Jumat, 29 Mei 2015

Social-Emotional Learning in the Primary Curicculum

Of Primary Interest
Social-Emotional Learning in the Primary Curriculum
Mary Mindess, Min-hua Chen, and Ronda Brenner

Every primary grade program needs a carefully planned social-emotional component. All children—those who enter first or second grade with an ability to control their emotions and make friends and those for whom these skills are more difficult—benefit from intentional teaching in this area. A synthesis of research on development during the early years prepared by the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child (2007) indicates that emotional well-being and social competence provide a strong foundation for brain development and emerging cognitive abilities. The council’s report further indicates that language learning is dependent not only on the ability to differentiate sounds and the capacity to link meaning to specific words, but also on the ability to concentrate, pay attention, and engage in meaningful social interaction. These behaviors influence all areas of development, including academic, social, physical health, and the immune system. They also affect how the individual functions later in life both in personal situations and in the workplace.
Social-emotional development is clearly a key foundation for school success. The questions for educators are apparent: What can primary grade teachers do to help children master social-emotional skills? How do we make these skills an integral part of the curriculum, thereby supporting academic learning and lifelong development? How best can we implement social-emotional curricula and thus make a difference in children’s lives—present and future?
Approaches to building social skills
Some school systems adopt a school wide approach to social-emotional learning, while others use a particular approach across a grade level. Three programs that may be implemented at grade level and also lend themselves to school wide use are Responsive Classroom, Second Step: A
Violence Prevention Curriculum, and Interplay Solutions. In addition to using one or more of these programs, some school systems and some teachers develop their own activities for building a social-emotional curriculum. The sections that follow describe these programs and a teacher-created activity and indicate how three Massachusetts school systems have implemented or been impacted by them.

Mary Mindess, MEd, is professor of early childhood education at Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She teaches online and face-to-face courses related to children with behavior problems. For many years she organized the New England Kindergarten Conference and Reggio Emilia-inspired institutes. mmindess@lesley.edu
Min-hua Chen, EdD, is an early childhood education specialist for Elementary School Services in the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. She has been a coordinator for the Massachusetts Kindergarten Curriculum and Leadership Project and a training consultant for early childhood programs. Mchen@doe.mass.edu
Ronda Brenner, MEd, is the assistant principal of the Columbus Elementary School in Medford, Massachusetts. She has worked in the early childhood and elementary education field for many years as a classroom teacher, teacher specialist, and educational consultant and currently as an administrator. rbrenner@medford.k12.ma.us
The National Association of Early Childhood Specialists in State Departments of Education (NAECS/SDE) works to improve instruction, curriculum, and administration in education programs for young children and their families. Of Primary Interest is written by members of NAECS/ SDE for kindergarten and primary teachers. The column appears in March, July, and November issues of Young Children and Beyond the Journal.

