September 2017 – Page 2

The Creative Arts – Week 1

As a young child, I was encouraged by my parents to take part in various creative arts. This included taking both piano and trombone lessons, being selected to sing alongside a number of my school friends in the Scottish National Youth Choir as well as going to dancing classes from the age of 3 at a … Continue reading “The Creative Arts – Week 1”

Environment – Learning Log

I was unsure of what to expect within the module of Sustainable Development before participating in the first input. When we were asked to define our understanding of the word ‘environment’ I was firstly unsure of my response as I’ve never really stopped to actually consider my own views on this topic but I’ve also … Continue reading “Environment – Learning Log”

The Urban Environment

Urban areas within the United Kingdom are continuously increasing. With increasing populations there becomes pressure for land and demand for more supplies. The Urban Environment in which I live in is Paisley. Paisley is a town in the West of Scotland which has a population of over 73,000. The town contains the 2nd most listed … Continue reading The Urban Environment →

Urban areas within the United Kingdom are continuously increasing. With increasing populations there becomes pressure for land and demand for more supplies.

The Urban Environment in which I live in is Paisley. Paisley is a town in the West of Scotland which has a population of over 73,000. The town contains the 2nd most listed buildings within Scotland. Many buildings within this environment have an interesting historic background. For example the Anchor Mill which was once a thread mill which provided many job opportunities for the people of Paisley, is now converted from its derelict state into apartments providing more living accommodation.

Anchor Mill, Paisley.

Paisley has many green spaces. Green spaces transfer urban places into an environment which is friendlier for humans. Cart’s Greenspace is a local business in Paisley which works alongside Greenspace Scotland to regenerate open spaces in need of a makeover to improve the environment.

Trains, buses, cars, bikes… you name a method of transport and Paisley has most likely got it. It has four main railway stations including the main station Paisley Gilmour Street Station, which has links to Glasgow City Centre train station which can get you to most popular places across the UK. Cars are most commonly used in Paisley which means there is high carbon emission. To decrease air pollution, paying for parking and an increase in public transport was introduced.

Paisley town is also a host to a wide variety of recreational activities. There are many sports centres including the Lagoon, which contains a gym, swimming pool, sports hall and a cafeteria. I enjoyed spending my time going swimming at the lagoon with friends when I was younger.

The history of Paisley is what I find most interesting. The buildings and what their original purpose was before urbanisation is extremely fascinating to me. Perhaps this would also be interesting for children in Primary 5 to learn about the history of the town in which they live in. Learning about their town history may make them feel more connected to it and have an understanding of the importance of an environmental friendly place to live. Linking to the CFE, SOC 2-08a.

In conclusion urban environments are subsequently growing and I think it is important to educate young children about the advantages of being environmental friendly.

Sitauted Communication Independent Study

‘Finding out about others: the skill of questioning’ Hargie, O. (2011) Skilled Interpersonal Communication: Research, Theory and Practise. The main aim of chapter 5 Hargie,O. (2011) is taking a more […]

‘Finding out about others: the skill of questioning’ Hargie, O. (2011) Skilled Interpersonal Communication: Research, Theory and Practise.

The main aim of chapter 5 Hargie,O. (2011) is taking a more in depth look different types of questions and how effective they are for communication. These types of questions can be used to get the right information dependant on the situation. For example, in a teaching environment or between a doctor and a patient.

There are a few themes that run throughout this chapter including crime and health. However, one of the main themes is education due having subheadings dedicated to the effects of leading questions on children, as well as most of the subheadings having one or more references to children or the general classroom setting.

One claim made in the chapter is that process questions are more effective in raising levels of participation and achievement of people with a high intellectual ability, with recall questions being more beneficial for those who have a lower level of ability. Rubie-Davies (2007) discovered that teachers who had higher than average expectations for pupils used more higher order questions that those with below average expectations. By consistently using process questions, this is more likely to stimulate pupils with a high IQ but might be confusing for those with a lower IQ. This evidence backs up the claim.

