Information Processing TIPR

Current Teacher Behavior

1. (one paragraph) What evidence do you see in your field experience of specific teacher behaviors that are related to Information Processing Theory? How does the teacher work with the students' information processing systems to promote learning? For example, how does the teacher focus students' attention, help them rehearse new information, and encourage them to encode and retrieve/reconstruct information? Evaluate the teacher's use of wait time as part of this process. Cite specific examples.

My cooperating teacher constantly uses Information Processing Theory daily in his teachings. Physical education can be extremely overwhelming at times, especially for students who have disabilities. My teacher does a great job at breaking things down to make the information easier to process. To start, he does a great job at gaining the students attention. This is something that was developed earlier in the semester, but he continued to work on throughout the semester. He would blow the whistle a a cue to signal that he was ready to explain what they were going to do in class that day. As soon as he would blow the whistle, all of the students would stop talking and listen to him--it was really amazing to watch. He would also review the previous days lesson and connect it to the one that he was teaching that day. Sometimes, he would ask for a discussion, but other times, he would go straight into what they were going to do for that day. When the students started a new unit, usually a new sport to focus it on, he did a great job at relating the sport or the skills of the sport to more common things that all the students know. For example, they started a new unit on flag football. When he was discussing flag football, he related it to soccer--the sport they just finished--by saying that there are still offense and defensive players and the end goal is to reach the goal and score. When asking the students questions for a discussion, he did a great job at giving them that "awkward" amount of time. He really would wait to say anything until at least one student made a comment. It was kinda awkward for me to witness at first, but I think it helped the students really think about what he was asking them and give them time to respond to the question. 

edTPA Prep

Also, answer these questions:

1. (one paragraph) What does the teacher do to link students' prior academic knowledge with new learning?

The teacher would always relate information from either the previous day or the previous unit to that particular lesson. I think that the students really enjoyed this because it gave them something to relate it to. Physical education can be really overwhelming for some students, especially students who have never played or heard of the sports before, but he does a great job at connecting skills from different sports and showing the relationship between the two. He would also review skills that the students were supposed to learn in middle school.

1. (one paragraph) What does the teacher do to link students' personal, cultural, and community assets with new learning?

The teacher honestly did not do a super great job at this. I asked him if he has ever done a student interests/assets survey before, and he seemed to not really understand what I was referring to. Sometimes during roll call, he would ask the students specific questions to connect to them, but that does not necessarily work for this question. He would sometimes have the students who were more athletic than others demonstrate specific skills or exercises to the class. By doing this, the teacher linked the students personal assets to new learning. 

1. (one paragraph) What does the teacher do to elicit and build on students' responses to further understanding?

The teacher does a great job at going into detail and almost overdoing answering questions. He always wants to make sure that all of the students are always on the same page so that no student will have an advantage over another. He also does a great job at making sure that no answer that a student gives is wrong. He does a great job at somehow relating the answer back to the topic. 

Student Needs

2. (one paragraph) What are the students' needs with regard to information processing in this class? What more could or should be done?

I think that overall, the students needs are being met really well when it comes to information processing. My teacher does a great job at doing this in every single day and making it seem easy and natural. I think that the students would love more trivia/facts games during class as a review/over-learning of a concept. I think that this would help the students process the information in a more competitive way. I also think that this could be a good opportunity for some students to see if there is a topic that they need to work on or gain more knowledge about. 

Plans for your Lesson

3. How will you address these needs when you teach your mini-lesson in this class?

I plan to address these needs when I teach my mini-lesson by continuing the practice that my teacher already implements. I do not have time to do a trivia round or game, but if I had more time this is something that I would implement into my lesson. 

