Dylan Wedan
Self Assessment
Withitness: Withitness is a term used to describe the teacher’s ability to simultaneously
teach or assess while keeping tabs on the classroom in general. This skill enables the
teacher to both convey his message (teach) and keep the classroom environment under
control. It is important, of course, that the students know that the teacher is “with it” for
this skill to be effective. An example of withitness would be a teacher lecturing on a topic
but rather than staying by the chalk board, he circulates the room, often planting himself
by students who are likely to go off task. He is able, by his mere presence or perhaps
stern eye contact, to quell a distraction before it becomes a major issue and derails or
delays the lecture.
I consider withitness to be an incredibly important idea. This is because I firmly
believe that in order to be able to teach effectively, the teacher must be able to control the
classroom environment. Furthermore, I believe that the ideal way to control the
classroom environment is not through yelling often or sending kids out of the room, but
rather is through subtle hints that alert the students that the behavior they are exhibiting,
or are thinking about exhibiting, is not appropriate. Teachers who are with it are able to
control a classroom in this way, and as a result are more effective than they would be
otherwise.
Need for Arousal: The need for arousal describes the desire all human beings have to be
engaged in something. This craving for interaction is often displayed by students, in both
positive and negative ways. Ideally, students would display their need for arousal by
responding vigorously to questions posited for group discussion, being active group
members in group work activities, or even just being active listeners of an interesting
lecture. Negatively, students may display their need for arousal by fidgeting, passing
notes, or talking out of turn when a group activity, teacher lecture, or class movie does
not engage them.
While contemplating what student’s need for arousal means for the teacher’s class
preparations, it is important to keep in mind that there is an optimal level of arousal.
Though the varies from person to person, bearing this in mind should help guide teachers
away from an overuse of media to try to stimulate kids as well as help the teacher be
sensitive to the different expectations and needs of their different students.
I consider an understanding of the need for arousal very important in my
preparations to become a teacher. From both a classroom management point of view and
an “effectiveness of the lesson” point of view, it will be helpful for me to bear in mind
that the more I tap into a students interests and meet their need for arousal with class
activities, the more manageable and successful my class will be.
Authoritative Teaching: Authoritative teaching is another idea I have found to be very
helpful as I prepare for teaching. This method of teaching is very similar to the idea of
authoritative parenting, which is described in the book. Authoritative parenting consists
of a combination of high standards and reasonable restrictions on kids with a stable and
loving respect from parent to child. This mix of love and rules is meant to mold a child
into a well adjusted, self-controlled, confident, happy, and sensitive person. Authoritative
parenting tries to walk the line between two extremes: no structure and too much rigidity.
Both these alternatives are less desirable because one or both of these are prone to create
kids who are unable to delay gratification, have no ability to persevere, are overly
concerned with only themselves, have low self esteem, or have inhibited abilities to
thrive as an individual without the direct supervision of a parent or teacher.
There are differences between authoritative parenting and authoritative teaching.
For instance, a teacher would not be wise to display undue affection through physical
contact or by telling their students they love them. And by the same token, a teacher’s
role does not extend as far as a parent’s with regard to what they can expect of a student
(for example, a teacher would be out of line to demand that his students wake up on time
for church every Sunday). Nevertheless, when the principals of authoritative parenting
are adapted to the classroom, I believe they can be very helpful. Students are more likely
to remain on task and achieve highly when they know their teacher won’t stand for
nonsense and expects high results. Also, students may be more likely to listen to a teacher
they believe cares about them and genuinely wants them to succeed. It is these benefits of
authoritative teaching that make it a top idea for me to remember as I prepare for the
classroom.
Higher-Level Questions: Higher-level questions are those questions which require
students to take information they have learned directly and then elaborate upon it to
arrive at an answer. These types of questions are meant to force the student to take a
principle or concept that have learned and then extrapolate that knowledge in order to
solve a new problem.
I believe this is a very important lesson to remember as I go into the classroom
because I believe that for the subject I will teach (history), meaningful learning is always
in context, and that rote memorization of events and dates without context is worthless. In
a disciple such as history, kids who don’t like it are likely to try to scrape by by
memorizing key things. However, this approach is not likely to encourage a true
understanding of the events of history and their consequences. By asking higher-level
questions, I hope to show students the importance of history and the effect it has on day
to day life. When they take basic knowledge they’ve learned and are forced to interpret it
to answer a higher-level questions, I believe they will begin to piece together the
significance of the events. Higher-level questions will be a mainstay of my courses as I
try to get the students to genuinely learn the subject.
Scaffolding: Scaffolding can the understood as the support a teacher or student can give
a student as they try to achieve in ways that are within their zone of proximal
development. To put it another way, it is believed kids learn the most when they are
stretched to do tasks that they can only accomplish with guidance and support, and this
guidance and support is known as scaffolding.
Understanding the importance of scaffolding is in my top five ideas from this
course because it will guide many of the assignments I give as a teacher, as well as shape
the way I assist the students as they work. Without understanding scaffolding, I may have
given assignments that either demand too little or too much, both of which will result in
less real learning than assignments that require scaffolding. Furthermore, understand
scaffolding will hopefully shape the way I assist kids in their tasks, being quick to
provide structure or ask telling questions in order to get kids started and keep them on the
right path.