Tag Archives: Intelligence

Intelligence Spotlight

--Original published at Site Title

Some may argue that year round education is a very positive thing for students to have due to various reasoning. Others express that children deserve a vacation, and summer break is a necessity for children to have throughout their educational years. Here, I’ve picked four different sources to lay out the argument. Matthew Lynch, a writer for the Edvocate, explains the top three reasons year round education would be beneficial to kids. The first point made is that students will remember what they learned since the breaks are shorter, but more frequent. The gap between lessons is littler, leading us into the second reason Lynch gives. It’s easy to bridge the achievement gap where children are likely to forget material that was taught due to the amount of time between big ideas in core classes such as division in math or writing in English class. The last point is that students will like school, due to the opportunity to have closer relationships with teachers and allowing students to become completely immersed in the educational environment. These two things put together gives an all around more positive outlook on school to children, as well as sparking excitement into school. Another source I explored is through Care.com with a discussion by Kimberly Demucha Kalil who made a good point of boredom during summer vacation. This was a unique point to make since it was something not found very easily in some of the other sources I’ve read, but it still very similar to the personal experiences I’ve had myself. Sure, vacation in the summer is fun, but my mom had to send me to soccer camp or my grand mom’s house in place of going to school every day; so I still had to find something else to keep me busy. Kalil states, “Year-round school eliminates the need to fill 12 weeks of vacation with activities to keep your child interested and engaged” (Kalil). This brings up a big issue for families that do not have other people to watch their children and are not financially stable enough to send their kids to camp. This affects families in the sense that their children are not mentally stimulated for months at home over summer vacation, and this only leads kids to boredom rather than a positive learning environment that school provides. On the flip side of things, so many researchers support summer vacation and the mental break it allows students to receive. Laurie Futterman from the miami herald talks about how kids need a break from the busy school year; as it is necessary for children to have an “unwind time” as well as simply a time to have fun. Futterman also brings up how summer time can bring unique forms of educational experiences. Futterman exclaims, “time off from school can offer different learning experiences, including the power of outdoor play” (Futterman). This was important to be expressed in addition to just fun because “just for fun” isn’t a great argument to make. Another supportive side of not having school year-round is that their is no research proving that it helps children first hand. Mary Brown offers up this simple statement exclaiming, “There is no conclusive data on whether a year-round system works as effectively as the traditional school year. The academic data is too scattered” (Brown). This shuts down most ideas that are for year-round school to begin with; but also expresses how new the idea is although it is a norm in other countries. This problem makes it seem like it would be especially bad in America due to how much research we put into our education system debating on whether or not the amount of time we go to school is beneficial or not; we attempt to make sure the benefits are there if we were to change the way school has been ran for years. It also adds the exploration of why we would change the way education is ran after years of it working just fine? Both sides of the arguments are fair and strong; although a lot more research has been done on allowing children to have their normal break rather than going to school year round.

Sources:

Lynch , Matthew. “Top 3 Reasons the US Should Switch to Year-Round Schooling.” The Edvocate, 13 Aug. 2016, http://www.theedadvocate.org/top-3-reasons-the-us-should-switch-to-year-round-schooling/.

Demucha Kalil, Kimberly. “The Pros and Cons of Year-Round School.” Care.com, Care.com, 18 July 2017, http://www.care.com/c/stories/3283/the-pros-and-cons-of-year-round-school/.

Futtermanlfutterman@dadeschools.net, Laurie. “Beyond the Classroom: Should Kids Get a Long Summer Vacation? Depends on Who You Ask.” Miamiherald, http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/community-voices/article25609060.html.
Brown, Mary, et al. “The Year-Round School Debate.” SchoolMoney.org, 5 Mar. 2016, http://www.schoolmoney.org/the-year-round-school-debate/.

