Reading response #2, Feb 13, Matthew Hallahan

Chapter 3 "Creating a Favorable Learning Environment"
using the Question Format

1) How can you teach a teacher to respond appropriately to not just the normal everyday situations, but also the irregular situations?
2) If students previous learning experiences dictate their current attitude toward new learning, are we totally screwed? Because my students tell me horrible stories of previous teachers and schools.
3) How do we make students involved and invested in their own learning when there is all this pressure to cover these standards?
4) I want to see these studies that say ability grouping/curriculum tracking is bad. I meet very few teachers who don't wish they could group their students. Where are these studies?
5) If the main argument vs. ability grouping is that the better students get better, more competent teachers, why not fix that rather than demonizing "ability grouping." Make teacher assignments random.
6) How are they collecting this evidence based research? It seems shady.
7) People who write about successful teaching techniques are usually great teachers, but in the hands of inexpert teachers (or teachers of different personality type than the original teacher) are these practices as effective?
8) I have never experience the type of peer conflict that my students experience. How can I be an effective moderator of conflict resolution? The suggestions in the book were not helpful.
9) Why would 20% more students pass their writing assessments with a word processor? (pg 80)
10) Discussion should exceed typical 2 to 3 word phrases common to recitation lessons. How do I do that?

Matthew Hallahan