Running head: STATEMENT OF INFORMED BELIEF

Statement of Informed Beliefs

Kandace Gabiola
Instructor: Evin Fox
EDUC 204: Families, Communities, and Culture
Fall 2014

Statement of Informed Belief:

Introduction
The passion to learn and discover has always been a driving force for the human race.
For thousands of years, mankind has grown in the world of technology, math, literacy, and
science. As the value of knowledge has increased so has the passion to learn. American
classrooms are full of cultural and ethnic diversity creating a whole new transformation of the
education process. By including diversity, we are able to go beyond the traditional learning
aspects and the common boundaries of knowledge. In expanding education to include these
diversities we are able to gain the understanding of all different realms of society; the students, in

STATEMENT OF INFORMED BELIEFS

the end, will become great teachers themselves. This ensures that every student is receiving the
best education possible and will build great future leaders, creators and contributors. In my
essay, I will expand on my beliefs and on what components are needed for effective teaching and
building great learners. I will examine these components in the following four sections: the
students ability to learn, the students social ecology, cultural diversity, and curriculum for all
learners.
All Students Can Learn
Every child has the ability to learn, if he or she is given the opportunity to learn. By
understanding the cultural and ethnic diversities, a teacher can then create a positive classroom
setting for his/her students. This autonomy is defined as the ability to make professional
educated decisions. As teachers, it is our responsibility to use effective teaching practices that
include the students development and ability to learn. By doing so we are able to instill a drive
to learn and the want to become knowledgeable in the student. There are different types of
learning styles that teachers can use to create a positive and higher learning classroom. These
types of learning styles will be tailored to the students learning capabilities and the material you
will be teaching. It is also your job, as a teacher, to notice when certain learning styles are not
working and make changes that will be functional for higher learning.
Teaching with positive enforcement will help shape and obtain a desired behavior to
make a positive learning environment. Positive enforcement will reinforce the behavior and
eventually extinguish the behavior. There are many different kinds of skills you can use such as
shaping. Shaping is an effective socializing mechanism to teach various skills (Berns, 2010, p.
54). By using different learning styles and various techniques the students will learn at a higher
level. Montessori (1967) believed that children should be respected and treated as individuals
and that adults should not impose their ideas and wishes on them. Children must educate
themselves. The Montessori curriculum is classified as learner-directed (Berns, 2010, p.

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174). Learner-directed classrooms help let the student be in charge of what they are learning.
Students in this type of classroom seem to be more interested in schoolwork and learning.
Teacher-directed classrooms are where the teacher plans out all the activities and curriculum for
the students. Teacher-directed learning classrooms tend to perform better than learner-directed
classrooms. The success of learning environments in achieving their goals depends on the
knowledge and experiences of the teacher, the learner, and the relationship between them
(Berns, 2010, p. 175). Being able to determine what style of learning is best for your classroom
and how your students will benefit is crucial.
Vygotskys Zone of Proximal Development which is the space between what a learner
can do independently and what he or she can do while participating with more capable others
(Berns, 2010, p. 220). Creating a classroom that is both learner-directed and teacher-directed
will make the teacher an, effective one who is sensitive to the students zone of development
and provides appropriate independent, as well as collaborative, activities to enhance learning
(Berns, 2010, p. 220). This will help the students to become independent learner. They are able
to determine what level their skills are, and how their abilities are helping or hindering them
from accomplishing the goal at hand or work they are doing.
Teachers must have an understanding of the developmental, cognitive, and social
behaviors of their students. They must have developmental appropriateness, which is the
knowledge of childrens normal growth patterns and individual differences (Berns, 2010, p.
13). With the understanding of the students developmental appropriateness, teachers must also
give their students the guidance and discipline. By understanding how the student processes
information, the teacher is able to effectively teach the student, so that the student understands
the information being taught. Social cognition conceptions and reasoning about people, the
self, relations between people, social groups roles and rules, and the relation of such conceptions

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to social behavior (Berns, 2010, p. 257). Piagets Theory of Cognitive Development is learnerbased and he believed that children learn through interaction experiences. Experiences are
learning tools for children. They are able to see what they like, or how it made them feel and
decide if they would like to do that again. Also, with a child watching another child they are able
to obtain information on how to do things such as: what block should go where in a game, or
how to set a table.
Students Social Ecology
Family, communities, and culture are the main factors that will influence a childs
learning abilities and social skills. Bronfenbrenners Ecological Systems Theory is about how
one factor will affect the other factors and how it ultimately affects child development.
Microsystems have the greatest influence on the child and it is usually the parents or main
guardian. They are the main relationship with the child and have the most interaction. Parents
will influence a childs beliefs and behavior, the child will also influence the parents in these
areas, Bronfenbrenner calls this Bi-directional influences (Berns, 2010, p. 17). This occurs
on all the ecological systems a giving and taking relationship. Mesosystem is the connection
between the microsystems such as a childs parent to a childs teacher or a childs parent to
church (Berns, 2010, p. 20). Another factor that will affect the childs development is the
parents job or a change in a parents schedule this is called the exosystem. It doesnt involve the
child directly, but positive and negative feelings can be felt by the child. Cultures, customs and
laws are also involved in the socio-development of a child. The macrosystem can be felt
throughout all the other layers will influence them. If a community feels that only parents should
be responsible for raising a child, the community/culture is less likely to contribute. Deaths,
divorce, and other physiological changes will also influence the child, causing them to reach

