Jonnel S.

Gadingan
BSED-Social Studies 2

“Reflective Journal”

In today’s discussion, I have learned so many things. The facilitators asked or gave us an activity that will
prove if we have learned something about the teaching and learning Process of Piaget’s Psychological
Bases and how we will apply this theory of cognitive development to the classroom. Second, we were
asked about Amongst the Philosophical Bases which do we think is the most beneficial that we can apply
in our classroom and why did we choose this? These philosophical bases it implies to inclusivity and
Equality and lastly as an aspiring teacher, why is it important to understand the bases and policies of
special and inclusive education. My classmates began discussing the 4 psychological bases in the
Foundation of Inclusive and Special Education and these are Piaget’s cognitive Development, Albert
Bandura’s social learning theory, Lev Vygotsky’s scaffolding and Jean Lave’s contextual learning theory.

In Piaget’s cognitive development, there are Four Stages of Cognitive Development as Formulated by
Jean Piaget are: 1. Sensory-Motor Stage 2. Preoperational Stages 3. Concrete Operational Stage 4.
Formal Operations Stage. In the first stage which is the Sensori-motor Stage:

This stage ranges from birth to 2 years. During this stage, the child interacts with his environment
through sensory and motor activities. It learns to improve its movements through trial and error. In the
second stage, we talked about the behavior of the child during the Preoperational Stage. In this stage
the thought process of the child usually displaces a high degree of ego-centrism, which means an
inability to take the point of view of another person; animism- the belief that inanimate objects which
have certain characteristics of living things are, in fact alive. These children do not understand cause-
effect relationships very well. They tend to see unrelated events and objects as causally related to one
another. In the next stage, which is the Concrete Operational Stage, the thought processes of the
children are limited to concrete objects and events. Due to the influence of social environment, school,
peers, and teachers there is a corresponding expansion in ways of thinking about people. The last one is
the Formal Operational Stage. In this stage, thinking becomes quite adult-like. A general feature of this
stage is the ability to think in terms of abstract concepts (that are not physically present in nature) that
link concrete objects or actions together. The child develops the ability to think on a scientific basis and
find solutions to problems.

My classmates also shared their ideas about Albert Bandura’s social learning theory, wherein the child
learned social behavior through observing and imitating others' behavior. While Lev Vygotsky’s
scaffolding. The theory behind instructional scaffolding is that, compared to learning independently,
students learn more when collaborating with others who have a wider range of skills and knowledge
than the student currently does. These instructors or peers are the "scaffolding" who help the student
expand her learning boundaries and learn more than she would be able to on her own. And lastly is Jean
Lave’s Contextual Learning Theory. Lave argues that learning as it normally occurs is a function of the
activity, context, and culture in which it occurs (i.e., it is situated). This contrasts with most classroom
learning activities which involve knowledge that is abstract and out of context.

The second question we were asked about amongst the Philosophical Bases which do we think is the
most beneficial that we can apply in our classroom and why did we choose this? I shared my views and
choose Inclusivity because Inclusivity in the classroom implies that the classroom environment is one in
which all students feel that their contributions and perspectives are equal values and respect is also a
way of thinking and acting that allows every individual to feel valued, and safe. It was explained by Ms.
Rado that regarding individuals with disabilities and special education; inclusion secures opportunities
for students with disabilities to learn alongside their non-disabled peers in general education
classrooms. For me, the importance of Inclusivity is that it molds the value of the next generation of
children, provides opportunities for friendship, prepares individual for adult life in the community,
maintain the typical family structure of life, and cultivates an enriched learning environment. There are
also benefits of inclusion for students with disabilities such as friendship, increased social interactions,
relationships, and networks, and peer role models for academic, social, and behavioral skills.

Lastly, as an aspiring teacher, why is it important to understand the bases and policies of special and
inclusive education? This is the last question that we answered before we end the meeting. My
classmate Eduardo shared his ideas about the question and his answers and my answers were matched.
In my idea, since we are striving to become effective teachers, studying special education will stir you to
look for ways to harness the positive power of diversity in classrooms, school districts, and communities.
By more accurately understanding the relationship between the needs of students and the deficiencies
in resources, you can search and advocate for new solutions to meet their needs. Educators and school
communities need to understand what an inclusive education system is; it’s also critical to understand
why it’s best for students. A critical piece of that is the need to promote inclusive education using best
practice approaches that grow all students in lifelong learning.