Part+2


 * STUDENTS: Part 1**


 * 7. San Antonio, Donna M. and Elizabeth A. Salzfass. "How We Treat One Another in School."**

Summary (Jack) The authors address the issue of bullying and discuss how the behavior can lead to horrible outcomes. They conducted a survey asking middle school students from a small city, a larger city and a rural area. Students answered both open-ended and multiple choice questions to uncover the hidden facets of school bullying. The authors discovered that bullying existed and is a major problem at all schools. Furthermore, both girls and boys admitted to participating in bullying or being bullied physically and verbally. The survey indicates the common reasons for being teased, which include; weight, dress, and acting differently than one’s social gender role. Antonio and Salzfass’ survey also confirms that in all school settings bullying occurs most frequently at locations which lack adult supervision, such as the bathroom or the hallway. The students state that they deal with bullying by avoidance, saying mean things back or physical retaliation. In addition, students claim adult response to bullying is insufficient and empty; thus ineffective in eliminating the behavior. The authors give suggestions for schools to consider when approaching how to eliminate bullying such as; conducting an assessment to determine the type of bullying, creating committees to focus on school relationships and implementing strict antibullying polices. They also suggest training all school employees to recognize bullying and consoling both parties involved in the incident. Furthermore they believe it is important to recognize and reward good behavior in the school environment as well as incorporating social-emotional education into curriculum for students. Lastly, as highlighted by the middle school survey, it is important for teachers to realize they establish the tone for which bullying and other inappropriate behavior will be handled. Teachers need to be aware of the signs of bullying, use firm, consistent action for dealing with poor behavior and teach students about accepting others despite their differences. The students seem to be asking for more help and support with intrapersonal school behavioral issues.

--K.McCollum

Doubting Lens (Queen)

Throwing out research from various studies on the issue of bullying may seem a very compelling case for action to some, but reality is that bullying is a fact of life that will never disappear. Kids get bullied in settings from rural schools, to small city schools, to the largest urban schools in the nation. I doubt that the authors of this essay began their research with an open mind. Those who seek to find support from their own research, always will. Bullying is not a recent phenomenon; it has served as a rite of passage for millions of children for the past half century. Where are the studies that seek out data on the correlation between bullying and increased competitiveness? The current school system seeks to reward all children and treat every child ‘fairly’. This coddling of children from preschool to graduation leads to new generations of students not fully prepared to make it in the real world. What does an individual who has never had to face a bully before do when they get into the real world and find that bullies are just a part of everyday life? We as a society cannot just wish them away, we must learn to work and live with them in our day to day lives. A child having to overcome bullying in a school setting is just preparation for the real world.

The idea of implementing a Social-Emotional Learning Curriculum in every school district is at its face value a great stride toward better schools. Reality however tells a much different story. Schools and their educators are already faced with the impossible task of ensuring that a state mandated content curriculum be learned in and out by each and every student in a classroom. Where does a teacher have time to implement a new set of standards no matter how beneficial they may seem on the surface? Schools are already having to pick priorities, does bullying prevention really fit in at the top? My guess is, if it’s not on the state’s standardized test – probably not!

-Aaron Noordhoek

Believing Lens (King)

Teachers need to be very aware of everything going on in their classrooms, however difficult that may be. Bullying is definitely among one of those many things. Teachers need to talk about bullying with students, just as they would with the rest of the classroom rules and expectations. Students need to know that the teacher is on their side and is a protector of sorts. Bullying has many implications, some explicit and some implicit. If a student is bullied he or she may shut down in the classroom, especially if the bully is present. Learning is a vulnerable process and even the slightest bit of discomfort can force a student to shut down. If a teacher explicitly states their position on bullying then those that are bullied will feel that have someone to talk to and those that do the bullying will know there are consequences for their actions.

Unfortunately bullying is not limited to face-to-face contact or violence. In today’s technological world, many cases of bullying occur online. While it may be harder for a teacher to catch on to cyber bullying than acts of physical violence the teacher still has a responsibility to address all types of bullying. Teachers must be vigilant of student conversations and relationships in order to catch on to more subtle types of bullying.

Overall, no matter what type of bullying occurs in or outside of the classroom, educators can influence the social and emotional school climate that ultimately effects learning.

-Kelsey Curlett

Implications for Practice (Ace)

This essay already outlines many ways to apply anti-bullying strategies ranging from training school employees to helping the bullies and the bullied. What I would do if I were in charge is begin with a zero-tolerance stance towards people bullying. I would need the help of the teachers to ensure that any and all bullying situations are taken serious to demonstrate that we will not stand idly by. I will also follow in the footsteps of my former principal who made rounds during class switching as well as ask teachers to stand outside the class. This would help increase the amount of supervisors in the halls while promoting enthusiasm and a welcoming attitude by the teacher as students walk into class (see Wong’s //First Days of School//).

