Things I have Learned in Ed 107

I feel like during the past class period I have gained a much better understanding of the practical applications regarding some of these theories (especially Developmental Learning Theory). Over the past few weeks of our Learning and Assessment class I have started to see that being a “good teacher” is so much more than just standing in front of a classroom and spitting out information. Secondary Teachers are given the huge responsibility of somehow teaching a group of (probably unmotivated) students about math, science, Spanish, (or whatever subject) all the while dealing with classroom management and relationships with coworkers and students. Instead of being overwhelmed by this, I want to look at this task as a challenge; I want my students to be able to look back as see how much they have learned when they exit my classroom for the last time. As teachers we will be given specific curriculum from the school, but we are given quite a bit freedom in how we personally run our classroom. I want my teaching to be continuously informed by these teaching strategies. It makes sense that everything I do in the classroom should have a very specific purpose that relates to the vision of where I want the students to be at the end of the year. Therefore the way I teach should be informed by the different ideas that come along with the theories we have learned in class.

I believe that I have already used many of these theories without even realizing it; I just haven’t put the labels on my actions. In class when we drew the pencil from the different viewpoints I subconsciously used DLT by turning my body position to have a more concrete visualization of what the pencil would look like from the particular “abstract” angle. I think by labeling these theories there may be confusion at first because as humans we like things to cut and dry or very definitive. These theories have a lot of gray area, partly because they are not methods of teaching. However, I do believe it is very beneficial that we understand how these theories can maximize the potential of our teaching.

Yesterday we learned about the Social Learning theory, one part of this theory focuses on the “more knowledgeable peer”; this was a very important role during my grade school years. I think it’s good to note that more knowledgeable peer is always rotating. This peer could be the teacher or it could be an advanced or experienced student. I can look back at times when I was the more knowledgeable peer. There were subjects like math and geography that students would come to me with questions, while other subjects like English spelling and science that I would get help from other students. Sometimes this help would even come questions that the student would ask in front of the class, because often times to ask an intelligent question you have to partially understand the material. I’m looking forward to learning more about the Social Learning Theory.