns 3 this week. Looking at him when he was first born and through his first year of life, I would have never known that he was going to be autistic. Even now, though he can't speak very well, he's very active and from an outside perspective, probably looks like a normal 3 year old boy. The doctors told my friend that this little boy will not be high functioning as an adult. She has been telling people that she doesn't want anyone to feel sorry for her family, but they're going to, it's just a natural reaction.
I'm going to tell my friend about Barb, maybe she'll do some research. Maybe she'll read the book. Maybe she'll get in contact with this incredible person who just happens to have autism. I'm not doing this to "help" her because I feel "sorry" for her. I want her to understand (maybe she already does) that this doesn't mean that her little boy won't be able to do great things later on in life. I'm sure she already understands that. She's a mom after all.
Saturday, December 7, 2013
Thursday, December 5, 2013
Group Forum reflection
I wasn't sure what to expect with the group difference forum. I guess we all expected to be a little uncomfortable, but I didn't expect to get angry. The discussions about race especially made me angry. What's crazy is I felt bad for being mad, which is dumb because everyone is entitled to their own opinions. But since we live in a society where racial issues are taboo, where if you have an opinion about black people, you're "racist", I feel like I'm not allowed to think badly about some of these articles we talked about.
I'm not racist, in any way, shape, or form. But I just found it absolutely ridiculous that people think that children need to be aware of racial and minority issues. People are conducting research about children being mean to other kids because they are minorities. And I have to wonder what other factors were involved. I know that in daycare, I was the one who got left out a lot and it was because I was quiet, and I'm white, blonde-haired, and blue-eyed. There are so many other reasons that kids, even if they are a different race, are left out by other kids. It could be personality differences, language barriers, the fact that all of the other kids like Pokemon and the one other kid likes Digimon. Just because a kid is left out and they happen to be another race doesn't automatically mean that it is BECAUSE they are another race.
Another thing, I don't think that children need to be educated on racial issues. That is not a burden that we need to put on kids. They don't need to be worrying about the things that grown-ups argue about. Does that make me a bad person? Maybe to some people, but I am entitled to think what I want. I grew up color-blind. My first best friend was black. Brian pointed out that some of us grew up color blind, but black people don't. Honestly, that is up to the parents. Parents are a HUGE factor in whether or not you grew up color blind. I'm sure that there are plenty of minority families that don't point out racial differences. To sit a child down and tell them that they have to behave a certain way towards another child because of their race, even if it's positive behavior, is laying the foundation for creating a barrier between races later on in life. Who wants to grow up thinking, "I have to be nice to them because they're different." That is the exact same kind of thinking we teach kids about acting towards others with special needs. It's insane.
I'm sorry if this post offends anyone.
I'm not racist, in any way, shape, or form. But I just found it absolutely ridiculous that people think that children need to be aware of racial and minority issues. People are conducting research about children being mean to other kids because they are minorities. And I have to wonder what other factors were involved. I know that in daycare, I was the one who got left out a lot and it was because I was quiet, and I'm white, blonde-haired, and blue-eyed. There are so many other reasons that kids, even if they are a different race, are left out by other kids. It could be personality differences, language barriers, the fact that all of the other kids like Pokemon and the one other kid likes Digimon. Just because a kid is left out and they happen to be another race doesn't automatically mean that it is BECAUSE they are another race.
Another thing, I don't think that children need to be educated on racial issues. That is not a burden that we need to put on kids. They don't need to be worrying about the things that grown-ups argue about. Does that make me a bad person? Maybe to some people, but I am entitled to think what I want. I grew up color-blind. My first best friend was black. Brian pointed out that some of us grew up color blind, but black people don't. Honestly, that is up to the parents. Parents are a HUGE factor in whether or not you grew up color blind. I'm sure that there are plenty of minority families that don't point out racial differences. To sit a child down and tell them that they have to behave a certain way towards another child because of their race, even if it's positive behavior, is laying the foundation for creating a barrier between races later on in life. Who wants to grow up thinking, "I have to be nice to them because they're different." That is the exact same kind of thinking we teach kids about acting towards others with special needs. It's insane.
I'm sorry if this post offends anyone.
