how to gear your child towards academic success
TRANSCRIPT
How to Gear Your Child towards Academic
Success: The Learner Attributes
Dr. Michael Matthew, Ed.DStaff Developer and IB
Coordinator for American Youth Academy
How to Gear Your Child towards Academic Success:
The Learner Attributes
Purpose To explore
academic strategies of gearing children towards academic success
To identify learner attributes as integral to academic success
Agenda What about homework? What does current research
say about my child’s learning process?
What are learner attributes?
How can knowing about learner attributes assist me with my child’s education?
Parents often view their children’s academic success as being involved with homework. Whether children do homework at home, complete it in after school programs or work on it during the school day, homework can be a important for:(a) Informing parents and
other adults what the child is learning
(b) Providing children and parents a reason to talk about what’s going on in their class, subject, or school
(c) Communicating with teachers about children’s learning concerns, challenges, or progress
What about homework?
The learning Process
Maturationist TheoryThe maturationist theory was advanced by the work of Arnold Gessell. Maturationists believe that development is a biological process that occurs automatically in predictable, sequential stages over time (Hunt, 1969). This perspective leads many educators and families to assume that young children will acquire knowledge naturally and automatically as they grow physically and become older, provided that they are healthy (Demarest, Reisner, Anderson, Humphrey, Farquhar, & Stein, 1993)Environmentalist TheoryTheorists such as John Watson, B.F. Skinner, and Albert Bandura contributed greatly to the environmentalist perspective of development. Environmentalists believe the child's environment shapes learning and behavior; in fact, human behavior, development, and learning are thought of as reactions to the environment. This perspective leads many families, schools, and educators to assume that young children develop and acquire new knowledge by reacting to their surroundings.
The learning Process
Constructivist TheoryThe constructivist perspective of readiness and development was advanced by theorists such as Jean Piaget, Maria Montessori, and Lev Vygotsky. Although their work varies greatly, each articulates a similar context of learning and development. They are consistent in their belief that learning and development occur when young children interact with the environment and people around them (Hunt, 1969).
Constructivists view children as active participants in the learning process. In addition, constructivists believe that children initiate most of the activities required for learning and development. Because active interaction with the environment and people are necessary for learning and development, constructivists believe that children are ready for school when they can initiate many of the interactions they have with the environment and people around them.
The learning Process
Most research today indicates that the constructivist model of instruction is the key to academic success, both at school and at home.
What to look for in schools:• Teachers and adults have direct conversations with children• In elementary classrooms children move actively from one learning center to
another • In middle and high school classrooms children engage in active learning
processes such as answering open ended questions, group projects, extended essays, and debates
• Daily activities are made meaningful through the incorporation of children's experiences into the curriculum
The learning Process
Most research today indicates that the constructivist model of instruction is the key to academic success, both at school and at home.
What to have in homes:• Parents engage their young children in reading and storytelling activities• Parents encourage children's participation in daily household activities in a
way that introduces concepts such as mathematics, language use, and science• Parents ask, “Why?” in a constructive manner that involves critical thinking
and engages in the learning process rather than for disciplinary reasons: CHECK FOR UNDERSTANDING
• There are physical and psychological structures such as a specific time, place, and rules for completing homework
The Learner Attributes
The Learner Attributes
The Learner Attributes
21st Century standards for academic success require facilitating key attributes that are holistically linked to the learning experiences of our children.Inquirers
KnowledgeableThinkersCommunicatorsPrincipled
Open-mindedCaringRisk-takersBalancedReflective
Contact Information
Dr. Michael MatthewAmerican Youth Academy 5905 E. 130th AveTampa, FL 33617Work: 813-987-9282 extension 216Email: [email protected]: [email protected]
Demarest, E.J., Reisner, E.R., Anderson, L.M., Humphrey, D.C., Farquhar, E., & Stein, S.E. (1993). Review of research on achieving the nation's readiness goal. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education.
Hoover-Dempsey, K. V., Battiato, A. C., Walker, J. M. T., Reed, R. P., DeJong, J. M., & Jones, K. P. (2001). Parental involvement in homework. Educational Psychologist, 36, 195–210.
Hunt, J.M. (1969). The impact and limitations of the giant of developmental psychology. In D. Elkind & J. Flavell (Eds.), Studies in cognitive development: Essays in honor of Jean Piaget. New York: Oxford University Press
Walker, J. M. T., Hoover-Dempsey, K. V., Whetsel, D. R., & Green, C. L. (2004). Parental involvement in homework a review of current research and its implications for teachers, after school program staff, and parent leaders. Retrieved from http://www.hfrp.org/
References