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differently to their environment; this system is called the chronosystem. The timing of when
these events occur will also influence the childs development and social behavior.
Socialization is the process by which individuals acquire the knowledge, language,
social skills, and value to conform to the norms and roles required for integration into a group or
community (Business Dictionary, 2013). Socialization is important for children so they gain
social competence and are able to do this by watching and interacting with others. By being able
to understand and respond to others and their environment they are able to become significant
contributors to society. This is all tied into Bronfenbrenners Ecological Systems Theory and
how family, community, school, and religion all influence how a child will socialize either
positively or negatively.
Cultural Diversity
As a teacher it is extremely important to understand your students culture. By doing so
you are able to understand their background, what their living situation might be like, and how
their beliefs are structured. Having cultural pluralism in your classroom will make your
classroom, more effective and welcoming to the students. Cultural pluralism is a condition in
which minority groups participate fully in the dominant society, yet maintain their cultural
differences (Business-Dictionary, 2013). Instead of making them conform to the majority
group, we let them maintain their cultural identities and differences. When the majority group
does not recognize or accept beliefs, ideas, and customs of the minority group we are forcing
them into cultural assimilation (Berns, 2010, p. 19). We are absorbing them and creating a
melting pot environment, where they lose their identity and characteristics that make them
different.
As teachers, we must honor all races, religions, and beliefs. By learning about your
students and their culture you are able to become educated which is the first step to stopping
racism, discrimination, and other hate crimes. By having the knowledge about your students

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background you will also be able to communicate with family and parents. Having and showing
this respect can open doors that can help your student flourish in and out of the classroom. When
a teacher has this type of respect for students culture the student will then respect their
classroom and teacher.
Curriculum for all Learners
Students have different learning styles and how you adjust to their learning styles
accordingly will determine how your classroom will succeed. As teachers, we need to be able to
present our material and curriculum in an array of different aspects. Having flexibility on how
we present our lesson plans and deliver our instructions are all a part of a giving the student the
structure needed for success. Using both learner-directed and teacher-directed learning plans
will help expand the way information is received and obtained. As teachers, we must also be
diverse and educated in what we are teaching; we cannot expect a student to understand
something that we do not understand ourselves.
It is important that the student understands the material being taught, not just being able
to pass the test. The emphasis in the classroom should be quality not quantity. All students
should be receiving the highest quality of information and actually understand the subject being
taught. Using assessments can help a teacher find out what information is not being understood,
so that the subject can be taught in a different way so that the students obtain the information.
This all goes together with students learning styles and how they understand the information
being taught.
Teachers must be open to ideas and different ways to get information across and be able
to evaluate themselves and their work. If we can see that we are not excelling in an area that we
are teaching then we need to approach it in a different manner. This is where good teachers and
great teachers differ. Great teachers can take self-evaluations and center themselves and find

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better ways to teach. Using both negative and positive feedback to have educational growth, will
also help the students grow into better learners.
Conclusion
Every child is ready to learn, and it is my job as a future educator to make sure I do all I
can to give them every opportunity to do so. Making sure that I am well versed in the all
subjects I am teaching, so that I, as well as my students understand what is being taught. As a
future teacher I need to be a guide and mentor putting them on a path of greatness. I must
encompass different learning aspects and styles in my teaching that vary for each student, to
assure that they all receive the best education.
I must remember that not every student is the same; they are all different and come from
different environments and cultures. It is important that I bring diversity to the classroom so that
every student feels welcome and do not lose a part of them while gaining knowledge. This way
we can assure that no child will leave our classrooms without a passion for learning.

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References
Berns, R.M. (2007, 2010). Child, family, school, and community: Socialization and
support (7th ed.). Belmont, CA: Thomas Wadsworth.
Socialization [Def. 1]. (n.d.). Business-Dictionary. In Business-Dictionary. Retrieved October 18,
2014, from http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/socialization.html.
Cultural Pluralism [Def. 1]. (n.d.). Business-Dictionary. In Business-Dictionary. Retrieved
October 18, 2014, from http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/socialization.html.