Module 9

            Of the assigned readings for this week, I found Gladwell’s Outliers to leave the most significant impression on me.  His idea of cultural legacies was profoundly different from any other theory we have read about, and really allowed me to reflect on what sort of cultural legacy our society passes on to our children.  At first I tried to connect his ideas with the socio-cultural constructivist theories of Vygotsky; however, Gladwell examined the influence of culture from a more historical perspective.  Our system of traditional agriculture and farming is so different from that experienced in the other cultures described, and the potential influences of these differences on how students perform in schools was very noteworthy.  As much as I agree with what Gladwell proposed (i.e., lengthened school days and academic years), I know that this is something that will not be well received by the educational community.  It is so engrained in our society that students need to spend their summers away from school I fear that these thoughts may never be well received.  This concept is different, however, from the philosophy of special education.  An extended school year for students with disabilities is something that all parents desire for their children; however, it is not something easily attained.  Students must show that they have significantly regressed during break periods from school before they can qualify for this service, and then the service itself is limited in capacity. 

            Additionally, Gladwell’s discussion of the KIPP school was very fascinating.  I know several of us in class have watched the movie Waiting for Superman, and this school is discussed in that movie as well.  While I think what they are doing at KIPP is wonderful, I wonder if some of the influence or power that KIPP has over their students is the fact that it is an exclusive school that is not open to everyone.  I think this exclusivity allows students to appreciate the school they are in more and value the education they are receiving.  When I was watching the film, Waiting for Superman, I felt horrible for the students who did not get into the schools that they wanted because I knew they would go into the other school with a failing attitude.  A student’s attitude about their school is so important.  If they believe that they will fail regardless of anything they do, then they most likely will!  It is the responsibility of parents as well as educators to instill a value of education into students that will motivate them to respect and honor their teachers and the education provided to them so that they will work their hardest to succeed.  He contends that “Success is a function of persistence and doggedness and the willingness to work hard” (p. 246).  As the KIPP school has demonstrated, students need to have a desire to work hard at their education so that they may get the most of it, regardless of what school they attend.

            The readings for this week were a great way to end the semester and allowed me to reflect on the process of learning in the public school setting.  In my opinion, we have seen similar themes in our readings repeatedly (e.g., importance of connections to learning, thinking deeply about material, opportunity for review, time to reflect and think, the impact of culture on learning, etc.).  Learning is an exceptionally dynamic process that, in my opinion, would take a lifetime of experiences to truly understand; however, after having completed this course, I believe I have a much stronger grasp on it.  Our society and culture has a major role in the process of learning, and should be considered when issues of educational reform are addressed.

R11

Question: What does metacognition mean for students with disabilities?

Quotation: “Students who lack knowledge of their own strengths and weaknesses will be less likely to adapt to different situations and regulate their own learning in them” (Pintrich, 2002, p. 223).

Connection: This week’s readings on metacognition allowed me to think about what implications the skill of (or lack of) metacognition may have for students with disabilities.  Specifically, in working with students on the Autism Spectrum, I have frequently noticed a lack of awareness of their weaknesses in the area of social skills.  For example, one individual with Asperger’s Syndrome that I have worked with has minimal understanding of inappropriateness of his behaviors at times.  He continues to think that he has a significant strength in social skills and that his interpretations of various social situations are always correct.  This individual is unaware that he is frequently overly hostile toward peers, unfriendly, and easily frustrated by minimally obtrusive behaviors in others.  This limitation in understanding his own weakness means that he does not “buy-in” to the social skills interventions provided to him because he feels that we are wrong and he is right, therefore undermining any new skills that we may hope to teach him.  This example clearly demonstrates the importance of metacognition to learning.  A lack of awareness of our own weaknesses can significantly hinder any learning that may occur, as we are not aware of what skills or lessons we need to concentrate or improve. 

