Module 1 Activity 4: Behaviourism

I learned several lessons during this activity, some of which are listed below.

• Learners should always be provided with a clear description of the behaviours that are expected of them and the results or consequences of following these behaviours.
• Teachers will have to implement strategies to effectively manage learner behaviour in the classroom.
• Teachers must offer praise and encouragement regularly.
• Teachers will need to monitor learners' progress in order to determine the effectiveness of reinforcement on learners' behaviour.
• Teachers should model the behaviours that they expect children to display.
• However, I think that the quote below best summarizes the most powerful lesson that I learned during this activity which is, that children learn what they live.

                           " Children learn what they live" 
If a child lives with criticism, he learns to condemn.  If  a child lives with hostility, he learns to fight.  If a child lives with ridicule, he learns to be shy.  If a child lives with jealously, he learns to feel guilty.  If a child lives with impropriety, he learns to feel shame.  If a child lives with tolerance, he learns to be patient.  If a child lives with encouragement, he learns confidence.  If a child lives with praise, he learns to appreciate.  If a child lives with fairness, he learns justice.  If a child lives with security, he learns to have faith.  If a child lives with approval, he learns to like himself.  If a child lives with acceptance and friendship, he learns to find love in the world.  With what is your child living?                                                    Author: Dorothy Law Neite

Activity 3

This reading is a timely reminder that students learn in different ways even when responding to the same environmental stimuli.   Consequently, teachers need to plan strategies that will cater for the various learning styles of their learners.  Teachers should also analyze the learning situation and formulate learning plans and appropriate learning tactics that will help students to acquire the necessary concepts.  

In addition, teachers also need to remind students that they must develop their own learning strategies and tactics which they must put in use if they are to be successful learners. Teachers will need also to have in place strategies to monitor learning and after monitoring and analysis these strategies, the teacher must be prepared to make the necessary adjustments to those strategies that are not working as was expected.

1-1 Activity 1

From very early in life, as far back as I can remember, I wanted to be a teacher.  I learnt to read very early and I ‘devoured books’. Reading was my greatest pleasure. However, when I actually began my teaching career, I was appalled at the fact that there were so many children who were unable to read. This was so astounding to me because of the fact that I cannot remember the time when I could not read. Not only that, I wondered how I would be able to get these children learning.

In addition, not having any prior training before I entered the classroom, I did not know any other way to teach than how I was taught, so that’s exactly what I did. At that time, I was of the view that students were ‘vessels’ waiting to have knowledge poured into them by the teacher. I was also very fearful as to whether or not I would be able to accomplish the task of getting my students to learn to read as well as all the things that I had to teach them. The curriculum as well, was very vague and some of the topics were so limited and foreign to me that I actually had to research them. I can well recall a Social Studies topic about the Kon-Tiki expedition (whatever that is.)

My shift to the new paradigm of teaching and learning began when I became a student of the local teachers' training college. It was then that theories of learning were brought to my attention which awakened me to the realization that children are responsible for their own learning and the teacher is more a guide and facilitator to help the children to build on the knowledge which they already possess. I also began to learn the value of collaboration in the teaching learning process and how teachers can better help their students when they use ideas gleaned from colleagues, in addition to their own.

1-1 Activity 2

The reading for this activity has provided a stark reminder of how we, as teachers need to be constantly aware of how we are impacting our students' acquisition of knowledge and skills by the way we teach them.  It has helped to remind me that learners differ in the cognition process and hence they have to be taught differently.  However, it is necessary and important that all students become active learners and not passive receivers of information 'doled' out by the teacher. Learning therefore, must not only be meaningful, but it must be fun while at the same time stimulating and challenging the mental processes of the learner.  I think that this should be the goal of all teaching.

Activity 0

Activity 0

ccti-1-1_Learning, Teaching and Thinking with ICT

and ccti-4-1 Assessing ICT Integration

Hello All:

I am Joycelyn Henry, a school principal at a primary school on the southern coast of the Caribbean island of Antigua. I found the last course truly challenging, but I also had a lot of fun learning new things about using technology in teaching and learning. I also enjoyed interacting with the groups and hope that we can have the same kind of rapport in this course.
My blog address is http://joyhen.blogspot.com/

Healing the The Human Body

Discussion

The human body is fearfully and wonderfully made.  However, sometimes we fall ill.  We go to the doctor and conventiional medicines just seem not to be providing a cure.  There is a suggestion that alternative medicine should be tried.  What are your views on the use of alternative medicine as oppposed to conventional medicine?

Alternative medicine (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

Alternative medicine
is any practice claiming to heal "that does not fall within the realm of conventional medicine."^[1] It may be based on historical or cultural traditions, rather than on scientific evidence.

Click the link to visit my wiki
http://joycelynhenry.wikispaces.com/

Check out my questionnaire on the human body and see if you can answer the questions.  Click on the https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dEZtZHBwZ0EyaE8ySGoxZ2w1WHYyaGc6MQ link to access the questionnaire.

Please click on this link to add your ideas to my collaborative document.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zpzpToshjQsrfweylxcKOkilqjhryq5QdnrR32xd9Hg/edit