One of the ideas presented is the function of pausing as a silent probe is advantageous as pausing before the question means the attention of the listener is stimulated which in turn gives the question greater impact. Rowe (1969, 1974a, 1974b) found that increasing the wait time after pupil’s responses, the length of these responses increased from 7 words with a 1 second pause compared to 28 words with a 3 second pause. She also discovered that pupils who did not contribute much started talking and produced good ideas.

I agree with most of the chapter except for a statement made by (Smith et al., 2006). It was stated the because closed questions have a structured control that this was one of the main reasons that teachers used more closed than open questions. I feel that more open questions are asked in order to gain a better understanding of how the child is coping with a learning objective or is feeling generally.

I was able to identify a couple of words I was unsure of by finding them on the Critical Dictionary of Education and noting them down for reference in the future.

Reference List

Finding out about others: the skill of questioning’ Hargie, O. (2011) Skilled Interpersonal Communication: Research, Theory and Practise. 5th ed. London: Routledge

Situated Communication: Hargie chapter review

In my opinion, the aim of this chapter was to put across the point that there are various different types of questions and how these questions are asked (and who they are asked by) can determine someone’s answer. The point that questioning is a core life skill and that it is almost impossible to communicate … Continue reading Situated Communication: Hargie chapter review

There are a few themes which run across the chapter including the acquisition of questions and how questions are asked and addressed across various career groups including teachers and doctors. Education and children is a prominent theme weaved throughout the text, demonstrating to us that children can be overwhelmed by teachers asking questions. For example, it was found that on average, the teacher asked a question once every 72 seconds (Corey 1940). However, I would argue that asking questions is a second nature and as previously mentioned, is part of daily conversation. Thus showing it is difficult not to ask questions and is most likely to be done accidently by teachers and they are in-fact not always trying to challenge the children when a question is composed.

Again, in terms of children, there is a known hesitation amongst 13-16 year old children in asking questions in the classroom in fear of a negative reaction from classmates (Dillon, 1988)(Daly et Al. 1994). From previous experience this, I believe this is a widely known fact across the world and I believe that it is somewhat natural.

Hargie also discuses different types of questions and there effects and uses. The most discussion was based around open and closed questions. It was seen that asking an open question was more easily answered as it enables us to go into depth; whereas a closed question is often only answered using few words which restricts us. However this can be argued otherwise as another statement was made, suggesting that open questions may not be as appropriate with respondents of lower intellectual. Personally, I disagree with such a set statement as I believe there are valid points to back up both sides as discussed above.

Reference list:

‘Finding out about others: the skill of questioning’, in Hargie, O. (2011) Skilled Interpersonal Communication: Research, Theory and Practice. 5^th ed. London: Routledge.

Sustainable Development – Learning Log 1

Our first day in Sustainable Development consisted of mostly practical learning. However, in the lecture, Louise talked about what Sustainable development was which according to the Scottish Government “The goal of sustainable development is to enable all people throughout the world to satisfy their basic needs and enjoy a better quality of life without compromising the … Continue reading “Sustainable Development – Learning Log 1”

My uni life so far

On embarking my journey at UWS I did not know what to expect. I had no negative thoughts on what it may turn out to be like; however, I did not expect to enjoy it as much as I currently am. The weeks are going by so quickly and I can’t help but be excited to … Continue reading My uni life so far

Despite coming straight from school, I am fortunate enough to have experience in a classroom. I made time for this during my free periods at school as I knew it would benefit me greatly in my life goal of attending University to study Primary Education. During my time at school I had to work extremely hard in order to be here today. Of course there is other options, but I am greatly determined and wanted to get to university as soon as possible.

When I was told that we would be blogging as part of our course, I was slightly apprehensive as I worried that I would be stuck for words! However, I was also excited as I have always loved the idea of having a blog, but I never knew what I could blog about. I know that this blog will help me develop my literacy skills and writing reflectively and I look forward to viewing my academic development throughout my time on the course.

