Individual Differences and Special Educaional Needs Learning Log

What?

During chapter five we learned about Individual Differences which means the variability in abilities and characteristics(intelligence, personality, etc.) among students at a particular age. There are multiple different ways in which students may learn or grow within a classroom. It is out job as teachers to take this knowledge and make sure that every student has an opportunity to learn with their best learning styles. Intelligence is the ability to modify and adjust behaviors to accomplish new tasks successfully; involves many different mental processes and may vary in nature depending on one's culture. There were five different studies that we covered in class dealing with individual differences. Spearman's G deals with general factors that influences one's ability to learn and perform in a wide variety of context. Catell's Fluid and Crystallized deals with things that come easily or innate,l and using prior knowledge to quickly adapt new information. Sternberg's Triarchis Theory is a complex theory involving two elements, Environmental context, Prior Knowledge, and Cognitive Process. Under each element holds different elements that fall into each category. Distributed Intelligence basically says that anyone will be more intelligent if they use aspects of their physical, cultural, or social environments. These include, technology, charts and graphs, and team work. The last theory that wel discussed in class was Gardner's Multiple Intelligences. In this theory they believe that there is eight different ways to learn including, lingustic, logistics, spacial, music, bodily, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalist. This is one of the most qualified and used theories around.
Concerning students with special needs, we discussed that resources students have including, IDEA (individuals with disabilities Education Act), IEPl's (Individual Education Plan), and Inclusion. These are programs that have been developed to help those students who need extra attention or accomadations in order to succeed in school.

So What?

This chapter was important because it is crucial to understand that students all learn in different ways and that they may have certain natural talents in one area, when someone else has a talent in another. As a teacher is would be fun to get to know students well enough that you can allow them to use their talents for their benefit but also get them to do things they are not comfortable with as well to push them to reach their potential and help them find thier identity. Concerning students with special needs. This is always going to be a struggle to make sure these students don't fall behind or are so bored in my class that they hate it. There needs to be a balance between the two and as a teacher I need to make sure that I'm well aware of my class and their success and progress throughout the year. It's important to be aware of how IEP's work so that I can play an active role in my students success.

Now What?

Now as a teacher I think that it's important to know how our students learn; that is the biggest key. Being aware of this will guide you in what you decide to teach and how you teach it. It's always a smart idea to ask questions as a new teacher and get ideas from other more experienced teachers. Never be afraid to clarify with someone else. If I am struggling reaching a student, ask other teachers that have that student what they do to help them and see if those strategies help me.