Benefiting Students Through A Brain-Based Learning Environment Essay

The question of nature versus nurture as it pertains to human development has been a debate among psychologists for years. And after decades of research, there is still no definitive answer as to whether nature (genes) or nurture (environment and upbringing) are responsible for certain characteristics of an individual. However, many researchers now believe that environmental factors play a more significant role than genetic factors. The acceptance of this belief has many implications for teachers, because it directly affects the teaching strategies they will use in the classroom. In addition, recent findings in brain-based research are providing educators with an understanding of how the brain learns, and how it learns best. As a result, in order to optimize student motivation, involvement, and retention, teachers can no longer ignore the importance of brain-based learning in the educational environment (Wilmes, Harrington, Kohler-Evans, Sumpter, 2008). In the text, Brain-Based Learning The New Paradigm of Teaching, Eric Jensen emphasizes the correlation between students’ emotional states and their learning potential. Adjacently, of the various emotional states a student experiences at any given time, distressed is the most detrimental. A brain in distress results in a long list of negative impacts on learning, including the loss of the ability to correctly interpret subtle clues from the environment, the loss of the ability to index and access information, diminished long-term memory, loss of the ability to perceived relationships, and a lessened capacity for high-order thinking (Jensen, 44). Therefore, managing classroom stress through brain-based strategies is an enormous advantage for students. Childhood stress can be caused by any situation that requires a person to adapt or change (Larzelere, 2010). These changes can be positive such as a new sibling or a new pet, or negative such as poverty, abuse, and separation. It is understandable that the negative stressors are the most harmful to a child’s development. One of the greatest challenges for teachers that aim to alleviate students’ stress is that not all stress-related symptoms are directly measurable or obvious to others (e.g., worry, headache ), thus unrecognized symptoms are likely to go untreated (Shah, 2011). Still, there are many brain-based strategies that teachers can incorporate to help reduce the amount of stress a student experiences in the classroom. First of all, educators can increase a students’ sense of security at school by opening a dialogue with them about their fears. In fact, sometimes just the opportunity to talk about these issues helps reduce the burden (Jensen, 49). In addition, by incorporating small group activities and the use of teamwork among students, a teacher can strengthen a student’s ability to communicate and problem solve. Another example of how a teacher can encourage positive relationships among their students is to offer as much choice and autonomy as possible. Research has shown that creating a classroom environment where student expression and choice are solicited provides a welcoming atmosphere for children to grow at independent rates (Rushton, 2008). There are many ways in which a teacher can afford their students the opportunity to express themselves. Incorporating art, dance, poetry, singing, journal reflection, sports, and debate into a student’s classroom experience are al l productive ways of giving students choice. They are also great ways to introduce rituals of positive affirmation. For example, by creating traditions of applause and team cheers, teachers can help bolster a students’ confidence and improve their self-esteem. Another type of negative stress that some students feel is performance anxiety. Performance anxiety is a fear of not being able to complete a task to the best of one’s ability. As a result, students often experience a â€Å"mental block†, or an inability to retrieve stored information or think creatively. It is very common for students to have performance anxiety before test taking, often times negatively affecting their test scores. Studies show that emotional self-efficacy appears useful in managing negative effects of anxiety (Galla, Wood, 2012). Teachers can help to lessen the occurrence of performance anxiety in their students by regularly activating prior learning. For instance, reviewing previous lessons, offering generous feedback, and establishing mechanisms for self-evaluation and peer review, are all strategie s a teacher can use to reduce learner stress and increase confidence immediately (Jensen, 50). While stress management is an important aspect of supporting a brain-compatible learning environment, stress is not the only emotional state that students cope with. There is a myriad of emotions that a student can feel from one time to another, and a myriad of external stimuli that can trigger those emotions as well. The child’s brain receives stimuli from the learning environment via each of their senses as the stimuli are transformed into a chemical electrical reaction that is the beginning of all learning (Rushton, 2008). One example of such stimuli is classroom acoustics. Poorly designed classrooms that fail to address and reduce ambient noise, echo effect, reverberation, and other acoustical problems cause a decrease in student attention and an increase in off-task behaviors (Jensen, 73). Students whose learning style is predominantly auditory are at the biggest disadvantage. As a result, discipline problems increase and student learning is negatively affected. Such problems are an enormous issue for schools today.For example, many schools across the country have classrooms that exceed the maximum background noise level of 30 to 35 d ecibels recommended by the Acoustical Society of America (Harris, Lambert, 2011). Therefore it is important for teachers to implement brain-based strategies to counter-act the negative effect of a poor acoustical learning environment. This can be done simply by moving around the classroom while speaking. Also, changing the location of students around the classroom can help those at a disadvantage. Using music appropriately in the classroom is another brain-compatible way to positively affect students’ emotional state throughout the learning process. In fact, recent research suggests that music may be a powerful tool in building reasoning power, memory, and intelligence (Jensen, 76). A teacher can change a negative emotional state simply by playing upbeat music in the background periodically