Journal Table Two
Name: Ruth Detlefsen DeLano
Important Societal Factors/Significant
Observations from Field Notes
A) What are the specific important-societal-
factors-edfd-460-461-462 that serve as
resources and challenges impacting the
learning of the learner(s) you are studying in
your clinical setting (See the following
document: important-societal-factors-edfd-
460-461-462) (Remember to focus on
resources, not just challenges!!!).
Specific important societal factors that serve as
resources and challenges impacting the learning of the
learners I am studying in your clinical setting are
economic conditions, household dynamics,
institutional practices, and classroom dynamics (in
order, that is Group 4, Group 5, Group 6, and Dr.
Wysocki).
Economic conditions include the education and
training level of members of the household,
occupations held by members of the household, and
the income level that is generated in the household.
These shape students opportunities to learn because
income level greatly affects a students learning
abilities. While most of the students at my clinical
setting are middle level on the economic scale, there
are some that are lower and some that are higher.
Household dynamics serve as both a resource and a
challenge to the learning of the learners that I am
studying. There is one student that is an only child, so
in his household dynamic he runs the show. While
other students have younger and/or older siblings
between whom their parents have to divide time and
attention. Some students also come from separated
households; that is some students have parents who
are divorced or separated.
Institutional practices impact all of the students at my
Course Content
C) HowdospecificargumentsmadebyEricJensenor
anyotherscholarsusedonANYOFthe6Poverty
Analyses(locatedintheD2LDiscussionsection)
shapeyourpresentthinkingaboutworkingwith
impoverishedlearners?(Citespecificauthor
arguments,examples,andpagenumbershere!!)?
Jensen,E.(2013).PovertyandClassroomEngagement.
EducationalLeadership,2430.
EricJensenmakessevengreatpointsaboutthedifferences
betweenimpoverishedchildrenintheclassroomandmiddle
classstudentsintheclassroom.Whileallsevenarespotonand
helpmetoshapemypresentthinkingaboutworkingwith
impoverishedlearners,Ihavepickedtwothatstandoutthemost
tome.Tostartoff,EricJensensaysthatchildrenfrompoverty
aremorelikelytostrugglewithengagementinschoolthan
childrenfrommiddleclasshomes(Jensen,pp.24).This
argumentshapesmypresentthinkingaboutworkingwith
impoverishedlearnersbysolidifyingmycurrentknowledgethat
impoverishedstudentslearndifferentlythanchildrenfrom
wealthierfamilies.Impoverishedstudentsstrugglewith
engagementandstayingfocusedinschools,soasteacherswe
needtodowhatwecantokeeptheirattentionortoguidethem
towardslearningactivitiesthatarebettersuitedfortheirspecific
needs.
ThesecondspecificargumentmadebyEricJensenthatshapes
mypresentthinkingaboutworkingwithimpoverishedlearners
isthatthehealthandnutritionofimpoverishedindividualsplays
avitalroleintheirlearningabilities(Jensen,pp.24).Jensen
saysthatbecausethepoorarepoor,theyhavelessaccessto
medicalcare;meaningtheyvisitthedoctorlessanddonot
receiveregularcheckups.Becauseofthisanearinfectioncan
turnintohearingloss,leadexposureismoreprevalent,and
asthmaisverycommon(Jensen,pp.24).Neurosciencetellsus
thatintelligenceandhealtharelinked,sowhenhealthispoor
wecanmaketheinferencethatlearningfactorssuchas
attention,reasoning,memory,andlearningwillbeaffected
(Jensen,pp.24).Inadditiontohealth,nutritionplaysan
importantroleinlearningandintelligence.Childrenwhodont
eatnutritiousmealsorwhodonteatregularmealsexperience
adverseaffectstogreymattermassintheirbrains,aswellas
negativelyaffectingcognitionandmakingstudentsabsentfrom
schoolmoreoften.Childrenwhoexperiencepoornutritionand
healthhaveamoredifficulttimelistening,concentrating,and
learningthanstudentswithgoodnutritionandhealth(Jensen,
pp.24).Thesetwoargumentsshapemypresentthinkingabout
 Journal Table Two
Name: Ruth Detlefsen DeLano
clinical experience as both resources and challenges.
Examples of institutional practices are schools,
housing/real estate, child care, banking, social
services, health care, law enforcement, and economic
decisions made by those in charge that affect the
community. A decision made by the community or
government could affect the school and the type of
education that students are able to receive.
Classroom dynamics directly impact students in my
clinical setting. Decisions made by lead classroom
teachers can have a positive or negative affect on each
individual students learning. The way that teacher
include or disclude family, culture, or religion, the
way that teachers interact with colleagues, and the
lessons that teachers plan all affect students.
B) What developmental and/or learning
theorists learned in EDFD 400/401 can be
used to argue why these specific Important
Societal Factors are significant?
Jerome Bruners theory of constructivism is one that
can be used to argue why these specific Important
Societal Factors are significant. Bruner believed that
people learn through experience and through their own
understandings learned through observation. Another
constructivism theorist, Eleanor Duckworth, said
Experience is assimilated by each individual
according to the nature of his or her internal
structuresmeaning is not given to us in our
encounters, but is given by us constructed in our
own way, according to how our understanding is
currently organized.
