So far, the Woolfolk text is very enlightening even from the first three chapters we were assigned. The standards for education and the way we teach students have changed over years. The way the curriculum is broken down today challenges the students more and for the some of the students, these challenges are too difficult for them to grasp.
Chapter 1 discusses the set up of the classroom, school systems, teaching methods and psychology in education. All of these things are what beginning teachers have questions about. Knowing and understanding how the system works help ease the beginning teachers’ performance. I like the discussion about what good teaching is. Often times people think good teaching is how they performed on evaluations or just how students perform in their class work. Good teaching is being knowledgeable of what you’re teaching, being creative with ideas and teaching and are familiar with their students. The models are also very helpful, Danielson's Framework and Teachingworks, they give insight into every aspect of teaching as it relates to planning, instruction, classroom environment and professional responsibilities. (Woolfolk, pgs 8-13)
Chapter 2 discusses nature vs. nurture and how the brain develops. Piaget’s theory of cognitive development helps us understand how we think. According to Piaget, our thinking processes change radically, though slowly, from birth to maturity because we constantly strive to make sense of the world. (Woolfolk, pg. 45) We also get a picture of Vigotsky’s contribution to educational psychology. He believed that language in the form of talking to yourself guides cognitive development. (Woolfolk pg. 59)
Chapter 3 discusses physical development, relationships and how these things affect students’ development. There are so many benefits to physical activity, not only does it keep them healthy, but it helps them mentally. When students deal with family and friend relationship difficulty they have a hard time coping with change and just having a sense of belonging.
Overall the introduction to this class through the text was very meaningful and a great start to the course. I learned many good techniques that I can use in my own classroom.
Hi Latasha,
ReplyDeleteI hope you are doing well! I enjoyed reading your blog post because you picked out the major points within the three chapters. These major points helped me open my eyes to new ways of thinking, so thank you for that.
Tasha, I love your definition of good teaching. I agree that knowing your subject matter, being creative, and putting your students first makes a great teacher. It may take us a while to get the hang of things, but we can start buy focusing on what matter's most, our students.
ReplyDeleteI think you really encompassed the main ideas of each chapter and broke it down wonderfully. As a beginning teacher, it is going to be tough and stressful. But, if we keep our priorities where we know they need to be, and break down our goals as simply as you have above, we are all going to be excellent teachers.
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