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Post #7
Providing expert points of view:
An instance where I would provide expert points of view (for middle or high school band) would be by bringing in someone trained on a specific instrument to work a sectional with a group of students on that same instrument. The students' reactions would be to actively listen and participate in the sectional with the expert. Hopefully, they will take away new and better techniques for playing their instrument than I could provide them with, especially if it's an instrument I'm weak on. Sometimes I may not have the resources or time to give a section the one on one attention they may need.
Some obstacles with bringing in outside experts would be me trusting them to teach my students correctly. The students may not behave as well with the expert as they would with me, or even vice versa. Maybe the students could decide that they like their sectional person better than me, and as a result, wouldn't pay me the attention that they should.
An instance where I would provide expert points of view (for middle or high school band) would be by bringing in someone trained on a specific instrument to work a sectional with a group of students on that same instrument. The students' reactions would be to actively listen and participate in the sectional with the expert. Hopefully, they will take away new and better techniques for playing their instrument than I could provide them with, especially if it's an instrument I'm weak on. Sometimes I may not have the resources or time to give a section the one on one attention they may need.
Some obstacles with bringing in outside experts would be me trusting them to teach my students correctly. The students may not behave as well with the expert as they would with me, or even vice versa. Maybe the students could decide that they like their sectional person better than me, and as a result, wouldn't pay me the attention that they should.
Post #5
a) How would you define successful mastery of your lesson objectives from a behavioral view of learning? From a social cognitive view of learning?
Behavioral view:
I define successful mastery as when the learning has instilled a noticeable behavior change in the student, where he or she is able to learn more efficiently in the classroom. So when you ask a student if they understand, instead of a vague yes or headnod, they could actually elaborate on the subject and then you are actually able to observe that they know the material.
Social Cognitive view:
Social Cog is the theory I talk about in my paper. Mastery of this view would be when students have successfully internalized material so that they understand it in their own way. I could ask a student a question and they would answer me. Then I might ask how they remember it on their own. People learn and understand things in different ways, so each student is going to have their own way of remembering the stuff they learn in class.
Behavioral view:
I define successful mastery as when the learning has instilled a noticeable behavior change in the student, where he or she is able to learn more efficiently in the classroom. So when you ask a student if they understand, instead of a vague yes or headnod, they could actually elaborate on the subject and then you are actually able to observe that they know the material.
Social Cognitive view:
Social Cog is the theory I talk about in my paper. Mastery of this view would be when students have successfully internalized material so that they understand it in their own way. I could ask a student a question and they would answer me. Then I might ask how they remember it on their own. People learn and understand things in different ways, so each student is going to have their own way of remembering the stuff they learn in class.
Post #4
As far as classroom arrangement goes, I won't have many options to choose from for a band class for a conducive learning environment. Basically, all of the chairs go in arcs and rows, and like instruments sit together in sections. I do plan on putting up lots of theory and instrument posters, having a pass off chart on the wall, having a tuner available to the students who might not be able to get one of their own, and having an open door policy (if I have an office). I definitely want my students to feel like they can approach me with questions or concerns, without fear of consequences or judgement.
Looking at classroom management, everyone will receive the same band handbook at the beginning of the school year to read over with their parents. There will be a page in the back to sign and return to me. That way, I can know that everyone has read over my policies and rules for the classroom, which I will also go over in class just to make sure everyone is familiar with them. If there are any questions about the rules or if anyone says that they weren't aware of a rule, I can point out that they read over the handbook and signed a paper that said they WERE aware of the rules and would follow them. I am going to enforce my rules fairly and consistently, and avoid showing any kind of favoritism. I will also learn all of my students names.
I chose the case study with Cherie. Assuming that she has signed and returned the page from the band handbook, I know she is aware of the rules and that there are consequences for her actions. Keeping in mind that there might be different reasons as to why she is acting up, I am going to give her first offense a verbal warning, and attempt to help her with her misbehavior. In my paper, I discuss that I plan to help her avoid disruptions by placing her next to a well behaved student and having her work privately with an instructor (this removes her from class and possible distractions that would cause her to act up). Other ways to deal with her misbehavior would be to contact her parents if she keeps causing problems. Working with her would always be my first step, but sometimes it might be necessary to notify parents and see if there are any other reasons she is acting up in class. Another more drastic option would be to involve the administration (this would be my last option).
