Course Contract

Goals: My goals seem to deal primarily with mastery and not performance
1) To become more familiar with what the triggers might be that shut down student learning. For myself an example might include feeling overwhelmed by a teachers introduction on the first day when the teacher introduces themselves by a title and lists all the little initials that exist after their name. I find that this is a trigger for me that turns my attention away from any further input and forms initial moments of debilitating anxiety. So, I am curious about things like this that trigger students to turn off or shut down their input mode.

2) To learn how I can play a role in the intrinsic motivation of students to engage themselves in transferable learning. If I can somehow help students apply the things they learn to their specific lives at that given period of time, I think the information will take root and regenerate itself instead of blowing away with the wind.

3) To learn how to teach my students how to understand the role their own brain plays in their learning processes. Ideally that they will better protect the precious gift that they pack around daily in the back of their skull. I realize science and health are not my content areas, but the brain plays such a vital role in everything we do and learn. Learning about the brain in one of my general education classes was the beginning of my own intrinsic motivation in the learning process.

Tracking:
At the end of each day I review the work load for each class and record any assignments and their due dates on a white board in my bedroom. Assignments that involve appointments are logged into the calendar on my blackberry with an alarm reminder. I assess the assignment to determine how much time should be allotted to accomplishing the task. Reading assignments are done in short 10-20 intervals both between classes and after school/work. My roommates know that I am a hermit and that I hole up and work, so interruptions are kept to a minimum. I read assignments thoroughly before I begin them and again each time that I have to continue where I previously left off. This allows for fewer errors in understanding the task at hand. I have 20 credits and a part-time job that requires significant brain-power, so it is unlikely that this class will receive my attention EVERY day, but my evenings on both Tuesday and Thursday have 2 hour blocks of time dedicated to homework for this course. I have other study blocks on Wednesdays and Saturdays that can be used as overflow time if needed. The Tuesday study block will be dedicated to the reading assignment and the Thursday block will be used for the case study assignments.

Study Strategies:
So far the only things I am confident that will require study strategies are reading assignments and vocabulary retention. I am sure there are several other things to study for that I have not been introduced to yet and I will develop strategies for those as I go. When reading I highlight material that seems important and write notes and questions in the columns. When memorizing vocabulary, I initially use mnemonic tools. I then use vocabulary in application such as essays and summaries. As far as being ready to study, I recognize the importance of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs and make sure that I've covered my bases before I expect to gain anything from a study period.

Understanding:
I recognize as a teacher that I can't always explain things as I understand them in my own head. So, as a learner, when I don't understand during a lecture, I have no qualms with raising my hand for clarification. When working on my own, I HATE to bother other people!!! So, I do everything I can to find information on my own, even to the point of "wasting time". When I don't get lucky, I like to have contact info for a few class members that I feel comfortable asking. Usually this solves the problem. It is nice to have so many avenues to contact the instructor in this course for when both of these methods fail.

Summary:
I will reach my goals in this course by engaging in the classroom environment and instruction to learn how I can be an effective, autonomous teacher and provide my students with an effective and motivational learning atmosphere. I will then take the information that I gain in this course as a foundation for further advancements in achieving my goals in study and practice.