Module 3

Module 3: Behavioral Views of Learning, Learning Environments, Classroom Management, Competition

Concept 1: Types of Consequences  

Summary

As I read through chapter 7, there were a few different things that stood out. One of which was the different types of consequences. I normally thought that consequences were only negative. But Woolfolk described that there are also positive consequences as well, known as reinforcers. “A reinforcer is any consequence that strengthens the behavior it follows” (Woolfolk 257). Woolfolk described that there were two types of reinforcers, both positive and negative reinforcers, or consequences to behaviors. There are types of positive consequences that lead to certain types of things that follow a positive behavior. Woolfolk gave great examples of consequences that reinforce behavior such as stickers, awards, choice time, free seating, and praise to encourage that behavior to continue. However, although there are positive consequences, there are also ones that are not so pleasing. As Woolfolk describes, “Punishment, on the other hand, involves decreasing or suppressing behavior. A behavior followed by a punisher is less likely to be repeated in similar situations in the future” (Woolfolk 258). These types of consequences can lead teachers to give more homework, run extra laps, and loss of privileges, to provide some examples. This is to try and reduce that behavior from happening again. Woolfolk described many different types of consequences and different examples of what teachers can do in the classroom to either promote or reduce certain student behaviors.

Reflection

Consequences are not something that I thought about when thinking about classrooms. When I think about consequences, I normally think about that in regard to parents and their child, not teachers and students. But as I read on, a lot of the examples that were provided made a lot of sense. In my school experience, I have had teachers that “punished” the whole class if we were behaving badly that day. Some examples that I remember from grade school is losing minutes of our recess in which we had to put our heads down on our desks and wait. I have also had teachers in middle school who have added homework to the night’s assignment if they did not appreciate how we were acting. But on the other hand, I have also had teachers who give positive reinforcers. Some teachers in my past have taken away homework assignments or did not assign homework for the night because they appreciated how we were acting. I have also had teachers, in grade school, that gave my class extra recess as a reward for something that we did collectively as a whole group.

As I processed these types of information, I thought that positive and negative reinforcers made a lot of sense and helped students learn the consequences of their actions. I do not think that using reinforcers are a bad thing to do as a teacher, but I also think that there should be limitations. I do not think that the whole class should be punished for one student’s actions, and I do not think that students should be called out on if they do something bad. I think that those types of situations can have a negative impact on students and that is not something that teachers want for their students. They want students to understand the positive and negatives of their actions.

Concept 2: Self-Management

Summary

            There was a lot of interesting ideas that went on in chapter 7 regarding self-management. A lot of what Woolfolk was talking about relied on different ideas that different psychologists and educators talk about. Some people think that self-learning and management are good things for students to do while there are some that think that it is an awful idea for students to rely on themselves. “…that the responsibility and the ability to learn rest within the student. Students must be active – no one can learn for someone else” (Woolfolk 276). However, self-management is not just about self-learning, a lot of other concepts are involved. Chapter 7 talks about goal-setting, evaluating progress, and self-reinforcement are all under an umbrella of self-management. Woolfolk mentioned an interesting statistic about goal-setting. “Students who set goals and announced them to the experimenters performed significantly better on tests covering the material they were studying than students who set goals privately and never revealed them to anyone” (Woolfolk 277).  This was an interesting fact that was included to help reinforce the idea that self-management is a great factor in student success, simply by setting goals and telling others about them. Woolfolk also provided great examples of self-progress monitoring. “Some examples of behaviors that are appropriate for self-monitoring are the number of assignments completed, time spent practicing a skill, number of books read, number of problems correct, and time taken to run a mile. Tasks that must be accomplished without teacher supervison, such as homework or private study, are also good candidates for self-monitoring” (Woolfolk 277). These are all great examples that Woolfolk described for self-management. As for self-reinforcement, there was mention that this may not be necessary. The fact that students can self-monitor their progress can be enough reinforcement, but others said that reinforcement could lead to higher academic progress. Self-management was an interesting topic and there are many different things that could help students in succeed in school, simply by setting goals, getting tasks accomplished, and reinforcement.

