T2P week 4 : an attempt at level 7 RPT

If a teacher expects and encourages students to contribute their ideas through reflection on classroom activities and topics,

then there will be less behavior problems in class 

because students feel that they are essential and valuable to the class and the learning process.

evidence:  Valuable Nel Noddings discusses the process of education as including an interaction in which the teacher "confirms" or affirms and encourages the best in others.

Essential (Piaget schemas adaptation and assimilation; Vygotsky scaffolding; "priming the pump"; neurological piece; emotional piece)

moral implications I believe that teachers have a responsibility to affirm their students as valuable beings, as a strictly moral matter. Moreover, school is not useful unless students are assisted in making meaningful connections to their experience and knowledge which is relevant to their lives.

T2P (2)

If students are enabled to become teacher/collaborators in the classroom

then their self-determination is promoted

because they will be required to make decisions about the importance of information, they will need to develop competence in the content they are teaching, and they will build relationships with other students.  It is fundamental to this process that students feel safe and comfortable with the task of teaching/collaborating.  Otherwise, the exercise will only create fear and lead to a loss of autonomy.  Therefore, making small groups for teaching experiences, and having the teaching take place in the context of collaborating, as well as ensuring student comfort with the task is absolutely necessary.

evidence Vicki Davis video clip

moral implications I believe that students bring a level of competence to many areas which competence can be tapped for themselves and others in the learning process.  Furthermore, students must feel their autonomy in order to learn because real learning requires that meaningful choice are made by the learner.

If students are given ample support from the teacher and from other students,


then they will produce high quality work


because their needs for safety, respect and connection are met.  This allows them to work in an environment free from fear which creates the greatest potential for learning.

In today's class, I experienced a shift from stress and anxiety at the beginning of class to comfort, ease and interest at the end of the class.  I attribute this to both the provision of adequate amounts of time to complete tasks, as well as the time spent as a group reviewing the pedagogical taxonomy and taking the time to work within it.

In my classroom, I will strive to be attuned to the students' needs for structural support, such as modeling as well as adequate amounts of supervised and supported time to complete tasks.  As another professor said, "teaching is not telling."  Teaching involves a variety of activities performed together and individually that create new experiences and knowledge for the student.

moral implications Students have the right to be free from fear when they are learning, which is not to say free of risk.  Teachers must create classroom cultures which allow students to feel safe enough in a learning environment to take risks necessary to learning.

Eileen's learning theory spread sheet