Looking at classroom management, everyone will receive the same band handbook at the beginning of the school year to read over with their parents. There will be a page in the back to sign and return to me. That way, I can know that everyone has read over my policies and rules for the classroom, which I will also go over in class just to make sure everyone is familiar with them. If there are any questions about the rules or if anyone says that they weren't aware of a rule, I can point out that they read over the handbook and signed a paper that said they WERE aware of the rules and would follow them. I am going to enforce my rules fairly and consistently, and avoid showing any kind of favoritism. I will also learn all of my students names.
I chose the case study with Cherie. Assuming that she has signed and returned the page from the band handbook, I know she is aware of the rules and that there are consequences for her actions. Keeping in mind that there might be different reasons as to why she is acting up, I am going to give her first offense a verbal warning, and attempt to help her with her misbehavior. In my paper, I discuss that I plan to help her avoid disruptions by placing her next to a well behaved student and having her work privately with an instructor (this removes her from class and possible distractions that would cause her to act up). Other ways to deal with her misbehavior would be to contact her parents if she keeps causing problems. Working with her would always be my first step, but sometimes it might be necessary to notify parents and see if there are any other reasons she is acting up in class. Another more drastic option would be to involve the administration (this would be my last option).
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
Questions
Understanding: What is the difference between positive transfer and negative transfer? (chapter 8)
Synthesizing: Looking at positive and negative transfer, think of some instances that these could either help or hinder a student in your classroom when learning new material. (chapter 8)
Wednesday, October 2, 2013
Learning Environments and Misbehavior
I'm pretty envious of those who are going to be teaching very young children, like Pre-K and Kindergarten. The learning environments they'll get to create seem like warm, comforting, fun places for kids to learn, like the pictures in the early education book we looked at. With a music classroom, in my case, it'll be a bit different and a little more difficult I think for me to create a conducive environment for kids.
There are really only so many options for me to set up my future classroom. In either middle or high school, the chairs will be set up the same way (in a semi circle with kids in their instrument sections)
In elementary school (at least all of the ones I've been to and attended) there will be some shallow risers with chairs. I feel that the best way I'll be able to create a conducive learning environment will be through my corkboards that I'll get to decorate, my use of the whiteboard/smartboard, and lots and LOTS of posters.
Of course I will have plenty of musical equipment. How could you not in a music classroom? I'll have charts explaining how music notes work, composer posters with facts of information listed underneath. I'll have shelves and boxes with all of my musical equipment readily available, and a piano in the corner. I want my environment to be visually interesting, without being distracting, which will definitely be a challenge, but I'm sure it won't be too hard to find a nice balance between the two.
As for dealing with misbehavior, I am a big fan of the warning system. My students will have 3 opportunities to correct behavior. On the first offense, there will be a warning. Second offense, there will be a note sent home to parents that will have to be signed and returned to me. Third offense will warrant a trip to the principal and/or a write up.
I feel that repetition is the best way to get kids to do what you want, and a very effective way to deter bad behavior and bad habits. I currently help teach 7th grade band at Karns Middle School, and every week when I go, I am always repeating the same instructions, not because the kids don't remember, but so that the behavior I want them to exhibit becomes habit. For example, the first thing I at the beginning of class is ask a question, and it's always the same one.
"What am I going to say about your posture?"
And the students always answer, "Sit up straight, feet flat on floor." And as they answer the question, they fix what is wrong.
I do this every class without fail. I also have 2 girls that always sit next to each other. On more than one occasion, I have had them sit elsewhere to deter any extra talking during the lesson. Since I have had them sit apart more than once, the extra talking has diminished SIGNIFICANTLY, because I showed them the behavior I expected from them and I repeated it. They know that if they want to sit together, they need to pay attention to my lesson.
Of course, there will most likely still be trouble students that misbehave not matter what precautions you take. I found an article that gives some suggestions as to what to do about it and when to do it. It also gives several options as to handle a situation.
http://www.incredibleart.org/links/toolbox/discipline.html
This article does mention very troubled situations, but it does also state that a preventative measure is establishing a set of classroom procedures, kind of like what I said I currently do.
There are really only so many options for me to set up my future classroom. In either middle or high school, the chairs will be set up the same way (in a semi circle with kids in their instrument sections)
In elementary school (at least all of the ones I've been to and attended) there will be some shallow risers with chairs. I feel that the best way I'll be able to create a conducive learning environment will be through my corkboards that I'll get to decorate, my use of the whiteboard/smartboard, and lots and LOTS of posters.