Responsive Classroom
Many teachers at various grade levels in the Cambridge Public Schools use the Responsive Classroom, an approach developed by Northeast Foundation for Children for teaching social-emotional skills. The teachers became interested in this approach because it emphasizes the link between the social-emotional realm and academic curriculum. Teachers trained in the Responsive Classroom approach share a common set of values, vocabulary, and skills for the social-emotional domain. Teacher language and child language are important components of the program, and children respond well to the school wide consistency. Responsive Classroom strategies include engaging children in the formulation of rules, guided discovery and academic choice, and collaborative problem solving.
The kindergarten program at the Amigos School, a two way immersion program in the Cambridge Public Schools, is an example of the Responsive Classroom in action. As the children prepare for the grand opening of the water table, which contains materials for scientific exploration of water flow, the teacher asks, “What rules should we adopt for working at the water table?” The children respond, “We need to wear smocks to stay dry” and “We need to keep the water inside the water table.” With the help of one child, the teacher models the use of equipment, such as plastic tubes and containers, and asks open-ended questions to guide the discovery process. As the children conduct investigations at the water table, they collaborate in their explorations and engage in cooperative problem solving. The social-emotional aspects of the curriculum are clearly integrated with the academic components.
Following the morning meeting, the kindergartners choose a learning station at which to work. The water table is one of eight stations. At the end of the morning, children do an evaluation activity. Each child writes or draws a report explaining the learning that took place in the morning activities. Preparing the report engages children in self-reflection and deepens their understanding of their learning experiences. The reports address children’s learning in science (discoveries related to how water flows, the size and position of different containers) and mathematics (observations of and naming container shapes), and their individual development in the areas of writing and art. The reports serve as authentic assessments of each child’s progress. They are evidence of the Responsive Classroom’s support for children’s social-emotional development.
The focus on open-ended questions, clearly a component of the Amigos kindergarten program, also pervades an in-service/preservice project carried out at the Peabody School in Cambridge. In this project, classroom teachers and Lesley College professors took part in ongoing discussions of Paula Denton’s book, The Power of Our Words: Teacher Language That Helps Children Learn (2007), a publication directly related to the Responsive Classroom approach. One of the themes the book emphasizes is asking open-ended questions in both the social-emotional and cognitive realms. In-service teachers’ classroom reflections and preservice teachers’ observation/reflection assignments attested to the value of the Responsive Classroom experience for children.
Second Step: A Violence Prevention Program
The Medford Public Schools adopted Second Step: A Violence Prevention Curriculum, which integrates socialemotional and academic learning. Developed by the Committee for Children, the program specifically addresses empathy, impulse control, problem solving, and anger/emotion management. The committee grounded the program’s approach in research about cognitive behavioral therapy showing that thoughts affect people’s social interactions (Committee for Children 2002).
The Second Step program is organized into grade-level kits, each containing various tools for teaching (for example, puppets, an audio tape, a video, posters). Every kit includes lesson cards divided into key units. Lesson cards for the primary grades have a realistic photograph on one side and a lesson for the teacher’s use on the other side. The lesson includes clear objectives, a short story about the photograph, discussion questions, role-play/pretend scenarios and/or activity suggestions, and wrap-up ideas. The lesson cards offer activities to help children transfer the unit’s skills to their everyday lives, activities that extend the learning, and take-home reminders—part of the curriculum’s family connections. The reminders include Take-Home Letters describing the lesson, what the children are learning, and how families can help their children use these new skills.
During Lesson 3, the teacher in a first grade classroom at the Columbus Elementary School facilitates a class meeting in which she shares three lesson cards with photographs of children in various situations. The children in the photos display different emotions (a surprised child opening a present; a disgusted child pulling gum off the bottom of her shoe; a scared child looking through a rain-soaked window). The teacher leads a discussion about feelings and situational clues. Holding up one of the photographs, she asks the children to look carefully at the child’s face and the situation the child is in. She invites the class to share their thoughts about what the child in the photograph may be feeling and why. The lesson includes role-playing and a quick wrap-up.
At the end of the lesson, as part of the transfer of learning, the teacher challenges students to “Remember the Day”—that is, to remember a time when they felt a particular emotion. Children identify a feeling and pretend to feel that way while the teacher snaps their picture. They affix the photo to their feelings recording sheet and briefly write about the feeling and the time they remember experiencing it. The children draw pictures to complement the writing and have the option of finding a picture from a magazine of a child who appears to be feeling that same emotion.
Since the Columbus Elementary School’s adoption of Second Step, teachers and families report improvements in children’s behavior. With initial support from an early childhood mental health grant provided by the state, Medford has assessed the changes at the school through annual teacher surveys and focus groups as well as family focus groups. Through pre- and post assessments, it is clear that teachers and parents observe significantly more children demonstrating skills that help them to think before impulsively reacting to a situation.
Interplay Solutions
Interplay Solutions offers another approach to helping primary school children increase their social-emotional skills. This approach, presented at an Early Childhood Institute held at Lesley University in 2006 and repeated in 2007, has attracted the attention of many Massachusetts teachers. In the words of one teacher, the approach, “uses stories, role plays, and structured activities to develop supportive classroom communities and help students learn the basic behavioral and social skills necessary for successful group learning.”
The stories and related role-playing activities are springboards for exploring social-emotional attitudes and skills. The stories’ characters model the process of change as they adopt effective behaviors to meet and overcome challenges. For example, in the story “Quiet Hawk,” first-graders hear about a child learning to hunt. In the story, a young pioneer boy struggles to learn a new skill. The boy develops the skill to tune in and pay attention. As the children listen, they learn that paying attention leads to success (Shub & De Weerd 2006). Children have multiple opportunities to act out the adventure. The related activities give the entire class a chance to master the metaphorical lesson: We all have the power to tune in and pay attention.
The unusual feature of “Quiet Hawk” is the action-oriented detail it provides to help children understand what it means to tune in and pay attention. The Interplay Solutions program uses many strategies to assess children’s mastery of the social skills emphasized in the units. With the “Quiet Hawk” story, children create their own shields and earn a feather for their shield each time the teacher notices them focusing on their work. Another strategy is the Pal Bulletin Board. Children write and post pal notes describing how others have helped them master the strategy on which the class is working.
A teacher-developed activity
In Hudson Public Schools Kindergarten Center, children create books as part of a system wide literacy effort. One such book commemorates the 100th day of school. It focuses on 100 Acts of Kindness and is part of a community service project that integrates academic curriculum (literacy, mathematics, and art) with the nurturing of social consciousness (kindness). The children interview family and friends and identify kind acts they can do. Then they record their acts in the heart shape on the paper provided by the teacher.
Before the book is put together, a preview goes home to each family, so they can write comments. The comments, along with a copy of the “I Love You” song the children have been singing, are added to the children’s pages. School staff, with assistance from the parents, assemble the pages, and the teacher presents a spiral-bound copy of the book to each child. It becomes one of the child’s (and the family’s) favorite books to read. The total experience integrates academic learning and social skills development.

