No Child Left Behind/ Charter Schools

I really enjoyed this presentation, I thought it was very informative and provided great insight to both of these topics. It was interesting to see this presentation and then I watched the movie Waiting for Superman, which talk a lot about charter schools and how the information you guys presented correlated to the information presented in the movie. I really enjoyed the activity at the end when we got to create our own charter school, it was fun and helpful. Great presentation!

Reflection on Philosophy of Education

There are obviously many topics surrounding teaching and how to go about teaching a few of which I have reflected on through this post:

Classroom Organization: Part of my philosophy of education is that the teacher models skills of which students are striving for. Here, classroom organization is a skill which I would like to model for my students. Having things set up in an organized manner will allow my students to not only work more efficiently but will also show them how being organized helps build more success. This begins with a syllabus, organized folders for each class, etc.

Motivation: Math is one of those topics that you either love or absolutely hate. And it all comes down to "how will I use this when I grow older." Motivation is one topic I feel very strongly about. It is absolutely essential for students to feel connected to each topic, real world application is the key. With real world application, students can directly connect to the math being taught which will then hopefully motivate them.

Discipline: After hearing the presentation on discipline, I began to understand the importance of the difference between discipline and punishment. Instead of going straight to punishment, it is important for students as well as everyone else, to learn from mistakes. Students are going to misbehave, I sure did, that is inevitable, how you handle that misbehavior as a teacher can make or break a student. Providing discipline can allow students to learn what they did wrong and the most important step about discipline is providing a plan developed by both the teacher and student, to improve on that misbehavior so it does not happen again in the future.

Assessment: Assessment is one of those key topics we all like to discuss and work on but it's one of the hardest things about teaching. I would like to provide assessment that my students can connect to, not assessment where they just go through the motions. If I can connect assessment and motivation together, hopefully that will build more success because students will be able to show their skills better.

Classroom Climate: I'm not really familiar with classroom climate, can we discuss this in more detail during class.

Learning Focus: Most teachers emphasize content as the primary learning focus. Although I do value content greatly in my class, I think the overall learning focus needs to be on those "teachable moments." What are students really going to get out of my class? They're not going to remember the quadratic formula besides a select few, they're going to learn how to work with a diverse group of people and how to effectively collaborate with those diverse people.

Technology Integration: As the 21st century continues to produce new computers, ipods, cell phones, etc. we as teachers need to adapt to this change. Integrating such technology can engage students to different topics. With that being said, I think it's important that we work towards implementing technology into our classroom but not using it as a crutch. We need to find a balance that works towards this integration, but not over using technology where that becomes the primary focus.

Teacher and Leadership Style: As mentioned previously, I believe teachers should provide a model for which students to follow. I think it's important for teachers to demonstrate life skills that students can learn from. One of the most important aspects of being a teacher is the idea that everyone is still a learner. If teachers can portray this concept then it will allow students to see their teacher on a more personable level instead of an authoritative figure.

Educational Research Reflection

Overall, I really enjoyed researching this topic, it's something that I need the most work on. This research topic really allowed me to delve into assessment and how to decipher what is good assessment and what is bad assessment. The class seemed to enjoy our presentation; they thought it was very useful and informative which is good to know. A few people said they felt unprepared for the Title IV assessment pieces, which I can understand; however obviously if we were really giving an assessment on a topic we wouldn't do it a month after presenting the information, so the students should be well prepared. It was just an example of two different assessment pieces and how one was more effective than the other. As a group, I think we could have worked better. Rachel F. did the standardized testing piece while Rachel L. and myself worked on the rest of the presentation. I feel as though we could have collaborated better to do an even present the information more effectively. We all contributed to the project, however it was sporadic and not well organized. I would say that would be the biggest lesson I learned from this project. A few questions stemming from this project are how do I do more engaging assessments for testing math skills without using tests. I want my students to feel more connected with the assessments and hopefully that will lead to more success.

Voices

After reading the "Voices" article of numerous educational philosophies of pioneers of education, there were only a few that I really connected with. Many of the philosophies had pieces which I adhered with and connected to, however Pestalozzi's philosophy and Herbart's Philosophy were the two I liked the most. Pestalozzi really emphasized motivation and interest of students. He believed learning was stimulated by what interested the student. This obviously makes sense, the student will connect with what interests them the most. With that being said, there are plenty of different interests that go around, so it's important to teach a variety of ways and materials to hit upon all interests.

According to Herbart's philosophy, the purpose of education was to develop a "moral insight" and to "strengthen character". I believe this is what we would call teaching teachable moments. I think that's important, sometimes it's necessary to drop the content and focus on what the student will benefit the most from. Fostering an environment which adheres to this philosophy will build a community of strong intellectual people.

There was a third educational philosophy which I connected with and that was Dewey's. I liked this one a lot because the idea of growth, or the reconstruction of experience was central to Dewey's philosophy. Reconstructing experiences can only be done by actually experiencing. To do so, Dewey believed hands-on activity was key. This is something I completely agree with; learning by doing is essential.

