Module 1

     In chapter 1 of Education Psychology we are presented with some eye opening statistics about population diversity  in the classroom. It is said that by 2044, there won't be any majority race in the United States. Every American will belong to a minority group by 2044 and by 2060 around 30% of the population will be Hispanic. In the reading of chapter 1,the importance of effective teachers' is emphasized. The reading states that "the quality of the teacher made a difference:Students who had three high-quality teachers in a row were way ahead of peers who spent one or more years with less-competent teachers."(p.25)
     I completely embrace the ideas presented in chapter 1. I have personally encounter such ideas as a student but more recently as a mother .I have experience a challenging school year with my daughter, who is currently about to finish 1st grade. My daughter started preschool at age 3, therefore she had 2 years of preschool. My daughter was enrolled in an English classroom for both of her preschool years.My daughter learned all her basics only in English. During the summer, before starting Kindergarten, we relocated neighborhoods. All my kids had to transfer into a new school and I decided for my daughter to be moved into a dual-language classroom.The program started children with 90% Spanish and 10% English. English was only conversational. I was aware that my daughter would have a challenging year because she was only proficient in English and her Spanish was only used to have conversations with family but not an academical Spanish. I enrolled her in the dual language program because I truly believe that it would be beneficial. Kindergarten was very challenging for my daughter for she had to re-learn all her preschool material but in Spanish. Kindergarten was challenging but she was blessed with a tremendous high-quality teacher who constantly encouraged her and accommodate her learning by differentiating her teaching towards my daughter. My daughter ended her kindergarten year strong and was student of the month for two consecutive months. When my daughter started her 1st grade, she was still not on a 1st grade level for reading or writing, and needed extra support. I had a parent-teacher conference that I requested to better aid my daughter and let her current teacher know the situation. First grade was way more challenging than I would of imagine because the teacher was not supporting or encouraging. My daughter was so discourage that she lost interest in school and would cry to stay home. I had numerous parent-teacher conferences that I requested because of my concerns. Her 1st grade school years is almost over and I have to say that she has made much progress and is able to read and write in Spanish. It was a  challenging school year for my daughter and myself because the teacher would not make any accommodations or differentiation to support her learning. The teacher would only say"Just practice reading", maybe that was her true advice. I felt she could of guided me more and be more encouraging towards my daughters small-daily accomplishments, instead of constantly pointing out how behind she was on reading in Spanish.
      I truly believe that our actions and attitudes as educators have a tremendous impact on our students. We as educators decide how to impact our students. It should be our goal to impact our students positively and to bombard them with enthusiasm and constant encouragement.

Comments

  1. Jaquelyn MontanteJune 18, 2019 at 7:36 PM

    Guadalupe,
    I absolutely loved reading your post about your daughter! It really hit home with the first chapter especially in the opening paragraph where it explained how more diverse United States is projected to become. I work in a Pre-k building for my school district and our instruction is in English however, we always talk to the students in Spanish and English. Some students come in with only speaking Spanish and our teachers do not know much Spanish, so it is up to us aides in the classroom to pitch in with those students. Those students won’t be able to get a into a dual language classroom until kindergarten (much like your daughter) but parents will have the option to continue dual language for their child until 6th grade.
    I like how you decided to help your daughter with learning two languages. It is challenging, but I would rather my child learn the language early on than later like in high school where it might be too late. I hate that her 1st grade teacher didn’t try to help your daughter as much as she could have. I am a mother too and when I work with my students, I always try to give them my absolute best and help in any way I could because I would want my daughter’s future teacher to do the same for my own daughter too. I’m glad that she ended the school year strong. She will face many obstacles in school, but with a mother like you on her side, she will never feel alone. Great connection with the chapter!

    ReplyDelete
  2. GENEVIEVE R.June 19, 2019 at 9:53 PM

    Hey Guadalupe,

    Thank you for sharing your story about your daughter and your experiences you encountered with her. In a way I found it upsetting towards the end of your story on how your daughters teacher reacted. The fact she didn't provide or look into any extra methods of support is super frustrating. As a parent you want to help your child to achieve and be the best version of themselves but when you don't have that support from the teacher/ school it's very hard.. When reading your story I couldn't help but compare this to a student who is a english language learner. It had me thinking how english language learners who may not succeed as great as students who are native english speakers. A lot of kids may not have the support they need to achieve in their academics due to that language barrier. In general I believe our school systems need to better improve their supports with ELL and other students. The fact because we aren't as equipped isn't the students fault. Over all, i'm glad your daughter was able to do well and progressed in spanish as well as writwi

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Module 4

This week's readings were on chapters 9, 10 and 11. Chapter 9 focuses on "complex cognitive processes" in regards to metacognition, problem solving, critical thinking,learning strategies, teaching for complex and transfer learning. Chapter 10 introduced  topics such as constrictuvism, learning environments, collaboration and cooperation along with designing adequate learning environments that embrace constructiveness practice. Chapter 11 gave us an introduction to wonderful topics such as the social cognitive theory, modeling as a result of observing,  and self regulating skills and theories. Chapter 10 introduces various forms of technology that can be integrated in the classroom setting to maximize learning time. For example an educator can  created a lesson and take advantage of the Flipped classroom strategy. Educators can make usage of pictures to better explain concepts to the young learners. in a flipped learning strategy, one has to stated the learning objecti...
Read more

Module 3

During this weeks readings  in chapter 7 and 13, we were introduced to classroom management and one of its most challenging components: behavior management. Making connections I was able to reflect on the importance of classroom management. during my reflection I made connections with a teacher I had as a child. There was a specific teacher that impacted me in a   positive way, her name was Mrs. Lopez and she was my fifth grade teacher. When I first enrolled in school as a kindergarten student, I was placed in a traditional bilingual classroom. The goal of the program was to prepare me to be transitioned into a monolingual  classroom. During my enrollment in the bilingual program I recall my teachers speaking and teaching mostly in Spanish, rarely using English. Our textbooks were in English which meant that all the academic language we acquired was in English. As a child, these diverse uses of English and Spanish in my classroom space were confusing. I was being taught...
Read more

MY VIEW ON EDUCATION

        “Teach young people early on that in diversity there is beauty and there is strength” Maya Angelou. Sensitivity towards diversity as a teacher is  necessary and essential, in order for effective connection to take place between the teacher and the students. Diversity in teaching  can be very broad. It includes but is not limited to gender, age, special needs, social status, sexual preference and ethnic background. An educator who is well informed and sensible will intend to make students feel the  empowerment,and gain self-assurance of their persona while giving a sense of belonging and acceptance regardless of any labels given by society. Children should be able to enjoy education, but in order for this to take place a child must first be able to see themselves in the classroom as part of it. Children must be able to see their own story been taken into consideration within a classroom in order to connect, enjoy and feel understood.   ...
Read more