To Learn More . . .
Read online about these three programs:
Interplay Solutions, Valatie, New York—
www.interplaysolutions.com
Responsive Classroom, Northeast Foundation for Children Inc., Turner Falls, Massachusetts—
www.responsiveclassroom.org
Second Step: A Violence Prevention Curriculum, Committee for Children, Seattle, Washington—
www.cfchildren.org/index.cfm
And find online additional information about and support for developing children’s social-emotional skills:
Center for Mental Health in Schools, Gateway to a World of Resources for Enhancing Mental Health in Schools: Positive Social/Emotional Development and Prevention of Psychosocial/ Mental Health Problems—
http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/gateway/cativa.htm
The Child Mental Health Foundations and Agencies Networks, A Good Beginning: Sending America’s Children to School with the Social and Emotional Competence They Need to Succeed (2000), full report available through ERIC, ED 445810; report summary—
www.naeyc.org/ece/research/beginnings.asp
Ewing Marion Kaufmann Foundation, Set for Success: Building a Strong Foundation for School Readiness Based on the Social-Emotional Development of Young Children (2002)
http://nieer.org/docs/index.php?DocID=41
Illinois Early Learning Project, Resources on Early Learning: Early Learning Web Links—
http://ecap.crc.uiuc.edu/cgi-bin/iel/searchiel.cgi
Pellegrini, A.D., & C.D. Glickman, Measuring Kindergartners’ Social Competence (1991), ERIC Clearinghouse on Elementary and Early Childhood Education, Illinois Early Childhood Project, ERIC Digest, ED 327314—
www.ericdigests.org/pre-9218/social.htm
Raver, C.C., Young Children’s Emotional Development and School Readiness (2003), Clearinghouse on Early Education and Parenting (CEEP), Early Childhood and Parenting (ECAP) Collaborative, EDO-PS-03-8—
http://ceep.crc.uiuc.edu/eecearchive/digests/2003/ raver03.html

Conclusion
Primary grade teachers continually develop school wide efforts to intentionally help children acquire social emotional skills. In addition, they use programs such as Responsive Classroom, Second Step: A Violence Prevention Curriculum, and Interplay Solutions, which are often supported by careful research. The programs and the teacher efforts described here are examples of ways to incorporate social-emotional learning into the primary curriculum. Programs like these help teachers move away from a fragmented and often reactive approach to children’s social emotional well-being to a proactive approach and a shared responsibility for children’s social-emotional health.