Technology in the Classroom

Wow, what a conference. Every table provided internet resources that I could incorporate into my math classroom. Math games, teacher aids, student aids, etc. This was so unbelievably useful; I did not realize how much stuff was actually out there. Students can really enjoy many of the sites found and listed. It was presented in an organized, professional manner that made the presentation that much better. I will certainly delve more into the websites listed and become more familiar with them. The game websites incorporated tons of different math topics, and they provided games that were fun and interesting. Students can directly relate to these games, they're modern. This was great. It was certainly eyeopening and when we first began the discussion I was under the impression I could use technology appropriately and I felt comfortable with it, there's a lot more out there that I had no idea about.

Eight Theories

Essentialism: Essentialism is a teacher-centered theory that stresses formal discipline and focuses on producing good citizens. This theory reminds me of traditional school where teaching methods include reading, lectures, memorization, repetition and examination. The role of the students is that of a learner and the teacher is the one person best suited to provide instruction. The development of basic skills are very important in an essentialist classroom. Essentialism is closely related to both Idealism and Realism.
Behaviorism: Behaviorism is also a teacher-center theory which encompasses behavior derived from the environment. According to B.F. Skinner, human behavior is directly correlated to external stimuli. The teacher's job is to provide an environment which fosters good behavior. They do this by using both positive and negative reinforces. "Learning begins when the approved behavior is observed and then positively reinforced." (pg. 111) This theory is directly linked to realism.
Positivism: Positivism is a learning theory that is based on knowledge that is observable and measurable. Intuition, mind, and spirit are rejected. This is obviously closely related to realism. Direct instruction is the method used in a positivist classroom. This requires teachers to clearly and precisely deliver expectations and instructions which is what they believe is the best way for a student to learn.
Progressivism: Progressivism is a student-centered learning theory where the classroom is more of a democracy than a dictatorship. Here the teacher and students work together to make decisions. The main idea of this theory is the idea of experimentation. Students learning through doing according to a progressivist teacher. The learner must practice, experiment and learn how to think rather than what to think. This theory stresses the process rather than the result of learning. Student involvement is key in a progresssive classroom, however the teachers role is to facilitate the student's learning with organized instruction and activities. This is very much so a pragmatist philosophy.
Humanism: Humanism is an educational philosophy which focuses on the individual. Group work and cooperative learning is rejected and the learning should focus on each individual. It's a learning process which should focus directly on the student's feelings. It is linked with the existentialism philosophy where the individual learner is the target. Students interests and beliefs are what dictate what is taught, read, and learned. This philosophy fosters an environment of caring according to humanists.
Constructivism: Constructivism is a learning philosophy closely related to existentialism. However, this learning philosophy focuses on student learning by hands-on activities. This allows students to develop their own frames of thought which allows them to individually learn their own ways. A diverse way of teaching methods is highly encouraged in a constructivist classroom.
Perennialism: Perennialism focuses on student learning based on the great ideas of Western Civilization. The focus of this philosophy is to teach everlasting ideas, ideas that are never changing. It is a principle-based teaching method which encompasses lecture and a controlled discussion.
Reconstructionism: This learning philosophy is centered around social questions. It focuses on bringing change to society and creating more of a Utopian society. A reconstructivist classroom involves both teacher and student involvement. It cultivates an atmosphere which focuses on culture and its primary purpose is to better society with equal student involvement through discussion.


After researching these eight theories on education I've come to the conclusion that the one that best fits me is Progressivism. I love the idea of learning through experimentation. Learning by doing is one of the best ways to adopt new ideas and knowledge. As a future math teacher, it is so vitally important that my students understand the process rather than the conclusion/result of problem-solving. This philosophy greatly focuses on the process. Students learn best by posing their own questions and then analyzing those questions they want answered. I also like the idea of Humanism, however I believe group work and cooperative learning are some of the best ways to learn. Not to mention working with a diverse group of people really allows you to develop skills which you will need as you grow older and continue to work alongside others. The idea of Humanism which I like is the idea of hands-on activity. Student involvement is very important and if we as teachers can incorporate this into our classrooms, students will learn much better. They will be able to relate to the process by experimenting through hands-on activity.

Discipline/Classroom Management

I really enjoyed this presentation particularly because they outlined the difference between punishment and discipline. Most teachers and parents resort to punishment, and at times it is needed, however the importance of discipline is much greater and if we as teachers can provide discipline instead of punishment then our students will be much better off. I also really liked the scenarios given, I thought they prompted great problems that all teachers are likely faced with. After discussing the scenarios, I understood the importance of finding out why a student misbehaves, skips class, etc. Why being the key component to every solution, and to also involve the students in solution is helpful and beneficial. Their presentation was filled with useful facts and information on material widely discussed across the educational system. I like how they provided three different styles of classroom management, obviously the middle being the best. All in all, great presentation with great information.