For this lesson we watched a couple of videos and answered some questions pertaining to the video. Even though the videos were about whales specifically, the concept of teaching whales is much like teahing students.
EDUC 2130 – Lesson 1 – Teachers and Teaching
Whale Done Questions:
Do you agree with the concepts described in the video? Why or why not?
I agree with all of the concepts that were described in the video. Although it was talking about whales, it went well with how to teach students as well. I never thought that you could compare a whale and a human and find similarities when teaching them, but we’re more alike than people think. While watching this video, I imagined the whales as my “students”. I imagined me being a teacher in a classroom full of students and every concept that the whale trainers described, it perfectly described how the students in the classroom should be taught too.
Which one do you agree with the most? Why?
To me each one of the concepts that were mentioned are important, but the one that stood out to me the most was how we should build relationships with our students, and doing this will motivate them to do their best, and what’s right. I chose this concept over the others because to me, this is what needs to be done from the very second your student walks in the door. As a teacher, your focus should be on your students at all times, it should be the teachers’ top priority in the classroom.
In general terms, how could you implement the concepts in your classroom? Provide specifics.
There were many concepts that were mentioned, and used, in the ‘Whale Done’ video. Such as be sincere and honest, have patience, accentuate the positive, positive change, know your students, have fun, praise your students for making progress, never focus on what’s wrong, focus on what’s being done correctly, redirection, and build trust. All of these concepts are important for a teacher to have, and to use in his or her classroom. To make sure all of these, or most, are being used, treat every student equal. A teacher should know their student's likes and dislikes. Classroom learning should be about learning and fun. We need to have patience with the children and praise them on their hard work, and motivate them to do better than the day before. A learning day should never be the same as the previous day. Change is always good, for the teacher, as well as the students. I would never want my students to get bored with learning. I would want to build trust and have relationships with my students, and this can be done by playing games with the whole class. Doing this will help not only me learn about the students, but the students learn about the others also. Being able to teach students and make a difference in their lives would be an amazing, and life changing.
How important to you is building trust and establishing relationships? Explain.
That’s the most important thing if you’re going to be a teacher. Because not only is a teacher there to teach you, but they are also there to be your friend and guide you. Students learn from teachers, not just through schoolwork, but also life lessons. Kids are in a classroom for eight hours a day and it’s the teachers’ job to help those students grow. Personally, I wouldn’t want a child to dread to come to my classroom every day, and for that not to happen you have to set the mood in the classroom and build that strong relationship with your students.
The video states that it is important to find out what motivates the individual whales. Would this be the same for your students? Why?
This is also the same for students. For a child to be able to learn, the teacher needs to figure out each individual student. We need to know what the student does and doesn’t like. Each child learns differently. There’s visual, auditory, verbal, social, physical, etc. and there’s going to be at least one child that learns each way. These different strategies are important for teachers to know because these will help us motivate our students to do their best. We have to be able to connect with our students and show them the best way for them to learn. We have to motivate them in the classroom, and the best way to do this is build that relationship with each of your students.
Do you think that it is important to keep things interesting for your students? How would you do this for your students?
Yes, it is very important to keep things interesting in the classroom or the students will grow bored and will never want to listen. To keep things interesting in the classroom, we wouldn’t do the same things every day. One day we could learn by watching videos and then having discussions. The next day, we could do hands on stuff, or maybe even go outside and have class. Switching things up every once in a while, or maybe at least twice a week, will keep the kids interested and tuned in to the lesson.
Describe “redirection” the best you can – you might have to do some research.
Redirection is a form of discipline. It is taking a child’s negative energy away from a situation and redirecting that child into another direction to change that negative energy into positive. This type of discipline can have a positive effect on a child’s mood. Children respond better with positive reinforcement than they do with negative. For example, if a young child is getting frustrated because they’re not able to draw a certain shape that they’ve been working on for twenty minutes, and they start throwing crayons and paper, instead of putting the child in time out or yelling at him/her, you take the child and ask them if they would like to go play with blocks. This is redirection. You took their negative energy and changed it into something positive.
http://preschoolers.about.com/od/parenttingglossary/g/redirection-child-discipline.htm
Summary
Watching the ‘Whale Done’ video made me realize how similar teaching whales and teaching students are. The whale trainers use the same aspects when teaching the whales as a teacher does when teaching their students. I learned more than I thought I could by watching the ‘Whale Done’ video. It made me understand more about what a teacher’s job is really about. Being a teacher is so much more than just teaching students, it’s about building relationships, building trust, being positive, and much more.
Research Question
What kind of effect do positive teacher-student relationships have on the students and the classroom environment?
Reference(s): http://www.academia.edu/234358/Teacher_experience_and_the_teacher-student_relationship_in_the_classroom_environment http://www.apa.org/education/k12/relationships.aspx
Research Analysis
Strong relationships between teachers and students create a positive environment and can improve a students test results. The learning process of the classroom depends on the positive output the teacher has with his/her students. If a teacher and a student are lacking a positive relationship, that student is less likely to make higher grades, and/or improve their current grades. Not only will these relationships improve grades, but will also improve the student's attitudes.
The relationships that students have with their teachers are long-lasting. Studies show that students who had a close relationship with their teachers in kindergarten were less likely to lack social skills in the middle school years, unlike the students who had more conflict with their teachers. These early positive relationships between teachers and their students showed early academic improvement, and less behavioral problems. Also, the students are less likely to avoid school and are more engaged in learning.
Research Summary
Over all, my findings have concluded what I thought before about teacher-student relationships. What I researched shows how important it is for teachers to build that relationship with their students and how much of an impact it could make on their lives. Creating those relationships with your students can change their outlook on school and their learning experiences. Not only could you change their lives, but the students could possibly change yours.