Lesson Description and Reflection

Lesson Description and Reflection 

I taught a lesson in a Fitness for Life high school class. I taught the workout portion of the class. A large basis of my lesson was based on the ideas of Vygotsky Theory of Cognitive Development. Vygtosky is one of my favorite theorists that we learned about this semester because he discusses the importance of the fundamental role of social interaction in the development of cognition. In physical education, social interactions happen every single day. Peers are constantly collaborating with one another to learn new concepts, skills, sports, etc... In my particular lesson, I embodied Vygotsky's importance of social interaction. I paired up the students together with a new partner so they could accomplish a goal (finishing the workout) together. This was a huge social interaction because at first, the pairs seemed to be a little uncomfortable and shy with one another. This is most likely because my cooperating teacher always allows them to choose their partner. By the end of my lesson, the students were motivating and encouraging one another. It was really cool to see this different interaction between the students that I did not notice all semester. Motivation is HUGE in physical education. Providing both extrinsic and intrinsic motivation should be worked together in order to see the best results. The motivation theory that I based my lesson off of was Deci and Ryan Self-Determination Theory. This theory discusses that people are motivated by three innate needs. The first is competence. This is where people need to gain a mastery level when learning new and different skills. Once they feel like they have learned these skills they are more likely to achieve their goals and take a step in their actions. I used this in my lesson because since I had been observing this class for many weeks, I knew the basic skills that they were capable of doing. I encompassed these skills that they have already mastered, while also providing differentiation examples of more challenging exercises. The second part of the self-motivation theory is connection or relatedness. This is where people must feel a sense of belonging and attachment to other people. These relationships have already been formed over the course of this class, but I helped to challenge this by pairing them with someone who they usually do not pair up with. The third part of this theory is autonomy. Autonomy is that people need to feel like they are in control of their own goals as well as their behaviors. This is where self-determination comes into play heavily. I incorporated the use of heart rate monitors in my lesson which would track the students heart rate. By doing this, it allowed the students to keep track of their heart rate and see if they were in the intended target heart rate zone. This seemed to really motivate the students since they were able to see their progress. I also incorporated the Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) developed by Albert Bandura into my lesson. This theory discusses the idea that when people observe a behavior or a task by someone who is doing it correctly, they are more likely to remember the sequence of events and use this information to further guide behavior. I implemented this theory into my lesson by providing a physical demonstration of each exercise in the order in which is was to be completed. The students were also using this theory when observing their peers, especially their partner.

1. My lesson went well because I definitely think that I helped the students master the learning topics for that lesson. I wanted the students to learn different ways to do the basic exercises that they have been learning all semester. I could tell by observing this class for many weeks, that they do the same exercises very often. I wanted to show the students different, more challenging ways to do the same exercise in order to grab their attention and differentiate for students who find the basic way too easy. I was pleasantly surprised when the majority of the students at least tried to do the exercise the way that I had taught them. A lot of them were able to do it successfully, which really shocked my cooperating teacher.
2. I think that there is always room for improvement in each and every lesson. I think that looking back on my lesson, I wish I would have had all of the students follow along with me as I showed them the new and different exercises. When I was showing them, they were all standing around me in a circle and I think it would have been more effective if they would have done it with me.
3. I think all of the students are really engaged to begin with, which made it really easy for me as I taught my lesson. Pairing the students up with someone they usually don't pair up with really helped with student engagement. It held the students more accountable since many of them were not as comfortable as they are used to. Also, the use of the heart rate monitors really motivated the students. The students would often look at their heart rate monitor to see where they were at. I noticed a few times the students would look at their monitor and then seem discouraged for a moment. Then, all of a sudden, they would workout harder than they did before.
4. I think that I could have increased student motivation by providing some sort of extrinsic motivation. For example, if the whole class in in their target heart rate zone for the majority of the class then they can have 3 extra minutes to change, etc...

Final Goals Reflection

In the beginning of the semester I set three goals that I had for EDSC 3250. They were:

1. I want to learn more about Canvas, Skyward, and other various online grading websites in order to stay connected with my students and their parents. I want to learn more about how to use these tools because I think students are more motivated to stay up with their grades when they are aware of how they are doing in the class. This goal is aligned to ISTE Standard for Educators 7a which states, "Use assessment data to guide progress and communicate with students, parents, and education stakeholders to build student self-direction," because it discusses using a way to provide and guide progress and communication with parents and students.

2. I want to learn more about various websites that can help all students expand their learning on various topics. I want my students be able to use technology to be able to study, work on projects and assignments, as well as learn about new technology that they can also use in their future learning experience and careers. This goal is aligned with ISTE Standard for Educators 6b which states, "manage the use of technology and student learning strategies in digital platforms, virtual environments, hands-on maker spaces or in the field." My goal and standard are aligned because they both have the intention of helping students learn and discover new learning strategies through technology.

