CLASS TONIGHT 4/5/2010, CHAPTER 10

CLICK HERE: MY PRESENTATION IS IN THE "CLOUDS" 

PLEASE SEE THAT YOUR HOMEWORK IS IN DIGITAL FORM. THIS IS ALSO EMBEDDED ON THE WEBSITE. CLICK HERE TO GIVE IT A GO!

UPDATED SCHEDULE FOR BOTH CLASSES

Here's what was discussed & decided in Theories:
APRIL 5th: Shelley will present on Chpt.10: Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory
APRIL 12th: no class, assignment due (see choices below)
APRIL 19th: Alan will present  Chpt. 11: Cognitive Models and Theory of Motivation
APRIL 26th: no class, prepare for debate
MAY 3rd: DEBATE (see below)
* PROJECT #4 TWO CHOICES (Due April 12)

CHOICE A: Literature Review

Rationale. As a doctoral student and an educator, you are expected to be an active participant in the field of research. You should be able to identify gaps, trends, and vision for the field. You are expected to have the skills to synthesize the literature, conduct research, analyze data, interpret findings, and add to the knowledge base.  Because our field is so broad, I recommend that you begin to focus on one or two areas that spark your interest. For many of you, this project is the first step in this process. You should be able to discuss/investigate issues within a specific theoretical model or examine issues across theoretical models.

The assignment. Select one topic/behavior (e.g. depression, body piercing, anorexia, aggression, self abusing behavior, suicide, or passive aggressive behavior) relevant to the field of special education (topic must not be covered during class discussions and must be approved by the professor). Conduct a literature review on this topic/behavior. At least 5-10 articles must be included. If you are unable to find empirically based articles, you must describe your efforts to locate them.

CHOICE B: White Paper

Rationale: As a doctoral student and a special educator, you are expected to be an active participant in the field of research. You should be able to identify gaps, trends, and vision for the field. You are expected to have the skills to synthesize the literature, conduct research, analyze data, interpret findings, and add to the knowledge base. Researchers and educators in the field of special education must be able to articulate information in a succinct manner.

Assignment: A White Paper is one of a variety of scholarly works. Typically, a White Paper is a personal position paper about a given topic or issue that is supported with references from the professional literature. This White Paper should address the application of learning theory(s) to instruction in special education. At least 5-10 references must be included in this paper. If you are unable to find empirically based articles, you must describe your efforts to locate them.

Specific details for assignment 4 - 30 points: This paper must include at minimum the components presented below in a logical fashion to make your case.

* During the debate, the points listed below must be debated in 1-2 minutes or less. You must be clear and succinct in your debate.

1.     Essence - The basic thoughts/principles of the theory.

2.     Theorists - The main thinkers and their assumptions.

3.     Ability to defend theory

4.     Ability to respond to questions

 Class members will develop questions for the debating experience.

Here's what was discussed & decided in Appraisal:
APRIL 5th:  Shelley will present on Computer Based Assessment (See Presentation link in right hand column), Alan will present on Curriculum Based Assessment
APRIL 12th:  Everyone considers RTI (either do the IRIS module or the www.IDEApartnership.org)
APRIL 19th: Presentations: Shelley, Alan, Lauren?
APRIL 26th: No class
MAY 3rd: TBA (Shelley out of town, open for presentations Alan, Lauren, Megan)

2/2/2010

Theories: 

Dr. R reminded us that for assignments each week she would like us to write a response to each reading (see below) and each of the discussion questions. We reviewed our learning from last week and Dr. R modeled another lesson. She also asked that we summarize readings each week with written reflection, more so than bullet point responses. These are the questions you should have wrote about:

1.    What are the implications for the classroom inherent in the major differences between Thorndike’s connectionism and classical conditioning?

2.    Thorndike and Katona conceptualized transfer of learning in different ways. Describe an example of each in different subject areas.

3.    Wertheimer differentiated between arbitrary or “senseless” and meaningful learning connections. Describe examples in particular curriculum areas.

Appraisal: 

See Ysseldyke article for inspiration (click on Anywhere Access link)

Dr. R talked to each of us about our ideas for our final project. Next week everyone must come to class with a research question/focused topic, an annotated bibliography of sources, and a mapped out plan of how/when/what you plan to complete.

Class 1/25/2010

Hi there. I hope you are well.

Great class on Monday. We have an interesting group because there are so few of us and we represent different perspectives and disciplines.

For weekly notes, I've decided to set up this blog.  This will enable all of us to create an "alternate text" as well as access weekly collaborative postings via an RSS feed.

Here are notes from this week's class.

From now on I will post these each week on BLOGGER

Here's what was discussed/considered/pondered in Theories:

Class always starts with a "one minute" (1M).  The purpose of a 1M is to establish what was reviewed the previous class meeting - "What did we do? What did you learn?"

The powerpoint is always emailed to us before class. Dr. R uses the ppt to guide discussion, but she typically asks us to review specific content on our own.  For today's class, Dr. R was modeling the way she wants us to design and share our own projects (each of us has a chapter/topic to teach to the group). The specific requirements of this assignment are in the syllabus.

After the 1M, we reviewed the pretest (see public folder)

Here are the main points that were emphasized during class

1.What is Theory?

We is the difference between a theory and a fad?

2. Hands on Activity:

The True Color activity was an opportunity for us to explore why we think the way we do about learning. We talked about our families - and how we developed the personal characteristics

3. Dr. R ended class with by sharing a brochure (this is the final element that will be required for each of us to create and use for our presentations). A brochure is not the only option, but she wants us to focus on content and provide one another with a quick guide relevant to our understanding of the topic and integrates current research (APA formatting is essential).

Class 1/11/2010

Here's what was discussed/considered/pondered in Theories:

We reviewed the syllabus, signed up for presentations, reviewed expectations, and discussed our individual stances toward theories of learning and behavior. 

Article activity (click on "Anywhere Access" to get this article)

Here's what was discussed/considered/pondered in Appaisal:

* Please note that next class we will meet in Baldy 593, 1/25/2010

Tonight we reviewed the fact that as of today there is no "syllabus" it is our job to define the parameters of our learning/thinking/publishing and then finalize a syllabus by next week.

We started off class with a discussion about appraisal. What is it? What isn't it? How does it inform our knowledge about working with students with special needs?

First - we wrote an independent reflection as a KWL (what we know, want to know, want to learn)

Second - we engaged in a brainstorming activity

Here's what made this first list (from now on I will included digital images)

1. "We will fill this in next class" - 
2.  Content/Literacy
3.  Alternative Assessment
4. CBM/CBA
5. RTI
6. Grading

Assignment for next class:

Create a one page document with bullet points that includes the top 10 issues within the field of special education on the topic of assessment. Include citations, issues, population

There are SURVEY (Norm Referenced, Standardized tests)  vs. SPECIFIC (CBM/CBA)

assessments. 

Explore and find resources: 

• National RTI center
• Buff State regional center
• Iris Center
• Syllabi from other universities