 

 

 

 

 

 


Week 10 First Impression

--Original published at Site Title

Intelligence isn’t really something you can obtain through genetics. Though my parents are very smart people, my intelligence has not come from them but from school. I have had my fair share of teachers who just didn’t really care about everyone personally and how well they were doing in their class. But I’ve also had those teachers who want to see people succeed and will help them accomplish that goal. Each of these teachers have had different teaching styles and some just weren’t the most beneficial for me. For instance I had a very strict and scary English teacher my freshman year of high school. She would always call me and others out in the middle of class and when we didn’t know the answer to something she would wait and keep asking us questions until we got the right answer and basically embarrass us in front of the entire class. Ever since then I have absolutely hated English classes and I don’t try very hard in them. It goes the same way  if you have a great teacher, you’ll look forward to their class and try your hardest because you don’t want to let them down.

Going off of my experience with the English teacher, I think an improvement for all teachers would be not to put students on the spot when they don’t know the answers. Especially if they’re one of the more shy kids in the class like I was. Being comfortable in the classroom is one of the key things that contributes to learning and if the student isn’t comfortable and are on edge that they’re going to be called out, then they won’t learn anything. I think this goes along with the teacher recognizing that every student has a different way of learning and they have to adapt to what will be the most beneficial to everyone.


Intelligence

--Original published at Site Title

I never thought of my intelligence to be something that has come from my parents; although my parents are very smart, my intelligence is expressed much different than theirs. I give all the credit to the phenomenal teachers I’ve had over the years that taught me almost everything I know. Besides common sense, that I have my dad to thank, educators in my life have always made a huge impact. Most of the time, I believe it is the way teachers interact with their students that makes learning new material and absorbing new information fun in a way. I’ve always loved learning, and school has always been a sort of “happy place” if you will, and teachers saw and always loved that about me. It was easy to communicate with with teachers and ask questions throughout my education thus far as well, so this made learning a very pleasant experience and something I wanted to do. I believe my intelligence is firmly rooted in the place I am most confident, school. I always loved excelling in certain classes and taking on the challenge of hard classes. Something about learning is always new and exciting, so blaming my intelligence on something so satisfying isn’t so bad. Overall, interactions I’ve had between teachers and myself have always been positive and encouraging. This assisted me in not only doing well in school, but giving my intelligence the chance to take off by giving me such a happy environment. If a negative environment was present, I do not believe I would have done so well since I could have been put down, or just not as encouraged as I have been over the years. There has always been a clear goal given to me as something to strive for; so without this, a child might struggle as well. I have always felt I was equipped with the correct tools and positive attitudes that every child needs in order for him or her to express their intelligence, but without them, I would not have had as great as an opportunity.


Week 10 First Impressions: Option 1

--Original published at Site Title

I would have to say that most of my intelligence, and probably a lot of people’s intelligence, comes from school. Interactions with teachers went a long way towards helping me build that intelligence. My interactions with teachers were usually good. I was quiet but I did my work, got good grades, and was never an issue. As a result, my teachers put more focus on others that were struggling but if I ever needed help with something, they were happy to lend a hand. That worked well for me. I liked being able to figure things out for myself before I go to someone else. Doing things on my own did lead to me not being as close to some of my teachers as others but I was okay with that. When I did interact with my teachers, it went well. They always tried to do what they could to help me with whatever I came to them with. This was exactly what I needed in order to learn as much as I could and perform academically.

While those methods worked for me, they do not work for every student. Everyone’s ideal environment for learning is a little different. To get students to learn and do well, teachers need to do their best to understand what that environment might be for each student. In order to do this, they need more time working as close to one-on-one with students as possible. Smaller class sizes could achieve this. The average class in my high school probably had 30 people in it; it can be hard to learn the specific preferences of 30 people. Cutting down on class size makes it easier for the teachers to learn that. Another thing to change could be the curriculum. In Pennsylvania, we have these tests called the keystones. They suck, they’re stupid, and I spent a ton of time in class just learning how to do well on those tests. Instead of designing the curriculum to get students to perform well on standardized tests like that, make the emphasis on trying to make sure students are really learning the material. I think making those changes could help schools improve the performance of their students.