Another theorist that can be used to argue why these
specific Important Societal Factors are significant is
Piaget, who came up with the Mechanisms of
Learning. These include Equilibration and
Disequilibration. Equilibration is when we are able to
navigate the world easily and maintain a cognitive
balance. Disequalibration occurs when we are
confronted with unfamiliar ideas or activities and
workingwithimpoverishedlearnersbymakingmethinkmore
aboutwhatstudentsgetatschoolthattheydontgetathome.I
wanttoteachstudentshowtomakeahealthymealandwhat
constitutesahealthymeal.Italsomakesmethinkabout
classroomadaptationsthatIcanmaketohelpstudentswhohave
healthissuescausedbypovertyandlackofmedicalcaretoget
themostoutoftheirschoolexperiencethattheycan.These
includewritteninstructionsforassignmentsratherthanoral
instructions,seatingchildrenwithhearingdifficultiestowardthe
frontoftheroom,anddoingmoreoneononeworkwith
studentswhoarestrugglingtopayattentionortoremember
previouslessons.
D) HowdoyouseeyourCooperatingTeacheraddressing
(ormissingtheopportunitytoaddress)students
developmentofsoftskills(Bespecificwithconcrete
examplesofthesesoftskillsClosuretothePoverty
AnalysisDiscussion)andanyspecific21stCentury
FrameworkSkillsdiscussedinthefollowingresources:
P21FrameworkDefinitionsandDescriptions(Dont
justsaysomelamesentenceaboutSmartboardshere!!)
TheonlysoftskillsthatIsawmyCooperatingTeacherusing
wereworkingindependentlyandteachingstudentstodeal
positivelyfeedback,setbacks,andcriticism.Thewaythatmy
CooperatingTeacherusedworkindependentlywasbyhaving
thirtyminutesadaythatwasdedicatedtostudentsdoing
homeworkorreading.Whileyoungerstudentsworkedwithan
adult,olderstudentswereexpectedtoindependentlyworkon
theirhomeworkordotheirreadingswithoutdirectoversightby
ateacheroradult.Thisworkedwell,andthestudentswere,for
themostpart,responsibleenoughtogettheirownworkdone
withoutaskingforassistance.
MyCooperatingTeachertaughtstudentstodealpositivelywith
praise,setbacks,andcriticismbyencouragingthemtodobetter
allofthetime,andbypraisingpositivebehaviororgood
examplesofthings.Forexample,oneweekthestudentswere
playingvolleyball.Wewerepracticingbumpingandsettingthe
balltoapartner,andmyCooperatingTeacherwouldsay
[Name],greatjob!orVerynicepass[Name]!Incontrast,
therewasonestudentwhogotveryworkedupaboutsmall
things.MyCooperatingTeacheralwaysmadesuretoremind
himnottogettooupsetaboutthings.Forexample,thestudent
wouldgetdownonhimselfwhenhewouldmissbasketswhile
playingbasketballandhisfriendsweremakingbaskets.My
CooperatingTeacherwouldsay,Itsjustagame,bud.Youre
doinggreat,butitsjustagameandyouneedtoletitgo.
E)Howdoyousee(orfailtosee)howyourcooperating
teacherdemonstratesanyoftheconcretestrategies
 Journal Table Two
Name: Ruth Detlefsen DeLano
when we encounter something new and something that
we arent used to. Impoverished students may
experience Disequalibration when entering schools
because school life is much different than their home
lives. Students learn to assimilate by fitting new
information into existing structures, such as fitting
into school settings or their first times going to an
after school program.
Leontev was very similar to Piaget, however he made
an improvement to Piagets original theory. This
improvement was Appropriation. Appropriation says
that objects in a culture have a social history and
functions that are not discovered through a childs
unaided explorations.
Vygotsky had three themes to his theory. The first was
that understanding how people know and learn needs
to be accomplished using a genetic or developmental
method. The second was that higher mental processes
in the individual have their origin in social processes.
The third and last was that mental processes can only
be understood if we understand the tools and signs that
mediate them. Examples of these tools are language,
computers, shovels, pictures, and smart phones.
forworkingwithimpoverishedlearnersthatyou
learnedfromyouroutsidesocialclassscholarSee
yourSocialClassIndividualOutline(Second
Columnsocialclassresearchreportindividual
outline201617)?(Citeyouroutsidescholar,thetitle
ofthearticle,pagenumbers,andspecific,concrete
strategiesdiscussedinsaidarticle!!)
Thomas,D.(2007).Teachingtechnologyinlowsocioeconomic
areas:Technologyeducationwillhelpbreakthecyclefor
lowsocioeconomicstudents.TheTechnologyTeacher,67,
no.3,48.
Myoutsidesocialclassscholarsarticlewasaboutusing
technologytoteachimpoverishedstudents.However,wedidnt
useawholelotoftechnologyduringmyfieldexperience.The
onlytechnologythatIsawusedwerecomputersthatthe
studentsusedduringhomeworktimetotakequizzesonreadings
thattheyhaddone.Ido,however,knowthattheschoolprovides
iPadsforeachstudentthattheyhavetoleaveatschool,aswell
asusingSmartboardsandlaptopsforclasses.AlthoughIknow
thattheschoolutilizesthesetechnologicdevicesintheir
lessons,Ididnotseeanyofthemusedduringmyfield
experienceorbymyCooperativeTeacher.
F) Listthe2HumanResources,2AcademicJournal
Articles,and2CurriculumandInstructionresources
youwillpossiblyuseforyourAnnotatedBibliography.
HumanResources:NotesfromEDFD400andEDFD410
AcademicJournalArticles:
Lee,S.(2001).Morethanmodelminoritiesordelinquents:
AlookatHmongAmericanhighschoolstudents.Harvard
EducationalReview,71(3),505529.
Thomas,D.(2007).Teachingtechnologyinlowsocioeconomic
areas:Technologyeducationwillhelpbreakthecycleforlow
socioeconomicstudents.TheTechnologyTeacher,67,no.3,
48.
CurriculumandInstructionresources:
FundsofKnowledgeforTeachingProjectbyNormal
Gonzalez
HowPovertyAffectsClassroomEngagementbyEricJensen