What does it mean to be relational as a teacher? How will you interact with your students to accomplish this?
Being relational means finding ways to interact and connect with your students. Part of this entails letting down your guard and letting them see the less formal/structured teacher side. Taking an interest in their music, the things they are reading, the movies they watch, the games they play, their extra-curricular activities - all these things contribute to being relational. Keeping a balance between friend and teacher can be tricky and it is crucial to always remember you are the teacher first and must act as such at all times but you can do this while still connecting with them as a friend. I unfortunately worked with a teacher who forgot she was a teacher and ended up becoming intimately involved with a student the year following the time I was in her classroom. She was young and new to teaching. There were times in the classroom that you could tell that she was inexperienced and she would banter with her kids as if she was one of them - forgetting to maintain the professional boundary. I did what I could as a parapro to model appropriate behavior with her but unfortunately did not have a significant enough impact. (I was a parapro for a special needs student that had her class for an hour each day). On the flip side another teacher I had opportunity to observe had what I would call a great example of being relational. She was friend with her students but also stayed in the boundaries of being a teacher and adult. She would laugh and joke with her students and was able to motivate them (including my own difficult child) to learn and study. Her students loved her and you could tell she loved them as well.
Being a friend to a student creates a bond of trust but it is important that the bond still have appropriate boundaries because of the inherent nature of the teacher-student arrangement. As a teacher I expect to joke and laugh with my students, take moments to have fun, discuss current events and entertainment and even listen to their music (and mine!) during the day when appropriate. But I also expect to be firm when required and direct the days’ events to continue achieving the educational goals set together and by the standards. I expect to treat them all as my children. As a mother I think I’ve done a fairly good job at keeping the balance of friend and “authority” and expect to carry that over into the classroom.
Monday, July 15, 2013
Thursday, July 11, 2013
Lesson 3
After watching the videos on Attention, Emotions and Learning, describe how this information impacts you as a teacher.
A teacher is with their students for a significant part of their waking hours. This being the case the teacher is going to see a wide range of emotional reactions from their students. Students will come to class "under the influence" of the experiences they have at home and outside the classroom. Being aware that stress and emotion impacts learning can help the teacher use classroom time in productive ways. Providing time for students to transition from one activity to another, to process the information they have been studying and to be creative can help students have a more engaged learning process. Emotions effect everything we do. By making the learning environment a nurturing one students are more easily able to focus their attention on learning. Encouraging positive expressions and relationships among students as well as allowing for the safe discussion of emotions, fears and worries can facilitate a healthy learning environment. Making sure students have the necessary resources can decrease the stress they feel when assigned a certain task which in turn makes it more likely they will be successful in the assignment. Eric Jensen says in his book Brain Based Learning, "When we feel right, we can think better" (2008). Realizing our brains are highly sensitive to our emotions enables the teacher to be aware of the emotions of their students and in turn influences their emotional reaction to the students' behavior. Being a positive emotional role model such as sharing a love of learning, encourages students to have emotionally healthy reactions to learning. Helping students identify the emotions they felt when reading a particular passage for instance helps to cement that learning in their memory.
Students (and teachers!) are sponges and they will pick up on every verbal and non-verbal cue a teacher gives out. Our facial expressions and attitudes will influence the student almost more than what we are saying. Sending positive and encouraging messages to students will help them gain self-confidence in their work. Providing the "Goldilocks" level of challenge - not too hard or they are frustrated and not too easy or they are bored - encourages learning and satisfaction which influences self-confidence.
One of my favorite quotes (though I am unable to remember the source) says that "Education is not the filling of a bucket but the lighting of a fire". My goal as a teacher is to light that fire of learning under a student so they want to learn both in and out of the classroom. My job is not to just pump them full of knowledge but to help them make knowledge a part of them and a desire for lifelong learning.
Jensen, E. (2008). Brain-based learning, the new paradigm of teaching. (2 ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
A teacher is with their students for a significant part of their waking hours. This being the case the teacher is going to see a wide range of emotional reactions from their students. Students will come to class "under the influence" of the experiences they have at home and outside the classroom. Being aware that stress and emotion impacts learning can help the teacher use classroom time in productive ways. Providing time for students to transition from one activity to another, to process the information they have been studying and to be creative can help students have a more engaged learning process. Emotions effect everything we do. By making the learning environment a nurturing one students are more easily able to focus their attention on learning. Encouraging positive expressions and relationships among students as well as allowing for the safe discussion of emotions, fears and worries can facilitate a healthy learning environment. Making sure students have the necessary resources can decrease the stress they feel when assigned a certain task which in turn makes it more likely they will be successful in the assignment. Eric Jensen says in his book Brain Based Learning, "When we feel right, we can think better" (2008). Realizing our brains are highly sensitive to our emotions enables the teacher to be aware of the emotions of their students and in turn influences their emotional reaction to the students' behavior. Being a positive emotional role model such as sharing a love of learning, encourages students to have emotionally healthy reactions to learning. Helping students identify the emotions they felt when reading a particular passage for instance helps to cement that learning in their memory.
