Individ 1

Running Head: INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES PROFILE

Individual Differences Student Profile Mackenzie Cofer Instructor: Tracey Meyerhoeffer EDUC 205: Development/ Individual Differences Fall 2011

Individ 2

Individual Differences Student Profile Each year teachers face the hardship of satisfying the many diverse learning needs of their students. Some students have learning disabilities and are often put in special education classrooms; classrooms that are exclusively for students with special needs, while others are gifted, excelling academically above their peers. In this profile I examined, Jake, a gifted student excelling high above his peers in math and reading. I will discuss my findings on his physical, cognitive, and socio-emotional development. Additionally, I will include a summary of my findings and how these findings may have implications for the classroom. General Information Jake is a seven years and one month old first grade male. He comes from a newly separated Caucasian family consisting of a mother, a father, a brother, 17, and a sister, 18 who recently moved to Idaho Falls to pursue a college education. Both of Jakes parents are employed full time and he says his father often works late. Jake splits his days between his mother and father. Sunday through Wednesday he is normally with his mother and Thursday through Sunday he is at his fathers home. He attends school Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 3:05 p.m. Jake attends Lil Ones Daycare 3 or 4 days a week after school. On days that he does not go to daycare, Jakes mother picks him up. He is required to do his homework before he goes out to play. After homework and some play time Jake and his family sit down at the dinner table for dinner. After dinner, Jake takes a shower and plays until his bedtime around 9. Jake is affected by the lack of cohesion, togetherness, found in the situation with his parents right now. Physical Development Jake has dark blue eyes, and blonde, shaggy, shoulder length hair. Jake is a bit taller than most of his peers, but a lot skinnier than most too. He has a good tan and a couple of freckles.

Individ 3

He also has a scar on his right cheek. Jake has no sight or hearing impairments, and is right handed. When it comes to nutrition, Jake seems to be healthy. He eats his fruits and vegetables very well at lunch, and does not seem to be a picky eater. Jake does not seem interested in sports and does not play any sports outside of school. For physical exercise, he rides his bike and plays tag. He says he likes to play soccer at home with his family but does not like to play soccer on a team. Jakes large muscle development seems to be like any other boy his age. His small muscle development is also fine. He is an avid, creative drawer and can also type fairly fast on the computer. Cognitive Development Jake is a first grader attending Mountain View Elementary School. Cognitively, he is excelling above his peers. Monday through Thursday he attends skills shots outside of his classroom for one hour. He is in the advanced skills shot class. His grades are mainly As especially in math and reading. Jakes attention span is very limited. He gets bored very easy because he is often finished with his assignments way before his peers. He is a very motivated, or driven, student and strives to do his best at each and every assignment. He follows instructions very well, but is often more comfortable in situations that are not interdependent, meaning he does not like to be dependent on another person or partner. He prefers to work alone. Jake gets very upset when he does not understand something right away and becomes angry and frustrated. A problem Jake has in the classroom is he often shouts out answers before the teacher is done talking. His teacher has asked him to try and refrain from this so that the other students have time to think and solve the problem as well. According to Piaget, Jake is in the Concrete Operational stage of cognitive development. (Parsons, Hindo, & Sardo-Brown., 2008). He is able to understand what Piaget termed classification. He understands that people and things can

Individ 4

belong to more than one group. He is also able to group objects according to their different characteristics. Jake displays in his math skills that he understands the idea of reversibility, the idea that things can be changed back into their original position (Parsons, et al., 2008). Socio-emotional Development. Jake is very respectful and accepting of his peers no matter what their genders, ethnicities, or cultures, the characteristics of a particular group of people ( Parsons, et al., 2008). I saw no acts of discrimination, treating people differently based on different categories such as race or religion, from Jake. He is very well liked by his classmates but has a difficult time fitting in sometimes. He is very shy and it takes him a minute to warm up if the activity is not dealing with math or reading. He loves helping other students with their assignments. Jake gets nervous very easily in front of his peers and in order to deal with it; he talks in a cartoon voice. He also seeks approval and attention from his peers and will often make jokes at inappropriate times to get them to laugh. Jake has high self-esteem, or confidence, in his academics but when it comes to interactions with his classmates, it isnt very high. This has to do with him adjusting to his new situation at home and him seeking attention from peers because it is lacking at home right now. The recent divorce in Jakes family has him trying to make sense of it and make sure he has approval from both parents and does not want either one of them to feel left out. He gets along very well with adults and understands that they are the authority figures. He does not talk back and does not have to be asked more than once to do something. According to Erickson, Jake would be in stage 4: Industry versus Inferiority (Parsons et al., 2008). He is very eager to try new things and is showing qualities of learning and being independent. He is also learning and growing in his social skills. Jake falls into Kohlbergs stage

Individ 5

of preconventional reasoning. (Parsons et al.,2008). He understands that something is wrong whether he gets caught or not, but thinks that its not as bad if he doesnt get caught. He also understands that a good act will result in something positive and knows that he needs to follow the rules that are set. Summary, Conclusions, and Implications Jake seems to be a very happy child with a lot of drive and motivation. He is very independent and responsible. He is excelling above his peers, once he gets into junior high; he will be able to take more challenging classes and will not get bored so easily. He needs to be put into as many higher academic classes as offered at his school right now. His teachers need to help him find appropriate books to read that are above the first grade reading level because he has the highest reading level in his class and gets bored with the books that are available. Jake is going through a very confusing and hard time at home right now, it is not affecting him academically, but it is affecting him socially. Jake needs to talk to someone about his parents divorce so that he can better understand and deal with it. He is constantly seeking his peers approval and needs to realize that they are not judging him and that he does not have to make jokes and act out to be their friend. When it comes to his physical development, Jake fits in with his classmates. His teachers need to try and get him more involved in sports when it comes to his physical fitness. They need to help him realize that he does not have to be perfect at everything, and sports are not just about being the best, but having fun and interacting with peers. Jake is a bright student and I can see him continuing to excel in academics. He will excel socially if he starts believing in himself for who he is and realizing that his peers are not constantly judging him.

Individ 6

Reference Parsons, Hinson, Sardo-Brown. (2008). Educational psychology.Thomas/Wadsworth: Belmont, CA.