Of course I will have plenty of musical equipment. How could you not in a music classroom? I'll have charts explaining how music notes work, composer posters with facts of information listed underneath. I'll have shelves and boxes with all of my musical equipment readily available, and a piano in the corner. I want my environment to be visually interesting, without being distracting, which will definitely be a challenge, but I'm sure it won't be too hard to find a nice balance between the two.
As for dealing with misbehavior, I am a big fan of the warning system. My students will have 3 opportunities to correct behavior. On the first offense, there will be a warning. Second offense, there will be a note sent home to parents that will have to be signed and returned to me. Third offense will warrant a trip to the principal and/or a write up.
I feel that repetition is the best way to get kids to do what you want, and a very effective way to deter bad behavior and bad habits. I currently help teach 7th grade band at Karns Middle School, and every week when I go, I am always repeating the same instructions, not because the kids don't remember, but so that the behavior I want them to exhibit becomes habit. For example, the first thing I at the beginning of class is ask a question, and it's always the same one.
"What am I going to say about your posture?"
And the students always answer, "Sit up straight, feet flat on floor." And as they answer the question, they fix what is wrong.
I do this every class without fail. I also have 2 girls that always sit next to each other. On more than one occasion, I have had them sit elsewhere to deter any extra talking during the lesson. Since I have had them sit apart more than once, the extra talking has diminished SIGNIFICANTLY, because I showed them the behavior I expected from them and I repeated it. They know that if they want to sit together, they need to pay attention to my lesson.
Of course, there will most likely still be trouble students that misbehave not matter what precautions you take. I found an article that gives some suggestions as to what to do about it and when to do it. It also gives several options as to handle a situation.
http://www.incredibleart.org/links/toolbox/discipline.html
This article does mention very troubled situations, but it does also state that a preventative measure is establishing a set of classroom procedures, kind of like what I said I currently do.
Monday, September 16, 2013
Situated Interest
I definitely feel that situated interest is going to be a teacher's best bet for getting a class interested and involved in what is being taught. Now I realize that intrinsic is where the student is more self-motivated than anything, but I firmly believe that if you get the class involved in the correct way, then there is a good chance for each student to become more self-interested in what is being taught.
Maybe I am completely off base, but what matters is that I think I am capable of encouraging students to become self motivated through the means of situated interest. I feel that if I make my class enjoyable enough, my kids will eventually want to pursue music on their own time. Now, I don't literally mean that I am going to tell them, "You need to get interested in what I am teaching."
No.
I mean more that I plan on getting my kids very actively engaged in what I am teaching them. If it's middle school kids, I am going make class as good of a time as I can, recommend some awesome bands and symphony orchestras to listen to, offer private lessons programs, and recommend some light reading material. I can then hopefully depend on some kids who were maybe motivated to begin with, to take a look at these resources I'm providing and say, "Hey guys, look at this!"
Do you know what gets kids the most motivated? Go on, think about it. Give up?
Their friends! Let's take a minute to think about this. If I can somehow encourage just a few kids initially to take a good interest in music, then I know for a fact that they are going to share that interest with their friends, and hopefully those kids will take a look at what I'm giving them and then become more interested themselves. But I can't rely entirely on the kids. I have to get them started myself. I have to get the situated interest ball rolling.
And that's why it's important for me to be really excited about my classes. My PLE is basically all about how you as the teacher has to be extremely excited, enthusiastic, interested, and whatever else about what you are teaching these kids. And motivation plays right in to that. To get your kids motivated, you yourself must be motivated first.
Maybe I am completely off base, but what matters is that I think I am capable of encouraging students to become self motivated through the means of situated interest. I feel that if I make my class enjoyable enough, my kids will eventually want to pursue music on their own time. Now, I don't literally mean that I am going to tell them, "You need to get interested in what I am teaching."
No.
I mean more that I plan on getting my kids very actively engaged in what I am teaching them. If it's middle school kids, I am going make class as good of a time as I can, recommend some awesome bands and symphony orchestras to listen to, offer private lessons programs, and recommend some light reading material. I can then hopefully depend on some kids who were maybe motivated to begin with, to take a look at these resources I'm providing and say, "Hey guys, look at this!"
Do you know what gets kids the most motivated? Go on, think about it. Give up?