throughout the day. Lesson plans can also be enriched through the use of music to elicit certain emotions relevant to the subject matter. Such emotional involvement greatly helps the student comprehend and retain the lesson. Music not only affects students emotionally, but physiologically as well. Music’s potential effects on the body include, increase muscular energy, increased heartrate, reduction of pain and stress, relief of fatigue, and stimulation of creativity, sensitivity, and thinking (Jensen, 75). Another example of external stimuli that can affect learning is classroom aroma. Aromas are especially important because they take one of the most direct pathways to the brain (Jensen, 72). The sense of smell affects brain chemistry and has the ability to change moods in powerful ways. Certain types of scent stimulation like food can disrupt the accelerated learning functions of our brain, and chemical smells from air fresheners, perfume, and even some essential oils can be distracting and block learning (Rogers, 2010). However, certain aromas, such as peppermint, basil, and lemon, enhance motivation, attention, and creativity. And aromas such as chamomile, lavender, orange, and rose calm nerve s and encourage relaxation (Jensen, 72). By using aromas appropriately in the classroom, and keeping aware of aromas that are disruptive or distracting, a teacher can optimize their students’ learning environment. Light in the environment is an additional example of external stimuli that can hinder a students’ learning potential. Lighting strongly influences vision, which strongly influences learning, thus anything we can do to make our eyes more comfortable in the classroom contributes to optimal learning (Jensen, 57). Classrooms that receive a lot of natural sunlight are the most advantageous for students. Natural sunlight helps students’ mood and motivation by delivering vitamin D through uptake by the skin, and in turn raising mood-elevating serotonin. In fact, studies have shown that students with the most sunlight in their classrooms progressed 20 percent faster on math tests and 26 percent faster on reading tests compared to students with the least lighting (Jensen, 58). However, on the other side of the coin, too much morning sunlight can have an adverse effect. Thus, it is important for educators to have an awareness of the effect classroom lighting has on their students learning and strategize accordingly. By providing a variety of lighting types in the classroom and giving learners a choice in determining where they sit can help with student comfort in the classroom (Jensen, 58). Color also plays an enormous role in creating a productive and secure learning environment. Color is an important factor in the physical learning environment and is a major element in interior design that impacts student achievement, as well as teacher effectiveness and staff efficiency. Research has demonstrated that specific colors and patterns directly influence the health, morale, emotions, behavior, and performance of learners, depending on the individual’s culture, age, gender, and developmental level, the subject being studied, and the activity being conducted (Harrington, Kohler-Evans, Sumpter, 2008). Therefore, educators wanting to take advantage of the benefit of brain-based environment can implement classroom color schemes that maximize student involvement. For instance, like aromas, some colors elicit feelings of alertness and inspiration, while others elicit feelings of relaxation. Teacher can enhance student participation and motivation by use of color in hand-ou ts and power point presentation. In addition, teachers can use colors to elicit appropriate emotion in regard to subject matter in lessons. Such as sullen blues or vibrant reds, depending on the subject matter. Again, this greatly helps to emotionally bond the student to the lesson.Another external stimulus that greatly affects a student’s classroom environment is room temperature. Take for example, a student coming back to a warm classroom after eating a good lunch. A classroom environment that is too warm can makes students feel lethargic and unmotivated. Classrooms that are too warm are often the culprit for students falling asleep in class. On the other hand, a classroom that is too cold can make students feel distracted due to feeling uncomfortable. Based on a survey given to teachers, it was concluded that classroom conditions improved by air conditioning included reduced annoyances, improved visual display and flexibility, and comfortable conditions (Gallo, Wood, 2012). In final, teachers who understand the affect of stress and external stimuli in the learning environment and the advantages of brain-compatible learning strategies, visualize a developmentally appropriate brain- researched learning environment which allows an educational focus to preside while student autonomy prevails. Effective teachers support brain development by encouraging children to make discoveries in well-planned environments that support student autonomy (Rushton, 2008). With the benefits well outweighing the required teacher effortt and iniitiative, brain-compatible learning strategies offer far more advantages than hindrances. Students can only win in the long run when teachers utilize these strategies. References Galla, B. M., & Wood, J. J. (2012). Emotional self-efficacy moderates anxiety-related impairments in math performance in elementary school-age youth. Personality & Individual Differences, 52(2), 118-122. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2011.09.012 Harris, B., & Lambert, C.. (2011, May). Impacting Learning. School Planning & Management, 50(5), 44. Retrieved December 19, 2011, from ProQuest Education Journals. (Document ID: 2382182351). Jensen, E. (2008). Brain-Based Learning The New Paradigm of Teaching. (2 ed.). Thousand Oaks: Corwin Press. Larzelere MM, Jones GN. Stress and Health. Primary Care: Clinics in Office Practice. December 2008;35(4). Rogers, D. (2010). Mmmmmm . . . Peppermint and rustling leaves. Times Educational Supplement, (4887), 3. Rushton, S., & Juola-Rushton, A. (2008). Classroom Learning Environment, Brain Research and The No Child Left Behind Initiative: 6 years Later. Early Childhood Education Journal, 36(1), 87-92. doi:10.1007/s10643-008-0244-5 SHAH, N. (2011). Students†™ Stress Linked To Class Environments. Education Week, 30(24), 5. Wilmes, B., Harrington, L., Kohler-Evans, P., & Sumpter, D. (2008). COMING TO OUR SENSES: INCORPORATING BRAIN RESEARCH FINDINGS INTO CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION. Education, 128(4), 659-666.