My biggest fear on coming to university was knowing I would have to do Maths and French which were definitely my worst subjects during my 6 years at school. In terms of the Maths class I am pleasantly surprised (so far). I have enjoyed getting to grips with what I will eventually have to teach children in Maths and the many ways this can be taught and explained, using various resources and not always referring to a textbook! My aim in teaching is to make Maths as fun and active as possible. When I think back to my time in primary school, maths was not a fun and interactive lesson that I would look forward to, if it was, perhaps my perception on maths and my skills would be completely different. As well as this, I find the Haylock maths textbook and workbook extremely useful to refer to after the lectures/workshops if I didn’t quite grasp a certain concept.

After completing my first French class I was left slightly overwhelmed, despite sitting it at Higher level in my 6th year at school. I knew I would struggle as I did at school so I went with my instinct to keep at 1.1 level. My reasoning behind this is because I want to start from scratch and perfect my basics, I hardly remember any from school! I feel I have made the right decision with this as I was not in my comfort zone in the class. I hope to improve in all aspects of French as I work through the module and I am determined to perfect my French.

Overall, I am ready to challenge myself and produce the best work I can while at university.

The Environment – Learning Log

Prior to participating in the first Sustainable Development input I was unsure what to expect from this module. When asked to define our own personal meaning of the environment, and […]

First Couple of Weeks at UWS

My first couple of weeks at UWS have been intriguing to say the least. From sitting in on lectures to being challenged to come out of my comfort zone in […]

My first couple of weeks at UWS have been intriguing to say the least. From sitting in on lectures to being challenged to come out of my comfort zone in workshops. I am becoming more confident each day in being able to organise and divide my workload, as well as taking care of a young family and working.

The workshops are allowing me to put the theory I am learning in lectures into practice. For example, in one of our SitComm workshops, being able to try out using different tones in our voices and using the different skills we learned about in that morning’s lecture to become more expressive and confident speakers. Placement is also something I am looking forward to and hopefully I am successful in putting what I have already learned at UWS into practice. Maths is also a module I am really enjoying, despite dreading it before I started university as it was always a subject I really struggled with throughout high school and college.

Gaining a place at UWS to study Education was one of the first steps in helping me start my journey to becoming a primary teacher. It hasn’t been an easy journey to get here, but I persevered and am now determined to reach my goal.

Chapter 5: Independent Task

Chapter 5 “ Finding Out About Others: the skill of questioning” The aim of this chapter is to explore the function and effects of various types of questions in different social settings, the kind of things mentioned throughout the chapter is how questions are used in different careers, for example, lawyers, teachers, and doctors. … Continue reading “Chapter 5: Independent Task”

Chapter 5 “ Finding Out About Others: the skill of questioning”

The aim of this chapter is to explore the function and effects of various types of questions in different social settings, the kind of things mentioned throughout the chapter is how questions are used in different careers, for example, lawyers, teachers, and doctors. One section of the chapter is titled “Purpose Of Questions” , in this section it states that Bolden ( 2009:122) pointed out: “ Questions and answers are among the most readily recognizable and pervasive ways through which participants achieve and negotiate their communicative goals”. We are told that questions have a variety of purposes but this will depend on the context of the interaction. Different situations that questions could be asked is; teachers to pupils to check their understanding during or after a lesson, doctors to make a diagnosis and salesmen/saleswomen to consumer to asses consumer’s needs and if these need are being satisfied. Also in the chapter, it discusses how in interview style situations questions can be asked to confuse and throw the person being interviewed off guard as they do not know what type of questions will be asked next.

Wilson (1990) states that there is also evidence out there to prove that when a long question is asked, a longer response is tended to be given instead of a short one. I found that I agreed with pretty much all the points being made in the chapter, the biggest difficulty I would say I had would be reading some of the more challenging words that I hadn’t seen before. To help myself out I used an online Education dictionary to help clarify the meanings to which I then wrote down in my notes for future reference.