First up, my response to the Orientation Video Prog530 WBT Orientation.
Get comfy cozy, this is an hour long!
The certification Question from this video:
What are the strengths and weaknesses of Whole Brain Teaching compared to traditional education?
Children have to be educated, but they have also to be left to
educate themselves. - Ernest Dimnet
No matter the style of
education you choose to teach with or are mandated by
an administration to use, the goal of every one is for children to be
educated. Education must be able to leave a child at the end of their formal
education with the ability to think for themselves and continue to be lifelong
learners. The question every new education reform in the last century has
surely made teachers ask themselves is, "Will my students be able to
educate themselves?" It is a goal of Whole Brain teaching to enable
students to go beyond the traditional methods of learning so that they can
succeed with a smile on their face.
While both styles
of teaching do teach and share the required curriculum outcomes, there are
significant differences in both the atmosphere of the classroom and the method
of delivery. Most teachers today were brought up in traditional classrooms, so
it is hard when we are first asked to think outside the traditional box and use
new reforms. But great educators want the best for their students, and so are
therefore eager to find new ways to help our students learn to educate
themselves. We need to ask, “Which is stronger, which is weaker?” It is when we
are challenged to change that we are most willing to try Whole Brain teaching
despite the differences to what we ourselves were brought up with.
The differences
between the two styles of teaching are very noticeable. The first thing you
will notice when walking into the Whole Brain classroom versus the traditional
classroom next door is the volume of the student’s voices. It is not unusual to
hear the class being happily loud, yet organized and on task. Most often when
walking into a traditional classroom like the last few I have personally taught
you'll find the students quiet and working alone. If they are loud it is
unfortunately usually because they are disorganized and off task. It is
more preferable to have a class that is working together even if it is loud if
they are actively engaged in teaching themselves and each other.
The next thing you
may notice when comparing the two classrooms is the level of the student’s
engagement. In a Whole Brain classroom students are active participants in
their education through various reforms such as teach-okay and the mirror to
name just two. The short bursts of knowledge, immediate review and shared teaching
helps students be a part of their own education. In contrast, in traditional
education students are passive participants because the most common
teaching styles seen include long lectures and questioning only one student at
a time. These styles while possibly good enough for a college level class are
sure to disengage student’s elementary students who need to be involved.
Students who are engaged are most likely to educate themselves.
Finally, you may
discover when observing a Whole Brain classroom the students are utilizing
their whole brain versus the students next door in the traditional classroom
who are only using parts of their brain at any given moment. Whole brain
students simultaneously use their brain for seeing, hearing, speaking, action
and feeling. While traditional classroom students do use all of these, they
seldom use them all at once, utilizing their Whole Brain to the utmost of its ability.
Whole Brain research has shown that students learn better when more of their
brain is engaged. At their end of their education, students who have learned to
use their whole brains to learn will be better equipped to continue to educate
themselves wherever life may take them.
Personally I have
never used Whole Brain teaching, having only learned much about it after
leaving the classroom. I hope that when I do someday return that I will be able
to utilize the newer method of teaching to ensure my students learn to think
for themselves, and learn to question like a pro. Will my students be able to
educate themselves? Hopefully I will be able to ensure that they will. Which is
stronger? I hope I have shown through my comparisons of the two methods that
Whole Brain teaching is the stronger method because students are engaged,
active, on task and using their Whole Brains.
Thank you for reading my first certification post (if my other posts don't count). I have posted this early Thursday to the Whole brain teaching forum, and am sharing it here with you today.
***********************************************************
Do you have an idea for a future post, or are interested in guest blogging or having me write a guest post? Please comment or email me!Want to find awesome resources for your Early Childhood Education classroom?
Visit Reading With Mrs. D on Teachers Pay Teachers
Today's featured resource:
Help support Reading With Mrs. D and our family. Join Swagbucks and we can both earn money to spend on our kids!
No comments:
Post a Comment
You Love me, you really love ME!