Outside Connection: Additionally, in interacting with students with disabilities, it is important to work with an awareness that they may not have the pre-requisite skills that Pintrich identifies as being important to success in the classroom (e.g., metacognition).  Specifically, of the three types of metacognitive knowledge described by Pintrich, strategic knowledge is probably taken for granted by many teachers.  James said “Man, whatever else he may be, is primarily a practical being, whose mind is given him to aid in adapting him to this world's life” (p. 11).  However, this statement may not be wholly applicable for students with disabilities.  For the example of the student discussed previously, he has obviously adapted poorly to the social demands or cues that have been present in his environment, allowing for significant consequences for how he has performed socially.  Individuals working with students with disabilities should not take the skills involved in metacognition for granted, and must ensure that explicit instruction in the types of metacognitive knowledge is provided.   

Module 7

I unfortunately could not find one good video that was at least 15 minutes in length, but I did find several videos that I thought were relevant to our recent lectures on memory/retrieval and were also related to my work with students with disabilities.  I was looking for a video that outlined some of the many strategies we use in the schools for students with disabilities (listed on their IEPs as accommodations/modifications) to help them retain core content information, but only found one that had some potentially useful information.  The first video was provided information on how we can use some of the strategies we have discussed in class that are helpful for retention of information with students with disabilities (e.g., cueing, chunking of information, state-dependent learning, etc.).  I thought the second video was a great abbreviated version of the  many things we have discussed related to memory over the last two weeks.  Finally, the last video was more for fun/entertainment than anything else.  Throughout my search for videos, I found a multitude of videos related to "improving" memory, and this is just one example.  The narrator in the video is a self-proclaimed memory expert, and she discusses using various strategies that are similar to those utilized by Foer in the article we read last week.  I hope you all enjoy them!
1) Memory/Retrieval Strategies for Students with Disabilities:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MYjSVshr0A
2) Memory, Retention, and Learning:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GR1KfTJ-I4&feature=related
3) How to remember a to-do list:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lDJXSvb4Rg

R10

Question: Is multitasking a necessary skill that we have developed in response to increased demands in society, and if so, how can we structure multitasking to allow us to be more successful in today’s demands in the work environment while at the same time not minimizing our ability to think critically and process new information?

Quotation: “For the younger generation of multitaskers, the great electronic din is an expected part of everyday life. And given what neuroscience and anecdotal evidence have shown us, this state of constant intentional self-distraction could well be of profound detriment to individual and cultural well-being” (Rosen, 2008, p. 110).

Connection: In the age of e-mail, social media, smart phones and iPads, our generation has been continuously pressed to maintain a constant flow of information from multiple devices and technology aids.  This increased demand has lead to what Rosen has called the “hurry, bustle, and agitation” of everyday life.  The evidence presented by Rosen in her article raised some serious concerns about how we have come to manage the many demands placed on us both in the workplace and in society.  Given the fast-paced world we live in today and the multitude of information available at our fingertips, I would argue that it has become a necessary skill developed to meet these many demands.  Our brain has adapted to these demands in the only way that it knows how - through the process of multitasking.  Fortunately, not all of the current evidence is negative.  Rosen cites work completed by Meyer, who believes that our brain may be able to learn how to switch tasks effectively for more simple tasks.  Through my own personal experiences, I have found multitasking to be something I excel at when completing tasks that do not require excessive concentration.  However, I agree that multitasking should not occur during meaningful tasks in which you are trying to learn new information. 

Outside Connection: Rosen’s article also allowed me to reflect on previous advice provided to me by professors who have utilized a specific “diet” of multitasking that would supposedly allow for the distribution of certain times in which multitasking is preferable.  One such advice incorporated the idea of scheduling certain times to multitask so as to permit certain breaks throughout the workday in which multitasking may occur.  For example, setting self-determined goals in which you must work on a certain task (e.g., paper, report, presentation) for a specified amount of time.  Once that time is finished, you can then allow your brain to switch to a different task such as email, phone calls, etc.  His philosophy was that by setting certain criteria for yourself before accessing a preferred activity, you were more likely to successfully accomplish the less-preferred task (i.e., the Premack Principle; I’m sure you aren’t surprised to hear that he prescribed to behaviorist philosophy).

