Reflection of Final Project-Working as a group

My group was made up of three people, Kristen, Angela, and myself. At first we had a hard time choosing a topic for our project because we all had different interests throughout our Ormrod textbook. We agreed to discuss “Students at Risk,” because we could all make connections to this topic. I enjoyed how I could make a connection from watching the movie “Freedom Writers” and researching the videos for our presentation. Both the movie and the project gave me a better sense for the needs of these students and how to be more attentive to each individual needs. Creating a positive classroom community and reaching out to all students, at risk or not, will increase the student’s eagerness to learn and be involved within the classroom. This project allowed me to work together collaboratively with a group of different people, all with our own ideas and thoughts and create a presentation that we thought would connect with our audience. This final project also allowed me to connect my inner city school experiences with textbook strategies and statistics. My group worked well as team because we had regular communication and accepted each person's thoughts and ideas. I think this was a good topic because we could all connect personally.

Final Project - Students at Risk

Students at Risk are students that are at a risk of dropping out of school. Schools label students at Risk based on students characteristics and past school performance. The labeling of student at risk is based on research showing that there is a direct correlation between students characteristics and past performance to the drop out rate.As an educator it is critical to know and understand how to support students that are risk. Students are placed at risk due to poverty, race, ethnicity, language, or abusive families. All of these factors lead to lack of motivation and academic failure. In view of the fact that each student has different needs, there is no one particular strategy to help students at risk. Teachers must become familiar with several classroom practices that will help support student’s successes academically. Teachers need to be aware of the signs of students that are at risk so they can intervene. Students may show signs as early as elementary school that they will be more likely to drop out of high-school. Typical signs include low school achievement, high absenteeism, low self-esteem, and disruptive behavior within the classroom.As teachers, we should be aware of the signs and try to encourage students to continue their education. If teachers are supportive and give the students the extra help they need, students are less likely to drop out.

Chapter 5, Knowledge Construction

Chapter 7 primarily provides us with an overview of how knowledge is formed in our brain and how it is then organized so we can remember it. It is important to know people are able to form different meanings when experiencing the same event or occurrence. People are able to do this because they are using different prior experiences in making sense or understanding this event. They can also interpret what they see and hear based on what they expect to see or hear. Prior experiences are able to influence new information that is learned.There are two thoughts on knowledge construction. Individual Constructivism, a study on how individually people construct meaning from their experiences. Social Constructivism is the second. Social Constructivism deals with peoples collective effort to understand meaning. This was an interesting chapter to get more information on the different ways of learning. This is important as an educator to be familiar with because it will affect the various ways they teach to their class.

Gender Differences

Gender issues in learning create a controversy about the best way to teach to girls and boys. The gender gap in math and science was discussed in a presentation in class today. I thought the video of the girls classrooms compared to the boys classrooms were interesting in the way that they were fit to address the child's individual needs based on gender. The girls sat quietly at their desks to accomplish tasks, as boys were on the floor, sitting on stools, or in the classroom tent. I am torn on this issue of seperating boys and girls in the classroom. I feel that in the elementary level this may be more beneficial to the students so they are allowed time to figure out who they are and their particular learning styles without comparing themselves to the opposite gender. In the high school level I think it is important for student's to be working together as a community of learners and for both genders to become comfortable working together. This was a very interesting topic and I'm interested to see what more comes of this.

Chapter 5, Mind and Brain

I researched chapter 5, Mind and Brain,Brandsford and Brown text. This chapter explores how neuro and cognitive sciences are helping us to understand how people are able to think and learn. One of the largest reasons they have been successful in accumulating this information is because of the imaging technology for the brain. The development of the PET and FMRI machines have allowed them to study the brain without harming anyone. They have discovered that it is a combination of nature and nurture for brain development. In order to build up a successful learner, educators should incorporate prior knowledge while focusing more on the concrete learning experience. There should be more focus on comprehension and understanding of the material then memorization of straight facts and details. As educators, we should be dependent on collaborating as a learning community to create a supportive learning environment. We have the ability to guide student's to success.

Freedom Writers

I thought "Freedom Writers" was a very motivating and inspirational film. Erin Gruwell's character portrayed a first year educator who took on a very challenging task of teaching underprivileged students and succeeded immensely. It was very emotional to watch her struggle trying to balance the relationships in her personal life as well as the relationships she was forming with her students. Mrs. Gruwell made her classroom into a second home where student’s felt safe, comfortable, and able to take risks in their learning. The most important message I took away from “Freedom Writers” is that teaching is way more than a job; it is a chance to influence and change the lives of student’s and give them a chance to succeed.

Speak

The novel, “Speak”, by Laurie Halse Anderson is an incredible story of a young girl who begins high school believing that she is the biggest “outcast”. I believe that if I read this in high school it would have opened my eyes more to the people around me, instead of focusing all of my energy toward my small group of friends. In my opinion, this book should be a required reading for all students, especially girls, in middle and high school. It would be beneficial for girls to see how something can change your whole life so quickly if you’re not careful. Girls would have more insight on how their words and actions can affect how someone lives their life and how it can make that person feel about them. It would give girls a chance to reflect on how they talk, act, and treat others. This book has inspired me, and would inspire other young woman to remember that you never know what someone is dealing with and to treat people the way you would want to be treated.