Assessment#3Class5

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Environment is among the fundamental factors that influence learning.  Learning environment differ from context to context and every environment have unique characteristics. Instructors should provide learning in a positive environment where learners feel encouraged to handle challenges, feel a sense of belonging, and can ask questions. Such kind of an environment offer relevant content, different opportunities to develop social skills, clear feedbacks and learning goals, and different strategies to help learners succeed.

Competency 1.

Learner’s culture, age, ethnicity, gender, and experiences have a critical influence on teaching and learning. The most appropriate learning environment that can incorporate learners from different cultural background, different age, different ethnicity, and experiences is a learner-centred environment. In this type of environment, the instructor normally pays close attention to the various needs of the learners. Learners normally bring their belief, skills, attitude, experience, and knowledge to the classroom. This type of environment builds on cultural and conceptual knowledge of every learner (Oyelana et al., 2018). The learning session normally involves discussion, where students take part in talking and come up with their meaning based on their previous, experiences and knowledge.

The learner-centred environment also involves sensitivity to the cultural practices and the influence of those practices on learning settings. Learners normally come from a different cultural background and, therefore, they possess different beliefs. This kind of environment normally includes learner’s belief in the different discussion which always demonstrates significant improvement in learning. In general, learner-centre environment involve instructors who understand that learners come up with their meaning and understanding that is based on their beliefs, knowledge, skills, and various cultural practices. The instructor usually tries to understand what learners know, their passion, and their interests. He/she then give learner’s new meaning and understanding based on their prior knowledge, skills, belief, and many more.

Competency 2.

Student’s motivations and classroom management are important since learners’ mere presence in the classroom is no guarantee that they want to learn. Sine current education is compulsory, instructors cannot take learner’s motivation for granted. They should ensure that students are motivated to ensure successful learning (Cook & Artino, 2016). Teachers should also ensure proper learning by using various techniques and skills to keep students focused, orderly, organized, on task, attentive, and intellectually productive during class time.  

Competency 3.

Theories of Learners Motivation

There are several different theories of student’s motivation and examples include cognitive theory and drive reduction theory. Cognitive dissonance happens when there is an unsettled conflict in a person mind between two thoughts, beliefs, or perceptions a person hold on a certain subject (Abeysekera & Dawson, 2015). When cognitive dissonance is used appropriately, it builds a sense of uneasiness in a person which results in the following outcome to be resolved;

· A person changes his/her behaviour by replacing the current behaviour with a new one.

· A person can decide not to adapt to new behaviour and instead, defends his/her current behaviour

The theory implies that when an instructor wants to change a learner’s attitude, first he/she needs to have a clear understanding of that attitude by having a clear picture of the belief behind the attitude, then induce cognitive dissonance by generating powerful arguments and information which can counter those views/beliefs.

Drive reduction theory is pinpointed on the idea that every individual has needs that they try to satisfy to reduce the arousal or the tension they cause (Mednick, 2017). In this case, a teacher should discover what drives his/her student, especially the most difficult ones. He/she should then have a face-to-face conversation with them and try to find out what the students find fulfilling and see if he/she can find different opportunities for them to sanction their needs in the classroom.

Evidence-Based Practices

We live in an error which insists that policies and practices of all manner be based on evidence and research. Improvement in student’s learning outcomes depends on the broader use of dependable evidence in classroom activities. Evidence-based involve the use of the best appropriate evidence to come up with a desirable outcome. The evidence-based best practices to encourage students motivation is the use of research that includes trials and experiments which can help students find a solution to specific problems.

Competency 4.

Classroom Management Theories

Classroom management is very essential for students learning. There are many classroom management theories and some of them include the following; behavioural theory and discipline theory. Behavioural theory encourages operant habituation whereby, an instructor can attain the anticipated behavioural outcome. It promotes the idea of rewarding learners in exchange for the expected behavioural outcome. The theory, however, can be used for both positive and negative reinforcement (Wheldall & Merrett, 2017).  Academic rewards represent positive reinforcement. On the other hand, Rules and regulations with consequences are a type of negative reinforcement. Discipline theory, on the contrary, encourages teachers to recognize and encourage learner’s positive behaviour. According to the theory, instructors should inform learners about their expectations as well as the guidelines they have set.

Evidence-Based Strategies

Teachers use the term classroom management to define the process of ensuring that lesson run efficiently without disruptive actions from students interfering with the delivery of instructions. The term also refers to the prevention of disruptive actions pre-emptively to create a prosperous learning environment (Chaplain, 2016). Some of the evidence-based strategies that teachers can use for classroom management include the following; having clear and precise lesson goals, use of a lot of practices, provide learners with feedback, and many more. These strategies will ensure students remain focused, orderly, organized, on task, attentive, and intellectually productive during class time.   

References

Abeysekera, L., & Dawson, P. (2015). Motivation and cognitive load in the flipped classroom: definition, rationale and a call for research. Higher Education Research & Development, 34(1), 1-14.

Chaplain, R. (2016). Teaching without disruption in the primary school: A practical approach to managing pupil behaviour. Routledge.

Cook, D. A., & Artino Jr, A. R. (2016). Motivation to learn: an overview of contemporary theories. Medical education, 50(10), 997-1014.

Mednick, S. A. (2017). A learning theory approach to research in schizophrenia. In Schizophrenia (pp. 76-95). Routledge.

Oyelana, O., Martin, D., Scanlan, J., & Temple, B. (2018). Learner-centred teaching in a non-learner-centred world: An interpretive phenomenological study of the lived experience of clinical nursing faculty. Nurse education today, 67, 118-123.

Wheldall, K., & Merrett, F. (2017). Positive teaching: The behavioural approach. Routledge.