I found the following video to be another interesting perspective. It describes a study completed on multitasking with college students.  The end result found that we are basically “bad at multitasking.” Perhaps if I complete their test, I may find that I am not as good at multitasking as I once thought!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zuDXzVYZ68&feature=related

R9

Question: How do we, as learners, push our abilities to become increasingly better at some task (e.g., attention, memory, writing, typing)?

Quotation: “To improve, we have to be constantly pushing ourselves beyond where we think our limits lie and then pay attention to how and why we fail” (Foer, 2011).

Connection: The readings for this week discussed concepts concerning the potential training of the brain to perform certain tasks and to remember large amounts of information.  Initially, Foer’s attempts to improve his memory and compete in a memory competition seemed nearly impossible, as we often think of memory as something set in stone, unchangeable, and something we are born with a finite amount of.  Foer’s experiences in a marathon-like training of his memory provided evidence against this idea through his use of various training techniques, and are in direct contrast to James’ idea that we are born with a specific amount of abilities such as memory or attention.  However, James also states "There can be no improvement of the general or elementary faculty of memory; there can only be improvement of our memory for special systems of associated things” (p. 61).  This “systems of associated things” captures the idea that our memory can be improved through the use of extensive, elaborate, associations a technique Foer used extensively in his memory training.   

Outside Connection: Similarly, the article by King-Friedrichs outlined five techniques that can help improve students’ retention of information.  These techniques can be argued to be similar to the techniques utilized by Foer to train for the memory competition.  Where he created palaces of memory, he was also creating personal relevance and elaborating on the designs of the palace by designating certain events to occur in specific rooms of the palace.  These techniques helped to improve his ability to remember large amounts of information at a time, yet how valuable was that new information?  In my opinion, the more important lesson from his story is the idea presented in the quotation provided above, the idea that we must continually push ourselves to be better than what we are.  We should not accept mediocrity of ourselves and should always strive to improve our skills.  Whether we are seeking to improve our memory, our writing skills, or our ability to attend to new information, we can apply certain techniques (e.g., elaborate associations) to help make improvements in these areas.  For example, if I wanted to improve my writing style, Foer would argue that I should continually practice that skill, daily, and be constantly challenging myself with new material, new ideas, and ever increasingly stringent criteria.  By stretching our abilities to their furthest extent possible, we can push past the “plateau” he speaks of and reach our personal best.  This is a lesson that has important implications for students in the classroom as well, as it highlights the importance of challenging students and pushing them to do better every day.  We should teach with an awareness that students can learn more and seek to instill this awareness in them as well so that they continue to pursue more difficult tasks that will push them to be proverbial the best they can be. 

Module 6

Link: http://www.autismtoday.com/articles/different_sensory_experiences.htm

My research interest (as I've mentioned before in class) pertains to services for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). One such service frequently provided is Occupational Therapy (OT) services, often for the OT diagnosis of Sensory Processing Disorder (this diagnosis does not exist in the DSM-IV-TR, that is why I refer to it as an OT diagnosis). The idea behind the diagnosis is that some children perceive various environmental stimuli differently than others. For autism, that perception is often considered to be a hypersensitivity to various things, including sounds, touch, textures, lights, etc. To address this hypersensitivity, OT provides therapy that includes things like "brushing" a child's skin with a special brush that is thought to develop nerves across the entirety of the students body with the idea that by developing other nerves across the body, the "hypersensitive" nerves will adjust and no longer be too-sensitive. Unfortunately, this is a relatively common service provided with little empirical support. One thing, however, that I am grateful for this diagnosis does is that it helps to make us aware that students with ASD perceive things differently than we do. I found the previous link very helpful in describing exactly what the differences might be, and to outline how we may address these needs for students with ASD so that they are able to adapt and function within the classroom. Additionally, I think the link provides another example of how sensory limitations and duration and intensity of our sensory register can influence how we perceive the world around us, and therefore impact how we process new information.