Their friends! Let's take a minute to think about this. If I can somehow encourage just a few kids initially to take a good interest in music, then I know for a fact that they are going to share that interest with their friends, and hopefully those kids will take a look at what I'm giving them and then become more interested themselves. But I can't rely entirely on the kids. I have to get them started myself. I have to get the situated interest ball rolling.
And that's why it's important for me to be really excited about my classes. My PLE is basically all about how you as the teacher has to be extremely excited, enthusiastic, interested, and whatever else about what you are teaching these kids. And motivation plays right in to that. To get your kids motivated, you yourself must be motivated first.
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
Ideas for Assessment
I am a very firm believer that assessment of students is best used to the teacher's advantage.
How?
By assessing students, you can in fact assess yourself and the progress you are making with your students. It can basically show you how effective of a teacher you are by seeing what your students retain from your teachings.
So according to the diagram on page 505, there 10 different forms of assessment? And they are paired off into groups of two by saying "this form as compared to this form" sort of. I think. Maybe?
Basing my reasoning from the Questions to Consider, I'll just go ahead and assume that I'm supposed to talk about ALL of the forms of assessment and think of my own assessment idea for each. So here we go!
Informal vs. Formal
Informal for me in a classroom setting would probably something along the lines of observing who is prepared for class before it starts, who hands in homework vs. who doesn't, etc. And then a formal assessment would be something more similar to asking the students before hand to bring something specific to class and then observing who did what was asked/required of them. I think I would use these to make sure that I have taught my students that preparation is a must with music, because if you don't prepare for a rehearsal, then that's valuable rehearsal time wasted going over issues that could have easily been addressed on the student's own time with personal practice time.
Paper/Pencil vs. Performance
Since my classroom is most likely going to be some sort of musical environment, we'll go ahead and put these assessments into a musical context. Paper/pencil would most easily be done in the form of a test, musical critique, music theory quiz, what have you. And performance in this case can be taken quite literally to mean that. I plan on encouraging much solo and small ensemble performances, chair auditions will be a norm for concert settings, and musical evaluations of marching music will definitely be a must (that last one will only be in the case of high school marching band)
Standardized Test vs. Teacher Made
No one in my experience has ever like standardized testing, and the implementation of those goes without explanation. And I'm sure I'll not enjoy administering the tests just as much as I didn't like taking them. As for teacher made assessments, there are so many ways to administer your own made tests, and there are different ways to make them and so on. I think I would use them more in a music theory class over a general music or concert band class, simply because tests aren't really something you administer to assess progress in either of those settings. However in a theory class, you definitely would need to keep up with student progress just to make sure they are grasping the concepts of how music is "built" and why it is done so in a very particular fasion.
Criterion referenced vs. Norm-referenced
Both of these are extremely easily administered and assessed in a middle school band setting. Let's say that I have a sixth grade beginning band. I could use criterion referenced AND norm referenced assessment in the form of a tune from a beginning band method book that teaches how to play accurate eighth notes. I could then have each student play that tune for me as a playing test. I could then easily determine who went home and practiced their eighth notes like assigned to them. This can be criterion and norm referenced at the same time because I am assessing their mastery of this skill and I can compare the performance to that of their peers by making the assessment a chair placement test.
Traditional vs. Authentic
Once again, these assessments can so easily be applied to a middle school band setting. Let's say for instance that I have an eighth grade band that is auditioning for chair placement for an upcoming concert. I can then use the chair placement itself as the traditional assessment, because it is the classroom setting and away from real-world tasks. The authentic assessment could then be the concert which the students had the chair placements for. The concert is a real world application of the skills the students have been mastering during band class, and the chair placements they earned for the concert can show the abilities demonstrated by the students during the chair placements.
How?
By assessing students, you can in fact assess yourself and the progress you are making with your students. It can basically show you how effective of a teacher you are by seeing what your students retain from your teachings.
So according to the diagram on page 505, there 10 different forms of assessment? And they are paired off into groups of two by saying "this form as compared to this form" sort of. I think. Maybe?
Basing my reasoning from the Questions to Consider, I'll just go ahead and assume that I'm supposed to talk about ALL of the forms of assessment and think of my own assessment idea for each. So here we go!
