Personal Ideology

I have high expectations for all my students and by providing proper scaffoldings I believe that all my students can be successful in a high –challenging classroom. I believe in the social view of learning. Opposed to the empty vessel notion of learning, my view of learning focuses on the learning that occurs between individuals, in which the roles of the teacher and learner are interrelated. In the words of Vygotsky, what a child can do with support today, she or he can do alone tomorrow (Gibbons, 2017, p.16). To help students get the most out their learning experience the instructional strategy that I use to develop my lesson plans is through the use of a gradual release model. Although the gradual release model was not developed by Vygotsky, it is based on his sociocultural theory. According to Pearson and Gallagher (1983), The gradual release of responsibility model of instruction requires that the teacher shift from assuming all the responsibility for performing a task to a situation in which the students assume all of the responsibility. This is demonstrated through the I do, We do, and You do structure of the lesson plans. As the students move into the “You do” phases, they rely more on themselves and less on the teacher to complete the learning task as described by Doug Fisher and Nancy Frey (2007). Students will benefit from working together by sharing their varied perspectives and explanations in order to validate their claims in the classroom. The dialogue they use in their collaborative groups will also promote the use of academic language and will facilitate a vocalization of what they are learning. This is supported by the work of Fisher and Frey (2011), during productive group work students use academic language and validate and extend their knowledge, it is through these peer interactions that students consolidate their understanding. This arrangement is based on Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development. Another example would be having the students that are in need of assistance meet with the teacher in a small group setting. The underperforming students will be provided with extra support that can also help boost confidence by helping them complete the same assignment the other students are working on independently.

APA Citation

Gibbons, P. (2015). Scaffolding language, scaffolding learning: teaching English language learners in the mainstream classroom. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Pearson, & Gallagher. (n.d.). Gradual Release of Responsibility theory. (Pearson and … Retrieved April 10, 2017, from http://www.bing.com/cr?IG=F4F5E0A6E1AA4D4782E0B652AE2F5BED&CID=11386C6ECBAF6891072E660ACA3F6953&rd=1&h=NHb5Y4fgEx6ODeieoOVR0tDaYa8ceWqx1mLoORhANCw&v=1&r=http%3a%2f%2fwww.reachassoc.net%2flibrary%2ffiles%2flessonplandescription.pdf&p=DevEx,5093.1

Frey, N., & Fisher, D. (n.d.). Making Group Work Productive. Retrieved April 10, 2017, from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/sept10/vol68/num01/Making-Group-Work-Productive.aspx