Disposition 7

Efficacy

Children cannot be fooled by empty praise and condescending encouragement...ego identity gains real strength only from wholehearted and consistent recognition of real accomplishment, that is, achievement that has meaning in the culture.

-Erik Erikson

Describe a time when you helped someone believe in their ability to succeed at something.

Today, I had a violin lesson with my four year old student. She has been playing the violin for two and a half months or so, and she has made so much progress! Admittedly, the first month or so, I myself was discouraged because I thought we'd be moving at a much faster pace. When I started playing cello and bass in my String Methods course, I felt what it was like to do something completely foreign to me. I didn't understand why someone (young or old) wouldn't be able to put their first finger down in the right spot on the fingerboard and move the bow at the correct speed. I really didn't understand that that wasn't a fair expectation. I began to think about how much her four year old brain was processing, and how much of that was new for her. I was overwhelmed with excitement and pride.

When I understood what she was going through, I began to give her more genuine praise. I, of course, always told her she was doing a good job, even if I could not recognize the tune she was playing. Yes, she was doing a good job, but I wouldn't have been able to tell you why. Understanding what's difficult and what is happening for the person you're instructing almost forces you to be somewhat emotionally invested.

Well, today, she was having trouble standing without wiggling around, and couldn't play more than two notes in a row without putting her instrument down because she was tired. When she needed to take a break, I would tell her all the things she was doing well, and then give her one thing to think about for when we played next. It seems like common sense, but knowing that how hard she was working helped me to tell her how happy I was with her progress. She could tell the difference between my praise in recent weeks (more genuine) and earlier in the semester (less genuine) and my genuine praise effected her focus, which effected her progress.

Random Disposition

Education and Health

In my French 201 class this week, we talked about the education system in France. It was really interesting in that there is no option of homeschooling or alternative education (only one private Roman Catholic option, no charter schools or ALCs). They have their system regulated to the extent that each child learns everything within the same year, no matter the location or school. Each child in the third grade learns to play the recorder, all sixth graders learn about the French Revolution through a certain text book, etc. All education is free, the government can sue parents for not sending students to school, BUT there are no school athletics, clubs, or ensembles. It is 8 am to 5 pm academics 5.5 days a week (half day Friday and school on Saturday).

I was really surprised at the lack of extra curriculars. I tried to imagine going to such a school, and saw it lacking school spirit and sort of a sense of community. Our instructor said that the high school and college suicide rates are much higher in France. When asked why, she explained that with fewer outlets available, people end up isolated and unsuccessful more easily. If you're in a school that specializes in math, and you don't do math well, odds are that you're not going to do well academically, socially, or mentally.

This leads me to wonder, What is a school's role in general well being of students? Luther College not only offers, but requires, Personal Fitness and Wellness, which I've heard from many students to be a joke of a course. When I took it, I saw good intentions, but not so excellent execution of those intentions (but that's beside the point).

A school's role is to educate, but how does one define "educate". As a hopeful future educator, I've found my definition of education to be the development of a person. For me, that includes physical, emotional, social, and cognitive. Through these facets, I believe education can help to form a fully functioning, thoughtful, intentional person.