First Impression: Intelligence

--Original published at Site Title

According to Wikipedia, intelligence is the ability to acquire knowledge and skills. We live in a world where knowledge is power. That being said, we start education at a young age. Some start even sooner than average based on who their parents are and if the caregiver has the correct resources to give their child an educational head start. If some children are getting a head start in education, then we they get to school they have already been exposed to the information that everyone else is learning for the first time. The teacher might think that this child with a head start is more intelligent than the other students in the class. But really that child has just been exposed to the material before. I believe intelligence can also be effected by the resources you have. If all the students were exposed to the same amount of educational resources, I believe there would be a decrease in the intelligence gap between students. Of course there will always some students that are more privileged than others, but teachers should keep that in mind when teaching younger ages such as elementary school students.

In elementary school, I noticed that students were being segregated into either “very smart” or normal students. They based the categorization on test scores. They had this program for “very smart” students called spectrum. Once a week they would leave the school and go on a “field trip”, at least that’s what all the other normal students thought they were going. We never really knew where they went but it definitely effected the way we thought about ourselves. Were we not smart because we were not picked for this special program? I don’t think intelligence should be based on student’s test scores. Not everyone is good at test taking and there are students with different learning disabilities that might affect their average test scores. I like the way Professor MacFarlane doesn’t base our grade solely on tests and quizzes. It gives students a chance to get a good grade even if they didn’t do how they wanted on the exams. It also gives the students a chance to apply what they learned in class to assignments other than exams, which ultimately helps the students learn more efficiently.


Week 10 first impression post

--Original published at Em

Growing up, I felt the experience in  elementary school was very positive. I mean how negative can kindergarten to fifth grade be. I did believe that the foundations in a child’s education built their character. In elementary school I remember my teachers being positive overall. I do not remember being talked down to ever. I remember being positively reinforced a lot when I got good grades. The only interaction I remember being negative is this 100 problem times table multiplication test I could never finish them all in time.  Eventually I did and it was fine. Everyone else did and then they got a giant chocolate bar.

I also feel like in school sometimes everyone is so much in competition for grades they’re not focused on actually learning. For example they just cram information into short term memory but do not actually understand what is going on. I feel like sometimes other students make it  a negative experience and make other students feel dumb. For example a lot of students are afraid to ask questions to sound dumb or they are so confused they do not even know what to ask. There is a very competitive atmosphere and its difficult to not just come to a professor during office hours instead of when its actually happening. I do think if you ask a question and a teacher replies kinda snappy or judgmental then a child will not want to ask a question again.

I also think if a child is not succeeding in a class and they continue to see poor grades they are not encouraged to keep trying for better grades. I do not think we can eliminate grades but perhaps grade off of effort and comprehension combined. Of course this is hard to measure.


Intelligence: Educators Influence

--Original published at Site Title

I don’t believe to constrict the definition of an educator to the sole responsibility of a school teacher.  I have had a wide range of educators throughout my life consisting of teachers, family, friends, and even strangers that I believe have had a huge influence in making the person I am today. Intelligence in my eyes is a matter of not only genetics but the impact that those around you have had in how you perceive and interpret the knowledge you are dealt with. We are constantly presented with new information each day in the classroom and outside of the classroom what we do with it determines our intelligence.

An educators expectations has strongly influenced how I have learned.  When my teachers in the past have wanted me to do well and succeed I tend to be smarter and learn more.  It is nice to know a educator is on your side and wants you to be your best.  An individuals positive encouragement and personal interactions can go a long way in helping me learn.  I have crossed teachers who have motivated and inspired me to be engaged with readings and lessons, these teachers have grew my intelligence. I have also experienced nasty and cruel teachers that have even said the words “I give up”. I had trouble in math in fourth grade and I can recall my teacher telling me that I wouldn’t pass that grade if I couldn’t multiply.  She had no encouragement to give me and she didn’t believe I could do it but my parents did.  My dad started working on me with math every day he didn’t give up he had faith I would succeed even if we had to start at the bottom.  I ended up completing that year with a good grade and even ended up being in the accelerated math class in middle school.  The best teachers are the ones that push you to do your best and don’t admit defeat when things seem impossible.

