STATEMENT OF INFORMED BELIEFS 1

Statement of Informed Beliefs

Brandon May

Carol Billing

EDUC 204 Families, Community, and Culture

Spring 2017
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Statement of Informed Beliefs

Learning is something that I have been exposed to my entire life. It is something that

begins unconsciously, but develops into a life-long pursuit. I know there is always something to

learn, and I am excited for the challenge. I know everyone is different when it comes to learning,

and there are those who may not like to learn, or who struggle to learn. As a teacher my hope and

goal is to try and show every student that learning is exciting. I hope I can show students that

learning is a useful tool that they will want to have for the rest of their lives.

All Students Can Learn

As a teacher I will strive to remember each student is different. At the high school level

especially, I will want to be aware of demographics, the different backgrounds and cultures of

each student are going to affect the way that each individual learns. Communication is the most

important tool I have to use in order ensure all students have the opportunity to learn. If I notice a

student is having an issue in my class, the most effective action I can do is talk to them. Maybe

they are having a hard time understanding the way I’m teaching, or maybe they have a learning

disability. Either way as a teacher I will never know unless I talk and communicate with the

student.

An additional aspect of learning is their level of self-esteem and self-efficacy. A

student’s behavior and success in the classroom can be attributed to how they feel about

themselves. If a student is not confident about themselves or their work, they are not going to

learn at the appropriate level. As a teacher, I will need to give my students the support they need

to relate to school. Additionally I will strive to encourage and praise for achieving satisfactory

work. If a student is struggling with schoolwork and assignments, I need to uncover the

underlying factors and encourage them to do better. Once a student begins to succeed in their
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schoolwork, praise for a job well done can help them feel better about themselves and their

academic accomplishments.

Teacher’s Expectations

In many cases, a teacher’s expectations stem from data they receive at the beginning of

the school year (test scores, past grades, family and health information, comment by previous

teachers). This information influences the teacher’s expectations of students for behavior and

academic achievements. As a direct result of these expectations, the teacher treats the students

differently, causing students to react differently to the teacher. Students’ academic achievements

and behaviors are in direct relationship with the teacher’s expectations and help to reinforce

them. Over time, students’ self-concept and motivation will begin to mirror the expectations.

The levels of student motivation and performance will match the expectations of the teacher at

the beginning of the year.

Educational goals serve multiple roles in the development of students. When it comes to

goals in the education system, they are broken into four groups: Academic Goals, Vocational

Goals, Social, Civic, and Cultural Goals, and Personal Goals. The four divisions of goals in

education work together to ensure students are provided with tools to be well rounded, successful

members of society.

Educational goals provide students knowledge of basic skills in school (reading, writing,

arithmetic) and the ability to communicate their ideas along with using available resources.

Goals encourage students to know their abilities and interests in order to select an occupation

that is suited to their individual talents. This knowledge allows students to understand proper

attitude and works habits and expectations. Educational goals educate students on relationships

between peoples of different relationships and cultures. Students are able to learn what it means
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to be a citizen, and develop individual moral and ethical characters. Educational goals allow

students to develop personal goals. Students learn emotional and physical healthiness. They learn

how to express themselves creatively, and they begin to develop and sense of self-realization.

Student’s Social Ecology Theory

Every living person is defined by his or her personalities and beliefs. Ecology is the

relationship we see between living beings and their environments, while Human Ecology is the

biological, psychological, social, and cultural contexts that a developing person interacts with

and the resulting processes that develop over time. In any person, ecology is a piece of the

foundation that makes us unique human beings. As a teacher it is a necessity to involve ecology

in the classroom. A student is who they are because of the ecology they have known since they

were born. When a teacher uses ecology in their classroom, it allows the students to connect to

the lesson, and school, on a level that is unique to each student. The teacher needs to ensure that

every student has an equal opportunity to connect at this level. When a teacher allows the

students to see school at their own ecological level, they are permitting each student to connect

personally to school, and in many cases this causes students to enjoy school on a level that they

may have thought was not possible.

In the educational aspect, family has the largest effect on how a student learns. The term

family refers to those people related by birth, marriage, or adoption, who live together. Members

of the family are the people students interact with the most. The type of family will affect which

cultures and communities the student will identify with. This can also affect how the student

interacts with the teacher. If a student comes from a matriarchal family, they will respect the

female teacher, and will more easily defer to her authority. This occurs because the student has

been taught their mother, and her relatives, holds the power and dominance of the family. On the
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other hand a student who comes from a patriarchal family will respect the male teacher more,

and will submit more easily to his authority. Students from a patriarchal family have been taught

their father, and his relatives, hold the power and dominance of the family.