The Gathering

For this essay I'll be dicussing about Indian(Frank) and Danny. The Gathering novel is about how five kids whom chose to fight against evil spreading around Cheshunt. These five kids need to win the battle against the Kraken but to do that they need to discover more about themselves. The warning that Lallindra(Lallie) told Indian to heed was,†only a wound brought into light can be healed. That which is hidden will in darkness fester.† In the novel when Indian was seven Indian's mother left him to look after his little sister Jenny. She was five. He was watching her play on some swings when some older kids came and started calling him names. Indian fought with them and won but while fighting he did not notice his sister had climbed to the top of the slide. She slipped and hit her head, she was in coma for a week and when she woke up Jenny wasn't the same, she used to smile and laugh but now she doesn't smile or look at you. Indian felt he killed her but her body was left behind. He never told his Mother about the truth of that day. Indian feels guilty for not taking care of his little sister and not telling his Mother about the truth of what happened, now Indian does not fight back because he feels he deserve to be hurt he feels its his punishment. Indian's guiltiness is a wound and when he brought it to light by telling his mom what happen, Indian's mom forgave him and does not blame him for what happened to Jenny. Danny Odin was a victim of police sodomy many years ago. Later the saying â€Å"Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely† is aptly used in reference to the story, which involved police officers letting savage dogs loose on Danny to force him to give them information that was false. For a while after that he felt scared that a police could do anything to him and no one could do anything. He went mad for a while and he had to go to a sanitorium. The only reason he could come out was because he told them he made the whole thing up. After that one of the police officers that had attacked him visit Danny's school for a talk to improve citizen-authority relations, at the end of which the officer gave Danny a wink .Danny then realised nothing was going to make it right. Nothing made sense but survival and justice. Right and wrong, it was all lies that people made up. This quote and the opinion expressed in it is somewhat jarring with the rest of the novel's message, as it flatly denies the existence of both good and evil. The theory is, however, later rebuffed by the very same character that put it forward, as it doesn't make sense in the context of the novel thought by Nathanial, â€Å"You could tell he really believed that but there was something wrong about what he was, saying. Something that didn't jell.† And he thought of Lallie's warning to Danny. She had told him not to let the dark flame of the past consume the future. That's about right winning out over wrong.' Danny told Nathanial. Danny has to forget the past. The Gathering is more than novel triumph of good over evil, it is also a novel about self discovery. All the Chain members in The Gathering had expierienced terrible things that they need to over come to win the battle against the dark because everything that happen in Cheshunt is related to everything else because it come from a sort of core. The place where evil bruised earth. The earth that sorrows.

