Educational Psychology - Angie Andrus

THE QUESTION: "Based on your field experience observations to this point, what are the students' needs with regard to: Cognitive Development (include concepts from both Piaget's and Vygotsky's theories) Physical Development Identity Development (include concepts from Bronfenbrenner's, Erikson's, and Marcia's theories) Moral Reasoning For each of these areas, write a robust paragraph or two analyzing the students' needs and how you plan to address those needs when you teach your lesson. Use and underline vocabulary from the theories as you complete your analysis and to justify your plan." Cognitive Development The students I observe are exhausted in their other classes. Sitting in lectures for hours takes a toll. The great benefit of coming to a theater class is that they get some time to play. Piaget and Vygotsky both emphasized the importance of play and that children learn as they play. Through this play they experience assimilation, a...

THE QUESTION: 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 this crisis? What more could or should be done? Be sure to include a reference in your response. I am currently observing three different cooperating teachers. Mr. J teaches CE US Government and American History. Mrs. O teaches across the spectrum of theatre classes, including one CE Theatre class. Mrs. M teaches Study Skills and other remedial courses. I see a wide variety of students in every class. A surprise to see is how many students actually struggle with autonomy. Many students have no desire to do their homework on their own. Mr. J actually related several cheating stories to me and I witnessed Mrs. M confront two students on sharing homework. Mr. J related that many of them don...

THE QUESTION: 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 and be sure to include a reference in your response. Mr. J teaches CE US Government and American History. We discussed several of Bronfenbrenner's different systems. First we discussed the rampant technology and how that effects his classroom. The chronosystem of these students is starkly different than ours especially in regard to the technology we both had. Mr. J put it this way, "It is challenging because as soon as the class becomes boring or they lose interest, the students go to their screens. I’ve tried finding a policy for the classroom that best suits my needs. You’ve seen kids in my classes on their phones. My current policy is when we are actively doing a lesson, phones are gone. When...

THE QUESTION: "What evidence do you see of specific teacher behaviors that are geared toward Vygotsky's theories of cognitive development? Cite specific examples and make clear connection to Vygotsky's work. Be thorough in your coverage of the theory, addressing multiple concepts to demonstrate your understanding. Be sure to include a reference in your response." As I contemplated the use of Vygotsky's theories I realized that the teachers I'm observing are falling short in their use of his concepts. Vygotsky places emphasis on culture, social factors, and language. He discusses the zone of proximal development. It is the ZPD that I would like to focus on and analyze as a part of my thoughts. To get an understanding of this concept, here is an overview: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zone_of_proximal_development  from Wikipedia. This concept really struck me as something that rings true in my own experience as a student. I was a smart enough student to do som...

THE QUESTION: "At which of Kohlberg's levels of moral development are the students in your class functioning? Cite specific evidence and explain your reasoning for selecting these levels. What did the teacher do, or what might be done, to help the students advance to higher levels with regard to the examples you supplied above? Be sure to include a reference in your response."  Kohlberg's Theory of Moral Development is best summarized at this reference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Onkd8tChC2A  from the Khan Academy. Looking at the different levels of preconventional, conventional, and post conventional it's very easy to see that most adolescents function on the pre conventional and conventional levels, fluctuating according to the moral situation in which they are placed.  In Mrs. O's Beginning Theatre class, three of her best actors never care that they are consistently late to her class. In Mr. J's History course he called out three students in f...