References
Committee for Children. 2002. Second Step: A Violence Prevention Curriculum. 3rd ed.
 Seattle, WA: Author.
Denton, P. 2007. The power of our words: Teacher language that helps children learn.
 Turners Fall, MA: Northeast Foundation for Children.
Feinburg, S., & M. Mindess. 1994. Eliciting children’s full potential. Pacific Grove, CA:
            Brooks/Cole.
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. 2008. Kindergarten
learning experiences.
www.doe.mass.edu/ess/reports/0408kle.doc
National Scientific Council on the Developing Child. 2007. The science of early childhood
            development: Closing the gap between what we know and what we do. Cambridge,
            MA: Harvard University.
Shub, J., & A. DeWeerd. 2006. Ready to learn: How to overcome social and behavioral
 issues in the primary classroom. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.


DAFTAR PUSTAKA


Minggu, 03 Mei 2015

Komputer dan Multimedia

A.    KOMPUTER
1.      Pengertian Komputer
Kemajuan kemampuan komputer untuk secara cepat berinteraksi dengan individu, menyimpan dan memproses sejumlah besar informasi, dan bergabung dengan media lain untuk menampilkan serangkaian besar stimulasi audio visual, menjadikan komputer media yang dominan dalam bidang pembelajaran. Dengan cepat komputer menjadi sesuatu yang lumrah digunakan di dalam berbagai kegiatan instruksional. Beberapa dari kegiatan instruksional ini termasuk produksi grafis dan media audio visual lainnya, serta pengembangan, penyampaian, dan pengelolaan bahan – bahan instruksional.
2.      Pemakaian Komputer dalam Proses Belajar
Untuk mencapai tujuan bab ini, istilah CAI (Computer Assiated Instruction) dan CMI (Computer Managed Instruction) akan digunakan untuk menjelaskan peranan yang berbeda dari komputer dalam proses intruksional.
CAI secara luas, CAI ialah penggunaan komputer secara langsung dengan siswa untuk menyampaikan isi pelajaran, memberikan latihan – latihan dan mengetes kemajuan belajar siswa. CAI dapat bermacam – macam bentuknya bentuknya, ini tergantung dari kecakapan pengembang dan kemampuan sistem komputer yang berbeda – beda; satu sistem dapat membatasi para siswa untuk mempelajari suatu teks terprogram pada terminal “hard copy” atau CRT.
CMI (Computer Managed Instruction) pada mulanya memasuki bidang pembelajaran / instruksional sebagai alat untuk membantu para pengajar mengerjakan fungsi administrasi yang meningkat. Karena minat terhadap belajar mandiri semakin tumbuh, maka demikian juga tuntutan akan waktu dan usaha untuk mencatat nilai, menyimpan catatan pribadi dan membuat ringkasan mengenai prestasi siswa dan kelas.
3.      Bentuk – bentuk Sistem Penyampaian
Sistem komputer instruksional dapat digolongkan menjadi tiga kategori :
a.      Sistem jaringan tujuan tunggal (“Dedicated network System”, DNS). Kekhususan sistem ini ialah terdiri dari sejumlah besar terminal untuk siswa yang dihubungkan dengan sebuah komputer sentral yang besar (biasanya mahal) dengan telepon atau sistem kabel lainnya.
Kelebihan DNS, antara lain :
1.      Bahan pelajaran dan catatan siswa secara maksimal terjamin keseluruhannya.
2.      Bahan pelajaran dan catatan dapat ditingkatkan mutunya dengan cepat.
3.      Masing – masing terminal biasanya dapat saling berhubungan dari jarak jauh.
4.   Waktu untuk menjawab biasanya lebih cepat dibandingkan dengan sistem gabungan  (shared system), karena prosesornya dikhususkan hanya untuk pembelajaran saja.
5.      Perangkat keras yang dipakai untuk mengoperasikan sistem ini umumnya lebih murah dari dari yang digunakan dalam sistem gabungan.
Keterbatasan DNS, antara lain :
1.  Karena pemakaian yang terbatas, sistem ini biasanya sukar untuk disesuaikan dengan prinsip penghematan biaya.
2.     Setiap perubahan di prosesor pusat akan mempengaruhi setiap siswa dalam jaringan itu.