The Importance of Public Speaking Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Importance of Public Speaking - Essay Example The orators could entertain their listeners in a number of ways such as taking the help of humor, speaking in a sincere manner, using visual aids to add appeal to their speech, adding (or removing) emotions out of their voice and timing the speech in an effective manner. The rate of speech delivery (that is words per minute) should be deliberated so that every person could clearly hear all your words. The speaker should pay attention to his pitch and inflection and work over voice modulation so as to demand highest attention from the audience. Incorporation of vocal variety in speeches is effective mannerism of grabbing audience attention. Pauses also have great significance in speeches and you should know how to successfully use them. While giving us breathing space, pauses also help reinforce the subject matter with the audience- letting them absorb and deliberate over matters of consequence. So, the speaker should use the pause with care drawing out maximum advantage out of it. The voice volume should also be controlled so that everyone in the room hears your voice while you are not sounding loud in their ears. Articulation must be practiced so that every word is spoken with clarity. The words must also be pronounced correctly in the standard order of language. Facial expressions assist in speech delivery. However, you need to choose beforehand which facial expression would suit your speech and practice on it. Finally, the speaker should practice before hand his speech delivery method so that when the day of Speech is an art form that gets better with practice so the speakers should practice the art of speech giving in private as well as in public to master it and become effective public speakers. In the course of speech giving the delivery should be adjusted as and when required so that the message is conveyed to the audience in a clear manner. And lastly, try to make eye contact with your audience

Falling Head Permeability Test Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Falling Head Permeability Test - Lab Report Example In the falling head test, the standpipe provides both the head of water and a means of measurement of the quantity of water flowing through the sample. The sample is connected to the standpipe whose diameter is most suited for it. The falling head principle is applied to the undisturbed sample that is in a sampling tube. The Falling Head Permeability test is done on soils whose permeability is less than 10-4 m/s. The coefficient of permeability, k, is the rate of discharge of a liquid and is directly proportional to the hydraulic gradient, i, and the cross-sectional area, a, of the sample (Mabrouk). The coefficient of permeability of the soil sample tested is k1= 5.41Ãâ€"10-5 m/s k2= 6.18Ãâ€"10-5 m/s. the mean Kmean = 5.795Ãâ€"10-5m/s. Based on the classification highlighted in step 9 of the experimental procedures, the soil sample can be defined to be of low permeability. Hence, the sample, which contains intermediate sized particles of and holds moistures, can be interpreted to be a silt clay. From these results, the general experiment of determining the coefficient of permeability of a soil sample can be described. Furthermore, the relationship between the coefficient of permeability and the pore size of the fine-grained soils has been established (Chiasson). This test was conducted for a single primary reason: to calculate the permeability of samples using the falling head permeability test. This test, which was conducted according to the laid down procedure found the coefficient of permeability to be valid.

A Feminism that Combines Gender and Race (and Class) (responses) Assignment - 1

A Feminism that Combines Gender and Race (and Class) (responses) - Assignment Example Katherine relationship with Michael was not based on informed choices. She did not have the correct priorities. Katherine and Michael did not have a healthy relationship because she says that she never has an idea who Michael was, but wanted to have his children. A healthy relationship is based on the understanding and expectation of the future. Couples need to know what is expected of them once they have established a relationship to avoid false start and conflicts. Moreover, a healthy relationship does not rush on having sex without discussing it beforehand so as to prepare appropriately. According to Katherine her grandparent and her parent have the best relationship that she could find. She says that they are the happiest marriages, and they enjoy being together all the time (Blume 30). Even when there are disagreements in the family, Katherine says that they laugh about it, and she adores its. Katherine grandparent has the best relationship in the novel. They have succeeded in their marriage and helped Katherine parents too. Moreover, her grandmother is interested to help Katherine in her relationship and how to establish a healthy relationship. Therefore, for their good nature Katherine grandparents can be said to have a healthy

