SPU EDU 6979
Review of the Literature to Support Focus
Please locate and review at least five sources that relate to your area of focus and support your ideas of how a specific action plan could directly impact the problem. Use the information below to guide you in your review. Record your sources lines provided.
SOURCES
Supporting my ideas for Action Plan
Citation:
Ariely, Dan. "Dan Ariely: What Makes Us Feel Good about Our Work?" Lecture. TED: Ideas Worth Spreading. Apr. 2013. Web. 20 Jan. 2014. <
Summary of Source:
This TED Talk focuses on what motivates people to work. In conducting two sets of experiments, Dan Ariely discovered that when people feel that what they are doing has meaning or gives them a sense of purpose (i.e. have the opportunity to present work to others, have to work hard to achieve it, etc.) they are more motivated to work. When meaning and/or purpose are removed from the situation, people lose their motivation to work. In the end, motivation is comprised of so many components including: meaning, creation, challenge, ownership, identity, and pride.
This TED Talk, although focusing on adults, has significant implications for how teachers approach educating students. It is always a teacher’s goal to ensure the activities students engage in on a daily basis have the elements described above. I drew many parallels to what Ariely shared in his lecture and the students I teach. One major connection that got me thinking was what it does to a child’s morale when we critique their work and give them feedback that is less than positive. Our intention is to provide feedback for the purpose of helping our students improve, but what toll does that take on their motivation to keep working hard, staying engaged? After watching this lecture, I am starting to better understand the correlation between students who struggle with a subject (constantly getting negative feedback through grades, comments, etc.) and their decreased engagement and motivational level while participating in that subject.
Important Questions or Take-Aways:
1. The lecture shared of an experiment where some of the participants had their work shredded in front of them after they handed it in and then asked if they want to do another worksheet, again with it being shredded as soon as it was handed in. It tested the effect that had on their motivation to keep working on the activity. As would be expected, the motivation to keep plugging away at the activity was diminished each time the participants’ work was shredded. I liken the idea of shredding the participants’ worksheets when they were handed in to the criticism teachers can give students when they have, for example, drafted an essay with many mistakes and errors. It got me thinking, how can I provide my students with constructive criticism in a manner that encourages them to keep at it, working hard so they don’t feel as though I’ve just “shredded” their work?
2. Homework is an important part of learning. Homework is not a graded assignment in my classroom as, for me, it is unreasonable to grade their homework each night due to time constraints and other reasons. How can I get my students to see value and meaning in the homework they do so that they put forth their best effort on it and persist with hard questions? How can I increase student motivation to engage in that work each night?
3. What are some strategies I can apply to my instruction that will help to bring more meaning and purpose into the activities we engage in each day?
4. The people in the study who had to work harder to produce their product had higher satisfaction with their end result. How can I establish consistently high standards for my students that are still attainable in the end?
Citation:
Jones, Richard D. "Strengthening Student Engagement." International Center for Leadership in Education. N.P., Nov. 2008. Web. 18 Jan. 2014. <
Summary of Source:
This article discusses the ways in which teachers can work to strengthen student engagement. Jones suggests that the cultivation of strong, positive relationships within the classroom is of upmost importance. Increased engagement level cannot occur if a strong, positive relationship is not first established. Another critical component Jones shared is the connections students can make to the learning. Not only does there need to be academic rigor, but relevance in what students study. This, according to Jones, is crucial for increased engagement. A culture of collaboration amongst the students and their teacher is essential, too. Additionally, the more personalized the learning becomes the more student engagement will increase.
Important Questions or Take-Aways:
- After reading this article and the stress and importance it places on a learning relationship, I wonder how my students perceive our relationship. In the article, it outlined a scale from a relationship of isolation up to a mutually beneficial relationship. I’d be curious to see where my students see our relationship falling on that scale. Then, with that knowledge, how could I go about continuing to move our relationship in a forward, positive direction?
- How can I make learning more personalized? This is one I’ve struggled with more and more as the shear quantity of standards we need to cover seems to get longer and more in-depth.
Citation:
Willingham, Daniel T. "How Praise Can Motivate—or Stifle." American Federation of Teachers. AFL-CIO, n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2014. <
Summary of Source:
This article focused on the topic of student praise. When and how should praise be given? When does praise increase student motivation and when does it hinder student motivation? Willingham suggests that when praise is given because you genuinely want to congratulate a student on his/her accomplishment, it is a good thing to do. However, when you are praising a student, “for your own ends or even in a conscious attempt to help the student, it is likely to go wrong.” He says that teachers must avoid giving praise when it is, “not truthful, is designed to control behavior, or has not been earned.” Students who are given sincere, un-controlling praise are more motivated to keep at something, change their behavior and stay more interested in the task. Teachers should always focus on praising a student’s process and not on his/her ability. Furthermore, praise should be given unexpectedly and immediately.