Informal vs. Formal
Informal for me in a classroom setting would probably something along the lines of observing who is prepared for class before it starts, who hands in homework vs. who doesn't, etc. And then a formal assessment would be something more similar to asking the students before hand to bring something specific to class and then observing who did what was asked/required of them. I think I would use these to make sure that I have taught my students that preparation is a must with music, because if you don't prepare for a rehearsal, then that's valuable rehearsal time wasted going over issues that could have easily been addressed on the student's own time with personal practice time.
Paper/Pencil vs. Performance
Since my classroom is most likely going to be some sort of musical environment, we'll go ahead and put these assessments into a musical context. Paper/pencil would most easily be done in the form of a test, musical critique, music theory quiz, what have you. And performance in this case can be taken quite literally to mean that. I plan on encouraging much solo and small ensemble performances, chair auditions will be a norm for concert settings, and musical evaluations of marching music will definitely be a must (that last one will only be in the case of high school marching band)
Standardized Test vs. Teacher Made
No one in my experience has ever like standardized testing, and the implementation of those goes without explanation. And I'm sure I'll not enjoy administering the tests just as much as I didn't like taking them. As for teacher made assessments, there are so many ways to administer your own made tests, and there are different ways to make them and so on. I think I would use them more in a music theory class over a general music or concert band class, simply because tests aren't really something you administer to assess progress in either of those settings. However in a theory class, you definitely would need to keep up with student progress just to make sure they are grasping the concepts of how music is "built" and why it is done so in a very particular fasion.
Criterion referenced vs. Norm-referenced
Both of these are extremely easily administered and assessed in a middle school band setting. Let's say that I have a sixth grade beginning band. I could use criterion referenced AND norm referenced assessment in the form of a tune from a beginning band method book that teaches how to play accurate eighth notes. I could then have each student play that tune for me as a playing test. I could then easily determine who went home and practiced their eighth notes like assigned to them. This can be criterion and norm referenced at the same time because I am assessing their mastery of this skill and I can compare the performance to that of their peers by making the assessment a chair placement test.
Traditional vs. Authentic
Once again, these assessments can so easily be applied to a middle school band setting. Let's say for instance that I have an eighth grade band that is auditioning for chair placement for an upcoming concert. I can then use the chair placement itself as the traditional assessment, because it is the classroom setting and away from real-world tasks. The authentic assessment could then be the concert which the students had the chair placements for. The concert is a real world application of the skills the students have been mastering during band class, and the chair placements they earned for the concert can show the abilities demonstrated by the students during the chair placements.
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
Looking back at class #1
I don't like blogs. I like reading them, but not so much the typing part. Just thought I'd go ahead and get that out there.
Anyway, with my first look at the syllabus, my initial thoughts were something along the lines of, "Holy crap." There is a LOT of material that we're going to end up covering, and some of it is stuff that I didn't realize was going to be a part of Educational Psychology.
After a closer look and some time to think about what we discussed in the first class, I think I am most interested in learning about assessment strategies and summarizing student achievement. I want to be able to evaluate my students to see if what I am communicating to them is coming across in a clear manner. From that, I will hopefully be able to evaluate myself and my methods, and revise them to better communicate effectively to my students.
One of my biggest fears about teaching is that I won't know how to communicate with my students and be a good teacher to them. All I want to do is teach my kids to love and appreciate music, to read it, sing it, and play it.
What I want to get from this class is simply the ability to teach and communicate effectively to whatever age students I might happen to have. I believe that the teaching projects, the constructive criticism from those projects, and the comments from the blogs will help me achieve my goal of being a good communicator, so that I might someday be a good teacher.
Anyway, with my first look at the syllabus, my initial thoughts were something along the lines of, "Holy crap." There is a LOT of material that we're going to end up covering, and some of it is stuff that I didn't realize was going to be a part of Educational Psychology.
After a closer look and some time to think about what we discussed in the first class, I think I am most interested in learning about assessment strategies and summarizing student achievement. I want to be able to evaluate my students to see if what I am communicating to them is coming across in a clear manner. From that, I will hopefully be able to evaluate myself and my methods, and revise them to better communicate effectively to my students.
One of my biggest fears about teaching is that I won't know how to communicate with my students and be a good teacher to them. All I want to do is teach my kids to love and appreciate music, to read it, sing it, and play it.
What I want to get from this class is simply the ability to teach and communicate effectively to whatever age students I might happen to have. I believe that the teaching projects, the constructive criticism from those projects, and the comments from the blogs will help me achieve my goal of being a good communicator, so that I might someday be a good teacher.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)