Which Student are You?
Marzano’s study with the various students and their exposure to out-of-school academic knowledge and processing ability was fascinating to me and makes for a great topic of discussion for us. Students 1, 2 & 3 are the ones who tend to excel based on their out of school experiences, having been exposed to several out-of-school activities which are enriching and provide more bridges to knowledge in the classroom. Student 4 is conscious enough to realize that their school doesn’t do a great job of connecting their out-of-school realities and that students 1 and 2 essentially put in less effort because of the exposure they’ve received outside of the classroom, leaving them less likely to attend college than student 6, showing us how detrimental unattended knowledge gaps can be to students like number 4, who possess an incredible amount of out-of-school experience.
Student 5’s case was a little puzzling and left me wondering what kind of roadblocks they would be presented with when it came down to success in the classroom. 5 displayed signs of having to work on curriculum but not having too much new material to master, leaving me wondering what their academic projection would be. I identified heavily with student 6, as I had struggled with learning new material (in science and math), while also having a decent amount of text-to-self knowledge. I also had my father and access to his friends and colleagues (dentists, musicians and a variety of white-collar professionals) who enriched my out-of-school experiences. All of that led me to this graduate program, which allowed me to identify with 6.
Students 7, 8 & 9 struggle to keep themselves afloat in the classroom, with 8 & 9 being most likely to have Individualized Education Plans (IEP). I also had an IEP during my formal academic years (I wear it as a badge of honor, considering how far I’ve gotten) and it served its purpose. With all that being said, I’d love to hear about what student or students you most identified with and why?
I agree the study was very interesting to read about and I feel myself relating to Student 3 or 6. I feel as though there has been a lot of repetition in my schooling, like I'm constantly having the same discussions and learning about the same topics over and over again. This has led me to have a wealth of knowledge of the few topics that have been stressed to me but I struggle with understanding and making connections when exposed to new content.
ReplyDeleteMaybe this is something we should all think about when deciding what to teach our students? I know there are rules we have to follow but we should try to give our students as much of a diverse education as we can because if we don't we'll just end up hurting their growth.
I think I identify most with student four. Most of my classes did not do a great job of connecting my own experiences to my education, but I had a variety of people in my life from many different backgrounds that gave me a wealth of our of school knowledge. I also had two parents who emphasized the importance of college and what I need to do going forward in my life.
ReplyDeleteWhat I really love and have learned throughout my years of being a teacher is we can connect anything to our students lives. The world has gotten so much smaller with the advent of technology that students have insane wells of knowledge. It is our job to get to know our students better so we can help them see why what they are learning is important, and show them how it connects to their lives.
One could argue that these profiles are changing throughout the course of one’s life/experience. For instance, at a younger age, I would consider myself to be student seven. Growing up I was focused on being in school because of my parents and family who consistently supported me to excel in my class. Learning was easier because I had the motivation to want to learn even if it was confusing. Now as I’ve gotten older, I would consider myself to be student six or five. I realize I am fortunate enough to have gained extensive academic knowledge but there are moments in college where I feel I don’t know or have many experiences as the person across the room. This conceptualization also places emphasis and creating experience/connection between students is vital for each.
ReplyDeleteI would say I can appreciate and relate to Student Four's experience the most. I generally feel like I understood my highschool was not good at making my education tangible with the real world, and I understood why that wasn't a good thing. I also had the benefit of having very close friends attend schools that did a better job at this, a family that heavily emphasized higher education, and just my general behaviors and interests. Because of these environmental circumstances I generally understood things pretty well and could point out the flaws in my education or maybe even those around me.
ReplyDeleteWith that being said, I think being like Student 4 and being hyperaware can be both a good and a bad thing. I think everyone to some degree needs the skill of self critical thinking, and general awareness to evaluate what works for you and what doesn't, but also to understand why it doesn't work for you. That filter is nice, but also being hyperaware has made me overly suspicious of new educational methods which isn't great. I would like to be able to try new things and be more trustful, but hyperawareness developed in highschool makes it more difficult to surrender your hesitations.
Marzano's study was a very interesting read. Answering your question I'm not sure which student i best align with. I've had educators that actually made students learn, as well as educators that simply don't care. Growing up I've always done great in math, but struggled to stay focus in reading classes. I grew up with only one parent that prioritized school heavily, but never made me focus on school and nothing but school. I was always talking, drawing, or doing something else while still comprehending the materials in class, but now its very difficult to focus during a class that isn't a subject I enjoy. This plays into the idea that everyone is different. The variety is endless.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Julian that there are many different types of students, and I had difficulty finding one that resonated with me the most. If I were to choose, I identify with student four the most. I knew that the CPS school I attended was not the best for my education due to the lack of funding. However, I made the most out of it and tried to excel to the best of my ability. My parents were strict about my grades and stressed the importance of education. I also did not have many friends for most of my high school and middle school, which gave me no choice but to study. I would do math problems to cope with the stress in my life since I found them easy and enjoyable. I was also very artistic and would draw, sculpt, and paint in my free time. My experience shows that mathematically inclined people can also be very creative and use both sides of their brain. I also believe that there are many different types of students and that we as educators need to learn every one of them to understand them and be better teachers for them.
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