Example of Social Learning

I know this is a little late since we've finished up our readings on Vygotsky, but I thought this was too cute not to share - my 20 month old nephew highlighting/studying like his Aunt Sissa:

Oh what we can learn simply from those around us... hopefully he will adopt my studying habits! :-)

R#8.2 :-)

Question: What efforts can educators make to foster student collaboration and teamwork that encourages students of different groups to work together and promotes positive relationships?

Quotation: “By implicitly pitting one group against another, such policies may cause each group to brew stereotypes about the other that are more pejorative than the ones they would develop in personal encounters” (Pinker, 2002, p. 206).

Connection: The previous quotation motivated me to reflect on the current practices at universities and schools that we encourage students to engage in with the hope that it will foster positive relationships for our students.  This statement presents the idea that we may in fact hinder positive relationships for students of differing groups (with the best intentions of course).  It therefore presented the question of how do we, as potential future educators, promote positive relationships for students of different ethnic, economic, religious, ability, etc. backgrounds.  By highlighting differences between groups, do we create prejudices or divides between students that may not have existed in the first place?  Instead, should we concentrate our efforts on demonstrating similarities between different groups, while acknowledging the different values, abilities, lifestyles, etc.?  These are important questions that I have experienced firsthand in working with the schools, especially in the area of promoting relationships between students with and without disabilities.  In various social skills groups that I lead in the schools, we incorporate typical peers within the group so as to provide a model of appropriate behaviors, as well as to establish positive relationships between those students.  This method not only provides students with disabilities a constructive peer relationship, but also allows typical peers the opportunity to find similarities between themselves and students with disabilities.  Through these groups we discuss various important social skills and values, while allowing students to share their ideas and work in a collaborative environment with someone who is different from them.  In my opinion, the opportunity to work and have open dialogue with someone who is different from you is one of the most valuable things we can do to help promote positive relationships and open mindedness of our students.

Outside Connection: A second connection I made from the reading this week directly related to the question posed above.  Trepagnier’s (2006) Silent Racism discusses the idea of passive racism that exists in us without our knowledge.  Trepagnier examines the idea of the detriment of suppressing any and all racist thoughts, as it does us more harm than good as cultural beings.  Instead, Trepagnier argues that continued exploration of any unspoken or unconscious prejudices is necessary to better understand ourselves and provide insight into how we may work to ameliorate any incorrect thoughts.  This idea has significant implications for the work that we may do as educators to promote positive relationships between students of different groups.  As opposed to telling students that it is important to not be racist, we should instead encourage students to discuss and value their own cultures, be aware of other cultures, values, and abilities, to acknowledge any hidden prejudices they may harbor, and then work to eliminate those thoughts or ideas.  Open dialogue that occurs in a safe, encouraging environment in preferably small groups is necessary to allow students the freedom to discuss their opinions.  By allowing students these opportunities, we can hope to create a safe learning climate that incorporates ideas of social justice, therefore fostering an environment that values and respects students of all ethnic groups, cultures, sexual identity, religion, disabilities, economic standing, etc. 

References

Trepagnier, B. (2006). Silent Racism: How Well-Meaning White People Perpetuate the Racial Divide. Boulder, CO: Paradigm Publishers.

Module 5

Q1:

            After viewing this week’s powerpoint, it is evident that there are both similarities and differences in Vygotsky and Piaget’s views on constructivism.  Where Piaget stressed the individual learning process in which children construct their own knowledge, Vygotsky highlighted the influence of society and culture on learning.  Additionally, Piaget created different stages of development that he believed all children progress through, whereas Vygotsky discussed the differences between children and their abilities and how individual differences in ability need to be taken into account during instruction.  While there are differences between the two theorists, there are similarities in how they describe the process of learning.  Both significantly differ from behaviorist theories in that they describe learning as an internal process that is the responsibility of the learner, versus the teacher.  Additionally, both described learning in terms of student’s constructing their own knowledge.

