Chapter 3 Reflective Questions

1. In your experiences as a student or employee, what types of objects or

events have you found to be reinforcing or punitive? How did each object or
event influence your behavior?

At work, when we do them a favor or do really well the managers will

pay for our food at the end of the night or buy us an end of shift beer.
Ive found this to be personally reinforcing because I dont like working
there, but if you buy me alcohol, Im more likely to do a favor.

2. As a teacher, which type operant conditioning will you use to manage your
classroom? Why?

As a PE teacher I can see myself using Punishment II as a way of

achieving ideal behavior in my classroom. In a class I taught
gymnastics in last semester, one of my students wouldnt behave. My
response to this was removing him from participating. Afterwards, I
didnt have any more trouble from him or any of the other children for
the rest of the semester because no one wants to miss out on fun.

3. Did you act out as a child? What could your parents or your teachers have
done differently to manage or prevent the misbehavior?

I wasnt incredibly misbehaved as a child because my mother ruled

with an iron fist and I knew a spanking would occur if I didnt behave.
Personally, I think it wouldve been cool if shed both used reward and
punishment as a tool to keep me in line.

4. A mother intends to teach her daughter a new skill. Which type of

reinforcement schedule do you think she should use first? Why?

I think first she should first use positive reinforcement by praising her
when she does something right with the skill she is learning.

5. Imagine you are a camp counselor; you notice that one of the children has a
fear of fish. Explain how you would help the child to overcome the fear of fish.

I think to overcome her fear of fish bringing the class fishing would
help because when shes exposed to a semi-lifeless flapping nemo she
should see that being afraid of fish is silly. That, or I shame her until
she no longer experiences fear. (The last sentence was a joke).

6. Is there a teacher you have encountered whom you would like to imitate?
What specific characteristics did the teacher demonstrate that warrant
modeling? Why?

Im a PETE community major and I really see myself more as being a

coach than a physical education. My favorite coach that I could see
myself modeling would be my swim coach, Harriet. She only provided
us with positive feedback and there was never a day at practice that
was just her harping on us. Every point she made of something that
needed correction would be followed with but good job on and shed
compliment us on our strengths.

7. Reflect on your self-efficacy for becoming a teacher. How strong is it? What
kinds of teaching goals do you have? Identify them according to the following
sources: (a) mastery experience; (b) vicarious experience; (c) verbal
persuasion; and (d) psychological states.

If you think it you can do it; you can. This is a phrase that comes to
mind and that I grew up hearing when I read this question.
1. Mastery experience In a gymnastics class required for my
major we had to learn how to do a handstand. At the beginning
of the semester this seemed like an impossibility, but by the end
of semester after everything we had learned I was ready to just
go for it. Falling down but getting back up was part of the
mastery process.
2. Vicarious experience I think seeing other student teachers
doing a great job in our major has been a huge drive to make
me want to do better.
3. Verbal judgement In some of the teaching classes Ive taken
previously, our job is to teach our peers. Then, at the end of
class, we sit down with our peers and they give us feedback.
This strategy made me want to do better because no one wants
to hear from their peers that they havent done a good job.

8. A student in your classroom demonstrates low motivation and low interest in

academic tasks. Provide techniques or strategies you would use to assist
their learning.

In order to assist their learning, other than praising them for doing well
I think using an authoritative teaching style would have the best
outcome because it provides nurture for the child as well as calling for
respect. So, when a child doesnt have the drive for academic tasks I
think being caring and supportive would help guide them in the right
direction.

9. Think of your experiences with learned helplessness. What were the

conditions surrounding this behavior? How do you think it might have
negatively affected your performance?

I had a lot of problems with diving as a swimmer and for a while it felt
like something Id never master. What made it worse was that when
youre on a swim team and you keep doing something wrong all your
teammates know and can see it so theres a little bit of shame there
when you see everyone else getting it right. When I eventually got it, I
was by myself practicing in my pool at home. For me, the pressure of
my teammates around me made me perform worse because I knew
their eyes were on me when I was screwing up. However, by myself, I
could practice it as many times as I needed to and no one would see
the fails.