After watching the UDL video and completing your own Learning Styles Inventories, you now have an idea that we all learn differently. No matter our level of intelligence, we all need material presented, consumed, and applied in different ways, and how smart we are does not always equal how much or how well we learn. How does that make you feel as a future teacher? What will you do to accommodate for that? How does that apply to you as a student here at WC (i.e. does it explain classes you've excelled in and/or fallen short)? Discuss!
Post by class time Wednesday, Sept. 2. Respond to your Compass Groupmates by Friday, Sept. 4th.
I feel more assured to know that i don't have to have everything together or try to be a perfect teacher, once i start to teach. Also, I feel confident that it does not matter how much i know, or how little i know, but that every persons learning styles are different and there is no right or wrong way when it comes to learning. To prepare for the way that my future student's learn, i will keep in mind that i present information in a variety of ways like visually, reading & writing, audio , and with hands on activities. This applies to me as a student here at WC because many of my teachers know that most students learn by seeing the teacher do a problem/ attempt the problem and by many hand on things (homework assignments) so they teach using these variety of learning styles which helps us understand the material that is being taught.
ReplyDeleteI was a little worried coming to college, because high school did not prepare me well as far as writing notes or even knowing how to study. I was impressed that the professors here at WC were not like the professors you hear in many of the "horror stories." I agree with you, when presenting information in a variety of ways it gives teachers a chance to be creative and that's definitely important because we don't want students getting bored and completely disengage themselves.
DeleteI agree that I will probably not be completely prepared when I become a teacher, I'm sure no one will! But I am sure that you will be an amazing teacher and the students will love you. Teaching students in a variety of ways will definitely be helpful to all of them, and it helps me as well.
DeleteUnderstanding that students learn in different ways presents a challenge as a future teacher because we never want to leave a student behind. I'm pretty confident that I will get to know each of my students well enough that I can accommodate their learning styles. Having so many different learning styles can also give teachers "wiggle room" to be more creative in their classroom.
ReplyDeleteWhen I first got to college I struggled with classes because it was a different environment. I don't believe I've fallen short in any of my classes, especially my education classes, because they make us students step out of our comfort zones and try to look at learning in different ways.
I agree that teachers have to get used to the fact that everyone learns differently. Also, we as future teachers have to know how to teach them according to the way they learn best and that tasks can be hard. You're not alone when it comes to one who came to college and struggled ,because my high school in my opinion really did not prepare its students all that well for the real world college experience.
DeleteI agree that it is super important for teachers to present their information in a variety of ways. It is important for teachers to make sure that no student is left behind academically. I, too, struggled with college when I first got here. I am much more comfortable these days, and I appreciate the teachers who take the time to teach in the ways that I learn best.
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ReplyDeleteAs a future teacher, I plan to use many different teaching styles for my students. I definitely want to make sure that all of my students have the opportunity to grasp the subject and are learning in what way is best for them. I am really excited to practice these different styles in my classroom because it will give me a chance to be creative and help my students to learn one thing in several different ways.
ReplyDeleteAs a student at WC, I have definitely been affected by different teaching styles. Last semester I had a class that was strictly lecture based. There was no writing on the board and no powerpoint to go off of. Only the man in the front of the class talking to the rest of us. I did not learn well at all in that environment, and my grade definitely reflected that. I tend to excel in my education classes because I enjoy them so much, and my teachers force me to step out of my comfort zone. The other students in the class also make me feel welcome and as if my opinions matter.
I agree with your creative comment, sometimes its hard for me to think outside of the box but with students you have to because they're worth every ounce of effort.
DeleteIt was hard for me to have teachers lecture through the whole class period, and there be no visual aids. Especially since I'm not a very good auditory learner. This happened a lot in my 100 level/Tier 1 courses, unfortunately.
I think its good to have an open mind and be eager about teaching different learning styles because it makes it easier for the student to receive or understand the lesson when the teacher is enthusiastic about the assignment or lesson being taught. I too do not like lecture style classes because it bores me and makes it hard for me to do well in the class.
DeleteAs a future teacher, I think that recognizing my students learning styles are important especially in the first few weeks of school. I want to provide my students with a classroom that they can all strive in. This means that I will have to provide different options for how they all learn the material. But, at the same time, I want my kids to be able to learn in more ways than one, so I will need to incorporate that in as well.
ReplyDeleteAs a Westminster College student, I have learned that I am a visual learner. This definitely explains why I find lecture based classes to be boring and hard because I can not stay focused. Classes that have a powerpoint to go with the lecture tend to be easier for me and I can contribute to the conversation more.
I agree that recognizing your students learning styles in the first few weeks is really important because you could lose some students very quickly, especially if they are quiet or withdrawn. I also think that classes with powerpoints are easier for me to follow along with and understand.
DeleteI agree that it important to recognize the learning styles of your students and to diversify your teaching style with each of the different learning styles. The only thing I might warn against is be careful how much you put on the PowerPoint because if all the info is on there they might not listen to what you have to say but, I think you know this.
DeleteUnderstanding that all students learn in different ways is important for all teachers of any age or subject. It can be intimidating, however. It seems as though I will be worried about making sure all of my students are learning in the way that is best for them. I will have to be cautious about how I present all of my material in the lessons I will teach. In order to accommodate for my students' different learning styles I will center my lessons around my students and give them choices on how to do an assignment. I try to incorporate an audio, visual, and tactile element into each lesson so that all of my students stay focused and are retaining the information being presented to the best of their ability. I think I can definitely tell which learning styles I prefer as a student at Westminster. When teachers ask me to read and then lecture me in class I get bored and start to lose focus. However, in classes that I can see a powerpoint with pictures and can discuss topics with my classmates but also am responsible for some reading, I feel like I do best.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree that using different learning styles can be intimidating because you want to present the topic in a way that students will be able to understand but won't get bored in the process. I am the same way about lecture bases classes, I find them really difficult and hard to follow along.
DeleteI concur with how you are going to run your classroom because as we have been taught diversity in your teaching is the best for your students because you can teach to more of them. I also like that instead of making it easier on you that you are going to let it be student driven than you driving it.
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ReplyDeleteKnowing the that there are different styles to learning initially made it sound like teaching was going to be next to impossible for me to do. What made it better was that we went over ways to reach the different styles it made it sound more plausible. Another big problem I will probably run into as a teacher is mixing it up because I do love routine at times. What I will do to accommodate each style is to try and include each style into the lesson as long as it would make sense in that lesson. When I found what my style is it also let me know my weakest style which will help me when I teach because I would naturally avoid it. Once I re understood my style classes I struggled in made more sense upon reflection and let me know how I really learn.
ReplyDeleteI like routine too, however not in a classroom setting. I would much rather come to class without a clue of what we would be learning about or how we would learn it that day. I think you are so right about not only knowing your strengths but also your weaknesses to make you a better teacher.
DeleteI thought it was interesting how you said that it helped you find out what your weakest style was as well and that would help you to not avoid it while you were teaching. I did not think about that.
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