3. I want to learn more about how and why technology is so important for the future of education. Growing up, technology was not used every day in my classrooms. My senior year of high school, all the students were given iPads to take tests, complete homework, and study. This was a hard transition for me because I was so used to taking tests and quizzes on paper, not on iPads. Since I was not introduced to a lot of technology when I was in school, I do not know as much about it as I think I should. This goal is lined up with ISTE Standard for Educators 1a which states, "Set professional learning goals to explore and apply pedagogical approaches made possible by technology and reflect on their effectiveness." My goal and standard are aligned because they both demonstrate a way to explore and apply the possibility of technology being used in education and how it can be beneficial.

Was I able to reach these goals?

1. My first goal was to learn more about Canvas, Skyward, and other various online grading tools. This is a goal that I definitely met and exceeded. I met this goal because I made a Canvas Instructor classroom in this class where I learned how to make a Canvas Instructor page as well as grade assignments, and make assignments, quizzes, and discussions. Now, I definitely feel confident in using Canvas. I also learned how to make a Google Classroom, which is something that I am definitely wanted to implement into my future teaching. I think it is a good way for students, teachers, and parents to all be on the same page. Since I will most likely be teaching in Utah, and a lot of schools in Utah use Canvas, I am so happy that I learned more about it now so I have an overall good idea of what it is all about instead of going in blind.

2. My second goal was to learn more about various websites that can help all students expand their learning on various topics. I also think that I met and exceeded this goal because there were multiple times that we would do assignments (posted on our google website) where I would have to do research and investigate tools for students and parents to have. Some websites that I became familiar with are: uen.org, wasatchadaptativesports.org, healthychildren.org, canva.com, khanacademy, pecentral, etc... All of these websites will help give students and parents more information on physical education, health, tips and tricks, as well as standards.

3. My third goal was to learn more about how and why technology is so important for the future of education. This is also a goal that I definitely met because this is a topic that came up almost every day we had this class. I was able to discover tools that can actually be used in PE without them feeling forced or like they are a distraction. For example, some tools that I learned more about that will be beneficial for physical education are flipgrid, canva, google doc applications, screencastify, heart rate monitors, and various computer programming tools/widgets. Since technology is in the hands of almost every teenager, it is something that they are comfortable with. Using technology in physical education can give students the opportunity to learn how to use technology as a way to stay physically fit. Using various apps such as the SWEAT app, Nike app, and others can give students an idea of how to be physically fit outside of school.

Goals for the Future 
For my future, I have many goals. The current goal that I am working towards right now is to focus on my student teaching and graduate. For my student teaching, my goal is to incorporate technology into every unit. Whether that be using heart rate monitors, chromebooks, hyperdoc assignments, etc... I also want to implement Canvas/Google classroom into every unit. My current cooperating teacher that I have for student teaching uses google classroom, but she asked me if I could teach her how to use Canvas--which I thought was really awesome! After my student teaching, I have a few other goals that I want to accomplish. Once I start teaching in my own classroom, one goal that I have is to also use some form of technology into every unit. Because I want to use technology, my goal is to provide Chromebooks for students to use in class (during review/game play days) to complete assignments that will be given on Canvas. I do not want these students to feel at a disadvantage if they are unable to do homework with technology at home. Another goal that I have is to continue to learn more about technology in the classroom. I plan on taking additional college courses to learn more about the new and improving technology in order to keep up with my students and to continue to make my curriculum better for students. 

Constructivism TIPR

1. Describe how the teacher uses modern constructivist techniques/complex learning environments (e.g., spiral curriculum, discovery learning, inquiry-based learning, problem-based learning, etc.) to promote student learning. How is the teacher implementing the 4 tenets of constructivism and the 3 modes of processing?

The teacher that I am observing uses some modern constructivist techniques in his teaching. In the weights training 2 class that I observe, I notice that he often uses discovery learning (Bruner). This is part of inquiry based learning. He uses this when he relates to the students in what they have learned in Weights 1. In order to be in Weights 2, all students must first take Weights 1. Both of these classes are elective classes. The teacher is constantly reminding the students of various exercises and techniques that they learned during weights 1. Here, the teacher is drawing knowledge from the students' past experiences. In Weights 2, he often will take what the students learned from weights 1, and elaborate on it. They will also perform various exercise experiments such as seeing if lifting weights every day will help you get stronger. At the beginning of the semester, the students fill out a 1 max rep sheet. At the end of the semester, they fill it out again to see their improvements. The first tenent of constructivism that the teacher implements is that the students are actually doing the workouts and are completing them physically in order to see a differernce. Here, the students are activing cognizing. 

