Portfolio No 5      4.3    Playing with Literacy & Numeracy 0- 4                 27/10/2013      http://cathysportfolio.blogspot.com.au  

This week’s portfolio experience reflects a teaching story that clearly shows where potential prejudices and projections can result in the outcomes in criteria in 4.3.

During my own school years, in a time where families were larger than they are today it was a more than acceptable thing for siblings to be placed in the same class. Generally most classes had 48 students with 2 or 3 sets of siblings. Usually the year 4 and 5’s were together as some children had moved to their high schools earlier (mainly boys) so classes were combined.

A pinnacle point in my schooling was the day a teacher stood two siblings up in the class and compared their work. One sibling was a creative writer whose stories captivated an audience – although this students writing was very untidy (in the teacher’s eyes). The other siblings’ writing was extremely neat, but what she wrote did not express a interesting read. The teacher asked both siblings to stand in front of the class whilst she compared the two pieces of work finally stating ‘If we could put these two children’s work together we would have the perfect child’ It was a terrible moment in time and should never be repeated.

This past moment in time allows me to reflect and feel empathy towards those children: something I can think about in my own teaching. The importance of respecting children as individuals promotes their learning without any comparisons, from the earliest years. 

From the earliest age motivational consequences cannot be overlooked. Wigfield & Eccles, 1992 concise the importance of one’s ability beliefs, expectations for success and subjective task values are relative to a child’s performance. Attached is expectancy – value theory model of achievement valuation.

 
EXPECTANCY-VALUE THEORY

Eccles, Wigfield & colleagues, Expectancy - value model of achievement motivation.

 

Cathy Stanbury   

References   

Wigfield, A., & Eccles, J. Expectancy–Value Theory of Achievement Motivation. Contemporary Educational Psychology 25, 68–81 (2000)

http://aguda.org.il/files/academic_bank/2/322/55859/2_2007_55859_1170980723.97.pdf