Curriculum

What kind of subject matter should be taught?

The kind of subject matter that should be taught is subjects that Calvin is interested in, such as dinosaurs, space, and explorers. Each of these subjects directly speck to Calvin and could peak his interest.

How much should be covered?

As much as is appropriate for the subjects being taught. Not every lesson needs to involve those topics, but it also needs to be enough where Calvin’s needs are being met. This can help Calvin achieve better grades, which according to Attributions theory can improve the three main areas of his person, his locus or his self-esteem, this would improve because he feels school has something he can get excited about, his stability or his outlook on the future, because he can feel that since he is successful now his future may hold the same successes, and finally an improvement in his controllability, this would improve because Calvin would feel he can take charge of his learning and therefore his grades.

How should the sequence of content be structured?

Calvin might pay better attention if you would add some variety to the styles of teaching you incorporate. Lecturing all the time is fine for college students, but not for students in the lower grades. Maybe showing movies, PowerPoint, picture, or having students do projects and then present would be a better approach to learning the necessary material for Calvin. He seems to be a more hands on student and therefore you should allow Calvin to demonstrate and nature his strengths more.

Instruction

The first thing we would like to start incorporating into Calvin’s lessons is freedom. We believe that by giving Calvin more structured freedom to learn how he learns best will keep him involved the entire class period. If we let Calvin choose what projects that he wants to do, we believe that he will become more interested, and therefore more intrinsically motivated. We also would like to start teaching him through a variety of mediums. Right now it seems that he is getting most of his information through lectures. We would like to start incorporating movies, music, and group projects to the lesson plan. This will allow Calvin to experience the same information in different ways, and we believe that one of these mediums will impact Calvin in a positive way.

Classroom Management

The way you can manage Calvin in class and prevent him from misbehaving can be done in a few different ways. Since Calvin has trouble getting through lessons he could be classified as amotivational. This theory best describes someone who lacks the motivation to complete simple tasks. The best way to keep Calvin engaged in discussions is that first off; he must be put in a place where he is never out of your eyeshot. Your back should never be turned to him, thus giving him little time to doze off or begin daydreaming. Also, you needs to sporadically, but continuously keep asking him questions to keep him engaged in the topic that is being taught. Make sure that you ask him easy questions to answer. This will boost his motivation and make him realize that answering questions is not bad, especially if he is getting them correct. This would be a good way to move him from a child with performance avoidance goals (where a student just does not want to look bad), to hopefully a child with mastery goals (where a student wants to do good on their own accord).

Another way to get Calvin more involved is by giving him more freedom in class. This can also benefit the other students. For example, instead of only having one way to learn about the rainforest, make 3-4 different options available to the students. This will not only get them more interested in the topic, but it will also get them learning in their individual ways. If Calvin does well once you give him an option, make sure that you follow up and ask him how he felt doing the assignment, and what he liked or disliked about it, this can help you out for later classes.

Finally the best way to get Calvin more involved it to make sure that you positively reinforce ANYTHING he does that is good. This will start driving him to become better. Instead of a barf face sticker on the whole test, maybe place happy face stickers on the areas of the test that he did well on. You can read more on this in the next section.

One on One Interaction

In regards to your “one-on-one” interactions with Calvin, here is some specific advice that will be beneficial to you both:

1. When giving assignments to Calvin make sure he is allowed the freedom to set personal goals for himself. According to the motivational theory of self-regulation, a student is more likely to work towards goals that he/she sets for him/herself. If Calvin is forced to complete assignments in which all of the goals are set for him he will be less likely to be connected and engaged to the work.

2. Something to consider when returning work to Calvin is to keep a balance between positive and negative feedback. Instead of giving Calvin a “barfing face” sticker, for instance, maybe you should try pointing out specific elements of work that he does well and make specific suggestions as to how he can improve those elements that he didn’t. Constant negative feedback can lead to many negative habits. For example, if constantly berated, a student is likely to look for reasons that they are failing constantly. According to the self-determination theory this could lead to “Interjected regulation” or a failure to accept your own behavior. If you maintain a balance between positive and negative feedback Calvin will be less likely to blame his failure on something other than himself.

3. Finally, we feel that it would be beneficial to both you and Calvin if you were to encourage frequent self-evaluation. To become a self-regulated learner it is important for Calvin to look back on his work and be able to distinguish between what he did well and what he needs to improve on personally. If you, as his teacher, incorporate a self-evaluation at the end of each assignment Calvin will hopefully develop as a self-regulated learner. A good way to incorporate self-evaluation would be to have a weekly discussion with Calvin in which you have him explain how he thinks he is doing. This way you can guide him while he is thinking about which strategies have been helping him.

Communication with Calvin’s Parents

As far as communicating with Calvin’s parents, you should discuss one of the motivational theories, and how you are going to apply the theory in the classroom. For instance you could talk to Calvin’s parents about Goal Theory, and how Calvin is a performance-based learner, and that you, as the teacher, are going to make lesson plans more interesting to Calvin. Also explain to them how you are also going to pair Calvin up with a partner and make him responsible for completing his portion of the assignment. Another way to engage Calvin is to sit him in the front of the classroom and ask him questions that will actively engage Calvin in learning.

When talking to Calvin’s parents, you can encourage them to take a more active role in Calvin’s learning and homework. They should try to sit at the kitchen table for every homework assignment, and Calvin is not allowed to leave until the homework is complete and he can verbally describe what he learned. As parents, you could also ask them to make homework more exciting. For example, when sitting at the kitchen table, they could create stories about the homework that keep Calvin interested and willing to work.

As Calvin’s teacher, you should keep the parents up to date on how Calvin is behaving and performing in class, whether it is via e-mail or a meeting. The parents should also keep in touch with you, so that as a team you can determine whether or not these plans are working.