Thursday, August 29, 2013
5 comments:
Add to blog in a sincere and thoughtful manner. You may provide outside links for classmates, photos, music, reflections on class experiences, and more as long as these postings are directly tied to either my posted prompt AND/OR class topics/readings. The language may be informal "blog lingo" as long as your efforts are sincere and well tied to our purpose with the course.
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When students are able to actually learn in schools they have purpose for being there. When the student has a feeling of purpose for why they are at school, it becomes much more relevant and meaningful for them. Keeping lessons interesting and engaging for students fosters a healthy and productive learning environment that can make school that much more important to students. In agricultural education classes, curriculum is often based on skills that will be used outside of high school and later on in vocational applications. Students often are able to recognize the practicality of this type of education and can really appreciate their learning opportunity.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jennifer. If students aren't engaged, they don't feel a connection to the school. Schools a community focused on academics and other activities such as sports, clubs, etc. If a student is engaged in none of the activities that schools put on, including learning, then they may feel like they have no purpose in attending every day. By being engaged in learning, they feel like their time is being used well.
ReplyDeleteAlso, knowledge is power. If a student feels like they have no knowledge, they might feel like school is a place where they feel powerless. If they feel powerless, why participate? It's our job as educators to empower our students, which means imparting knowledge in a way that they can retain it.
I agree with both Jenny and Lizzie. To add on to the conversation, I think that it is important for teachers to acquire a student-teacher relationship with each student because it shows the student that someone cares for the student personally and academically. I was born and raised in a community smothered in gangs, drugs, and violence and I was expected to conform with my surroundings due to the trend in my family that all males engage in those activities. There was little hope that I would engage in something other than gangs. I started to believe that myself so I decided not to engage in any part of school. My grades were low and I felt disconnected from school. But in seventh grade, my teacher told me that I should become a doctor after I graduated from college. She believed in my intellectual abilities which motivated me to succeed in school. My grades were rising and I started to engage in extracurricular activities such as sports. So, I believe that forming a student-teacher relationship is vital to inspiring students to learn especially those who feel little connection to school.
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ReplyDeleteHannah Slominski
ReplyDeleteI think life's affirmations come from those 'Ah-ha' moments when an individual figures a problem out or they gain full understanding of the subject. School can be a great environment for this because the student is surrounded by his peers and supportive persons who can make that 'ah-ha' moment great. School has the capability to stimulate those 'ah-ha' moments by drawing from the student's interests. On the first day, a student falling asleep is his expression of himself, whether he is tired or bored his actions speak more of the teacher's actions then his own. By drawing on the student's interests they can't help but become involved. This is the first step of helping a student connect with his learning. Also, aiding to his learning style helps the student feel connected to his learning. Lastly, lessons that help students be successful in the real world stimulates interests within the student. For example, a social students teacher gave around a list of tasks adults should be able to complete in order to 'survive'. They include; getting a loan for a car/ house, getting someone out of jail, who to call if you have a flat tire, change a flat tire. Most of the items a student did not know. This list was not meant to scare or discourage students but to make them realize how different high school is to the working world.
I believe students will become connected to their learning through interests and real-life application.