            One question my partner and I had after discussing the readings for this week was concerning how Vygotsky and Piaget would view Free Will and if they would have similar thoughts?

Q2:

            There were several connections that could be made between the NPR recording and our reading by Vygotsky this week.  One connection was the differing opinions presented in the two readings concerning play in young children.  The NPR recording suggested that providing too much assistance to children during imaginative play can potentially hinder their imagination and creativity.  This connection potentially points to a flaw of Vygotsky’s ideas pertaining to assisting students to promote development of new abilities; however, I think that Vygotsky mainly related this idea to children’s development in learning of difficult constructs.  Further, Vygotsky encouraged student exploration and intended teachers to assist students only when needed to determine what they can do independently.

            Another connection from these two opinions concerned the internalization of language and how the attainment of this skill can help children to self-regulate their thoughts and mental processes.  Both authors discussed the importance of this for a child’s development and described how important internal language is for their ability to think through problems and make decisions.

Q3:

            There were many similarities between the readings on Bruner’s theories of category formation and Piaget’s theories concerning schema development.  Bruner’s categories are very similar to Piaget’s ideas concerning schemas via a coding system and description of establishing the parameters of a certain schema based on your previous experiences.  Additionally, Bruner’s idea of concept attainment appeared similar to Piaget’s ideas of assimilation and accommodation.  Through these processes, individuals acquire new knowledge or information.  This acquirement process necessitates that the individual connect it to or make adjustments to their existing information.  Finally, another connection I made between Bruner’s theories and that of Piaget’s was the idea of student’s discovery process of learning.  The description of this process sounded very similar to the idea of Piaget’s active construction of their knowledge.

            Another connection I made with the reading on Bruner’s theories was that of the representation of language.  This concept sounded familiar to Vygotsky’s ideas concerning the internalization of language and structure of language.  Both theorists discussed the importance of internalizing language so that you are capable of thinking to yourself before saying or doing something, highlighting the importance of planning and other skills related to executive functioning. 

R8

Question: What does Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development tell us about educational goals of students and what implications does that have related to the individualization of students’ education?

Quote: “The zone of proximal development defines those functions that have not yet matured but are in the process of maturation, functions that will mature tomorrow but are currently in an embryonic state” (Vygotsky, 1978, p. 86).

Connection: Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development is a concept that resonated with me on several levels of my professional experiences.  Specifically, his theory relates to my understanding of the development of students with disabilities’ annual individualized education plan (IEP) goals.  There are several rules that guide the development of IEP goals.  One such rule is that they are based on data concerning the student’s current ability (i.e., mental processes they have already mastered, or as Vygotsky would call it, the student’s “actual developmental level”).  Additionally, the goals should be within a zone of proximal development, or the level at which they can complete a task with assistance.  It is beneficial to the individual responsible for creating the goals to have an understanding of a student’s zone of proximal development as it both allows students to be challenged as well as allows us to have high expectations of the student.  Another example of allowing students with disabilities to work within their zone of proximal development is when they have a one-on-one aid in the classroom because they can help the student complete tasks that they cannot yet do independently.