One aspect I would consider is school uniforms. There have been many publications which detail the diminishing of bullying and isolation when everyone is required to wear the same clothes. This reduces the bullying based on different socioeconomic status. I would need to look further into the topic before risking student individualization.

Pop culture is also another method to teach students about treating others with respect. First, a not so good example is Bully Beat down on MTV, where people who bully are selected to fight a professional MMA fighter to get a glimpse of what it feels like to be bullied (Sometimes that is what’s needed to reach people). A better example is also on MTV called “If You Really Knew Me” (I’m 90% sure that’s what it’s called) which takes the tales of people who have been bullied and the express their stories in an assembly style method. The goal is to break down barriers and realize the emotions and heartaches that they go through on a daily basis being the subject of bullying. The show proves to work wonders at schools. And I would use these pop culture examples to reinforce the school’s policy because more often than not, students relate better with teen shows than teacher lectures. -Derek Boillat


 * 8. Strom, Paris and Robert D. Strom. "Cheating in Middle and High School."**

Summary (Jack) Storm and Strom argue the percentage of middle and high school students who participate in cheating is greater than most people would expect. In fact, students from //Who’s Who among American High School Students// were questioned if they have ever cheated on a test and a surprising 80 percent admitted to cheating on teacher made and state testing. This fact spotlights the overlooked dimension of unethical behavior being performed by high-achieving, (not just struggling students) in the academia world. Why cheat? The authors discuss the main motivations for students implementing cheating skills on tests, such as; to obtain better graders, not having enough time to complete the work, placing insignificant value on the course or simply because everyone else is doing cheating. Other responses including lack of competent tutoring and adults model similar behavior for them. As if these reasons were not enough to push students to cheat, the authors address how technology only amplifies the negative behavior. Strom and Strom discuss how students today are able to access more information than ever before and with that immense power, they are able to easily and quickly look up information. Teachers have to be wary about technological devices like cell phones, ipods and even high-tech graphing calculators which allow students to store, access and retrieve information relevant for the test. The authors suggest teachers modify their tests each semester, create multiple versions of the test, change the seating location of students and not leave the room during test taking to minimize cheating behavior. Needless to say, the internet raises the issue of ethical concerns, too. Teachers not only have to be concerned with cheating, but also with plagiarism. The authors reveal how numerous sites exist that will provide students with papers for a cost which leaves teachers in the dark about what academic work is authentic or fraudulent. They suggest [|www.turnitin.com] as an expensive resource for schools that are looking to eliminate the percentage of plagiarism. Additionally, students commented that the teachers were just as responsible for cheating as the students. They believe the cheating would decrease if teachers would make more open-ended and creative response format tests to ensure students couldn’t just read and copy bubbled letters. Furthermore, the authors claim that the act of placing a cheating policy in syllabi is not enough; teachers need to be firm and explain the importance of self-work. The most important thing to remember is the students lose from cheating because it can develop into a lifelong habit which affects their moral compass and prevents them from experiencing academic self-satisfaction and achievement.

--K.McCollum

Doubting Lens (Queen) The authors of this essay would have you believe that the American school system, albeit the world’s school systems are facing an epidemic, a rising plague of cheating among students. The authors are quick to offer teachers tips and resources (most of them require a subscription fee) to prevent cheating in the classroom. High stakes testing and the cheating that comes with it have made for major industries in the education field.

Where has trust in the classroom gone? Students who want to cheat are going to cheat. They will find a way around any software no matter how ‘good’ (expensive) it may be. If teachers were to focus less on preventing cheating through implementation of silly procedures that seek only to alienate and frustrate students and more on building individual, personal relationships with their students teachers wouldn’t have to spy on their students to find out who is cheating – they would already know. As more and more pressure is placed upon students, the more and more we will likely see them cheat. I doubt that any of the author’s suggestions will serve as genuine roadblocks to their efforts.

-Aaron Noordhoek

Believing Lens (King)

Just as with bullying, teachers must be explicit about their classroom policies and expectations in regards to cheating. If students are aware of the teacher’s cheating policies then they may be less likely to commit such acts. Students don’t cheat because they aren’t intelligent; often they are just looking for an easy way out.

