Poverty

In the course of just a few days, I feel that I have learned much about poverty. Unfortunately, this is a subject that, in the past, I would have preferred to not think about; I think that it is easy to pretend that this is not an issue that concerns me. However, I have learned that this is far from the truth. With the study of poverty, many emotions have raised within me. My eyes have been opened to the sad truths about poverty; my heart has been broken. The tolls of this struggle are real, and there are many who have to endure the effects. And, as a future educator, this is going to be something that I will have to work with. In thinking otherwise, I would be very naive.
     
There are many students within schools that suffer the effects of poverty, and there are so many negative effects. To begin, most students in such a situation move around a lot. This means that it is likely that these students are missing much of school. Obviously, if it becomes a regular thing, the students will begin to have a great struggle in academics. It is also likely that these students experience poor nutrition and health. This could mean that these students are not able to function efficiently; hunger is probably on their mind. In addition to this, it is probable that the students are undergoing much stress. And, as I have previously learned, this causes the hippocampus to shrink, preventing memory recall. Sadly, the list of negative effects does not end here. However, even with these few examples, it is obvious that students living in poverty struggle.

I believe that this knowledge has impacted me greatly. I now feel as if I have become more sensitive to the issue of poverty. That being said, I am now working to do a number of things to help this situation. To begin, I feel extremely motivated to receive a  college degree. While this has always been a goal of mine, I truly understand the importance of it now. In receiving a degree, I hope that I can prevent poverty within my own family.
    
Obviously, I am working to earn my degree in elementary education. I yearn to be an educator for elementary school kids. In teaching, I think that it is possible to help these students in poverty. I want to be able to take them from their poor situation, and make the best out of it. These students, though financially poor, will not be poor in academics; I will not allow that in my classroom. I want to be able able to provide a bright future for those children.
    
I am educating myself now because I know that I can make a difference in the future. I want to change and become a better teacher. Here are some things that I think that will help: 

1. I will try to eliminate competition in my classroom. Although there is an difference in social classes between my students, I do not want to make that apparent. By eliminating competition, I believe that wealthy students and students in poverty can be on the same level.
2. When deciding to make projects, I will make it a point to provide the materials. In doing this, the students in poverty will not be humiliated if they cannot provide the materials themselves.
3. After holiday vacation time, I do not want to take the time to discuss what the students did. I know that this will be challenging to do, but it is the right thing to do. I do not want to put the students in poverty on the spot; they should not have to feel embarrassed to express the fact that they probably did not do anything. 

Sense of Self

In the recent weeks past, I feel like I have come to understand a great deal about development. Among this knowledge that I have gained, my thoughts are turned to one thing in particular: sense of self development. 

Everyone has a sense of self; however, everyone's sense of self various. Generally, this sense is impacted my three major factors. The first major factor is dependent upon success and failures. If one experiences failure, it is likely that self-concept spirals downward. However, if the same person experiences success, it is likely that  self-concept is brought up. Generally, the total ratio of failures to success is irrelevant; the impact of these two things is not generated my a total amount. It has actually been found that the impact of success versus failure comes from the magnitude of an event. For example, if an individual has a great amount of success, he or she might feel great about themselves. Nevertheless, if one great failure comes along, it can completely ruin this individual. Yes, one event can change everything. This same example can be applied in reverse: one major success can supersede a long list of failures. 
    
Interestingly enough, it has been found that men and women are very different when it comes to success and failures; gender greatly influences sense of self. To begin, it appears that men have a healthy self concept. After completing task, when asked how they did, men are quick to respond in a positive manner. Obviously, they are confident (at least for the most part). However, although confident, studies show that men actually site themselves higher than their true successes. In lame terms, men truly are not doing as well as they think they are. The same cannot be said about women. When asked the same, women site themselves lower their true successes. It is a curious thing. Furthermore, when questioned about accomplishments, men attribute success to personal skills and talents. When women were asked, it was found that women attributed their success to hard work, luck, and the help of others. Undoubtedly, gender greatly influences sense of self.
    
In addition to success and failure, there are two other things that influence sense of self: other's behavior toward you, as well as membership within a group. 

When learning about sense of self, I was completely taken back. Personally, the studies seemed a little ridiculous to me. I wondered why men and women could be so different. I was curious why gender had such a significant influences on self concept. To me, the studies just could not be true. 
    
In further learning about this, i discovered something: it was all true. Suddenly, I felt that I could relate to the material that we were talking about. When I truly thought about it, I realized that I was like the women that we spoke about in class. I do not have the healthiest self concept; I fell that too many failures rule my life. When I complete work, I underestimate myself. When I do succeed, I fail to recognize my personal greatness. Why? Because if I do have this personal recognition, I feel that I instantly am label as "proud". And that is the last thing that I want to be. 
    
In class I have learned that it is fine to recognize personal success. I have learned that it is possible to do this in a way and still be humble. With that in mind, I have been striving to gain a healthier sense of self. I have tried to recognize the things that I am good at; I "owe" what I do and what I say. 

