Hypothesis:
If a teacher provides a learning environment that is emotionally safe and meets the basic needs of their students, then students will be more likely to find themselves in the Zone of Proximal Development because their minds will be at a higher cognitive level due to a more positive attitude towards learning since their basic needs will have been satisfied.
Week 3 Theory to Practice:
If a teacher can create an affective learning environment that fosters a positive attitude in their students, then their students will be more productive and produce work of a higher caliber because of their own intrinsic motivation to succeed. This was evidenced in Vicki Davis' class where students were allowed to work in a more autonomous environment. Her students were seen to be very productive and produce quality work that they were proud to share not only with each other, but with the rest of the world as well through their blogs and wikis. I firmly believe that the best motivation anyone can have is intrinsic motivation. This motivation is what drives people to do better for both themselves and for others. Extrinsic motivation has it place in the classroom too, but educators need to be careful in how it is implemented. As has been seen in both the Goodman reading and Daniel Pinks seminar, it can have a negative effect on the task at hand. As a soon to be educator, I plan to use extrinsic motivators to help students find their way, but ultimately, I would like to be able to have a classroom of students that intrinsically want to do well and help each other succeed.
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Jeff,
ReplyDeleteYou are hovering about some deep ideas here. You're questing that's for sure and for that I admire your efforts. I'm going to challenge some of your claims however. For example, you hypothesize that if students' basic needs are met, then they will be in the ZPD. How would Vygotsky respond to that assertion? What about his theory of cognitive development evidences Maslowian theory? Second, you assert that higher-level learning e.g., critical thinking, problem solving, is caused by a "positive attitude." Once again, what theory do you have to support this assertion? You've got to back it up Jeff! Either with theoretical evidence or your own experience and rational intuition (qualitative evidence). Without more details, your hypothesis falls short of being sound. Attempt a rewrite week 4. Your beginning to connect theory to practice in expressing your vision of your own classroom and work with students. In this regard, you are ahead of the game in building some bridges between theory to your own practice. Keep pressing.