Teachers have just as much of a responsibility to catch cheaters as they do to create curriculum that doesn’t allow for cheating. Material that promotes rote memorization may prompt students to cheat, however, material that requires higher order thinking will eliminate most possibilities for cheating. Teachers should take the time to develop material that allows the students to be creative and take ownership for their work. If the assignments are fun, engaging, and relevant then students will not have any desire to cheat.

Not only does the teacher need to establish rules about cheating but the school district or individual school should also have a policy in place to deal with cheating. If a child is implicated in cheating then the school can defend itself by showing a parent that it was stated in the rules. While Grand Rapids Public Schools has a policy in place for bullying, I could not find a policy in the student handbook for cheating.

-Kelsey Curlett

Implications for Practice (Ace)

When I become a teacher, I don’t foresee cheating being as big of an issue in my classroom that it currently tends to be. That is a bold statement I know. To make that claim I look at why cheating has occurred in my previous classes. 1. Teachers simply turned the other cheek an didn’t care if we had notes out on closed book tests. 2. They reuse the same tests in other classes for multiple years so students have accsess to the test questions early. 3. Most of the student’s grades come from tests which raises the ante to do well on them, thus prepared or not, a student may be inclined to cheat.

What I will do different is within my classes, emphasis participation and attendance (pretty hard to cheat on those). Instead of having end of the novel quizzes, assign podcasts, wiki reviews, small group presentations which not only reduce cheating but also stray away from regurgitating information to more of a thinking critical assessment. When it comes to writing, using blogs, turnitin.com, and other subjective pieces reduces the need to cheat.

Also there needs to be a policy set in stone of what happens when a student does happen to cheat so they are not surprised by the ramifications. Students thrive with organization and structure. -Derek Boillat


 * 9. Dweck, Carol. "The Perils and Promises of Praise."**

Summary (Jack) Dweck commences the article by discussing whether intelligence is fixed or malleable. She explains how research demonstrates that the type of praise students receive will alter their view of their intelligence. She describes two common mindsets students have regarding their intellect: fixed and growth. A fixed mind-set is generally the creation of praise directed at the child’s intelligence. For example, “You finished that math problem really fast! You must be really smart!” The child picks up on cues that their work is being praised because of a natural gift they must possess—in this case, intelligence. Whereas a growth mind-set is the outcome of students receiving praise due to their hard work and perseverance; this allows students to feel empowered about their academic growth and capabilities. For example, “You worked hard to finish that math problem! You kept trying to figure out the answer—Great job!” Additionally, Dweck asserts that fixed mind-sets due to praising intelligence result in other negative effects, such as; students becoming overwhelmed with tasks easily, giving up if they are struggling, selection of easier tasks over more challenging ones to maintain confidence and falsifying poor results to maintain being viewed in a positive light. Furthermore, fixed mind students are less likely to be intrinsically motivated to learn in comparison to growth mind-set students. When students learned about how the brain functions and learns information, students were motivated to try harder in school knowing their intelligence is something they can alter. Dweck mentions a struggling student who was excited and fascinated about hearing how the brain stretches to expand and retain more knowledge, proclaiming “I don’t have to be dumb.” Students displayed more interest to learn after realizing they have the power to shape their minds.

--K.McCollum

Doubting Lens (Queen) The author begins the essay by offering the modern assertion that students today receive too much praise for simply doing what is expected of them. The author discusses how this dangerous ‘everyone is a winner’ mentality can actually lead to less successful students both in and out of the classroom. The author should be able to see his own hypocrisy shining through in this essay. The author discusses how too much effort is being put on giving students praise, but then offers a long explanation of how to effectively give students praise. The author’s suggestions, no matter how much they are based in research, offer deeper insight to our society. No longer can teachers tell their students “Good Job” or “Way to go on your Homework assignment Johnny!” No, teachers must now provide students with prepared, specially crafted feedback that seeks to mold students into continuing good behaviors. We have allowed ourselves to go too far in our search for “the right way” of doing things. The author accused society of caring too much about students’ feelings and responding inappropriately to them. Now the author offers that we care too much about student’s reactions and respond sensitively to how they process them. The author cannot see the ridiculousness of his own suggestion.

-Aaron Noordhoek

Believing Lens (King)

Knowing the difference between growth mind-set and fixed mind-set is very important for teachers. It is easy to praise students for their good work but as stated by Dweck, praising students for their intelligence may be more harmful then helpful. As a psychologist that has studied student motivation for more than 35 years, Dweck is in a position to educate teachers about the harm that praising student’s intelligence can have. This may be a difficult feat for some teachers to accomplish but teachers should really be aware of how they are praising students. Teachers should try to focus less on the outcome and more on the effort. This is much more difficult said then done. If a student is always performing at the top it seems like it makes sense to praise that student’s good work but the other students may begin to feel inferior or less intelligent. At such young, vulnerable ages students are easily persuaded into thinking that they aren’t intelligent enough.

