On Thu, 18 May 2000 [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> I am a new teacher with a background in psychology. I teach 6th and 7th
> grade mathematics, I would like to know If I can use child psychology to make
> my math class a little more interesting and if so what techniques can I use??
> HELP!! pleasee!! Thank you for listening Anil
>
This is a tough one, and probably won't get much of a response.
But in my self-appointed role as TIPS booster, I like to make
sure that new contributors don't feel ignored. So here goes, even
though I don't think I can be of much help.
The obvious reply to a question like this is to suggest dipping
into Piaget's theory. I guess that 6th and 7th graders are aged
11-12, and this would put them at the start of the highest of
Piaget's stages, the period of formal operations. Piaget says
that kids around this age begin to be able to think in abstract,
logical terms, which certainly is useful for understanding
math concepts.
But Piaget's a drag when it comes to applying his work. One of my
favourite journal article titles in this area (the title, not the
article) goes something like this: "Either they're too young and
not ready to learn the concept, or old enough that they already
understand it: the dilemma of applying Piaget in the classroom".
That's the problem. Piaget says that they have to learn by a
process of self-discovery, and you can't rush things along.
However, his theory is consistent with the idea that the best way
to promote learning is to have the kids argue about problems in
small groups (produce "communication conflicts") which leads to
higher levels of thought.
If you check textbooks of child psychology and cognitive
psychology, there are a number of Piagetian problems which
kids might have fun with. For example, the pendulum problem, in
which you ask them to figure out which variable is the critical
one in determining the period (swinging speed) of a pendulum. Or
another in which you have to determine which mixture of three
liquids produces colour. The point is to study logical thinking
(or exercise it), but the problems themselves are more physics or
chemistry than math.
Along the same lines, the work of Michael McCloskey might provide
some fun exercises. His point is that Piaget exaggerated the
extent to which even adults have acquired sophisticated modes of
thinking. He has a number of tasks showing adult misconceptions
about the physical world (such as the belief that a ball moving
in a curved tube will continue to curve after exit). Once again,
though, it's more physics than math.
A different theoretical position from Piaget is that of the
currently fashionable Lev Vgotsky, the Russian psychologist who
died young. Contrary to Piaget, he argued that learning can be
promoted by having an adult help guide the child's learning. But
this recommendation is hardly a revolutionary idea for teachers.
A more controversial suggestion, but one that I think is more
helpful than the above, is to use behaviour modification
techniques to improve motivation (for purists, increase on-task
behaviour and academic performance). This would involve
monitoring of the students' math performance through frequent
testing, and providing reinforcement for improvements. This might
take the form of a token economy, where they earn points for
success, which can be traded in for various privileges in the
classroom and certificates to take home to show their parents.
Dividing the class into groups which compete against each other
might also be effective.
I said this suggestion is controversial, because a powerful view
nowadays is that such token economies will kill any intrinsic
interest the students may have in learning math. the so-called
"overjustification effect", or turning play into work. The debate
on this currently rages in the pages of _Psychological Bulletin_.
Personally, I think the fears are much exaggerated. But there's a
simple solution. If your students already love doing math, and
beg for more, don't use tangible rewards, only praise. But if
their enthusiasm is flagging, then there's no intrinsic interest
to kill, and it's safe to use a token economy reward system. My
guess is that a good system will do wonders to perk the students
up in class.
References for assertions above available on request. And in
return, Anil, perhaps you could identify yourself a bit more in
your future posts--full name, work affiliation, city-- as most of
us do on this list. I'm always curious to know a bit about the
person I'm corresponding with.
-Stephen
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Stephen Black, Ph.D. tel: (819) 822-9600 ext 2470
Department of Psychology fax: (819) 822-9661
Bishop's University e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Lennoxville, QC
J1M 1Z7
Canada Department web page at http://www.ubishops.ca/ccc/div/soc/psy
Check out TIPS listserv for teachers of psychology at:
http://www.frostburg.edu/dept/psyc/southerly/tips/
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