Category Archives: Uncategorized

When to start fostering resilience?

As I explore my inquiry further, I feel more prepared and inspired to start implementing resilience building strategies into my teaching and practicum. Through exploring literature and blogs there are many resources and strategies to foster resilience in the classroom. So, when should a teacher start implementing these strategies within the classroom? This question is critical to my inquiry because it sets the tone of how resilience will be built within the classroom. Bondy et al (2007) explain that teachers can and should begin creating a resilient classroom climate in their first introductions to the students on the first day of school. For example, teachers can create class expectations, create procedures that students go through when they need help and create an encouraging and positive tone. These scholars explain that the initial moments teachers meet their students is critical. As I approach the 10-week practicum, I will consider implementing what these scholars discuss right away. As a teacher candidate, I do not start the year off with students; however, I still think that Bondy et al theories apply. Throughout the 10 weeks I can build up a rapport with students and this can start at the beginning.

 

Bondy, E., Ross, D.D., Gallingane, C., & Hambacher, E. (2007). Creating environments of success and resilience: culturally responsive classroom management and more. Urban Education, 42, 326- 348.

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Resources on developing resilience, grit, and growth mindset

http://www.edutopia.org/resilience-grit-resources

Edutopia is a well known blog that can cater to a variety of teacher related inquires and provides many resources for teachers to use. Through exploring this site, I found a blog that has compiled several resilience fostering resources for teachers to use in their classrooms. This blog uses a system of categories to explore various situations where students must be resilient. Thus, this blog is set up in such a fashion where it is accessible and comprehensive to a variety of teacher needs. Each sections provides a general overview and then a list of resources related to resilience. This blog contributes to my inquiry through providing specific strategies to support student resilience. This blog was created with both teachers and parents/guardians in mind, thus it supports resilience building both in and out of the classroom.

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Building resilient students: three strategies for success

Davis, J. S. (2014). Building resilient students: three strategies for success. Educational Horizons, 92, 21-25.

This article provides three strategies to help support students to be resilient outside of the classroom. Davis provides insight into my inquiry that differs from other scholars. While he provides ways to support educational resiliency, his paper primarily focuses on how to foster resiliency for experiences students may face outside of the classroom. Davis explains that the relationship between educational resilience works hand in hand with overall life resiliency. Davis explains that teachers can build strong relationships with students and families, talk to students about who they are and embrace their narratives, and use “problem-based models of instruction” (24). Through using these strategies within the classroom, teachers can build up skills for students to carry with them through their lives. This article provides both a practical and meaningful resilience building strategies to in still in students. This article is particularly helpful to my inquiry because it shows how students are at the centre of building their own resilience, and all of the strategies emphasize the roles that both students and teachers play in fostering resilience.

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Summative Assessment and Resilience

Throughout my practicum, I have observed how assessment practices can both hinder and support resilience in students. Assessment is an important tool for both students and teachers. Assessment strategies and practices vary among different subjects and in different classrooms. Test taking, which is a form of summative assessment, is a common way to wrap up a unit. The process of taking the test and receiving it back can stir mixed feelings among students. If students do ‘poorly’ they can become frustrated and this can shut down both their emotional and academic progress. Thus, this influences how resilient students are moving forward after tests.

Downey (2008) explains that situations such as this reinforce the need for positive student-teacher rapport in the classroom. Through focusing on student “strengths to increase positive self-esteem” (57) teachers can support academic resilience within the classroom. Creating a warm and caring classroom climate is also important because students should feel comfortable when tests are sent back to them. When the classroom environment is supportive it eases student stress and frustration, which can help facilitate resiliency.

While scaffolding student resilience, teachers can adjust their assessment methods to meet the needs of their students. For example, setting up personal goals with students for the future. This allows students to be “personally responsible for their success” (59) and this can work hand in hand with summative assessment practices.

 

Downey, J.A. (2008). Recommendations for fostering educational resilience in the classroom, preventing school failure: alternative education for children and youth.Preventing School Failure, 53, 56-64.

 

 

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Pupil resilience in the classroom

Cefai, C. (2004). Pupil resilience in the classroom. Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties, 9, 149-170.

This article discusses student resilience through a study conducted in Malta, Europe. This study is unique because it uses a teacher framework approach to understand student resilience. This approach is relevant to my inquiry because it assesses a tool (framework) that teachers can use within their classrooms. This framework is used to see how resilient students in your class are. The study concluded with the majority of the schools within the study being quite resilient, according to their framework. With this data, teachers can assess what areas their students need support to grow and become more resilient. Thus, this framework has the potential to formatively assess how teachers are promoting resilience within the classroom. While this study appears to be well constructed, it has a small sample size, which was taken from all European schools. Thus, this study does not represent all school contexts within the world. However, teachers can modify the framework to adjust to the needs of their country, community, and school.

 

 

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One Word

Dynamic collaboration is layered and diverse. While teaching a specific lesson, we often found that if we were teaching math, we were also teaching so much more. Collaboration is working together towards a common goal, however there are multiple ways to get to that goal.

 

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Mini-inquiry oct.6th- I see a Hershey’s cookies and cream chocolate bar

image

My rock

image first sketch

imagesecond sketch (bottom view)

The colors of my rock are white, black and grey. I took this rock from my family’s rose garden. I picked this rock because of the unique freckle like spots it had on the surface. As I sketched the rock, I observed several layers and grooves on it.

When I was sketching my rock, it reminded me of a cookies and cream chocolate bar. The black freckles are randomly distributed throughout the rock. Just like the chocolate cookie pieces in the cookies and cream bar. This is my personal interpretation of the rock.

I wonder where this rock originally came from? This also made me think about the rock cycle.

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Hello world!

Welcome to itec Sites. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!

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