Case study 'THE CALL CENTRE AT TENGO LTD' Essay

Case study 'THE CALL CENTRE AT TENGO LTD' - Essay Example To facilitate customers, Tengo has customer center that provide various services to its customers such contact centre for spare parts, accessories and for extended product warranties etc. The customer center also provides technical support service for their existing customers; and point for customer complaints. Tengo customer service centre also conducts field enquiries about Tengo products. Tengo contact centre is situated in green-field site situated in the outskirts of large town in the Midlands. This location also has other customer service centre that exerts considerable pressure on labor market. Tengo holds good reputation for paying appreciable monetary compensation to its employees; however, it does not have positive remarks regarding its employment policies terms and conditions. In recent past, Tengo on evaluation of HR mainly in customer centre concluded that centre is overstaffed conduced rationalization and restructuring. Year-end customer feedback has reflected a decline in service quality and HR manager is concerned to explore the element of people and process in this poor performance. According to Marr & Neely (2004, p.7) nowadays the customers of call center are looking for more effective and efficient customer service. ... The report will also conclude with overall remarks on restructuring at Tengo customer centre. THE CHANGES AT TENGO CUSTOMER CENTRE In the periodic HR planning exercise in head-office, HR manager concluded customer centre being overstaffed with respect to its overall growth. For the purpose, staff rationalization and restructuring was conducted. The restructuring move resulted in many changes in the customer centre; broadly can be defined under following three heads (Coucke, Pennings, and Sleuwaegen, 2007): Reduction in the number of jobs Strict demarcation of boundaries of jobs Cost incurred on automated product support system for customer. Interactive systems automated systems aimed to get two benefits of improved quality of service and reduced training and development of employees. Under new structure, entire staff of customer centre was categorized into levels; Level 1 constituted entry-level positions dealing with customer complaints. Majority of advisors were categorized under L evel 2 across various departments. Level 3 advisors accounted those employees assigned task of dealing with detailed technical problems CONSEQUENTIAL IMPACT Consequential impact of the HR move understudy resulted negatively. This new structure that defined boundaries ended the employees’ movement across the departments; resulted in ending up of learning and development opportunities available to employees with rotation across department. Overall, call centre job has low intrinsic value (Sako, 2006). Call centre jobs are classified into two groups of ‘quality oriented and ‘quantity oriented. As the name implies, former is characterized with more multifaceted and individualized interaction of call agent with customer

Empires Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Empires - Assignment Example Without delving into the fact that the United States has a representative government, devoid of an emperor or empress, it should also be noticed that even though the United States has a few territorial holdings around the globe, these are negligible with regards to the overall population that they hold and/or the geographic importance that they denote. As such, it will be the express function of this brief analysis to present the rationale for why the United States, even though it oftentimes behaves as a traditional empire, does not fit this definition and must therefore be regarded as another entity entirely. Firstly, it must be understood that the United States within the current era and the United States over the past 120 years is quite a different issue entirely. One could easily argue that after the conclusion of the Spanish-American war, the United States was firmly in a position in which it could express a degree of Imperial control over the populations of distant places such as Cuba, the Philippines, Guam, and various other holdings throughout the Caribbean. Interestingly, the United States soon divested themselves of these territories and only held on to a few scant islands within the Pacific and Puerto Rico. Further, with successful engagement in victory within the first and second world wars, the United States once again was faced with an option of retaining the territory that it had gained or allowing for a type of â€Å"new empire† to be evidenced. It is at this juncture that it should be understood that even though the United States is not ascribe to a traditional und erstanding of what â€Å"empire† necessarily at first, it most certainly has redefined the power dynamic and created a situation in which economic empire is a reality through which the United States has come to control commerce on a global level. For instance, many scholars have viewed the situation within Japan as key evidence with regards to the way in which the