3.     Perubahan di bagian – bagian yang terpencil dari jaringan itu dapat menimbulkan penanggulangan dalam program intruksional.
4. Terminal khusus yang mahal mungkin diperlukan agar dapat memanfaatkan sepenuhnya kemampuan sistem itu.
b.      Sistem Jaringan Gabungan (“Shared Network System”, SNS). Sistem ini mirip benar dengan Sistem Jaringan Tunggal (DNS) kecuali penggunaan prosesor pusatnya yang memenuhi fungsi lain seperti pembayaran, ringkasan laporan dan pencatatan pembayaran.
Kelebihan SNS, antara lain :
1.      Biasanya, untuk pelaksanaan pembelajaran lebih hemat biaya.
2.      Bahan pelajaran dan catatan siswa dapat ditingkatkan atau diperbaiki dengan cepat.
3.      Penyimpanan data yang terpusat memungkinkan terjaminnya bahan pelajaran dan catatan siswa.
4.      Masing – masing terminal dapat saling berinteraksi sehingga para siswa, petugas pengembangan, dan pengajar dapat berkomunikasi.
Keterbatasan SNS, antara lain :
1.  Karena adanya perubahan prioritas di pusat prosesing, perubahan dalam isi pelajaran dan peningkatan pencatatan dapat tertunda.
2.      Setiap perubahan terjadi dalam komputer akan mempengaruhi setiap siswa dalam jaringan itu.
3.   Perubahan dalam bagian – bagian yang terpecil dari jaringan itu dapat menyebabkan penundaan dalam program intruksional.
4.      Karena waktunya digunakan bersama dengan kegiatan lain, waktu untuk respon lebih lambat dari sistem lain.
c.       Sistem Independen atau Berdiri Sendiri (“Independent or Stand Alone System,” SAS). Ini merupakan terminal yang lengkap (self - contained) yang biasanya dijalankan oleh suatu unit microprossessor.
Kelebihan SAS, antara lain :
1.      Biasanya merupakan sistem yang paling murah.
2.      Karena tidak ada jaringan, suatu kerusakan pada salah satu prosesor tidak akan mempengaruhi semua siswa, dan terminal seorang siswa tidak dapat mempengaruhi yang lain.
3.      Waktu responnya lebih cepat dari pada sistem jaringan.
4.      Sejumlah besar bahan – pelajaran – jadi, dapat dibeli atau disewa secara bebas di pasaran.
Keterbatasan SAS, antara lain :
1. Tidak ada lokasi yang terpusat untuk mengumpulkan, menerima, dan memperbaharui data.
2.      Perbaikan perangkat lunak harus dibagikan kepada masing – masing siswa.
3.      Mengumpulkan hasil tes akan berat dan memakan waktu.
4.      Tidak ada komunikasi antara siswa, pengembangan (penulis), dan pengajar.
B.     MULTIMEDIA
1.      Pengertian Multimedia
Apa itu multimedia ?
Istilah “multimedia” bisa punya makna berlainan bagi lain orang. Bagi sejumlah orang, multimedia berarti sesorang duduk di terminal komputer dan menerima presentasi yang terdiri atas ; teks on – screen, grafik atau animasi on -  scren, dan suara yang datang dari speaker komputer, misalnya : saat membuka ensiklopedi multimedia on – line. Bagi sekalangan orang lain, multimedia bisa berarti presentasi “live” saat sekelompok orang duduk dalam suatu ruangan sambil memandang gambar –gambar yang disajikan dalam satu atau lebih layar lebar dan medengar musik atau suara lain yang disampaikan oleh pembicara. Menonton video di layar televisi juga bisa disebut sebagai pengalaman multimedia karena adanya gambar dan suara yang disajikan. Contoh lain dari multimedia adalah presentasi Power Point di mana seseorang menyajikan slide – slide dari komputer yang diproyeksikan ke layar lebih besar lalu membicarakan isi masing – masing slide.
2.      Tiga Pandangan Tentang Pesan – Pesan Multimedia
Istilah “multimedia” bis ditilik dari tiga pandangan; didasarkan pada alat – alat yang digunakan untuk mengirimkan pesan instruksional (yakni, media pengirimnya), format – format representasional yang digunakan untuk menyajikan oesan intruksional (yakni, mode – mode presentasinya), dan modalitas indrawi yang digunakan murid untuk menerima pesan intruksional itu (yakni, pancaindra).

