My Second Week at Arcadia

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Me and my ZPD
Brainstorming about my ZPD brings me back to sixth-grade: Ms. Falbe’s classroom, 3rd period. This was when I first learned how to structure a paragraph. Instead of throwing us directly into the writing stage, Ms. Falbe led us along through the steps: first, we brainstormed an example topic. Next, she introduced the different parts of a paragraph, using colors to identify each section. GREEN was a topic sentence that introduced our idea. YELLOW provided a transition sentence to a main point, and PINK gave examples, details, and evidence to expand on this point. Finally BLUE was used to conclude. I remember Ms. Falbe had cut outs of each of these paragraph-parts written on paper of the corresponding color. She had us work to rearrange these cut-outs to make a paragraph, and then gave us hand-outs (ie. blank lines highlighted with green, yellow, and so on) that we used to write our own paragraphs.

I think this was an example of a ZPD for me because I was clearly in a mental state to receive this information – I had experience writing, I knew the grammar rules needed to put words on the page, and I had information in my brain that I wanted to convey. But I wasn’t ready to jump right into writing a proper paragraph (heck, I didn’t even know what a paragraph was!); so instead, Ms. Falbe provided the appropriate scaffolding (by way of charts, fill-in-the-blank paragraphs, and color coding) that allowed me to practice making paragraphs with her guidance. By the end of the year, I was able to write my own essays using this format without her direct help. I’m excited to write about this memory because I distinctly remember writing “clicking” for me here! I still sometimes think about these steps when I write papers now.

Scaffolding and Arcadia
In my tutoring assignment at Arcadia, I’ve had the opportunity to observe some of this Vygotsy-ian scaffolding in action. I mostly observe while I’m in the classroom (and students are all online, usually doing independent work – so there’s often not much to observe). But on Monday I was excited to get to see the kids moving around outside at the end of the day for “Field Games.” During this period, the students from different grades play a game outside as a group. Monday, this was a game of frisbee.

As I watched the kids play and practice the rules, I thought it was cool to see their teacher play alongside them. Here, he acted both as scaffolding and as an MKO (Double Vygotsky!! Extra points for me!) – providing scaffolding through demonstrations of the rules and throwing form, and using his own skill in frisbee to model for the students how to play. By the end, he could take breaks on the sidelines and the kids could play fine without him. I think this is a great example of Vygotsky’s socio-cultural theory: the students learned the basic structure through scaffolding (rules of the game, reminders of how to play) and improved through direct interactions with other people (the teacher AND other students, who each brought different skill levels to the game).

Me as an MKO at Arcadia
Honestly, I do not think that I have been much of an MKO at Arcadia. For the most part I am observing the class and don’t have much one-on-one interaction with the students. However, I could see myself providing assistance if the time arises – I am already thinking about how I would love to join in on their frisbee game if they play again. I play DIII frisbee at school and think that some of the skills I could bring (ie. teaching them how to not throw frisbees dangerously close to my Honda Fit) might enhance their play.

Other thoughts about discipline:
During my time at Arcadia I often find myself thinking about the role of authority/discipline in learning environments. As I have noted in my other posts, the Charter school is still primarily online – most students tune in from home, and the few that come to school sit isolated around laptop screens. For the most part the classroom is quiet, with everyone listening to their own lectures. And for two of the students in the classroom, this learning environment works for them: they sit, look bored, and work on their assignments. But for the two other students, this boredom often leads to distraction. When I arrived at the classroom on Monday one of those “distractible” students had been messing with the student in front of him, popping his head into her Zoom screen as a joke. I couldn’t tell exactly what happened next to warrant this, but soon there were 2 new teachers in the classroom. They talked in hushed tones (clearly about the student) and then left the room and continued to talk right outside the door. When they came back, one woman told the student “Alright that’s it. You’re coming with me. Pack your things.” To which he replied (with perfect 8th-grade-boy sass) “I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU ARE KIDNAPPING ME.” He was escorted out to sit with a teacher in the “Red Room.” When another student made a comment about this, the teacher turned to him and snapped “One more comment and you’re coming with me too.”

I found it a little uncomfortable to be in the classroom during this moment – I know that it is important to maintain authority in a classroom but I also find it tough to see kids disciplined when they are in such a tough learning environment. And thinking about Erikson and shame, I wonder what moments like these do for students when they are trying to learn. Something to keep thinking about!

• This topic was modified 3 years, 9 months ago by Tonja Clay.

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