Important Questions or Take-Aways:
- Praise the process a student has applied (i.e. effort and other life-skills such as perseverance, focus, good use of strategies), not his or her ability. This was a great reminder and take-away for me!
- Have discussions with the class about fixed versus malleable views of intelligence.
- This article makes me wonder how this plays out when parents and teachers hold different views on how/when praise should be given to the child. If, as teachers, we work to praise in a manner that encourages motivation and increased engagement, but at home the parent does not, what does that mean in the end for the student?
Citation:
De Frondeville, Tristan. "Ten Steps to Better Student Engagement." Edutopia. N.p., 11 Mar. 2009. Web. 18 Jan. 2014. <
Summary of Source:
This article focuses on steps to increase student engagement. De Frondeville suggests that creating an emotionally and intellectually safe classroom plays an important role in student engagement. He says that, as teachers, we should always pay attention to what is going on when students are engaged in thoughtful, meaningful work so we can re-create those types of environments throughout the day. He also says that it is important to break tasks down so they are more manageable. This helps to set students up for success. Another recommendation De Frondeville shares is having students’ journal regularly after completing lessons. By doing so, it can help facilitate future conversation about the topic/lesson. Focusing more on the process and path students take to get to their final answer will yield increased engagement, rather than focusing on whether the answer was the “right” answer. The use of questioning strategies that require students to think deeply will foster an environment of highly engaged students. The use of a design process model is a way to encourage higher quality work. Lastly, it is always important to help students to see the relevance in what is being taught.
Important Questions or Take-Aways:
- The step that encourages teachers to pay closer attention to the times when there is high student engagement stood out to me. I don’t think I do this enough, and taking time to reflect on lessons where engagement is high seems like a quick and easy way to gain valuable information that I can then use as I structure future lessons.
- The use of a reflective journal seems like a great, practical way to check in on student understanding and inform my next steps. It’s another take-away that I think I underutilize in the in the classroom.
Citation:
Taylor, Leah, and Jim Parsons. "Improving Student Engagement." Current Issues in Education. N.p., 2011. Web. 18 Jan. 2014. <
Summary of Source:
This article focuses on the ways in which teachers can foster a classroom environment where students are fully engaged and motivated to learn. The authors list several key elements that ensure full engagement of students. The first is interaction. It is important to provide students with the opportunity to learn from one another, interact with the expert(s), and collaborate with one another. Allowing students time to exploration topics through the use of inquiry-based, problem solving methods is also important. Helping students see the relevancy in what is being taught allows students to connect with the subject, increasing motivation engagement. When learning is based on authentic, real-life problems students will get more excited to dig into the topic. We live in a digital age and as teachers we need to utilize multimedia as a means by which we can increase student engagement and motivation to learn. Instruction should always be high quality, rigorous, and meaningful with high academic goals. Despite what you might think, students crave it. Furthermore, helping to show students how various subjects are interconnected is important. Lastly, providing authentic assessments where the focus is on learning for further development and not marking to standard expectations allows students to remain engaged and motivated to keep learning.
Important Questions or Take-Aways:
- After reading this article, I saw a lot of similarities with the other sources I read throughout this literature review process. Some of those include the importance of the relationship that is fostered within a classroom between the teacher and students and the students and their peers, the importance of helping students see the relevance in what is covered, and importance of maintaining consistent, high standards of achievement.
- With regard to the authentic assessments, it stressed the importance of giving students a voice in the design and development of assessments. I’ve heard this is important in other articles I’ve read in the past, but I’ve had a hard time figuring out how to include my 5th graders in that process. How does a teacher do this successfully? I need some strategies to help guide me with this aspect of engaged learning.
Now that you have looked at some of the literature that reviews thinking (or research) that has been completed in your area of focus, does any of this information cause you to further narrow (or modify) your focus? If so, please write your revised focus statement. Next, based on your literature review, jot down any ideas you currently have about building a theory of action to address the area of focus.
Narrowed (or modified) focus/problem?
I want to investigate how to produce increased engagement level and motivation in my students through meaningful, challenging activities that allow my students to take ownership and pride in their work.