The same can be said about the student’s culture and community. If the mother is the

figurehead of the family, the student’s tendencies will follow those of their mother. The same

can be said about the father. These effects on the students penetrate much deeper than

personality, they will have lasting effects on how the student will identify themselves culturally,

and it will affect the type of community the student will identify with.

Cultural Diversity Instruction

Ethnicity refers to an ascribed attribute of membership of a group in which members

identify themselves by national origin, culture, race, or religion. The ethnic background of a

student is part of the foundation that makes them who they are. Ethnicity is a significant way that

students define themselves. As a teacher it is essential that I understand my students’ ethnic

background, and ensure that I treat all students fairly and equally. Research and basic knowledge

on different ethnic cultures will help me understand how to interact with different students to

ensure that I am treating each student impartially. When it comes to a lack of knowledge, or

ignorance, about cultures and ethnic backgrounds, it is too easy to come across as racist,

intentionally or unintentionally. I know there is always something to learn from different cultures

and ethnicities. I think that it is important to take the time to understand the ethnical backgrounds

of students because it will ensure that every student feels a sense of equality in my classroom,

and I will have gained fascinating knowledge of different ethnicities and cultures.

Cultural Assimilation is the process when a minority ethnic group begins to take on the

culture and ideas of the majority ethnic group. Cultural assimilation has been used as a way to
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ensure diverse minorities will adapt to the cultural ways of the majority. This idea forces

minority ethnic groups to essentially become part of the majority. This assimilation is done a

various ways such as using English as the official language on public documents, English

immersion programs in school, and celebrating American holidays. The process of assimilation

begins to erase the ethnical background of individuals, replacing it with American culture and

ethnicity. In the school, cultural assimilation is not a tool that should be used. Students should be

encouraged to embrace their cultures. When a student begins to lose their sense of identity, they

will begin to fail in school.

Cultural Pluralism is a mutual appreciation and understanding of the culture of various

ethnic groups and the coexistence in society of different languages, religions, and lifestyles.

Cultural pluralism is much more beneficial to members of the minority and members of the

majority than cultural assimilation. Instead of forcing minority ethnic groups to “become

American,” cultural pluralism encourages these groups to share their cultural background. In the

classroom this will encourage unity between students, and members of the ethnic minority will

not feel as though they are losing their identity. In the classroom it is important to encourage all

students to share their ethnical backgrounds. In doing this, the student will begin to feel a sense

of pride about who they are and where they come from.

Curriculum for All Learners

Learning styles are consistent patterns of behavior and performance in which individuals

approach educational experiences. As a teacher it is important to consider every student in the

classroom, and how each student learns. I know that in order to ensure that all of my students

have the best chance of learning in my classroom, I need to plan my lessons according to

learning styles. If I have a classroom that is predominately visual learners, I know that using
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different images and videos for my delivery method will be effective. On the other hand if I have

students that are kinesthetic learners, I can use hands on methods to keep these students focused

and interested in the lessons. As a high school teacher I will not have much of an option to take

my classroom outside, but I can be creative in my teaching to incorporate movement into my

lesson. I know that some students work better individually, and some work better in groups. I can

use group sharing in ways that will help students with both learning styles. I will approach tests

and assessments in a similar fashion. I will need to consider the testing style of my students and

try to incorporate different styles of test questions in order to ensure that all my students have an

equal an opportunity to succeed in my class.

Teacher assessments are tools available to help strengthen the knowledge, skills,

attitudes, and classroom practices of teachers and professional educators. Assessments are

important in developing teachers, and allowing the teacher and institution to see growth patterns

and teaching styles of teachers. With assessments, knowing and following the methods of

delivery and planning of each teacher is made easier, in turn maximizing learning development

and ensuring students receive the best quality education available.

The entire purpose of teaching is ensuring that every student develops academically and

socially. As a teacher, it is my job to be focused and aware of the learning level of every student

in my class. It is important to know how each student learns, and be aware of emotions and

tendencies that indicate a lack of learning. If a student begins to struggle in my class, I know that

I need to work with them in order for the student to succeed. I think that tailoring lesson plans

and exams to a broad spectrum of learning styles ensures that more students are given the chance

to succeed. If a classroom is full of students that learn in one specific learning style, the lessons

need to be tailored to that learning style. The important thing to remember as a teacher is
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students can only learn if I, as the teacher, am willing to devote my time and effort to each

individual student.
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References

Berns, R. M. (2013). Child, Family, School, Community: Socialization and Support. Belmont,

CA: Cengage Learning.