Introduction to Instructional Strategies

 

1.)   What have you learned about instructional strategies?

I am very excited to be a part of this course. I feel so far I’ve felt that there has been something missing from my education and I feel what I am missing will be taught during this course. During the first class period I have learned a lot. I learned that a lot of things that I was doing during my practicum course were all apart of instructional strategies and I just wasn’t aware that’s what they were labeled as. There are many different type so instructional strategies that one educator can use. With this some of the strategies may work and others may not. One will not know this till they try the strategy then grow from it. During class, I was taught the five different categories that fall under instructional strategies. The five categories are direct instruction, indirect instruction, experiential learning, independent study, and interactive instruction. Most the time in our field we will be using direct instruction; this is when the teacher is teaching a lesson to the students. Usually there is a step by step producer that is used somehow during the lesson. Each of the five categories are different teaching techniques that change depending on the activity, who leads, and the environment. Again, there isn’t just one right one but all have positives in different settings,

2.)    What would you like to learn during this class

As mentioned above, I’ve been feeling like there has been something missing. Part of this major is gaining a teaching certificate. With this, you have to take a small number of the general education classes that are offered to all teaching majors. Although I did learn some things from these course for the most part the material was directed to ‘regular classroom teachers’. During this class I hope to learn how to run and have an all deaf classroom. During my career as a deaf educator I do want to work up to having my own all deaf classroom. I hope this course can prepare me for that. I feel it would be beneficial to hear from you about all of your experiences both good and bad. I feel that it can help prepare me for student teaching. This will help prepare me to deal with situations that may not have come up in my practicum.

3.)    Research has shown students with HL often times do not achieve higher than a 3^rd grade reading level. What are your thoughts about this and how do you plan to face this?

This area has always been hard for me to understand and deal with in our profession. It is part of the reason why I push myself to be the best I can in all areas but especially in the area of reading. I hope that when I am a teacher I can help my students overcome this statistic and help them reach their appropriate reading level. Being aware of all the resources and tools that are out there in the area of reading is important. Being proactive is key with this statistic. I hope to convey that to my student’s parents and other professional’s on my student’s team to help that student achieve a higher reading level.  

4.)    In looking at the first 3 chapters what are some ways you can provide feedback and reinforce effort? Do you plan to use verbal, tangible, or both?

I personally feel that feedback and reinforcement is very important for any teacher’s students. It provides a positive learning environment for the students and encourages them to keep working even when it is difficult. It is not just enough to say “that’s incorrect” instead respond by telling them something along the lines of “nice try but actually _____ is correct”. Then provide information on why this was a better respond. This gives the students the information they may need to get the answer correct next time. All of this helps a student understand that when they work hard they do well then can receive positive feedback for that hard work. Some examples of these would be modeling what high achievement looks like or having a reward system.

I plan to use both verbal and tangible. I feel they are both beneficial to the student and can provide the best outcomes. I always want to set my students up for success.