Discussion- Module 4: Influencing Student Behaviors

Influencing Student Behavior
Student’s Name
Institution Affiliation
Date

Influencing Student Behavior in Teaching
Education has been well-known as the critical element for the development of human personality. It enables individuals to acquire knowledge, self-understanding, and a significant appreciation through the transition to new social orders. However, Aggressive and disruptive student behavior obstructs student’s performance and the school climate. Similarly, teachers’ perceptions regarding the schooling climate significantly influence how students behave. Their teaching methods, behaviors, and attitude have a direct influence on student personality and performances. Therefore, reducing behavioral problems facing students remains the primary concern for teaching staff. This paper seeks to uncover how teacher-student perspective influences student’s behavior, personality, and academic performance. The paper further suggests possible remedies to influence a change.
The Oxford English Dictionary defines the word “perspective” is defined as a given attitude developed toward something or the manner of regarding something, or indeed a particular point of view. In our classroom context, perspective can further be viewed as bundles of believes or mindset that a teacher embraces in determining how their see their students concerning students’ possibilities, experience, and abilities. Such perceptions have a direct impact on students’ emotions and their academic performance (Desautels, 2014).

As Stahl and Kuhn (2002) acknowledge that development in reading is not an event; it is a process. Although some children have a different approach in their reading, they all emerge from a conventional stage, where they tend to rely on their memory and the context to develop reading, then to a fluctuation stage and finally to a fluent reading stage. According to Stahl and Kuhn (2002), most teachers handling such a class opt for what the author refers to as the “round robin” where a group of children takes turns reading. Such a teaching approach is impractical and wastage of time as the rest of children not reading engage in other activities, begin daydreaming or focus ahead. The optimal solution has teacher-direct lessons where children are involved in reading connected text.
Stahl and Kuhn (2002) further recommend for two reading approaches; repeated reading and assisted reading. The repeated approach involves allowing and monitoring children to read a passage repeatedly. On the other hand, the assisted reading approach involves children reading a paragraph with direct assistance from a teacher. There are numerous and practical strategies for gibbeting learners transformation to fluent reading. The choice of the method depends on the perception of the teacher towards learners’ reading frequency.
Diversity issue is another critical aspect that most teachers build their perceptions to their learners and thus influencing their behavior. The term diversity means “difference” which could entail many faces such as gender, disabilities, socioeconomic class, language, and ethnicity. A significant issue occurs when a learner transfer from one school to another in a unique home environment. Indeed, the difference in skin color and gender due to birth are the foundations for social identity. These two aspects influence how one views oneself or perceived by others within a social institution. For example, teacher perceptions towards learner’s race could impact service delivery, either positively or negatively. Giving teaching preference give to learners of one social identity at the expense of the others could result in discrimination, and hence adversely impacting the overall performance of less favored students (Slavin & Davis, 2006).
Teachers need to recognize the societal diversity by promoting cultural acceptance and understanding. Teachers also need to understand prior exposure to the reading of his or her learners since it may form the foundation future reading performance. Perhaps, learner’s experience and opportunities could have been limited by poverty. Practical instruction will involve establishing a social interaction with all learners and developing a desire to know them better. The intervention starts with conducting an assessment. How a teacher will focus on identifying issues in struggling reader range of skills will determine required intervention towards enhancing learners performance. Recognizing which stage of reading development every learner is one step towards resolving learning issues (Module 4 Handbook – Supportive Materials n.d.).
The brain functions and grows through learning. However, how we support brain will determine how it evolves. Besides, the subconscious level of mind monitors vital signs. However, deliberately, the sense gather, test, and measures information. All elements of life success are nearby due to the existing relationship. Correspondingly, it is the brain. It has both linear relations and dimensional profundity. The neurological relationships grow at during sleeping due to the exposure to new ideas. Information developed about minds is quickly learned, understood and retained. Such built ideas create significant learning because it relates to what is already known by learners. Similarly, developing teaching skills on prior knowledge establishes a relationship with current information through the understanding of potential ties needed to create connections (Slavin $ Davis, 2006).
Hausheer, Hansen, and Doumas (2011) acknowledge that offering remedial reading programs is essential in an attempt to improve comprehensive and fluent reading particularly in the early stage of development. Accordingly, most teachers do not discover comprehensive and eloquent reading issue early enough. To remedy such problems strategies such as paired reading, reading while listening and assisted reading should be implemented. Also, successful instructional approaches could improve reading skills. These strategies include direct questioning and responses, interactive group instruction, and breaking the task into smaller and manageable units. By so doing, learners are given opportunities to receive individual and personalized attention. Small grouping encourages students to build strong relationships with the instructor (Hausheer, Hansen, & Doumas, 2011).
Breaking tasks into small units make it practical for the use more complex skills. Similarly, experience in early language develops a direct connection between word and language-enhancing learning context. When a teacher leads a group of learners in reading stories together, it allows other groups to confirm a word for a beginner reader. It enables learners to detect a word, spell it, use their memory to notice a pattern and to manipulate its letters to develop new words. Learning can guess omitted letters by examining the internal features of a word. The mastery of words depends on exposure of a learner to a given the word. It is thus essential for a teacher to precisely know what words learners need to identify quickly. The best strategy here is to offer opportunities for the beginner reader to participate in activities that encourage letter knowledge and its pronunciation.
According to Ebner, and Ehri, (2016), the internet offers a powerful avenue for a student to rapidly develop their vocabularies. It provides opportunities for learners to socialize with words across diverse contexts. However, for students to fully benefit from vocabulary development over the internet, teachers need to regulate students’ many distractions. The internet autonomy challenges teachers to play their role in furnishing their students with the metacognitive devices which they require to select and take the most viable online learning course while avoiding going astray. Teachers should choose explicitly that term which students should learn.
Another productive teaching technique, particularly for children is incorporating songs. Use of song in teaching is considered as an essential instructional tool in teaching how to read since it is embedded with a visual display of words which makes it enjoyable and memorable. Regular repeated reading and singing produces more considerable progress in reading performance. The ability to memorize a term in a song provides excellent opportunities for vocabulary development among young student. Naturally, a song influences how children pay attention to learning. They enjoy the rhythm and the fun of the song. The ability to read and sing a song lyric is a step that can improve a struggling reader gain confidence in reading. One way a teacher can make singing experience motivating and authentic is by providing a listening audience. Due to its motivational nature of the song, learners develop a willingness to participate in a refrained song reading until they can read and sing fluently (Iwasaki, Rasinski, Yildirim & Zimmerman, 2013).
Understanding your learners a teacher will influence how you interact in the learning process. Another aspect of interactive teaching is allowing the learner to assert their “textual agency.” Textual agency refers to the act of controlling the discussion by altering topic and the ability to incorporate interpretive authority. It entails having the ability to evaluate the both verbal and written comments for plausibility and accuracy Santori, D. (2011). Textual agency allows students turn takes during their interactions. Through oral communications, thinking and understanding of participants in the conversation are significantly impacted. Besides, allowing students to exercise interpretive authority and team up with their peers enriches their interpretations due to multiple voices. What matters concerning whether or not the knowledge and understanding of students in the classroom are achieved depend on how teacher respond to learners, structuring of a small group, among other pedagogical activities. Therefore, teachers need to examine how they invite their learners to literacy participation (Santori, 2011).
Teacher perception of school climate could influence the social interruption between teachers and students and consequently student behavior. Social values positively relate to social interactions within the school. When a teacher feels emotionally fatigued or undergoes a high level of burnout, schooling relationship and the teaching quality is compromised. Also, a teacher with low efficacy regarding the ability to teach students exhibit less effective teaching practice resulting in poor academic performance and high probability of disruptive behavior. When teachers experience high support from administration, they demonstrate a high level of commitment. A teacher who establishes students’ expectations and uses rewards such as special privileges, recognition, and praise could positively influence students’ behavior motivation (O’Brennan, Bradshaw & Furlong, 2014).
In conclusion, teachers act as a valuable asset in collecting information regarding learners’ behavior and the related school or classroom contextual factors owing to their close relationships. Due to the behavioral prospect, teacher’s reports are usually used to identify children in need of academic support. Anchored on the theory of social learning, the social climate within the classroom can result in the evolution of student conduct and interaction with teachers. Since student behavior develops within education context, use of behavioral management strategies by teachers is essential. Their teaching techniques, behaviors, and attitude significantly impact student personality and performances. Reducing such behavioral problems could improve students’ academic performance.

