Education is the process of teaching and learning, or we can say it is the knowledge that you can get from this. It is also the study of theories and methods of teaching. There are many schools of thoughts and research bases for classroom management strategies that support education, and the most important two are Implications from Behavioristic Psychology ( School of Behavioristic Psychology) and Implications from Learning Theory (School of Learning Theory).
Implications from a Behavioristic Psychology (School of Behavioristic Psychology).
This school or implication is important since it helps change the students' behaviors (from negative to positive). Behaviorism is a branch of psychology and its father is Skinner. It focuses on how students learn, on the idea that all behaviors are learned through interaction with the environment. It focuses on adapting the students' behaviors with several types of reinforcements and helps the teachers change the behavior of students (Behavior Modification). And here, in this point, there are opponents of behavior modification that neglect character development and work more on extrinsic modification and on the other side there are proponents that support behavior modification and work in self-discipline to develop character. Besides this, they make the learners use first the extrinsic modification to realize the value of what they are learning and then they become intrinsic.
In the classroom, behaviorism is an important way for understanding how to help and motivate students. It includes several types of reinforcements and in my opinion it is very important to use positive reinforcement (motivation). As a teacher I should apply the positive reinforcement which is to praise a student when she/he behaves well or completes a task successively. It is a response presented after the desired behavior happens. When the teacher praises the students’ correct answers and behavior she/he will continue her/ his progress and they will be more and more engaged. But here, I should take care that the reinforcements that I gave must not become destructive positive reinforcements . I should provide valuable feedback, reward good behavior and get the students used to routines. I should create habits in students that make them improve their learning.
In the classroom, it is very effective to use positive reinforcement. For example, the teacher explains the multiplication lesson and the students listen carefully and pay attention, then she puts a task/ problem on the board and she asks the students to solve it. When any student solves it correctly she gives him/her a quick feedback/ praise “Excellent ! I will give you +1”. Then this student will be more engaged in solving problems. After that the teacher puts another task in order for the others to be engaged and get the chance to be rewarded. So by this way, the students who didn’t solve correctly will work hard and become more engaged in order to get rewarded and praised. The teacher should create a competitive environment where the students become more motivated to get the praise of winning and getting rewarded. Besides this, in smaller grades like 1,2, 3, 4 students can be rewarded by candies or stationery. Also, I can use positive reinforcement at home. For example, my son is very messy. I said to him if you clean your room I’ll bring a toy for you. He entered the room and cleaned it quickly. Every day, I engage him in things he loves and then cleaning his room becomes a habit ( good habit).
Implications from Learning Theory
This school is very important also because it makes the students choose the on-task behavior. It includes the Inquiry Based Model which increases the students’ curiosity for knowing more and asking more questions and finding their answers. The students create the questions and then obtain evidence to answer the questions. It is a process that increases the intellectual engagement and understanding of the learners. Also, this implication includes the Direct Instruction method. This method gives the students clear and direct instructions and teaches them behaviors, what is expected and accepted.
In the classroom, teachers can use the inquiry based method where the students are the center of the entire process. The teacher asks a question and the students will be interested in finding the answer. They will be encouraged to ask questions and explore the environment. Then they try to find evidence to support explanations, and find the answer. The students here practice their critical thinking. Also, the teacher can use the direct instruction model where she/he presents the information/ lesson that the students need to learn and provide time and space for students to practice the new lesson. The teacher points out what the objectives are and then the students will be more engaged and interested in what the lesson will be about. Students here will use their mind for thinking about the lesson and try to give their opinion and then the teacher gives him feedback that encourages him more. Whenever the teacher listens to her students’ opinions, gives them feedback, supports their ideas, lets them interpret their results and share it with the class in a cooperative work , students will be more involved and engaged and learn how to behave in a prosocial way. These implications create the learning environment for students and increase their knowledge. We should take into consideration that not all students can learn from listening to the teacher , we should realize that they have different learning styles.
In the classroom, we should use these implications to increase the understanding of students. For example, the teacher posts an article and asks the students to read it. Here the students start thinking and asking themselves questions, they try to analyze in order to find the solution and give it to the teacher. The teacher should listen for all students’ answers and let them share their responses in order for them to understand the topic more. And then she gives her feedback and improves their ideas, maybe she relates the topic to a real life example or an example that happened in class in order for the students to understand it more. Another example, the teacher let the students watch a video about the circulatory system and she told them to focus and to present what they have seen. Here the students watch, try to remember what the organs are, try to ask themselves why blood is moving in this way not reversed, does blood enter all the veins and arteries...etc. and then they try to find answers for their questions, maybe they search for some ideas. They cooperate with each other and present some ideas to make a good presentation about the lesson. After that, they start presenting for the teacher their points and understanding of the lesson. After that, the teacher gives them feedback and evaluates their work. This way increases the students’ understanding and motivates them to improve their thinking , and also engages them to learn more.
As a conclusion, we can say that these schools are very essential for students’ engagement. They increase their understanding and let them think better. Also, these schools improve the learning of students and let them be more engaged to learn. As a teacher, I should get the students to display the on-task behavior and to act in a prosocial way. All teachers should work on it and have it as a part of their learning process.
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