So this is it Ed Psycher’s! This is our last blog posting for the Summer I session.  It has been a great semester.  We learned about, discussed and reviewed Behaviorism, Cognitive Development, Social Cognitive Theory, Memory, the brain, the Bell Curve, Applied Behavior Analysis (a heated and debatable topic) and the list goes on.  We also had excellent group presentations that reinforced all of the important topics that we have learned.  The presentations had informative and even humorous videos and cartoons that added to the pleasure and understanding of the topics.  We also read books and watched movies that were inspiring and reinforced our efforts as New York City special education teachers.  It showed us (as we already know) just how challenging it is to be an educator in a high-need school and also how rewarding it can be.

We started the evening by reviewing the quizzes and taking care of housekeeping.  Then Pete started the class with a warm-up activity where we were to discuss “Behaviorist Models of Teaching and District 75 Students”.  The crux of the debate was on Applied Behavior Analysis.  One classmate talked about how in District 75 one may not see a lot of self-efficacy.  Therefore, it is useful to use extrinsic motivators to build toward intrinsic motivators.  Another classmate mention that ABA is proven to work and that it is a basic understanding of human beings and how they work.  One classmate states how there are many students in District 75 whose families have limited resources and school is their best source for acquiring life skills.  At home, many of these students lack consistency.  ABA is the most productive use of school time and resources.  One classmate countered that ABA is manipulative.  Teachers can instill joy in children’s learning (Maslowian) and learning can be its own reward.  Other classmates discussed how ABA is not used properly as prescribed with the DOE and uses a one-dimentional approach.  The debate went on to discuss how children are raise and we talked about values, etc.  Pete ended the great debate and brought our session to a close by telling us to, “Be a Reflective Practitioner and you are all set!”

We then wrapped up the last session by having two great presentations: one by Paul and David and the other by Corinne and Hope.  The first presentation was on Behaviorism and Student Learning and the second was on Social Cognitive Theories.