Contexts of Development TIPR + edTPA Prep

Current Teacher Behavior

1. Describe how the teacher implements a consideration of the students' physical development and/or Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Model into instruction, assessment, and/or procedures. What more could/should the teacher do in this regard? Provide specific examples.

My cooperating teacher implements Brofenbrenner's Biological Model into instruction, assessment, and procedures by first getting to know all of his students individually. From what I can tell, he has a great relationship with each of his students (microsystem). The main part of Brofenbenner's Model that he encompasses is the mesosystem. The mesosystem is the relationship between the individual and their school teachers/administrators. I have noticed that many of the students come to my cooperating teacher to let them know things that are going on in their life. Because of this, the students have a great relationship with him because he is very understanding and comforting. This is part of the exosystem.  The macrosystem encompasses cultural, societal, and religious beliefs. He does a good job discussing religion when asking the students where they would want to serve their LDS mission. Some students brought up how they are going to serve missions once they graduate and the teacher discussed with them more about this topic. He also relates to the students culture by changing up the exercises and incorporating ones from other countries and cultures. 

edTPA Prep

Also answer the following questions:

1. What does the teacher do to learn more about students' personal, cultural, and community assets?
1. The teacher connects with the students in multiple ways to find out their various assets. He connects things that he knows about them in a way to motivate them. An example of this was when a soccer player was slacking during the workout. The teacher helped motivate him by saying that by completing these workouts will help him have an advantage when it comes to tryouts. He also learns more about his students personal life by asking them how their weekend was, how their day was, how their game/performance went, etc... He also 
2. How does the teacher incorporate those assets into instruction?
1. He incorporates these assets into his instruction by asking them questions about their weekend, game, etc while he is taking role. I like that he does this because it is a good way to kill two birds with one stone. He is taking role and also making it less boring by having meaningful and thoughtful discussions with his students. 
3. How does the teacher use those assets to build relationships with students?
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4. How does the teacher demonstrate responsiveness to students with varied needs and backgrounds?

Student Needs

2. (one paragraph) What are these students' needs with regard to the topics above? What more could or should be done?

Plans for your Lesson

3. (one paragraph) How will you address these needs when you teach your mini-lesson to this class?

Identity TIPR

Current Teacher Behaviors

1. (one paragraph) Which of Erikson's psychosocial crises are the children in the class facing (may be more than one)? Which of Marcia's identity states seem(s) to be most prevalent? What specific teacher behaviors do you observe that either help or hinder the students to successfully navigate their identities? Cite specific examples.

In my opinion, I think the Erikson psychosocial crisis that the children in the class are facing the most is Industry vs Inferiority. I think this because the students are given heart rate monitors during the 45 minute workout portion of the course. All of the heart rate monitors are preprogrammed to a specific max heart rate goal for each student. It is the same specific heart rate goal for every single student. There is no variation. Because of this, many of the students do not reach or maintain the heart rate goal for the majority of the workout. This causes many of the students to become very discouraged and frustrated. Obviously, it would be very difficult to program the heart rate monitors to be specific to each individual student since all of the students in each class share the heart rate monitors, but I think that if there were even ten of the heart rate monitors that had a slightly lower heart rate goal, it would be more beneficial. Those students will then be physically able to hit their heart rate goal and maintain it. They will be able to see that their hard work pays off and that it just isn't all for nothing. This relates to Industry vs Inferiority because the some of the students are frustrated and they want to learn to be successful, but because of the way that these are preprogrammed, they do not feel like they are successful. Although, I do think that the teacher does a good job continuing to encourage the students even though they don't hit the goal. 

The Marcia identity state that seems to be the most prevalent in this class is identity moratorium. During this state, "the status in which the adolescent is currently in a crisis, exploring various commitments and is ready to make choices, but has not made a commitment to these choices yet." https://www.learning-theories.com/identity-status-theory-marcia.html. The reason why I think this is because I can tell that a lot of the students are overwhelmed with all of their responsibilities and life in general. One student in particular expressed his feelings towards the teacher about how he was so overwhelmed with the stress of the upcoming soccer tryouts. The students are ready to make major life choices--college, career, etc... but they just have not exactly figured it out yet. 

In the example that I gave above, the teacher then responded to the soccer student by saying that you may feel less stressed if you work out and put in lots of effort into the workout because it will release endorphins which can help him release his stress.  He also said that by doing this workout, he is a step above some of the competition because he is focusing on being in shape and putting in the work. Another example of how the teacher helps his students achieve their identity is by encouraging them that failure is inevitable and is going to happen, but if you continue to strive and overcome it, then you did not fail. He also builds trust in the classroom. 