Students (and teachers!) are sponges and they will pick up on every verbal and non-verbal cue a teacher gives out. Our facial expressions and attitudes will influence the student almost more than what we are saying. Sending positive and encouraging messages to students will help them gain self-confidence in their work. Providing the "Goldilocks" level of challenge - not too hard or they are frustrated and not too easy or they are bored - encourages learning and satisfaction which influences self-confidence.
One of my favorite quotes (though I am unable to remember the source) says that "Education is not the filling of a bucket but the lighting of a fire". My goal as a teacher is to light that fire of learning under a student so they want to learn both in and out of the classroom. My job is not to just pump them full of knowledge but to help them make knowledge a part of them and a desire for lifelong learning.
Jensen, E. (2008). Brain-based learning, the new paradigm of teaching. (2 ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Friday, July 5, 2013
Lesson 2
After watching the videos on Vision and Hearing, describe how this information impacts you as a teacher.
Because the window for the neural connections to form in the vision system is so short students in my classroom will have already long finished this stage of development. The impact as a teacher will be in understanding if there are visual issues as well as looking for signs of visual problems that could be impacting the student's learning. Getting to know my students and being aware of warning signs that I can look for can enable me to let parents and the student know if further evaluation by a specialist is needed. As a middle or high school teacher I may not be with the student for a significant amount of time. I may not catch signs that a teacher or person who is with the student for more time might catch but being aware and watchful could help if a warning sign is presenting itself. I also need to be aware that sometimes the eyes can get overwhelmed by sensory input and providing a calming space that the eyes can rest can also help enhance the learning environment. Walls that are covered with information and posters can detract from learning by providing too much visual stimulation.
Likewise, auditory input impacts learning. In the classroom it is important to avoid constant, repetitive sounds and loud noises that could damage hearing. Hopefully this would never be an issue in a classroom! Being aware of the auditory stimulation going on around the classroom both in and out is important. Listening to and playing music can enhance the learning process as well as create a calm mood that can help students relax and learn. Being aware that some students may have a special need requiring the use of headphones and mp3 players is also important. Sometimes a student needs that "background" sound to keep them calm and focused. I experienced this as a paraprofessional and as a parent. Teaching students the importance of keeping the volume down on headphones is also important even if it seems they aren't listening to that piece of advice!
Both vision and hearing greatly impact the ability to learn and staying aware of potential problems as well as creating a healthy visual and auditory environment will be of great importance as a teacher.
Because the window for the neural connections to form in the vision system is so short students in my classroom will have already long finished this stage of development. The impact as a teacher will be in understanding if there are visual issues as well as looking for signs of visual problems that could be impacting the student's learning. Getting to know my students and being aware of warning signs that I can look for can enable me to let parents and the student know if further evaluation by a specialist is needed. As a middle or high school teacher I may not be with the student for a significant amount of time. I may not catch signs that a teacher or person who is with the student for more time might catch but being aware and watchful could help if a warning sign is presenting itself. I also need to be aware that sometimes the eyes can get overwhelmed by sensory input and providing a calming space that the eyes can rest can also help enhance the learning environment. Walls that are covered with information and posters can detract from learning by providing too much visual stimulation.
Likewise, auditory input impacts learning. In the classroom it is important to avoid constant, repetitive sounds and loud noises that could damage hearing. Hopefully this would never be an issue in a classroom! Being aware of the auditory stimulation going on around the classroom both in and out is important. Listening to and playing music can enhance the learning process as well as create a calm mood that can help students relax and learn. Being aware that some students may have a special need requiring the use of headphones and mp3 players is also important. Sometimes a student needs that "background" sound to keep them calm and focused. I experienced this as a paraprofessional and as a parent. Teaching students the importance of keeping the volume down on headphones is also important even if it seems they aren't listening to that piece of advice!
Both vision and hearing greatly impact the ability to learn and staying aware of potential problems as well as creating a healthy visual and auditory environment will be of great importance as a teacher.
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