In what waysthrough the classroom environment, student motivation, and instructioncan

I engage and support ALL students in learning?

As a prospective teacher, one of the tasks I feel most intimidated by is creating a

curriculum that is accessible to all students, which is difficult because of the degree of diversity

that is found in California classrooms. Students need to feel safe, engaged, motivated, and

included in the classroom. The first step to engage a student in learning is to make them feel safe

and comfortable. When a student feels safe, they are able to participate and take intellectual risks

in the classroom. Krashen's affective filter hypothesis refers to the feelings or attitudes a student

has that may not necessarily be attached to the content. For example, if a student is put on the

spot in class, the affective filter would be considered high because that student is probably more

concerned with how fast their heart is beating rather than with the material being taught. In my

classroom, I will need to find a way to lower the affective filter during instruction, then students

will be able to concentrate solely on the content being taught. In reference to Krashen's affective

filter hypothesis, Diaz-Rico states that teachers need to understand that, "a nonthreatening and

encouraging environment promotes learning, and that it is important to increase the enjoyment of

learning, raise self-esteem, and blend self-awareness" (Diaz-Rico, 2014, p. 59).

Once students feel comfortable in my classroom, they need to be motivated; if I cannot

motivate my students, they will not be willing to participate as active learners. In my opinion,

having someone believe that you are capable of achieving more than you thought possible is one

of the most influential motivations. This is called the Pygmalion effect; when a teacher has high

expectations for a student, whether they are an honors student, an English Learner, or a

struggling student, it will lead to an increase in their performance. Teachers can also implement

behavioral learning theory, most commonly associated with operant conditioning. In a classroom,

teachers can help change a student's behavior by using positive reinforcement and focusing on
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student-centered teaching. "Inquiry and discovery learning opportunities are lost when lessons

are teacher dominated" (Echevarria & Graves, 2015, p. 47). By having the students lead

discussions and interact with each other, creativity is cultivated and a community is formed,

which is beneficial for all students.

Classroom environment and student motivation set the stage for instruction; the delivery

of the information is key to student understanding. This ties in perfectly with TPE 4.4, which

emphasizes the importance in providing, "access to the curriculum for all students by removing

barriers and providing access through instructional strategies" (California Commission on

Teaching Credentialing [CTC], 2016, p. 16). Providing access to the curriculum is established

through knowing and understanding your students, which is initiated by the recognition and

acceptance of their differences. Diversity can be represented by ethnicity, learning style,

language, age, gender, sexual orientation, creative potential, socioeconomic background, and

cognitive ability. "In the classroom, students rarely fall cleanly into one category or another and

may exhibit characteristics from several categories" (Burden & Byrd, 2016, p. 27).

In order to provide a curriculum that accommodates all of these categories, teachers use

differentiated instruction. This is defined as, "a principle-guided method to approach teaching

and learning in which the teacher adjusts the learning environment, curriculum, assessment, and

instruction to meet the needs of all learners (Tomlinson & Imbeau, 2010)" (Burden & Byrd,

2016, p.44). Within differentiated instruction, a teacher can make changes to the contentwhat

is being taught, the processhow it is being taught, or the producthow the students show

understanding of what is being taught. In my classroom, after getting to know my students and

how they learn, I will be able to create a differentiated curriculum that will meet the academic

needs of each and every one of my students. It is an intimidating task, but through mastery of

these theories and methods, as well as years of practice, it becomes attainable.

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References

Burden, P.R., & Byrd, D.M. (2016). Methods for effective teaching: Meeting the needs of all

students (7th ed.). New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.

California Commission on Teaching Credentialing (CTC). (2016). California Teaching

Performance Expectations, TPE 4, p.16.

Diaz-Rico, L.T. (2014). The Crosscultural, Language, and Academic Development Handbook: A

Complete K-12 Reference Guide (5th ed.). New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.

Echevarria, J.J., & Graves, A. (2015). Sheltered Content Instruction: Teaching English Learners

with Diverse Abilities (5th ed.). New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.