Sigmund Freud's Psychosexual Stages

 

Meaning of Adolescence (1953) [Video].

 

Identity Texts

 In my opinion, there is great value in having students produce identity texts. First of all, it teaches students how to stop, reflect on themselves, and then communicate their findings through a means of their choice. Their expression of the final product could be spoken, written, or even performed. When done correctly, students take ownership of the text and become invested in it because it represents their own identity (Gaysek, J. 2012). Besides helping non native students challenge the devaluation of their identity, this approach could be specially helpful to students who might be facing identity issues. Moreover, research has highlighted several pedagogical benefits of the framework such as students being able to find and express their individual voices through multimodal identity text projects than traditional means (Mills, K. 2010). Furthermore, the use of identity texts has proven to be helpful in ELL classes. Teachers can promote Ell students' literacy when they connect with their students in ways beyond the usual constricted pedagogical frame. 

Socially, identity texts tend to uncover much about students' identity, culture, and perspectives on relationships. This important because it gives the teacher an insight into the background of the student. Human interaction is at the heart of schooling and these interactions are often more central to student development than other methods for teaching literacy. Academically, educators can utilize these texts to create  an interpersonal space where learning takes place and students' identities are recognized, affirmed, and explored. These texts  help students affirm their identities in various forms such as dance, music, poetry, stories, bilingual texts, etc... 

The main challenge that this approach faces is the rigidity of the one size fits all curricula and mandates enforced by some kind of punitive sanctions. During my school years in a French Jesuit school, I was never introduced to identity texts nor was I ever encouraged to express myself or my opinion. On the contrary, I was often told to keep to myself and stop complaining. Looking back on it, this might have been the reason behind poor relationships with teachers and many colleagues. Had the idea been introduced to me, I think I might have had a more enjoyable learning environment and experience. 

Evidently, students native language is not totally irrelevant to making progress in learning English language. Literacy instruction cannot and should not substitute for literacy engagement. Such engagement could be promoted through enabling students to use their home language as a source for learning. Educators have a choice to go beyond the conventional academic expertise framework and its curricular guidelines and mandates. This could be done by acknowledging students' prior knowledge and attempting to utilize it to serve the acquisition of new knowledge (Zapata et al. 2020). References

Gaysek, J. (2012). Identity texts. Retrieved 30 December 2020, from https://www.slideshare.net/jsplendiferrous/identity-texts

Mills, K. (2010). What learners ‘know’through digital media production: Learning by Design.E-Learning and Digital Media,7(3), 223–236. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.2304/elea.2010.7.3.223

Zapata, Gabriela & Ribota, Alessandra. (2020). The instructional benefits of identity texts and learning by design for learner motivation in required second language classes. Pedagogies. 10.1080/1554480X.2020.1738937.

Teacher-Student Relationship and Student Behavior

    Teachers could elicit not only target language from students but also target behavior. In other words, it is the teacher's attitude that encourages or discourages students engagement, participation, and overall behavior in the classroom. Besides the given professionalism, a teacher may have to develop a set of personal traits and professional skills to help achieve these goals. However, this paper will only touch on some of the possible academic effects on the students of one's own instructional behavior in the classroom.

    Learning how to foster a positive teacher-student relationship is one skill which almost all other skills depend upon. Negative teacher-student relationship may drive the student to stop communication, exhibit undesired behavior, or start to hate the subject and/or school. On the other hand, a positive relationship may lead to better communication which would help the teacher gain more insight into the student's academic needs.

    Emphasizing punctuality and timeliness is always best done by setting the example. A teacher who is usually late to class or does not show respect to schedules and deadlines will have a weak argument if he tried to teach or advise punctuality to his students. Similarly, teachers who emphasize the awareness of time to their students can model steady work and sensible time management to their students. For example, they estimate the time to be spent on different  tasks, or in preparation thereof Boston University, (2020).

    Another form of teacher behavior that could help the academic achievement of students is his ability to encourage high expectations. For example, a teacher could set their students challenging goals for learning. Moreover, encouraging student involvement by varying the types of activities including active learning techniques like asking students to present their work to the class. 

    In conclusion, teachers are not only the most decisive element in any classroom, but also the most influential one. Teachers are also the prearranged models people entrust with their children's education and development.

References

    Boston University, (2020). Behaviors of good teachers » Center for Teaching & Learning. Retrieved 16 December 2020, from http://www.bu.edu/ctl/teaching-resources/preparing-to-be-a-teaching-fellow/behaviors-of-good-teachers/

    Sutherland, K. et al. (2008). Examining the influence of teacher behavior and classroom context on the behavioral and academic outcomes for students with emotional or behavioral disorders. The Journal of Special Education 41(223). https://my.uopeople.edu/pluginfile.php/1019576/mod_book/chapter/257050/Examining%20behavior.pdf