a.          Media Pengiriman
Pandangan yang paling jelas adalah multimedia itu berarti presentasi materi dengan menggunakan dua atau lebih alat pengiriman. Fokusnya adalah pada sistem fisik yang digunakan untuk mengirimkan pesannya – misalnya, layar komputer, amplified speaker, proyektor, video recorder, papan tulis, serta kotak suara manusia.
b.         Mode Presentasi
Pandangan kedua adalah, multimedia berarti presentasimateri dengan menggunakan dua atau lebih mode representasi. Fokusnya pada cara bagaimana materi itu disajikan, bagaimana pengetahuan kata dan gambar. Dalam multimedia berbasis – komputer, misalnya, materi bisa disajikan secara verbal sebagai narasi atau teks on – screen dan secara pictorial sebagai grafik statis atau animasi. Dalam multimedia berbasis ceramah, materi bisa disajikan secara verbal sebagai pidato secara pictorial sebagai proyeksi grafis atau video. Dalam buku teks, materi bisa disajikan secara verbal sebagai teks cetak dan secara pictorial sebagai grafik statis.
c.          Modalitas Sensori
Menurut pandangan modalitas sensori, multimedia berarti dua atau lebih sistem sensor (alat indera) yang dilibatkan dalam diri si murid. Sudut pandang ini adalah learner – centered karena memperhitungkan aktivitas pemrosesan informasi di pihak murid. Namun, tidak seperti sudut pandang mode presentasi, sudut pandang modalitas sensori adalah bahwa multimedia melibatkan melibatkan penyampaian materi yang di proses secara visual maupun auditori.
3.      Dua Pandangan Tentang Desain Multimedia.
Pesan – pesan instruksional multimedia menawarkan teknologi pembelajaran yang berpotensi sangat kuat – yakni, sistem untuk meningkatkan pembelajaran manusia. Tujuan praktis dari riset tentang multimedia adalah merencanakan prinsip – prinsip desain untuk presentasi multimedia. Maka dari itu, akan sangat berguna jika kita membedakan dua pendekatan terhadap desain multimedia – pendekatan yang berpusat ke teknologi (technology - centered) dan pendekatan yang berpusat ke murid (learner - centered).
a.       Pendekatan Berpusat ke teknologi
Pendekatan yang paling langsung terhadap desain multimedia adala pendekatan berpusat ke teknologi. Pendekatan ini dimulai dengan kapabilitas – kapabilitas fungsional dari multimedia. Pendekatan ini menanyakan ,” bagaimana kita menggunakan kapabilitas – kapabilitas ini dalam mendesain presentasi multimedia?” pendekatan ini umumnya berfokus pada kecanggihan dalam teknologi multimedia.
Suatu kajian terhadap teknologi – teknologi pendidikan pada abad ke – 20 menunjukkan, pendekatan berpusat ke teknologi ini pada umumnya gagal membawa ke perkembangan abadi dalam pendidikan (Cuban, 1986).
b.      Pendekatan Berpusat ke Murid
Pendekatan berpusat ke murid memberi alternatif penting terhadap pendekatan berpusat ke teknologi. Pendekatan yang berpusat pada mereka yang sedang belajar ini dimulai dengan pemahaman bagaimana otak manusia bekerja. Pendekatan ini menanyakan, “ Bagaimana kita bisa mengadaptasi multimedia untuk meningkatkan pembelajaran manusia?” fokusnya adalah menggunakan teknologi multimedia sebagai alat bantu terhadap kognisi manusia.

DAFTAR PUSTAKA

Anderson, Ronald H. 1987. Pemilihan dan Pengembangan Media untuk
Pembelajaran. Jakarta: Rajawali
Mayer E, Richad. 2009. Multimedia learning Prinsip Prinsip dan Aplikasi.
Yogyakarta: Pustaka Pelajar