Field Study 2: Midterm Reviewer

Field Study Two: Midterm Reviewer

Learning Environment One. The School Environment

One. A physical environment conducive for learning is one that has consistent practices that:

. keep the school safe, clean, orderly and free from distraction;

. maintain facilities that provide challenging activities; and

. address the physical, social and psychological needs of the students.

Two. Display boards can be powerful in communicating information about the learning environment. They help in building and establishing the school culture. These boards become one way for everyone to learn about the vision-mission, goals, and values that the school upholds.

Three. As a basic part of the school's visual environment, display boards have four general purposes:

. Decorative - They offer visual stimulation and appeal to aesthetics. They set the social and psychological atmosphere of the school.

. Motivational - They encourage students to perform better and have greater confidence. An example would be the display of students' outputs that show that each output is recognized and valued. The bulletin boards help celebrate the learners' growth and progress.

. Informational - They are used as a strategy to readily disseminate information.

. Instructional - They move students to respond and participate through interactive displays. They get students to think about and communicate their learning

Four. The set of criteria for evaluating bulletin board displays effective effective communication, attractiveness, balance, unity, interactivity, legibility, correctness, and durability.

Learning Environment Four. Learner Diversity: The Community and Home Environment

One. Urie Bronfenbrenner's Bio-ecological Model presents the learner within the context of layers of relationship systems that make up the learner's environment. The layers are:

. Microsystem - includes the structure such as one's family, school and neighborhood.

. Mesosystem - the connection between the structures in the microsystem.

. Exosystem- the bigger social system which includes the city government, the workplace and the mass media.

. Macrosystem - outermost layer which includes cultural values, customs and laws.

. Chronosystem - the element of time, patterns of stability and pacing of the child's everyday life.

The model helps the teacher look into every aspect in the learner's environment to understand his behavior. The teacher's important role is not to replace what is missing at home (if any), but to work so that the school becomes an environment that welcomes and nurtures families. The teacher works to create a partnership with the family and the community to bring out the best in every learner.