Student Needs

2. What are the students' needs with regard to identity development in this class? What more could or should be done?

The students and teacher discussions have never alluded to identity and identity development in class. I think that this is something that should be changed. I think that having conversations with the students about identity is something that is extremely important and beneficial. Being able to discuss this in an appropriate manner is also crucial. I think that the teacher could have created an identity chart at the beginning of the year which every student would fill out. It could give the teacher a better understanding of who the students are.

Plans for your Lesson

3. How will you address these needs when you teach your mini-lesson in this class?

Honestly, I think that this is something that is going to be difficult to teach in just one lesson. When I start teaching, this is something that I will be able to address more because I think that it is something that needs to be addressed throughout the semester, not just in one lesson. Also, I do not really know how to address identity in my mini lesson. I will collaborate with other peers that are in my content area. 

Vygotsky TIPR

Current Teacher Behavior

1. What evidence do you see in your field experience of specific teacher behaviors that are related to Vygotsky's theory of sociocultural cognitive development? Specifically address the use of More Knowledgeable Other(s), how the teacher determines the students' Zones of Proximal Development, the types of scaffolding/assisted learning provided, how the teacher helps students internalize the information, the types of cultural and technological tools used, etc.

My cooperating teacher implements many parts of Vygotsky's theory in his teaching. He uses the idea of More Knowledge Other(s) directly because he is considered a More Knowledgeable Other. He is someone who has a better understanding than the learner. He directly explains and demonstrates each exercise for the workout and same goes for the specific sport that they are focusing on for that unit. He also incorporated this idea when he makes groups or pairs of students for exercises and game play. He strategically makes these groups to have 1 or 2 More Knowledgeable Others paired with students who are not as strong. This is a great way for the students to learn from their peers. It also provides a great opportunity for the More Knowledgeable Others to work on leadership skills. 

Zone of proximal development is the difference between what a child can achieve independently and what a child can achieve with guidance and encouragement from a skilled partner. This idea relates really well to More Knowledgeable Other. This idea is also used when he groups students together. Some exercises, activities, and game can be completed successfully without groups or partner. This is when the child can achieve something independently and without help from someone else (more knowledgeable other). In instances where some students could not complete something successfully on their own or when he is introducing a new sport or workout, that is when he will group the students accordingly. 

Scaffolding "is a teaching method that enables a student to solve a problem, carry out a task, or achieve a goal through a gradual shedding of outside assistance". (https://www.opencolleges.edu.au/informed/teacher-resources/scaffolding-in-education-a-definitive-guide/). He uses scaffolding in every lesson that I have witnessed. An example of when he uses this is when he will breakdown the workout into smaller, more manageable parts. Instead of making it long and confusing for the students, he breaks it down and simplifies it in order for all of the students to understand it. He also uses cues when introducing a new exercise or sport. For example, in one of his lessons that he did, one of the workouts was toe touches on the bleachers. The cue that he gave the students to work on was "quick feet". This helped the students break down the task further and focus on one specific part of the skill. He also uses cooperative learning throughout his lessons. This is used when he puts the students in groups or teams and the students work together to complete a task or activity. 

The main technical tool that he uses during his classes are heart rate monitors. These are used during the 45 minute workout portion of the class. These provide a great opportunity for the students to learn the importance of heart rate during the workout as well as motivate them.

Student Needs

2. What are these students' needs through the lens of Vygotsky's theory? What more could or should be done?

In my opinion, I think that the students should have more discussions regarding what they are learning and reflecting on that throughout class. I think that this would help the students who are not More Knowledgeable Others be able to learn more about a skill or game in a different way as well as collaborate with others who know more about something than they do. I also think that the students should be encouraged to do more activities independently. I do not think that this should be done every time, but sometimes, I find that the students become distracted when working in groups with their friends. This idea relates to the Zone of Proximal Development. 

Plans for your Lesson

3. How will you address these needs when you teach your mini-lesson in this class?

I will address these needs when I teach my mini-lesson by having the students complete the first half of the workout individually and then the second half of the assignment the students will complete the workout in groups that I will assign. I will make sure to have at least one student who is considered a more knowledgeable other in order for that student to help the other students who struggle. I will also have the students do a discussion at the end of the lesson in which they will discuss with one another what they learned that lesson.