Running head: STATEMENT OF BELIEFS

Statement of Informed Beliefs Essay

Chloe Lapray

Evin Fox

EDUC 204 Families, Community & Culture

Spring 2017
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Abstract

In a career such as education the teacher allocate one on one with children every time he/she is at work. The

teachers most important responsibility is making sure the students learn to the best of their ability. In order

to achieve that the teacher must understand a meager amount of concepts. A few of these are: how the diversity of

each student plays a major role in the classroom and in the way the lessons are taught. As well as, the way diversity

is between high and low learners and how they factor into the classroom. It is my belief that every student has the

ability to learn at an equal level; this way of thinking will play a noteworthy role in my classroom. As a teacher I

will have expectations for myself, my students, and my classroom. I will need to understand the students

cultural diversity, how their family life and community will affect them. As a teacher it is critical to understand

these concepts and to develop the curriculum so that one can better understand their students.
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Statement of Informed Beliefs

Teachers Expectations

Teacher expectations have an impact on students and the way they learn. If assumptions

are set too high they can be unrealistic, this will cause rigidness in the classroom. However, if the

assumptions are too low, the students may not reach their full potential. Having achievable

expectations as well as having educational goals that will encourage students to succeed in the

classroom is a huge key in an everyday teaching process.

The surmise that the teacher places in their classroom will have either a negative or a

positive affect their students. The presumption will have a dysfunctional effect if they are set too

high and are unrealistic for the students to achieve. If the teacher plans out their lesson so that it

is teaching to an unrealistic level and expect every student to learn and be successful at that level

it will have a negative effect on them. These types of expectations put unnecessary pressure on

the students, and cause them disappointment when they are unable to achieve what is expected of

them. High and low learners will have an impact on the expectations that the teacher makes for

their classroom, that impact can be positive or negative. Making the expectations according to a

few students, will have a negative impact on the students and make learning a frustrating

experience for them. Nevertheless, if the expectations that are set up by the teacher are ones that

are realistic and achievable it will encourage the students to learn and to reach them. Having

ones that the student can meet is beneficial to them. Having attainable expectations will cause the

students to do what they can to achieve them and will keep them striving to always do their best,

they will always be learning to the highest level that they can.
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It is also important to have Educational goals in the classroom. Like expectations these

goals must be realistic and attainable. Setting educational goals for the students to achieve is a

great motivator for them. Each time the student meets on of the goals they will feel accomplished

and excited to reach the next goal. With educational goals there should be ones that are specific

to each student. Each student should have goals that are just for them to accomplish. This will

help them reach the highest level for learning that they as an individual can reach. It is also

important to have educational goals for the classroom as a whole. This will give the students an

opportunity to grow as a group and to encourage each other. For a student to get the most out of

their education, it is important that the teacher works within the students other microsystems as

well.

Urie Bronfenbrenners theory states that students arent socialized by one microsystem at

a time, but through interlacing all of them (Roberta pg 1). A students school performance can be

tied very closely to their family, community, peers, as well as media. The microsystems work

together, and it is important for the teacher to allow the student to apply what they are learning

into real life situations. Getting to know the students outside of the classroom is a great way for

the teacher better understand their microsystems. A students family, peers, and Community has a

significant impact on their learning within the classroom. Because every student comes from a

different family with a different culture, it is important the teacher validates the differences in

each person, I also believe it is very important that the teacher is a positive influence for every

student in the classroom; because the teacher is just one of many relationships a student has.

Discrimination and Learning

Every student comes from a different background and culture. Accordingly, students need

to know that everyone in every way is different. While everyone is different, every student is
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nevertheless equal and deserves to be treated that way. Cultural pluralism, which means having a

mutual appreciation for different cultures and coexistence in society of different languages, is

essential in a childs education, along with assimilation, which is Piagets term for mental

adaption to ones environment through experiences. These are very important in helping students

realize the different cultures that surround them every day. Learning about different languages

and cultures unlocks so many new opportunities for students to see the world in a new way. This

will help their cognitive development by giving them a new approach to their education and a

new approach to life as well. My students will see that while everyone is different, everyone

must nevertheless be treated the same because we are all equals.

Curriculum for all Learners

I significantly believe that the curriculum should be a learner-directed curriculum. When

designing the Curriculum, the teacher must take into account that as the year goes on;

adjustments will need to be made to ensure that the students are learning to the best of their

ability. The curriculum should also address the unique learning styles of the students. The teacher

will also need to understand the students and recognize which ones are the high or low learners

and will need to adjust the curriculum and the teaching methods to help each student succeed in

the classroom. Teacher assessment is critical, because it gives the teacher an opportunity to see

how the teacher and their students perform. Having a curriculum that is designed to effectively

teach the students is the goal, and in order to achieve that goal adjustments are going to have to

be along the way. As time goes on and the teacher begins to learn more about each student and

how they learn, the curriculum will then need be adjusted to take into account what works best

for the students. The teachers will also take into account the educational goals that are set up for

each student and how those fit into the curriculum. These tools will help both the teacher and
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student become successful. Also having ways to measure the effectiveness of the lesson is

important. The best way to do this is to keep track of the students learning progress and the

methods used and to look back and see what worked and what did not, and then adjust the

curriculum as necessary to ensure that the students continue to learn to their full potential. Every

student has the potential to learn, whether they are high or low learners. Every student is

different, they have different learning styles, different backgrounds, and different outside factors

that affect them. As a teacher you know that every student is unique and that fact it will impact

your classroom. With a teacher who is willing to understand each student as an individual and

design a curriculum that will benefit all the students the classroom will be successful and the

students will always be learning.

Equitable Education For all Students

The outcome of a childs interactions with his/her ecologies is the development of

individual personality and self-concept. Children face issues of trust versus mistrust during their

first year of life. The parents play a huge outcome with the children and the interaction they get

from their parents. Unfortunately, many parents are not able to provide consistent, appropriate

care, and their children may struggle with developmental difficulties, learning disabilities, and

the poor interpersonal skills. Divorce, as we duel income families are so common placed in

todays world that they place additional burdens on top of burdens that place divert energy taken

away from creating a positive and nurturing environment for childrens development
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Work Cited

Berns, Roberta. (2013). Child, Family, Community: Socialization and Support, 9th ed.

Belmont, CA Wadsworth Cengage Learning. Macdonald, Heather R.,

Tewksbury, Barbara J., (2005). Teaching Strategies. Designing

Effective and Innovative Courses. On the Cutting Edge.

http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/coursedesign/tutorial/strategies.htm