A teacher not bringing outside influences or belief into a classroom can be beneficial. An educator entering a situation with an open mind, not being judging, or having a preference to favor can be a positive in a classroom setting as well.  The ability of a teacher to recognizing different learning styles of students and where to direct there attention to can help a child improve learning. School systems should encourage teachers to put their best foot forward when teaching and have the attitude and mentality that every student should succeed.  Come in with the thought that “as an educator I will do whatever it takes to help them reach success and be their best”.

 


Week 10 First Impression Prompts – Intelligence

Hand writing on a notebook

Here are the two prompts for this week. Regardless of which prompt you choose, please use the tag “Intelligence.” The first impression posts will be due by noon on Saturday, 11/4. The refinement posts will be due at noon on Tuesday, 11/7.

Option 1:

Many people consider intelligence to be largely determined by genetics, but there is substantial evidence that the environment and social processes play a large role as well. Since schools are a place where children try to determine how smart they really are, it is important for educators to understand the impacts of their subtle or not-so-subtle interactions with students. In your blog post, reflect on your interactions with educators throughout your school career, and discuss what changes to the school system could improve students’ performance in the classroom.

Option 2:

In 1998, the Governor of Georgia, Zell Miller, proposed spending $105,000 of the state’s budget to distribute a cassette or CD of classical music to the parents of each new child born in Georgia (see the NY Times article). Governor Miller was a staunch believer in the Mozart effect, a theory that listening to Mozart can increase intelligence. The Mozart effect is highly controversial and has spurred numerous research studies, but was based on one study published in 1993. Read the original journal article by Rauscher, Shaw, & Ky and discuss whether or not the original evidence supports Governor Miller’s decision.

I look forward to seeing what you write!

Header image: CC by Flickr user Caitlinator

Spotlight Blog 2 Prompts

Regardless of which option you choose, make sure to use the tag “Spotlight” on your post. Also include the tag listed for the option you choose below. The spotlight post is due by the beginning of class on Friday, 11/10.

Option 1 – Use the tag “Intelligence”

There has been a lot of controversy around the way our educational system works to improve learning outcomes for our children. For this post, you are going to investigate one of these issues and present your conclusions based on the evidence you review. You may select either year-round education (i.e., whether or not there should be a long summer break) or single-gender education (i.e., should boys and girls have separate classrooms). You will need to find two sources arguing for year-round education/single-gender education and two sources arguing against it, review the evidence in each source, and present your conclusion on the issue. Make sure to cite your sources.

Option 2 – Use the tag “Stress”

We’ve discussed a number of different stress management approaches in class, and now I want you to evaluate online resources for stress management. Specifically, I want you to identify three websites that provide stress management tips and discuss how likely you think the strategies they provide are to be successful. Make sure to explain your rationale using what we’ve learned in class and your textbook. Each of the three websites need to be targeted at a different audience but you may select the audiences you want to use (e.g., college students, athletes, parents, artists). Make sure to include links to the websites as part of your post.

Option 3 – Use the tag “Drugs”

One of the largest campaigns to prevent drug use among children was the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program. This federal program sought to provide kids with information about the dangers of using drugs, using things like the slogan “Just say no!” While people had high hopes for the program, it ended up being very controversial largely because of how it ended up impacting the rates of drug abuse among children exposed to the program. Research what the data say about the DARE program and argue whether or not it was a successful program. Then take what we learned from DARE and argue whether or not you think similar abstinence-based programs (e.g., sexual education programs) should be used in schools. Make sure to cite your sources.

I look forward to seeing what you write!

Header image: CC by Flickr user Thomas Hawk