Outside Connection: Vygotsky’s description of a student’s zone of proximal development and the implications this may have on the learning process related to a statement made by Skinner in one of our readings on behaviorism.  Skinner states, “When student’s move through well-constructed programs at their own pace, the so-called problem of motivation is automatically solved” (1984, p. 951).  The idea of “their own pace” recognizes that students develop and progress through curricular content at different rates, based on their ability level.  When I read this statement initially, it sounded as though Skinner was promoting the individualization of education for students that allow them to progress at their own rate of curiosity and ability.  Similarly, Vygotsky’s idea concerning a zone of proximal development has implications for the importance of individualizing a student’s process of learning.  Working within students’ differing ability levels requires an educator to know each student’s zone of proximal development and to then adjust instruction so that it will benefit every student (versus working from a standardized curriculum that expects each student to be able to complete a certain set of skills).  This approach would be much more time consuming for teachers, however, it could significantly benefit the student as they would be able to work within their own ability level at all times, thereby giving them the opportunity to spend more time on areas they need more time with, or conversely, move on to more advanced topics, based on their own level of development.

Construstivism, Piaget's Stages, and Bart Simpson?

Q1: Explain in your own words the principal contributions of Piaget's cognitive constructivist theory as a theory of learning. Make a list of questions you still have.

            Piaget’s constructivist theory offered a different perspective on the process of learning at a time period when psychology was heavily dominated by behaviorism theories.  His theory posited that students are “active learners that construct their own knowledge”.  This approach highlighted the process that occurs between the stimulus and response typically seen in behaviorist principles.  Further, it considered the contribution of the stimulus itself on the interpretation of new information.  Piaget’s theory posited that we construct our own meaning of new information, or that we interpret things in individual ways.  Additionally, Piaget’s theory purports that we constantly seek cognitive equilibrium when we learn new information through the processes of assimilation and accommodation.  Piaget also identified distinct stages of cognitive development that describe the types of mental processes individuals are capable of at certain points in their development.  His theory was appreciated by many educators as it highlighted the idea of developmentally appropriate curriculum, the importance of allowing students the opportunity to actively engage in their own learning and to construct their own meaning from the material, as well as stressed the importance of student interest.

Q2: Make a connection between Piaget's stages of development and what James argued the teacher should know about cognitive development.

            Piaget’s stages of cognitive development stresses the importance of understanding that students’ progress through certain stages before they are capable of completing different tasks.  For example, it is important to make curricular content developmentally appropriate as they may have not reached a point in their cognitive development that allows for the completion of more complex tasks (e.g., hypothetical thinking, abstract concepts, etc.).  Piaget’s stages of cognitive development are especially relevant in the realm of early education and policy makers in Kentucky (as well as other states) stress the importance of developmentally appropriate activities in preschool.  I completed a practicum at an early childhood center, and found the type of content provided to students to be very minimal, at least not in the typical format we are used to.  The students were not to complete anything that might resemble worksheets, and activities that did require writing were an option and not a requirement.  The types of ‘paper-work’ that was provided allowed the student the opportunity to practice their name and then move on to coloring (a preferred activity).  Further, embedded within the preschool classroom were many educational decorations and helpful clues: every item was labeled, there was a calendar with the day of the week highlighted, the weather for the day, and the month, etc.  Every class began with a song about the days of the week, the weather, the months in the year as well as time to count how many students were there that day.  These activities allowed the students to engage in developmentally appropriate activities for their current progress in their cognitive development.

Q3: What would authors Airasian and Walsh have to say about the learning environment in which Bart was placed?  Is this an example of constructivism? What are your own thoughts about constructivism as a theory of learning so far?

            Authors Airasian and Walsh would have agreed with the learning environment that Bart was placed in, as the teacher allowed the students opportunities to pursue their own interests, guided their students through the learning process, allowed students to think for themselves instead of simply providing the correct answers, and was involved in the students learning process by providing feedback and guidance.  These were many of the components of the constructivist theory of learning that the authors highlighted.  The new school Bart was placed in appeared to apply some constructivist principles, including those that I highlighted previously.

            I have really enjoyed learning about the constructivist theory, as I believe it is important to understand that learning is influenced by the learner and how they interpret information and content.  I particularly liked the ideas of the social-constructivist theory of learning because it illustrates the influence of our culture, society, and values on how we develop an understanding of new information. Plus, watching the Simpsons for class is always enjoyable :)