The book, Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works, by Pitler, has two chapters that discuss "Reinforcing Effort" and "Homework and Practice," which relate to behaviorism. The chapter, "Reinforcing Effort," explains the benefits of having students track their own effort they put in to their work in relation to grades and gives examples of ways to do so using educational technology. Pitler (2007) states, "reinforcing effort enhances students' understanding of the relationship between effort and achievement by addressing their attitudes and beliefs about learning" (p.155). One principle of behaviorism is that consequences occur immediately after a behavior (Orey, 2001). Once students start to track their own efforts/behavior they will begin to see the consequences and what earns them good or bad feedback. Using a rubric to first explain to students the different levels of effort helps students see more specifically what behavior will be rewarded. Students can then create a chart or graph to track their effort and see the relation between their effort and grades they earn (Pitler, 2007). Using tools such as these can also be used to teach replacement behaviors. If a student tracks their behavior and what gets them to a desired outcomes, they will begin to understand what they can do to improve their behavior. It's great to have a written out rubric of what students are tracking as well as have them create a visual to actually see the data.
The second chapter I mentioned, "Homework and Practice," Practicing is a way for students to adopt and shape what they have learned (Pitler, 2007). This relates to behaviorism because as Standridge mentioned the online text, "shaping is the process of gradually changing the quality of a response." The desired behavior is broken down into units which are reinforced as it progresses towards the overall goal (Orey, 2001). Usually homework will focus on specific concepts learned of a bigger unit. Once students have mastered the smaller parts of the whole, they move closer towards the goal (the whole). Technology has a lot to offer when it comes to homework and practice. Multimedia allows students to shape experiences to their own learning style and provides immediate feedback and scaffolding (Pitler, 2007). There are also several educational websites that provide interactive practice with immediate responses and explanations. Students are also able to choose what they wish to work on and at what level. This creates more opportunities for success and also opportunities for them to want to challenge themselves.
Resources:
Orey, M. (Ed.). (2001). Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Posts
Michelle,
ReplyDeleteYou made two comments in your post that I particularly liked. You said "Using a rubric to first explain to students the different levels of effort helps students see more specifically what behavior will be rewarded. Students can then create a chart or graph to track their effort and see the relation between their effort and grades they earn (Pitler, 2007)."
I like the idea of presenting students with a rubric which describes the different levels of effort. Somehow I missed that concept in my reading. Thanks for pointing it out. Frequently students don't understand what constitutes an excellent vs. good vs. fair vs. poor effort. I will definitely use the rubric idea.
I also like having the students create their own chart for tracking their assignments. This is just one example of how technology can be used. Students could use MS Word or MS Excel to create their own chart. By creating their own, they may be more motivated to use it regularly.
Have you ever had your students chart their progress? If so, what methods, strategies, etc did you use? If not, do you see yourself doing that beginning next year?
I teach about 120 students each semester and would like to find a time efficient method of having students chart their progress. I would need to somehow grade their progress charts; otherwise they will never complete them. Teenagers are rarely motivated unless they receive a grade for an assignment. Sometimes when they ask 'How many points is this worth?', I respond philosophically. I ask them if they plan, when working full-time, to ask their boss, when given a project or task, how much pay it is worth.
Have you found ways to motivate your students other than grades? When speaking of behaviorism, our students are certainly used to both positive and negative reinforcement.
Thanks for sharing your insights,
Diane
Michelle,
ReplyDeleteI really liked the way that you correlated behaviorism with technology in your post. I agree that most teachers use behaviorism in their classrooms, but few probably realize it. I remember learning about a lot of different learning theories in my undergraduate program, but the behaviorist theory wasn't one of them. We spent a lot of time looking at a reformed method of education, which I think strays away from many of the basics of behaviorism.
In regards to the homework and practice section, are there websites or resources that you currently use in your classroom for this purpose? My school is just getting interactive whiteboards and a laptop cart this fall, so I am interested in finding out about websites that other teachers are using. If you do use websites as practice, do you have the students use them individually, as a whole group on an interactive whiteboard, or at home? I know that there are still quite a few families in my community that don't have internet access at home, so I'm worried about using websites as homework.
Thanks for your insight!
-Cindy
Hi Diane--
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment. I have not really had an opportunity yet to have my students track their progress. I didn't really know much about this method during my student teaching last year. The students I work with now, who have Autism, would not be able to do this sort of thing. If I was working in a higher functioning classroom I might be able to try something like it. I definitely do see myself trying something similar when I get my own classroom.
About finding motivation other than grades, we have to do that all the time in my classroom! We just try to encourage students to do as much as they can on their own. We have them choose things that they like to work for. We give them a lot of positive reinforcement. We also try to break down difficult tasks into smaller ones so that students see more success.
Hi Cindy--
ReplyDeleteThanks for your response as well. I program that students use in our classroom is Reader Rabbit. It's almost like a game. A program that we use as teachers in the classroom is Boardmaker. We use it for communication symbols, making visual schedules, and calendars. You can also use your own pictures. (http://edtech.wetpaint.com/page/Boardmaker) The book, Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works, by Pitler, listed quite a few web resources starting on page 196. I would definitely like to take a closer look at some of those. I think one of our resources this week also mentioned Brain Pop. (http://www.brainpop.com/) I used this for a few things when I was student teaching and it worked well.
Michelle,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the heads up about Boardmaker - I'd never heard of that site before. It looks like it could be very useful for a staff. The school that I student taught at used Reader Rabbit, but my current school doesn't have any subscriptions to websites or software, which is disheartening. I may revisit the site to try and make a case for our administration to purchase it.
I've used Brain Pop for a few things as well, but I don't like how you have to pay for most of the games and quizzes...maybe if I could share a subscription with a colleague for a year to try it out.