With these certain things in mind, there are things that I want to implement as a teacher:

1. With each new school year, I want to teach my students that "put downs" are not acceptable. I will go on to explain how bullying is not tolerated. In this explanation, I will teach my students that they are not even allowed to bully themselves. I want my students to have a positive self image.
2. When my students do something well, I think that I should make it known. I would like to personally talk with the students; I want them to understand their successes. In doing this, I hope that my students will gain more confidence. 
3. At the start of each school day, I think it would be nice to set aside a few minutes to share good news. If a student has done something that they are proud of, I would like to give them time to tell the class. Doing this, I hope that students will embrace success rather than failure. 

Development

There are many people who had tried to understand how development works. Of these people, I have recently learned of two important men: Piaget and Vygotsky. Undoubtedly, throughout this past week or so, I have come to understand a great deal about these men’s’ theories. However, in learning about development, I have come to realize that there is not a set answer to all things; neither Piaget nor Vygotsky hold all answers concerning development. Nevertheless, there is much to be learned from these intellectual giants.

Piaget was able to break intellectual development into four distinct groups. These groups were based upon age ranges. Within the groups, Piaget identified certain characteristics that one would go through; he mapped out the development for each group. It was fascinating to see. However, through personal experience, I realized that these groups are not concrete. You see, after some experimenting, I found that I am not fully functioning where I should be in accordance to Piaget’s age range.

Vygotsky seemed to really focus on learning in an interesting way. One thing that was mentioned was the zone of proximal development. Essentially, he said that individuals go through a sort of process when they learn. If individuals are given something too easy to complete (if there is no challenge), nothing is gained. However, if individuals are given something too difficult (there is too much of a challenge), again, nothing is gained. That being said, it is crucial to for each to recognize their own zone of proximal development.

In my personal life, I have learned to understand my zone of proximal development. When learning new things, I have learned to take the time to gauge where I am. Are things to easy for me? Are things too difficult for me? That being said, I have sought to improve my learning abilities.

When learning comes too easy for me (when there is not a challenge), I have found ways to challenge myself. For the most part, this typically means that I will dive more into a certain topic. Also, I have found that I tend to ask more questions when things are too easy for me. In doing this, I push myself to find more of a challenge.

When learning comes too difficult for me (there is too much of a challenge), I have found ways to make things easier. In these times, I have found that I take the time to read things more slowly. I also take the time to sit down and contemplate the concepts that I have learned. At this point, I take notes and review much. In doing this, I have realized that I am capable of understanding hard things.

In realizing these new concepts about learning, I now have ideas to implement as a teacher. These ideas include the following:

1. I would like to assess my students at the start of each new unit. Doing this, I hope that I will be able to gauge where each of my students zone of proximal development is. Hopefully, by doing this, I will be able to see what things are too hard or too easy.
2. In my class, I would like to cater to each of my student’s needs. If one student is not being challenged enough, I would like to give them more challenging material. If one students finds something too challenging, I would like to have the tools necessary to set them up for success.
3. When teaching younger students, I would like to help them understand conservation and reversibility. In order to do this, I would like to take the time to have fun exercises in class that practice this.

The Brain

These past few weeks I have learned much about the brain. To start, I have learned that there are many misconceptions about the brain; there have been many things that I have supposed to be true, but are truly false. Of these things, unfortunately, I have found that I am not good at multitasking. Furthermore, I have come to realize that I am not a left or a right brain thinker. This fact alone brought me great surprise. And as if these two things were not astonishing enough, I came to learn more of how the brain functions. These few weeks, without a doubt, have been very interesting. 

To mention a few interesting things about the brain, I have realized that the brain uses 20% of my calories each day. That is quite a bit! With that in mind, I have learned that I constantly need to keep my brain fuel. My brain needs sufficient water, oxygen, and glucose to keep going. Without these things, my body sends signals (that are most times uncomfortable) that let me know that I am missing something. It is all quite amazing. 

In learning how the brain works, I have come to realize that I am in desperate need of a new lifestyle. In the past, I have always considered myself a busy body. I would arise in the morning, rush out the door, and I would frequently find that I had forgotten to eat anything for breakfast. A few hours would past and I could feel that my body was upset with me; it needed some sort of fuel. However, for the most part, I chose to ignore these feelings of an upset body. I felt that I did not have time to eat. To make matters worse, I found that I rarely made time to drink water. By the end of the day, my body felt tired and my brain was fried. It seemed like I did have the energy to make it through the day.

Well, as mentioned from above, I have realized that my brain needs fuel to function! That being said, I have begun the process of changing my lifestyle. Each morning, I make time to eat breakfast. Before rushing out the door, I throw a few snacks in my backpack to give me strength through a crazy day. To top it off, I now keep a water bottle handy. I am now supplying my brain with enough fuel to make it through the day. In doing this, I have seen great results! Now, I am able to make it through a busy day without feeling so drained; I actually have a bit if energy by the time my day comes to an end. It has been a great experience. 

In realizing these new concepts about the brain, I now have ideas to implement as a teacher. These ideas include the following:

1. I want to have a supply of fruit within my classroom. When my students start to feel hungry, I want to be able to supply them with a piece of fruit. I hope this would give their brain a kick-start.
2. After the students have been working for a long while, I want the students to get up and have a brain break!
3. In addition to having fruit for my students, I always want the students to have access to water at anytime of the day. They can bring their own water bottles, or I can supply water. I know that water is so important.