PLE: Motivation

Motivation can always be a tricky thing when teaching. Some students are extremely intrinsically motivated, while others need some sort of extrinsic motivation in order to do well. I think that, as the teacher, I need to be able to know which students are motivated intrinsically and which students are extrinsically motivated. The classroom then need to be run accordingly. If many students are extrinsically motivated, I think there needs to be rewards for doing homework, completing assignments, or reaching a class average grade on a test. If the entire class gets a reward, I feel like students are more likely to 1) work together in order to prevent letting others down and  2) work harder in order to receive the reward, especially if it is something that students will actually enjoy. Intrinsically motivated students need to be given individual goals. I think that if I push these students to try harder things, then they will push themselves to attain a new level of knowledge. Ultimately, I think that motivation techniques depend on the students within the classroom and the classroom as a whole.

Post 3 (Field Trip)

I was extremely surprised by Barb's lecture. I was not expecting such wisdom from an autistic woman. I think I have had preconceived notions about autism that are completely wrong. I loved hearing her ideas on autism and how people need to be more well informed on the matter. The concept of thinking or communicating nonverbally was extremely interesting to me because I can't imagine thinking in any other way other than words. I am very interested in learning more about autism and understanding more of how it works and how to 'react' to it.

Post 2 (Chapter 14)

Paper-pencil assessment: I would use journal entries for this assessment. I think that the entries could be related to different readings/books that we are discussing in class, which would help with comprehension of the texts and to be able to see writing skills.
Authentic assessment: I would relate texts and books to the real world and have discussions like students could possibly have outside of school. Also, I think that discussions of readings allow the students to look at their world differently.
Teacher-developed assessment: I think teacher-developed assessments are more efficient and effective than standardized tests. When the teacher creates his/her own test, they are able to test on exactly what they are teaching. I feel like this is more effective for grading and for helping students succeed more than strictly teaching for standardized tests.
Norm-reference assessment: I like comparing performance to that of other students. Through this method, I feel like teachers can learn what is working and what isn't. If some students are acing the exams and are understanding what I am teaching, then the other students need tutoring, or have something that is holding them back from reaching their full potential.
Informal assessment: I like pop quizzes (even though the students hate them.) I think this helps students stay on top of their work and stay prepared for class if they know that I will occasionally have pop quizzes. This could include anything from vocabulary quizzes to reading comprehension quizzes to see if the students read their assigned reading or if they are understanding the reading material.