My Classroom Environment

Reflection
I was asked to produce an artifact showing my classroom environment using images, sound, and limited text. I've written various papers and other literature about my environment before, but using images was new to me.  Instead of just writing my points down, I had to think through the eyes of the viewer. I had to think about what images popped into my head when I thought about certain words. This was a lot of fun for me to think about (once I got on a roll) especially being a kindergarten teacher. Many of my students come in with little to no english. We have to communicate through motions, sounds, and pictures. How very appropriate for me to be in the opposite roll, trying to help others understand my point.  Even later in the year, kindergarteners write many stories using only pictures to show their stories. 

After completing the above graphic, I began to think about how might my students represent their knowledge in different ways. I used graphics that included some words in some instances.  If it were my students, this entire graphic would be pictures. I think I will use this activity next year with my kindergarteners. I could ask them to explain a word on a poster, maybe using only magazine pictures or pictures they draw. 

My own research- how child development plays into using technology in the classroom

       I am currently working on my Master's degree in Elementary Education with a focus in Education Technology. In another course, we are talking about digital literacy. This week we were asked to consider some possible downsides when using technology. While researching, it was interesting to see how much connected with the child development course I am also taking.  I am currently planning a digital storytelling unit for my summer school kindergarten students, so I did some researching.  Story telling and story time is used daily in a kindergarten classroom. Unfortunately, the older children get, the more teachers forget the power of stories. “Although story time is a staple in early childhood education, one rarely observes learners above the fourth grade engaged in a storytelling activity, which is in direct conflict with theorists in education who tout story as a primary tool in learning and memory  (Banaszeqski, 2005).” One of my kindergarten team members is moving to a 3^rd grade classroom next year. She tried to bring me all of her books after the last day of school. I tried to tell her that 3^rd graders still enjoy read alouds, and that she can use them with her new students. It took a few other teachers to hear what was going on to convince her to keep the books. Just because a student can read, doesn’t mean they forget the love of picture books. 

       Through my research, I found that when working with kindergarten students, one has to be very carful when scaffolding learning with technology. I am a huge technology user, so I am constantly looking for new technology to use with my children in my classroom. But is using all that technology always beneficial for 5 and 6 year olds? When planning the scaffolding for 5 and 6 year olds, It is important to keep in mind that most have never touched a computer before. I teach in a very poverty stricken school district, so it’s a little easier for me to plan out lessons with technology, since little to no students have had experiences before.

       Before looking at the child development side to educational technology, I had never before thought about scaffolding limiting growth, or scaffolding TOO much. I always thought scaffolding was a great thing, and as teachers, we must scaffold as much as possible. Dalton had a different point to make. “Successful learning depends on customization, and scaffolding is essential to making it work for each child. However, scaffolding can limit growth and actually cause students to disengage if it is too constraining or if there is no progression toward increasing independence. For example, I may start with an activity that is highly constrained, yet still offers creative choices around the skill that is the focus of the lesson (Dalton p13).” Of course we can lose our children’s interest! Why have I never thought of this before? I have never lost a child’s interest from introducing too much technology at one time. But I have lost interest from not allowing them enough creativity. “When products start to look the same or students lose their creative energy, it’s a sign that there may be too much scaffolding (Dalton p13).” It’s always a hard thing for teachers to give up control, I find. I remember in my first year of teaching three years ago, I had to constantly remind myself that my kindergarteners could do things themselves. I need to continue to remind myself of this while using technology. 

       I am very much looking forward to using technology in a way that is productive for my student's development next year.  I will be careful not to push too hard with using technology. Just like with anything else with children, we must first make sure they are ready, so as not to turn them off from a specific activity too early. Most of the students I will have are from families that cannot afford technology in their homes. Looking at their developmental level while planning the lesson's scaffolding will lead to successful learning in my classroom 

Dalton, B. (2012). Multimodal Composition and the Common Core State Standards. The Reading Teacher, 66(4), 333-339.

Morgan, H. (2012). Technology in the Classroom: Creating Videos Can Lead Students to Many Academic Benefits. Childhood Education, 89(1), 51-53.

Competitive Academics and Social Development

Do you remember being in a Spelling bee? I sure do. I was a HORRIBLE speller, and never made it to the school spelling bee. I can tell you that I still get knots in my stomach thinking about it now as a 25 year old. I remember one instance in particular. I was in 4th grade, and we were doing some spelling "around the world" to see who the winner of our class was. The winner of each class would then get to stand up in front of the school and compete to be the spelling bee winner of the entire school. It was round one in our classroom, and I missed up the very first word. Everyone laughed at me, and I was incredibly embarrassed and down. I'm sure no one else remembers me missing the first word, but to this day I still will not spell a word for someone needing help.  Spelling bees are competitive  and T& Johnson explain it perfectly : "An interpersonal, competitive situation is characterized by negative goal interdependence, where, when one person wins, the others lose. T & Johnson, p 280)." Negative goal interdependence happened with lots of things when I was in school. Spelling bees, around the world, math facts, I could go on and on. Each of those activities, to this day, make me cringe. I have adapted my teaching style around this, in fact. I never teach in a way that negatively effects any of my students. I want them to learn, but I refuse to distrees any of my students while they are learning. In my opinion, the learning environment should be a positive one. 

In an article from Queen's University, the author talks about team sports helping children become successful. The article discusses how being with a team gives children all sorts of positive benefits. "Coaches who were able to help children improve against their own benchmarks rather than focusing on comparison with others, and who provided challenging, innovative practices also helped foster an environment in which young players displayed initiative and motivation (Queens, p1)."The key in that statement, however, is that the coach is focusing on the player, not comparing the players. In a sport, each child or person's skills matter. Each person works on their skills to improve, which then helps the entire team. Players on the team work together to make the team better. In my experience, the coaches who brought out the most where the ones who looked at the team as a whole, instead of it's parts. 

To look at the other side of this argument, competition creates students that will work hard to achieve something. It seems like more and more in sports, children are given awards even if they didn't "win" something. I've heard of organizations giving participation awards to every player, or even not keeping score of a game. While I don't believe all competition has a place in school, I do think it is important to teach children that we are not all winners, and we will not always win. If our society continues to do this, we will be creating people that are motivated not by being better, but by simply participating. Would we want a pilot flying a plane that wasn't good at it, but he/she tried? Absolutely not. We have to continually practice and work very hard, and even then, we still might not win or be the best.  But it's fun to try! We must instill the drive to become better, but the knowledge that we are not all the best at everything. 

In looking at how to improve certain activities to promote a better environment for competition, I think simple changes can make a very big difference. For instance, when looking at a spelling bee, one could change the competition from single players to a group atmosphere. Groups must work together to outsmart the other team. 

Sources 

Belfield, C. R., & Levin, H. M. (2002). The effects of competition between schools on educational outcomes: A review for the United States. Review of Educational research, 72(2), 279-341.

Roger, T., & Johnson, D. W. (1988). Cooperative Learning. Transforming Education.

Queen's University (2011, July 20). Team sports: For kids, it's more than just a game. ScienceDaily.