It had never crossed my mind to take the time to teach students how the brain actually functions but according to the research developed by Dweck this simple teaching strategy can get students to change from fixed mind-sets to growth mind-sets. Teaching students how the brain functions is a technique that is very explicit and easy. The brain is a fascinating organ and teaching students how their brain functions is a creative way to motivate students to challenge their mind-sets. Adolescents are quick to believe they cannot perform as highly as others, therefore all schools could benefit from the mind-set intervention.

-Kelsey Curlett

Implications for Practice (Ace)

Well this essay is utterly fascinating. I never realized that praise could actually set a student up for failure. What I take from this is that when I become a teacher, I will focus not on the end result of how a student did in terms of complimenting, rather the effort they put into getting to the end. I think what is useful when I do encounter a student who is a fixed trait believer and they struggle on a new concept, I could explain a time when I first struggled with a topic (for example, por y para in Spanish classes). My hope is to show them that they are not alone in making a mistake or struggling and then work on helping them become a growth-mind-set student.

A second key element to this essay was motivation. Learning and adjusting students’ motivation to work hard and learn will be crucial to their overall success. The society as a whole has shifted from the importance of learning to become a more well rounded individual to a grade point average emphasis monster. It is because of good grades that students are afraid to take risks and make mistakes, forgetting that those are some of the main ways we learn. Thus, students should not be punished for trying something new, working hard, and failing as long as the effort is there. -Derek Boillat


 * Considering all of the readings:**

What Happened / Why / Meanings / Implications (2)


 * What Happened **: The third hour of the day, my CT and I have a reading class. This class is based on different novels during the year. Last week we started reading the first novel of the class. After briskly going through some background information on the Caribbean, my CT had the students read out loud to the rest of the class. Each student had a turn and the job of reader was passed down each row of desks. Four students fell asleep and multiple others were daydreaming holding their heads in their hands. When the chapter was finished, my CT asked the class questions about what had just been read and only two or three students had an answer to give her. She informed me after the class that these students were going to be slow readers and we would have to lower our expectations with the next novel. Two days later, I suggested we try having them read in groups of three to each other and she insisted that the students wouldn’t handle the responsibility well. After two more days of students falling asleep, we tried the groups and the students finally understood what was happening in the book.


 * Why did it Happen?: ** As I was sitting in the front of the classroom, I had a hard time hearing some of the readers because of their small voices and the largeness of the room. The students were falling asleep because they could not hear their classmates reading the paragraph worth of the chapter. Even when the students could hear the reader, I saw some count chapters to the point where they would be reading and silently read to themselves. The students were nervous about reading to the whole class. The students were either bored or nervous in the situation the reading exercise put them in and couldn’t concentrate on the story being read in the classroom. My CT has labeled this class, based on this performance, as one of her slower classes. After the group reading was a success, my CT still believes that there should be whole class readings. She was surprised that the students were able to get through a chapter on their own with us walking around the classroom but she doesn’t credit this to the student’s abilities. She still considers the class to be slow learners.


 * What does this mean?: ** This was a frustrating experience for me and at first I firmly believed that my CT was just setting her expectations too low for class responsibility. I felt that she was stuck in her methods even when they clearly were not as effective as they should be in the classroom. Reflecting on the situation, I think my CT has the fear of not being in control of her classroom. She expects the worst from her students so she doesn’t make the mistake of giving them too much freedom in the classroom.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Implications for Practice **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">: When I have my own classes I am going to push myself to think positively about every class. Though each class will have its own special adjustments based on the students, I will try my hardest not to rank them in my head as a fast or slow learning class. The students know if the teacher is expecting them to be responsible or just hoping the class will behave. When my students have to read in class I do think I will do the groups instead of a full class reading. In small groups, there is less anxiety for the students and easier to pay attention when the reader is sitting next to you instead of on the other side of the room.

