K12 Virtual Education - Emotional Entanglement and Areas of difficulty as a Parent teacher.

K12 Virtual Education - Emotional entanglement and pinpointing areas of difficulty as a Parent teacher.







"People will participate in learning activities that have yielded success for them and avoid those that have produced failure.”



Sousa, D. (2006), How the Brain Learns, Corwin Press







As parents who are teaching in the home we feel we know our children very well. What food they like, what they like to wear, books they like and sports they are excited about. One area that can be somewhat deceiving when teaching them is pinpointing areas of difficulty in learning and how to teach in and around these difficulties. The emotional ties we have with our "child” can sometimes blur our better judgment.



Warning signs of difficulty:



One of the most obvious signs of difficulty may be the student refusing to participate all together. Many of us have faced a student who won't even attempt to try a math problem or write a story. "I can't think of anything to write.” " I don't feel like math right now.” Some students offering passive resistance can give us a mixed message that we read as they "just don't feel like it.” The student is relieved that they have dodged the subject yet again.



Another more subtle sign is a student who is constantly asking for assistance and reassurance. The student may ask leading questions knowing that his or her teaching parent may eventually provide them the answer. This is a tricky situation as a parent teacher due to our emotional attachment to our student. We want to see them succeed so leading them to answers helps us feel we are helping them.



Pinpointing areas of difficulty is not easy as a parent teacher. We clearly seek validation where our children are concerned. Emotions can have us seeking validation when we ought to be seeking answers! . How do we then correctly pinpoint areas needing more help without letting our emotions cloud our teaching?



Solutions:



If your "Virtual Ed” program allows make good use of teachers to take the job of assessing your child's work off your hands. Having your student submit work once or twice a week to an independent source will give you important feedback from an experienced "objective” professional. Working in conjunction with a teacher who is not emotionally involved can help you keep on track and stay focused on engaging your student in appropriate ways so as to make progress.



Be sure you are offering "learning situations” that encourage "interaction” with other students working on the same material. Research shows peer to peer teaching and learning enhances retention. Kids love other kids as they are seeing the world very differently than adults. Kids offer each other a feeling that they are not alone in the way they view the world. Adults come across as "knowing it all”. Students learning in the Virtual setting have many new online opportunities for collaboration and socialization through various learning platforms.



Be positive in your approach to the material and the way you deliver it. It is often great to realize that you and your student can learn together. Instead of being led into revealing answers - turn it around on your student. Lead your student into finding the answers. It may take a little longer but the process is what you are interested in rehearsing not the answer!









Margit

2think2Learn.com