Learning Theories - Week 5 After Class

T2Ps from Week 4 work:

If ethnic minority students have realized that they are different from the white majority students but have not accepted or internalized that realization, then they may be distracted students. They might be distracted because, according the Phinney, such students would be in Stage 2 of her model and in that stage such a person could be confused and/or angry. This would be a distraction in the classroom and interrupt learning. Teachers can help students by being sensitive to the stage of development that a student may be in. The student has to move in to the next stage themselves (the teacher cannot do it for them) but recognizing what is motivating the student and what the issue may be, can keep the teacher from causing more harm or trying to deal with the student in an ineffective way.

If teachers treat learning as conditioned behavioral responses then, they could misinterpret student learning. Skinner believed that conditioned responses was all that learning was. Students who are respond based on cues may seem to know material but may not really understand it. This may mislead the teacher and the student. I will try to use conditioned behavior very minimally since I would like my students to understand the material and be able to become independent thinkers.

If teachers incorporate current cultural elements into the classroom instead of always insisting on more classical elements, then students may be more open to learning in the classroom because they can relate to the subject better. This can foster more trust between the student and teacher and overall lead to better cooperation and a better learning environment for the students. A teacher would have to be comfortable talking to students (i.e. Duncan-Andrade) since to really know what the students consider current, the teacher would have to observe or ask and not just decide for his or her self. This shows flexibility on the teacher's part which would hopefully be appreciated by the students.

I will try to be sensitive to students in my classes. Actively observe their behavior and be attune to any changes that they bring to school. This could help me understand why they react to something in my classroom in manner different than I would have predicted. I will also try to be flexible in that if there is a way to get the point across that the students relate to more than traditional methods, I will not stick to the old way of doing things.