-Katie Reilly

What Happened / Why / Meanings / Implications (3)

On the second floor of my placement school lies the RTC room. This room is the "class" in which students participate in responsible thinking (RT). Students get sent here when they have a hard time complying with the rules. On Tuesday the classroom was full and my CT and I went up to see the classroom monitors during our planning hour. One of the monitors chose one of the eight students and began to make fun of him. The students said, "Come on, quit," in a Jeckel Hyde voice; half serious, half joking. The other seven students joined the monitors in laughing at this one, and then the students are told to go back to writing their responsible thinking plans.
 * What Happened?:**

This type of teasing is common in this school. It also seems that this type of teasing is a characteristic of the background of most of these students. Further, in a way to assert power over students, degrading humor is used. Also, this type of teasing one student out of many is sometimes used in an effort to befriend the other students. The other students joined in making fun of the one because they are gollowing the lead of the instructor.
 * Why did this Happen?:**

This means that the example is being set that bullying is an acceptable behavior. Further, this behavior is perpetuating the notion that relationships are formed on the basis of teasing. The most important meaning this has for the students is that the teachers cannot be trusted to protect them from bullying because the teachers not only allow bullying, but they participate in it themselves. For me personally this means that joking has been taken too far and that these students being targeted do not see it as such.
 * What does it mean?:**

In the future when I have control of my own classroom I will ensure that my classroom is a non-bullying zone for myself and my students. At present, I am consciously making sure that I am not being sarcastic in a way that students would not understand, I am trying to catch as many instances of bullying I can and stop them without stepping on the toes of other educators in my building, and I am trying to show the student that I have the least amount of instant care for the same understanding and patience of everybody else. The hard thing for me is that there are so many times where there are little remarks made in class and I need to work on remedying these as well. Classrooms should be safe environments for students and I will do my best to make mine such.
 * Implications for practice:**

-Ashley Gwinn

What Happened / Why / Meanings / Implications (4)

There's a student in my LANGUAGE! (lower-level Language Arts) class who is repeating the sixth grade this year. My CT had him as a student last year, and she quite clearly does not like him. He will occasionally lose his focus and start doodling instead of doing his work, which irritates my CT to the point that she will take his pencil from his hand or set his notebook on her desk until the end of the class period. The boy is very quiet, but I can see that this makes him angry and really does not make him do his work. My CT will also whisper to me about him during class time and very rarely has anything nice to say.
 * What Happened:**

I decided to try a new approach with the student. When I saw him drawing instead of doing his work, I asked what he was drawing and inquired about his interest in art. I then asked if he could work on his classwork during the time we had and continue with his drawing only when he was finished. He agreed, and I didn't have a problem with him for the rest of the period.

My CT has very strong opinions about each of her students, and she very clearly came into this year cursing whoever put the student in her class again. She obviously expects the worst from him and doesn’t seem to think that he can improve or mature without some sort of intervention from her. When it comes to her other students, my CT is very approachable and friendly, but to this boy, she is mean and incredibly strict.
 * Why It Happened:**

On the student’s part, it is true that he failed his first attempt at completing sixth grade mostly because he wanted to spend more time doodling than learning about grammar. He is very quiet and, in my opinion, may be having some difficulty with reading. He is, however, very intelligent and when he’s focused on a task it is usually completed with alacrity. I think that this frustrates my CT because she does not know how to get him to focus without punishing him.

When I approached the student, I crouched down so that I was at his level and spoke to him in encouraging tones because I was honestly interested in getting to know him a little more. Why did he spend so much time drawing instead of doing his work? When I asked him to stop drawing, I didn’t say it in a way that, in my mind, made it seem like a punishment but instead a reward for finishing his work. Once he was finished with his tasks, he could of course use his time to draw. Because of the positive way in which I spoke to him, the student did what I asked without so much as a scowl.

The two different approaches that my CT and I used show that my teacher is on her way to creating her own discipline problems. Out of the ten items given that would help lead to a “problem child,” my CT commits seven with this student on a daily basis. Because she does not hide her disdain for the student, he most likely views her classroom as a sort of personal hell: being lorded over by an evil teacher who hates him, given work that he’s not interested in, having his personal possessions taken away, and being constantly reminded that he didn’t pass sixth grade the first time around.
 * What It Means:**

Because the student responded more positively to my treatment of him than my CT’s, I would venture to assume that treating students with respect and not showing any sort of dislike for them will create a better environment for them in which they may decide that their education is worth it. As they say, it is easier to attract flies with honey than vinegar, and although it is rather rude to compare my students to flies, the saying rang true in this situation: showing my student that I was interested in him and not punishing him for being himself lead to an increased amount of productivity from a reluctant learner.

In my own classroom, I will make sure not to show any of my students the sort of dislike or disinterest that my teacher has for this student. Instead, I will show that I respect them and care about who they are and what interests they have. As the College of Educationinstructors keep saying, you have to show students that you care before they care to learn. In my class, each student will start with a blank slate so that there are no labels or low expectations for my classes. I will work hard to show that while class work is the priority, they won’t be punished with it or have their things taken from them as if they were five year olds.
 * Implications for Practice:**

- Kristy McPherson