Jenna Finke
This chapter was all about different types of teaching methods. I thought Rousseau’s thoughts were a little crazy! That kids just learn through curiosity and by themselves and any kind of instruction can interfere with their learning is not something I agree with. I think kids learn a little from the things that are around them but not everything. I liked the Idea of Fredrick Froebel. When he talked about the kids learning from playing and learning from one another I totally agree with. I think that kids learn off each other and so playing with another child can open their eyes to things they have never thought of before. Progressive education was really fun to read about but the more I read I realized that is exactly what they did to me when I was little. I was wondering if anyone else had that system used on them? I found if to be a good starting spot for learning but then I moved into more of the Senses and Systems by Montessori. I think this system was helpful for when I got older and could think and figure things out on my own. I believe it is important to work, and really push our students. Which one do you think is more important play, or the work we give the students? As I kept reading cognitive development from Piaget came up. I learned about that in my children’s phycology class. I found the concepts very interesting! I just always wondered about the formal operational. My professor explained to us that not everyone reaches this part in his or her lives. I want to know as teachers do you think that is true? Do you think you have reached that point? Do you think that every one of your students 11 and above could reach it, or from some it just isn’t possible? I think the one teaching strategy of balanced comprehensive approach was the most accurate. It says that it is a mix of all of the teaching methods and what is true for one child might not be the same for another. Which teaching method do you like most? Lastly there were the new teaching methods like No child left behind, race to the top, and common core standards that were used in schools the past 20 years. Do you think any strategy has worked?
Jenna,
ReplyDeleteI agree with alot of your points. Something that stood out to me was your belief in "pushing" students. You asked for opinions on the importance of play, and the work our students our given. Although each are equally important in my eyes, I think play is crucial for the development of a child. I want to teach Kindergarten, so I strongly believe in the need for students that young to get time to just be a child! Today, students as young as 5 and 6 are left with hardly any "free time." Education is becoming so competitive, that young students are getting overwhelmed with material that teachers have no choice but to teach them. I think for Kindergarten especially, students should be allowed more time to just play. My mom is a Kindergarten teacher, so I have witnessed their lack of play time first hand. Although I think pushing students is necessary at times, the benefits they receive from playing are so much more important.
Couldn't agree more! I think there is a balance you need to maintain in your classroom, with pushing your students but still giving them the freedom to become their own person and interact with fellow classmates! But thanks for your comment and I agree with all your points!
DeleteWhen we started homeschooling with our oldest (who is now 19) I followed Rousseau's advice. After all, this is what had been working for the previous 6 years, right. Quickly learned that both of us needed structure. I like using the "natural unfolding" as the book calls it. Yes children do need some structure in the classroom, especially if not having it at home, but they need time to be children and to quote a some what famous teacher, "get messy, make mistakes." Pushing students at times is necessary, however, if pushed to hard, to soon, it may cause problems that will or will not heal. I think evaluating the student and challenging them with-in their limits is great. But needing to be careful not to over do it.
ReplyDeleteAgreed! Same with Maddy's comment! I believe that you need a good balance between the two things! Freedom is a great thing and if teaches the students to stand on their own feet and really learn things on their own and with their peers! I don't really know much from a home schooling point of view but I think you have a lot of valid points!
DeleteGreat post! I do agree Rousseau’s approach was a little off to me as well. I think teachers are important, I mean I would not being doing this if I did not think so! I like how you mention children learning from each other. I think children learn from each other just as much if not more than from the teacher. I think it is interesting you say that you moved into the Montessori approach growing up. How do you think this influenced your learning? I am a believer in both play and work. It is hard for me to decide which is more important. I think play encourages creativity, which is important for life, and then I believe children should be pushed to work hard at a young age so that they will grow up and be successful. I do not think I can say which is more important to me.
ReplyDeleteI agree! I think that it was fine for me! I believe that when I was younger I got more free time and got to become my own person but then when I got older I needed to start managing my time and understanding I can't just do what I want. I think that you need that balance in your classroom and that you need to understand your students.
DeleteDear Jenna,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your first blog post. I do not agree with Rousseau’s approach either. I believe that there has to be a balance of teacher and student together. I disagree about your statement that “kids learn a little from the things that are around them but not everything.” I believe that kids can learn from everything that is around them. Every experience, sensation, opportunity, and place is a learning opportunity. I also agree that children learn off of one another. What one child knows can be passed onto another child and so on. I did attend a progressive school so I do understand what you are talking about. I agree with your statement about work ethic and pushing students, however, they should only be pushed to a certain extent and in a healthy, positive way. I believe that work and play should be balanced and used together, not separated and chosen from. I believe that the best learning experiences come from work and play because you are getting the best of both worlds by using them together- a child has a structured outlet and a child has a play outlet. As a future teacher, I think the answer is impossible to find out. Everyone is different and at different levels in their lives. There are also possibilities of change that come into play with that. Personally, I think I have reached that stage because I am able to think at a higher level and think abstractly. I think it depends on the person and their education level. I think it is possible to reach, but not everyone will reach it because to me, it is a personal choice. A person chooses to think abstractly or at a higher level. You can tell a child what to think but you cannot make them think a certain thing. I like Dewey’s approach the best because it involves children’s interests with learning. I believe that strategies have worked, but not all of them permanently fix the problems in education. I do not think that any one strategy will solve every problem in the system. There will always be problems, just like there are always new strategies thought up to fix them. Thank you for an enjoyable post.
I agree with a lot of your points. When I said that statement I meant more like they learn a lot from the outside world but they also need to know the books too. They need to have common sense but also need knowledge about their history to be a well rounded person! I also agree with your statement you must be careful in the classroom not to push your kids too far which I didn't make clear. I think kids learn in all different ways and that is one of the struggles of teaching but it also makes our job fun! Thanks for your response!
DeleteJenna,
ReplyDeleteI liked how honest you were about your feelings on Rousseau’s thoughts on education. I think that kids do learn through curiosity and by themselves to an extent but think that instruction is still needed in order to really further a child’s education. I also liked Froebel’s ideas when he talked about children leaning from one another. I also think that children can benefit from collaborative learning socially, mentally, and, emotional which is a positive aspect. When you asked the question about whether play or the work is more important I think that it is a little bit of both. But if we were just talking about the younger grades I think that play and creativity is a very important aspect of leaning for children. When it comes to the second question that you asked I think that Paget’s ideas can be very relevant and real but I do not necessarily believe that each and every one of his stages is 100% accurate especially his formal operational stage considering he mostly worked with children. I do think that we have to go in to teaching thinking that we can help each and everyone one of our students reach whatever stage they need to reach in life and it is our job to do everything that we can to help them reach that goal or stage. I really liked a variety of the teaching methods talked about in this chapter and think that I can use some of these ideas in different ways in my future classroom.
Your post was very insightful and I appreciate all the answers to my questions! I think playing is such an important part of learning. I love that you commented on Paget's ideas! His theory is the most interesting to me. I agree with your last statement I think that each learning style had its positives and negatives but together they really help in the classroom!
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