Students: How Do We Encourage Them?

        There are many different ways that children or teens learn. In elementary school and even high school, students are often forced to learn one way, when they may be more successful with a a teaching style that is more customized to each student's learning style.  Students may fail or not reach their potential because they are being taught based on methods that may work with a majority, but not all, students. I think to support and encourage students to do their best we need to discover at an early age the learning style for each child and tailor their education. I believe that this would reduce the number of children labeled as needing special education due to a difference in learning style.

           Firstly, in elementary school, I never had the choice to learn my way - I had to learn the way that every other kid learned. The way I was taught, which was very didactic and traditional, often led me to be completely confused and I didn't do well in school. I am an introvert and wasn't the talkative one in class, buy my teachers often made us complete assignments in groups. For me this was distracting and I would have excelled if could have worked by myself.  Working independently and linking the subjects with real-world examples is how I fully understand things. I wish I had the choice. Kids like me can make decisions for themselves and know their strengths and weaknesses. In the video "The Myth of Praise" Ashley Merryman studied that kids actually do worst when they are told they are smart, then kids who can decide for themselves. In addition to the video, the article "How Not To Talk ToYour Kids" the father said "Thomas didn't want to try things he wouldn't be successful at,' 'Some things came very quick to him, but when they didn't, he gave up almost immediately, concluding, 'I'm not good at this.'" Children will be successful if given the chance to make their own decisions.
        Secondly, I believe that many kids who currently have an individual education plan (IEP) and labeled a special education student is just a reflection of different kinds of learning styles. Every student, as part of delivering the general education curriculum, should have an individual education plan to address their unique learning stye. The IEP should not be reserved for poor-performing students as a way to lower standards of achievement. For example,  I was placed in Special Education (IEP) during elementary school and all I learned while I was in there was that I didn't have to do all my work and that if I failed, I could redo the work to get a better grade. While this may be helpful for some, I feel that kids - no matter what program their in, should be taught that there aren't re-dos in life and you do have to do all the work (and more) in order to succeed. I didn't learn this until I reached high school, as in elementary school my parents thought it was best for me and we were told it was the best option. In high school I got bullied for the Special Education and didn't get good grades because of it. When I had the opportunity to move schools, I told myself I didn't want to be in Special Education because I knew I could better myself if I was out of the program. I think that if all kids in the Special Education program were taught this in elementary school they would gain self motivation and wouldn't need praise to keep them getting good grades. In the video, Po Bronson did a study between two kids and the one who was given praise chose the option of choosing things she knows so she could seem smart, where as the boy chose the option to answers the problems he may not know so he can learn from those mistakes." In addition, I feel when we are put in these programs we feel less smart or less capable of doing things that the "normal" kids in school do. In the article, "How Not To Talk to Your Kids" Bronson says "Since Thomas could walk, he has heard constantly that he's smart. Not just from his parents but from any adult who has come in contact with this precocious child. When he applied to Anderson for Kindergarten, his intelligence was statistically confirmed."

Praise is an important motivator for students to do well, however self-motivation is a character that will last a lifetime.