References
Desautels, L. (2014). Perspective: A Game Changer in the Classroom and in Our Lives.
Ebner, R. J., & Ehri, L. C. (2016). Teaching students how to self-regulate their online vocabulary learning by Using a structured think-to-yourself procedure. Journal of College Reading and Learning, 46(1), 62-73.
Hausheer, R., Hansen, A., & Doumas, D. M. (2011). Improving Reading Fluency and Comprehension among Elementary Students: Evaluation of a School Remedial Reading Program. Journal of School Counseling, 9(9), n9.
Iwasaki, B., Rasinski, T., Yildirim, K., & Zimmerman, B. S. (2013). Let’s bring back the magic of song for teaching reading. The Reading Teacher, 67(2), 137-141.
O’Brennan, L. M., Bradshaw, C. P., & Furlong, M. J. (2014). Influence of classroom and school climate on teacher perceptions of student problem behavior. School mental health, 6(2), 125-136.
Santori, D. (2011). ” Search for the answers” or” Talk about the story”?: School-based Literacy Participation Structures. Language Arts, 88(3), 198-207.
Slavin, R. E., & Davis, N. (2006). Educational psychology: Theory and practice.
Stahl, S. A., & Kuhn, M. R. (2002). Center for the Improvement of Early Reading Achievement: Making It Sound like Language: Developing Fluency. The Reading Teacher, 55(6), 582-584.