Reflection

            I thought that this concept was interesting because there are so many different aspects that follow self-management. One area in which I was particularly interested in what the idea of goal setting. All of my life, I have had teachers ask their students to set goals, and I never really found them useful. In fact, I really hated writing down goals in school because a teacher asked me too. However, I thought that the fact that was included in this chapter was shocking. Just because I always thought that goals were silly, it in fact, helped a lot of students succeed in school. I also found that monitoring one’s own progress was interesting because it is quite simple to do. A lot of the examples provided are tasks that I have always done to keep track of my progress in school. I found that these tasks were quite simple to keep track of and I was surprised at how easy monitoring oneself is. I realized that I have always had self-management skills and it made me proud that I did those things without knowing it. As for self-reinforcemnt, I would have to go the route that says it is okay. I do not necessarily think that it makes for higher student achievement, but I think that self-reinforcement can help encourage oneself to keep moving forward with hard work.

            I believe that self-management is important for teachers to have as a lot of different things will go on within a school day. I also think that it is important for teachers to help students distinguish their own self-management by allowing students to set goals (even if they think it is silly), monitor their own progress, and reinforce themselves by good deeds and task that they have accomplished.

Concept 3: Goals for Classroom and Management

Summary

            In chapter 13 of Woolfolk, she talked a lot about how to make learning in the classroom a more enjoyable experience. To do that, one major idea that she talked about was how to maintain and have appropriate classroom management. Woolfolk gave different goals for teachers to use to help management in the classroom. Something that Woolfolk gave great insight to be that classroom management is not keeping children quiet in the classroom. This is a point that I have never seen, and I thought that it is great for upcoming teachers like me to understand. A concept that I find extremely helpful is understanding the importance of having structured classrooms. “To participate successfully in a given activity, students must understand the participation structure” (Woolfolk 491). This is essential, as it allows students to get involved and not be afraid to participate in the classroom activities. This is also helpful for everyday routines, as the students can know what to do and expect. The next concept that Woolfolk talked about was leaving more time for learning in the classroom. This can be in a simple way just as allowing a few extra minutes in the classroom because there are certain situations that come about in a school day, such as announcements or other interruptions. As Woolfolk states, “time must be used effectively” (Woolfolk 491). A big way to keep time management is to keep students as engaged as possible – this is a theme that Woolfolk emphasized within this concept. Another important concept in chapter 13 is helping students navigate their own management. “Students learn self-control by making choices and dealing with the consequences, setting goals and priorities, managing time, collaborating to learn, mediating disputes and making peace, and developing trusting relations with trustworthy teachers and classmates” (Woolfolk 493). As stated, self-management is not just about the behavior that students have. It is about helping students with different life tasks and how to help them manage those behaviors.

Reflection

            I never fully understood the importance of classroom management, but as I am learning in my education program, it really is essential in every classroom. Classroom management is everything, from keeping students on task, appropriate timing, and everything in between.  

With the concept of learning more in the classroom, sometimes I feel as if because there is so much work that needs to get done in a certain time frame and in a single class period, teachers tend to rush learning. I have noticed in many classrooms that I have observed in how some teachers tell their students to put their hands down because there is no time for questions. I understand that sometime, certain circumstances do not allow enough time for student questions, but I find it extremely important to answer as many questions as possible. Some questions that students ask may be beneficial to the whole class and can even push student learning farther.

            Another thing that I never fully understood about classroom management is how many different things go into it. I would never have thought that teaching student’s self-management was a part of classroom management. But the more I think of it, having students behave properly is a major part of management in the classroom – it is nearly essential. Learning about managing a classroom is extremely important. It takes time and a lot of effort by an educator, but I am hoping, as a future middle school teacher, to have opportunities to help students navigate their own management as well as have structure that my students can rely on to make school days easier and more enjoyable for everyone.