Weyhing Amanda Weyhing EDU 131 February 12, 2012 Education: A Tool For A New Knowledge Based Society

Until the mid 19th and early 20th centuries the world was primarily a monetary based society. With the rise of industrialization and innovation there was an increased need for education. Out of this need arose a new knowledge based society, or a society that was more dependent and focused on education than simply joining the family business. Society does still depend on money, but now more than ever a drive to educate and succeed is growing. Today in most families it is not even a question if the children

are going to graduate from high school; but the new problem is usually choosing the right college. Out of this drive for education come teachers, those who choose to use their education to inspire and influence a new generation of doctors, lawyers, teachers, musicians, artists, and scientists. Also important in the field of education is the Social Constructivism, which says it is very important for students to be able to construct knowledge about different cultures and society as a whole (Kim, 2001). Teachers use the education they have received to not only inspire students, but also to prepare them for success, and to give the students a sense of community. This will allow students to develop their own knowledge and take the things they have learned as a life tool to help them succeed in society. In the modern knowledge based society teachers are essential to the development and success of students. Educators teach because they have a drive to influence students and to give their students the tool of education in order to reach the gateway of success in

Weyhing 2 society. Teachers are taking their knowledge or and passion for a subject to inspire students. This idea is one of the outcomes discussed in the Georgetown College Conceptual Framework (CF) (2009). Outcome 1.1 describes how teachers need to demonstrate knowledge of the content in their specialty area in order to develop student knowledge and performance in those areas (p. 8). Inspiring students and passing knowledge to them is simple with students who want to learn and see success. For the students who do not see success in the classroom, inspiring them could be more difficult. In the book, Collaborative Teacher Leadership, Martin Krovetz and Gilberto Arriaza (2006) say that teachers can influence students to aim at continuous improvement and they can mobilize institutional and community resources (p.51). In other words, always have high expectations for students and remain positive. If the leader is positive and shows students how they are succeeding, that will influence their self-efficacy and their performance. Students will also benefit from using resources that are in their community and in the schools, such as museums, libraries, historical sites, and especially technology (CF, 2009, p.14). By using these methods to inspire students, teachers will give the student a tool for success. This tool is education. By providing students with an education, teachers allow for students to succeed and grow in their lives. The student, according to his or her needs and interests, can apply the knowledge that comes from this tool. Fay Chung (2006) states, Education has the potential to bring about change in worldviews and in values (para.4). Throughout history the elite used education as a tool to better society and gain status. In modern times education is being used to better the understandings of other cultures and prepare students for society. Education is no longer for the rich, or only men, or only

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white people, but it is open for all people. It is taught through the teacher and used by the student to fulfill the purposes of his or her life. Education is also a tool that is not only used in a specified field, but everywhere. For example, literacy and mathematics are used in the simple tasks of daily life, such as reading a food label, or calculating the total cost of a purchase. Education, in the past, has often been seen as a negative thing because people would be able to think freely and would no longer rely on institutions such as the church or the government to learn (Bentley, 2011, p. 612). In this knowledge based society education is given to those who wish to have it. Governments are allowing people to develop their own ideas through education and use them in ways they see fit. Education is being utilized by the masses in order to achieve an individual view of success. Not only do teachers provide the inspiration and help create the tools for success but they also create a community. Inside the classroom teachers are responsible for meeting the needs of their students and providing a safe learning environment. In the classroom teachers should create a community of learners, or a place where all of their students can come together as a group to help each other in achieving group goals and also get help on an individual level from peers and the teacher. Teachers define and establish their community of learners through interacting with and getting to know their students on an individual and group level. According to the CF Goal One (2009) the Classroom Climate, which is established by the teacher, should foster the ideas of: a) Communicates high expectations. b) Establishes a positive learning environment. c) Values and supports student diversity and addresses individual needs.

Weyhing 4 d) Fosters mutual respect between teacher and students and among students (p 35). Through following these guidelines teachers can help individual students succeed while giving the students a sense of community. In the modern world it is essential that teachers promote diversity in the classroom. Especially in the United States, equality in society is stressed and students will have to be able to work with people of other religions, cultures, and races as employees. The CF (2009) says that teachers also need to establish an environment that promotes respect and concern for every individual within the learning community(p.13). By promoting this idea students will be able to learn about and respect other cultures, and will give minority students a peaceful accepting learning environment. This idea in the CF is also consistent with Social Constructivism. Social Constructivism according to Kim (2001) emphasizes the importance of culture and context in understanding what occurs in society and constructing knowledge based on this understanding(para.7). The theory also says that learning is a social process that is constructed through human interactions, activity, and is both culturally and socially constructed (Kim, 2001, para. 8). When students interact they are learning about each other and their specific cultures, and simultaneously are learning how to recognize and respect cultural difference and work with others to succeed The community of learners overall allows for the teacher to provide the students with their tool of education. To that tool teachers are adding the ability to interact and work with others to reach common goals, while also achieving personal goals. In education, teachers are working in order to provide the world with new

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generation of adults ready to help better society. They are inspiring their students to view knowledge as a tool needed to start their path to success in life. With this tool they can go into the world and leave their mark. Overall, those who choose to become teachers are inspiring and influencing their students through providing an education that can be used to reach each individuals path to success in life. Teachers are helping the students create this tool for themselves by providing them with all a place to learn and grow, people to help them succeed and the knowledge that they can achieve success for themselves.

