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Adolescent Trust in Teachers

collinsd — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 21:36:32 +0000

This article lists some very interesting aspects of building relationships with students. It focuses on those students who are facing regular disciplinary actions. ¹

It is no surprise to find that students to not automatically give the teacher the authority (respect, trust) that the teacher may think he deserves. Students actually decide whether to obey the classroom rules depending on how they perceive the relationship they have with the teacher. ² If the student feels that the teacher cares for him/her and wants what is best for him, then he will respond to the teacher’s demands. ³ Trust is an obvious part of the relationship between two people. Trust allows people to work together with basic assumptions and understanding. In a study with adults, trust was also important if people were going to follow orders voluntarily. It is reasonable that this is true for adolescents as well. ⁴

This atmosphere can be established with a relational approach to discipline. This model tries to build a relationship with the student before discipline is needed. Teachers who use this approach can be identified if they talk about trying to connect with their students by building emotional connections. ⁵ It is thought that teachers who use this approach have less discipline problems because they learn the student’s emotional cues and so intervene sooner. ⁶

An interesting thing to note is that differentiated instruction is important part of relationship building as well as material that the student can relate to and find engaging. ⁷

School counselors (and administrators) can help teachers deal with difficult students and discipline problems by helping the teacher reflect on relational skills. ⁸

There are many benefits for placing some attention on relational skills. Students who face regular discipline such as suspensions perform lower academically. They feel alienated from school and so are more likely to drop – out. This increase future risk of incarceration after school. Teachers who learn how to build relational skills report that discipline issues decrease but also they find that they are able to work better with the “good” students in the class. It benefits every student in the room. ⁹

Adolescent Trust in Teachers: Implications for Behavior in the High School Classroom. Gregory, A. & Ripski, M. School Psychology Review, Vol. 37, No. 3. 2008 ↩
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Peace River is Getting a Nuclear Power Plant

collinsd — Sat, 15 Sep 2007 16:14:47 +0000

Peace River is getting a nuclear power plant. Actually, it is going in the community of Lac Cardinal, west of Peace River. Alberta Energy, a private company, has proposed to build two, twin-unit, Candu Reactors at a cost of $6.2 billion. This decision will start a long process of environmental studies to measure and predict the effects on the water and land. By the time that they actually get around to building the plant, and given the way construction costs are rising in this province, I hope they budgeted a lot more money.

Once Upon A Time in Alberta

collinsd — Wed, 30 May 2007 01:25:45 +0000

Once upon a time in Alberta, there was a very concerned individual. It looked like things were going to get difficult. It was not unusual for costs to rise. It had been going on for the many years he had lived in the prairie province. Utilities costs had been slowly rising for decades. Telephone, heating, and electricity never went down. Good planning and budgeting had allowed him to continue to grow. He had been able to try new endeavors – to expand his horizon. Now that there was money to be made in Alberta, the future looked very good. He finally would be able to buy the things he needed. Projects he had once dreamed of were no longer confined to paper. It was time to take his share of the Alberta Advantage.

Buy it for Free

collinsd — Tue, 01 May 2007 20:59:47 +0000

I’ve had several teachers tell me that cliches should never be used in writing. I guess I’ve learned to accept the idea. They can convey an idea or concept that is too easily tied to a time or a situation. For example, approach some one wearing an iPod and ask them, “Why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free?”

I’ll bet you will get some strange looks in return. I’ll also bet, that if you could continue the conversation with the iPod owner, that the saying applies to him. The technological age has created an underground market for music, movies, books, programs and everything else that can be put on a computer. The sharing of music and stuff is big. Some studies have shown that a large majority of the material on an iPod was never paid for. The music, movies and stories came from a sharing network over the Internet.

Alberta’s Official Things

collinsd — Wed, 07 Mar 2007 02:38:06 +0000

It’s time for a quiz. This is a closed book test so don’t try sneaking off to the computer or peeking at any encyclopedias. It should be easy for everyone. It’s about our province, Alberta.

Read more on Alberta’s Official Things…

Silence

collinsd — Sat, 06 Jan 2007 19:25:17 +0000

It is said to be golden. I am beginning to understand why. Basic economics suggests that the scarcity of a commodity ensures that it will be valuable. Of course, there has to be a demand for the stuff. So it is a rare thing and people want it. At least, they say they want it. I’ve tried to find it at various times.

Singularity

collinsd — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 04:19:40 +0000

There are those moments when things come together. Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, Glen Anderson and the rest of the boys on the bus created the Edmonton Oilers of the early eighties. Four young people from the country of Sweden joined to form the music group ABBA. Peanut butter and chocolate in Reese’s famous cups.

Sci-Fi Past Predictions

collinsd — Fri, 03 Nov 2006 02:06:10 +0000

I love science fiction. I read the books. I watch the movies. There’s a lot of really great books and short stories. Unfortunately, there are very few good movies. (Hollywood seems to think science fiction is a horror movie that takes place in space instead of Texas.) There’s been some excellent television. I’m really into the new Battlestar Galactica. Star Trek (in all its forms) is closest to my heart.
Science is a “hook” for the story to hang on. There’s a prophetic angle to sci-fi where the reader gets to see a possible future of technology. Computers have been main characters in many stories. Almost all stories predicted instant communication and access to a wealth of information. That has largely come true. Except the computer I’m using right now is a far cry from the Hal 2000 – which may be a good thing since I don’t want it trying to kill me while singing, “Daisy”.
Sci-fi has also made other strange predictions that have failed to see the light of day besides self-aware (and mentally disturbed) computers. I remember smiling to myself when I saw the first “Time Machine” movie based on H. G. Wells’ book. Here is a device which controls the fabric of time but relies on clockwork mechanisms and rotary dials. Or there is “Fantastic Voyage” where a future America has the technology to shrink a nuclear powered submarine and send it into a human body. The pilots of this sub have to rely on rolls of paper charts to navigate their way through the blood vessels. No blip on a T.V. monitor or even a G.P.S.
Then there is Star Trek. This show had it all. Medical tricorders to diagnose diseases and injuries, transporters, cloaking devices, and shields. What’s remarkable here is that all of these exist in some form or another today. There was the announcement a few weeks ago that researchers made a successful cloaking device. Sure, it only made a small copper cylinder invisible to microwaves, but it is a start. The University of Alberta has a team with a prototype (and again simple) portable diagnostic device. Several labs around the world are now “beaming” atoms and molecules from one side of the lab to the other. They are not beaming people or even mice, but this just shows that what seemed really strange in the 1960′s can become possible.
So, what are today’s science fiction writers predicting? I’ll let you know in a couple weeks . . .

Quotes

collinsd — Fri, 20 Oct 2006 01:20:43 +0000

I’ve never been much of a collector. I like my small accumulation of books. I would like it to be much bigger but space and money have limited that – for now. I see my kids collecting things. They leave these in piles around the house. It’s just payback for the piles I left around my mother’s place. I remember gathering rocks. I moved onto comics. I also built up an extensive selection of quotes.

Six Degrees of Me

collinsd — Wed, 11 Oct 2006 03:08:29 +0000

I come from a small family. I only have five first cousins. My wife has thirty – nine. Our wedding was at my wife’s home town. I was worried that my relatives would not be ready to make the eight – hour drive. They are a resourceful bunch. They booked a tour bus, loaded it up, and had a fine old time.