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Blog Entry #2

I am working with two different teachers. The 6th grade teacher seems to mostly use the behaviorism theory. She has a square on her white board that the students can earn points as a class through good behavior to add to everyday, once they reach a certain amount of points they get a reward such as a pizza party or extra PE time. Additionally she gave the incentive multiple times that if they could stay on task and finish their work at school they would not have to do the additional homework for that evening. Occasionally she seems to add in more of a constructivism approach through interactive videos and questions, but I would say that her teaching style and theory is almost primarily rooted in behaviorism. 

 The Kindergarten teacher seems to really use a variety of all of the theories simultaneously. She will be conducting a hands on activity such as painting (constructivism), while keeping it exciting and engaging for the kids and easy to follow and therefore remember (cognitivism), all the while she is keeping the kids on task by reminding them of earning "PAWS tickets" which are vouchers you turn in and trade for a prize (behaviorism). I assume she uses all three styles so intricately partly as her personal teaching style, but also because she works with a younger group of students and therefore wants to give them a large variety of learning opportunities and styles so that they can gain and more readily retain the information, or more readily create many new neural pathways. 

 I personally prefer the constructivism approach because it seems like the most engaging and fun option for kids. That being said I do also believe that each theory has a place in the classroom and that each student may respond more effectively to different theories. Therefore a teacher should make it a point to incorporate each theory somehow, this is to help ensure that each student gets an opportunity to get the most out of their education. 

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