Most Valuable Topics
One of the most valuable learning tools we have in this class would be the Flipgrid discussions. The topic of the discussion that I was most engaged in was the topic learned helplessness. I learned how learned helplessness is something that can easily promoted. I really enjoy these discussions because online courses don’t usually have these kinds of opportunities to interact with your classmates. While I was watching videos of my classmates, I thought some of them had really good ideas or went in depth more about some things I did not understand. I also enjoyed when my classmates would comment on my videos whether they agreed with me or not I felt like my post in a way started a discussion that was meaningful. These new perspectives got me thinking about topics in a way that I had not before.
Another topic I thought was valuable was the topic of intercultural competency. With this topic came the annotated bibliography. At first, I didn’t see the value in the activity, but as I worked through this assignment, I realized this was a valuable assignment. I learned a lot through this assignment such as many tactics that can be used in the classroom to develop intercultural competency in students. There was a video that I used as a source where real teachers spoke about their experiences with the topic. I liked this because hearing from the teachers about their experiences showed the effectiveness of various strategies in the classroom. There were many different strategies that I learned about that I or any other teacher could implement in their classroom and this is why I think this assignment was so valuable.
A topic I felt very engaged in was the chapter three reading where personal and social development was covered. As I was reading this chapter, I kept on thinking about myself. This was especially true in the part where the chapter focuses on the child’s culture and how that has an influence on the child development. Some things it influences are their morals and what they value. The part that stuck with me the most was where it said in some cultures, education isn’t valued as much as other things and I could definitely see that in my family. I also enjoyed the video you had shared about Kohlberg’s moral development theory, because as a kid in elementary school I think we did something similar to the activity in the video.
Concepts That Could be Improved
One concept I had a hard time understand was Piaget’s and Vygotsky’s theories of cognitive development. I did all the reading and the extra optional readings and still did not feel like I had a good understanding of the theories. The discussions about it made the subject even more confusing because when I read someone’s post that had a similar understanding that I did, someone else would comment on their post saying that they disagreed with them. There was one resource that you had provided that did help me gain a better of understanding and that was the PowerPoint you had provided.
Another concept I wish was talked about more is ” classroom management “. It was something that was briefly covered in a module but I would want more information on the this subject. I’m really interested in real world examples of effective classroom techniques as I feel like this is one of the most important skills a teacher should have. I would be interested to see from a psychology standpoint how effective different classroom strategies could be.
Additional Curiosities
One things that I would like to learn more about is how to avoid contributing to learned helplessness in the classroom. While we learned about what learned helplessness was, we were not given any strategies for how to avoid it. Because this is such a big issue in today’s education system, I feel that this knowledge would be very valuable. I would also like some strategies for addressing the issue. If someone already has learned helplessness, I want to know what I can do as an educator to get rid of the learned helplessness and make students more self-sufficient in the classroom.
References
Bankhofer, A., & Hummer, E. (2016, December 14). How can you develop your students’ intercultural competence? YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTASxcWY8mc
My First Years Preschool. (2023, January 26). Multicultural Classroom Environment Enhances Student Knowledge. https://myfirstyearspreschool.com/multicultural-classroom-environment-enhances-student-knowledge/
Xgonzalez. (2016, December 12). Should you work while attending massage school?. Massage Study Buddy. https://www.massagestudybuddy.com/should-you-work-while-attending-massage-school
Hi Julian! I agree with you on the importance of classroom management and would also love to learn more about it. I’ve been a parent for 23 yrs. and a teacher assistant for 2 yrs. and it doesn’t come naturally to me. I also agree that I’d like to learn more about how to avoid learned helplessness, as that might be a more natural bend for teachers, since it’s a profession of big hearts. Great job and best wishes to you on your second half of the course!