Matt

= = = =  Community Service Assignment:   a)   What have you learned about the life of one or more of the students you worked with? (Please use a made up name when referring to your student to protect their privacy)     There was one boy who I felt really sorry for. Because I was at the special school there were lots of different kids, physically and mentally. This kid was about 16 but looked our age. At first I didn’t realize what he had but in about the third week he took off a puffy jacket and still had around five layers left of clothes but had a bump in his back which looked like it hurt. I think his spine had too many of those bones and made it pop out. Every day he had to hide his back in stacks of jackets and clothes which would really get warm and uncomfortable. He couldn’t sit down with a backrest either. Every day at school in the morning he would come in wearing stacks and then take most of it off so he would be comfy and everyone could see him. No one in the class or school would question him though and they all respected each other. Everyone was friends so I think he was happy there.   b)  What benefits did you receive from working with these students?      One of the benefits that I got from working with kids that need help is that I felt good helping them. They actually needed my help and even though I was getting nothing physically in return they used my help and followed my orders. When they were doing something wrong I told them what to do and instead of taking that as an option they did it and finished their work. Another benefit I received was that I learnt that people with disabilities still can have people that respect them and not tease them. I used to think that people with a disability never really had a place to go or people that would spend time with them which made me feel really sorry for them but now that I know that they still have fun while doing things that average people do. The final benefit I got was that I learnt what people like these do in their spare time. They watch tv, some do sport and aren’t that different from what normal people do.   c)  Explain some of the problems you encountered on Community Service. How did you overcome these?   <span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">   <span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">Some of the problems that I got were just little problems like having neat handwriting which I needed for writing the date and a comment on the day but on about the fifth week a girl in the class was crying. She was 18 and apparently she had been saying for a long time that she won’t be able to live on the streets when she gets let off from the school. She would say she would never get a job, get married or have kids. I found it hard to try and calm her down but the teacher told me to just leave her. She was really scared and got sad but frustrated and angry. After that week I never saw her again. One of the other little problems were trying to draw a car. One of the kids told me too and I tried but it looked horrible and he wasn’t satisfied. <span style="font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; msobidifontfamily: Calibri; msobidithemefont: minor-latin; msolist: Ignore; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; msoansilanguage: EN-US; msofareastlanguage: EN-AU;"> d)  <span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> How did the Primary School students benefit from your work with them?  <span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">  <span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> I think they benefited by having extra people to help them and not trying to boast or anything but without us it would have been really hard on the teachers for the time we were there. On lots of occasions the teacher was working with someone else and didn’t notice one of the other kids doing something wrong. At one time one kid was about to cut their work in half by accident and the teacher wouldn’t of seen so we stopped them. They then did their work properly. = = =Video Log:= media type="custom" key="3808039" = = =Who are you as a learner?=

//**Think back to the Hermann Brain Dominance test earlier this week …**//

What are your learning styles? What have you learnt about yourself from the Hermann Brain activities this week?

Did you disagree with any of the findings/observations? Explain

Were you surprised by anything you discovered about yourself this week? Consider for example, what you learnt about your learning style, working in teams or observing others in the group …

Do you think you rely too heavily on one style of learning? What new skills would you like to develop? What questions has this raised about: A. You as a person? B. You as a learner?

//**Due on the Wiki: Fri. 24/04/09**//

Who are you as a learner The Hermann Brain test says that my learning styles are evaluating and testing theories, aquiring skills through practice and organising and structuring content. I’ve learned that i’m a bit disorganised but finish as best as I can which is usually above average. I disagree with the organising part because most of the time I leave stuff to the last minute. I think aquiring skills through practice is correct though because when I do an assignment I usually go through the same routine everytime. I wasn’t surprised because i’ve worked in groups a lot and get used to other peoples way of doing it. So far I haven’t seen much difference between any members of the group or I. I don’t think I rely heavily on one style of learning but I would like some new skills or habits. I would like to be able to organise and plan as soon as I get work. <span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; msobidifontfamily: Calibri; msobidithemefont: minor-latin; msolist: Ignore;"> A)  As a person i’ve realised i’m a bit lazy. <span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; msobidifontfamily: Calibri; msobidithemefont: minor-latin; msolist: Ignore;"> B)   As a learner I think I try to finish work (not assignments) at the minimum standard but in a group I don’t want to let anyone down so I will try my hardest.
 * Your responses should be detailed and in written in full sentences. Remember to draft your work; looking specifically at spelling, expression and grammar.**


 * __Reminder: Keep your Hermann Brain Dominance Test sheets in a folder for use later in the term.__**