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Reference Page Bentley, Jerry. (2011) Traditions and Encounters: a global perspective on the past. New York: NY, McGraw Hill. 612. Chung, Fay. (2002). Education: A Key to Power and a Tool for Change--A Practitioner's Perspective. Current Issues in Comparative Education, 2 (1). Retrieved from http://www.tc.columbia.edu/cice/Issues/02.01/PDFs/21chung.pdf Kim, B. (2001). Social Constructivism.. In M. Orey (Ed.), Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved December 5, 2011, from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/ Krovetz, M. L., & Arriaza, G. (2006) Collaborative Teacher Leadership: how teachers can foster equitable schools. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press. Georgetown College Department of Education. (2009). Conceptual Framework.

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Amanda Weyhing # of Students: 21

November 2, 2011 # IEP Students: 0 #GSSP Students: 0

10th grade # LEP students: )

Subject: History of Mayan Civilization Unit Title: South American Civilization

Lesson Length: 10 minutes Lesson 2 Mayan Culture

Context: Academic: This lesson will review the ideas detailed on the homework and will allow for students to connect ideas about other cultures to the Mayans. The students did a reading for their homework the previous night about Mayan Cultural traditions. Also in previous classes the students read and discussed primary sources from the Aztec and Incan Empires. This lesson is what is referred to as a do now. The students complete a do now at the beginning of each class. The record their responses to the questions on paper which is placed in their binders. The binders are checked before each test. Class: The students in the class get off track very easily and are very comfortable with each other. This could affect their ability to concentrate on the lesson or being able to connect the ideas from previous classes. Objectives: 1. The students will be able to identify specific aspects of Mayan culture and their importance. 2. They will also be able to compare and contrast the aspects of the Mayan culture to the Aztec and Inca cultures, about which they have already learned. Procedures: 1. Write the prompt on the overhead projector at the beginning of class. The prompt is: a. Based on your reading from last night what are three examples of similarities that the Mayans had with either the Aztec or Incan cultures. b. Based on your reading from last night what are three examples of differences that the Mayans had with either the Aztec or Incan cultures. c. What according to the reading was one of the most important aspects of Mayan culture to the people? Why do you believe this was so important to them?

Weyhing 8 2. The students will write their responses on their own paper within the first five minutes of class. They can use the reading is necessary. 3. Discuss the answers the students came up with by calling on the students to share their answers and taking volunteers to answer the prompt. 4. Ask the students about the importance of the examples given in relation to the society and the time period both for the specific cultures and in relation to the world at the time. 5. Have the students relate the examples given to the examples from the previous sections on Inca and Aztec Cultures. Assessment: (a) Formative Assessment: After the lesson I asked one student who did not volunteer an answer or was not called on during the lesson to do part of a review without looking at their notes. This allowed for me to see if the information has connected with the students about the different cultures and the individual cultures. I used 3 students to do short review of the material we had just covered after all the notebooks had been closed. (b) Summative Assessment: The written answers to the prompt were graded before the unit test. (c) Summative Assessment: the Students were given a quiz 2 days after to the lesson, and from this I was able to tell how they retained and connected the information. Reflection: I believe that the lesson went okay. Immediately after the lesson the students I called on to do the review had the hardest time with the specific examples of the individual cultures rather than relating them all together or even relating them to the events going on in the rest of the worlds at the time. From the quizzes that were given two days after the lesson it seemed that they were able to compare and contrast effectively, and were able to identify which practices went with each culture. I believe that because the students were graded on both their discussion and their written work all of the students were able to learn in their own way. However, I do not believe that randomly choosing students to participate in the discussion benefited the students who were called on. The students who were called on were those who do not normally participate in discussion, and they struggled with the discussion, but their written responses showed that they understood the concepts and cultures. I believe that to help all of the students learn better volunteers to answer and participate in discussion should be taken, and those who do not wish to participate in discussion should be encouraged to write any ideas they have on the sheet with their answers. During the lesson I noticed that I was having a hard time keeping the focus of the students. They would go off on tangents or begin talking to one another. My teacher said that I needed to work on my classroom management, and try to keep them on track better, as they were getting off track easily while answering the prompt. She said that I did a great job of having the students lead the discussion rather than simply telling them how the cultures were related. From this experience I saw that I need to be more assertive while teaching and make sure to keep the students on track better, in order to make sure that they keep on schedule.