Physical, Social, Emotional & Cognitive Characteristics of Your Students

Chart 1: What subject/grade level do you teach?

Student Physical Social Emotional Cognitive

Grade or Age
Level
College The adolescent Concerns The pressure The change in
students in the stage marks the themselves in brought by the physical
adolescent glaring physical conforming to idea that appearance is
stage of age change that the appearance adolescence is a coupled with
developments. happened to a through the defining stage in mental change.
body. dress and preparing Adolescents'
Specifically, this behavior of his themselves in cognition is
is called the peers as they adult life takes capable of
"puberty stage" long for peer up emotional processing
wherein the acceptance and effects on abstract thought
defining features support. But individuals which and logical
of being a man peers also depends on thinking.
and woman posed pressure what they feel Therefore, they
becomes visible in doing both about how other can engage and
and grow in good and risky people see them debate various
height to reach behaviors such in society. If they viewpoints,
their maximum. as experiencing feel an understand
the sense of encouraging cause and
independence environment effect,
and control they would feel comprehend
associated with satisfied, complex
their age. Risky special, unique, explanations,
behavior and would imagine
observed in continue doing possibilities, and
adolescents are so, but if the respond
drinking alcohol, environment appropriately to
taking drugs, creates an multiple
and engaging in antagonizing directions. In
sexual activities. atmosphere this brief, the
The sense of would incite adolescent had
independence depression and developed
also extends to other emotional thinking skills
how they difficulty pushing that enable him
interact with them into risky to analyze his
their family and behaviors. varying
the rest of Additionally, situations
 society, as they there are also substantively
transition new emotional and critically and
towards connections can come up
adulthood or brought by the with informed
incoming of age sensations felt decisions and
individuals, they by his peers answers if given
also feel especially in the necessary
pressure in their knowledge and
making and engagement in teaching.
finding their own intimate
identity and his relationships.
overall role to Nonetheless,
take up in individuals in
society this stage still
especially in need to feel
terms of career support from the
of their career family and other
path. community
concerns.

Notes on the Development of Students for the Years BEFORE They Are in My Class:

Physical Social Emotional Cognitive

Upon entering Social connections Emotional Reflective on the
college, I believed are deeply connections are also experiences, perhaps
they are still in the dependent on dependent and the learning and
stage of puberty. And parents, childhood provided by the understanding are
the physical change friends, and their parents through love, mostly basic
in appearance is just surrounding support, and understanding to
starting to develop. neighborhoods. And encouragement. prepare and give him
And it is determined the thought of finding Additionally, friendly enough background
by food or other their own identity and relationships fostered in pursuing higher
essentials provided in role in society by friends and the education. And when
their homes and not equates only to people that he knows it comes to analyzing
by their choosing. identifying one's in their community and coming up with a
dream or course to give the feeling of solution to his
take up in college. belongingness and a situations he may
And the need for an peaceful mind. And difficulty in deciding
individual to conform have little idea of the what to do and may
to certain norms of feeling of heartaches seek help or the
his peers and the and disappointments opinions of others,
pressure of going to in the later stage of especially the older
risky behavior is far his life. ones.
from sight.
Notes on the Development of Students for the Years AFTER They Are in My Class:

Physical Social Emotional Cognitive

They already had College education Emotional With enough
passed the had presented him connections of the knowledge and skills
adolescent stage and with wider social past are still present from both formal and
are fully grown, adult connections and but you also search informal learning
individuals. They prepared him with the and create other experiences. We can
have a personal necessary knowledge emotional say that you are an
health lifestyle that and skills for the connections that you experienced adult
they followed career that he want to feel. that can make an
depending on their chooses to take up. Emotional informed and sound
preferences and what As an adult, his connections become judgment to the
they want to social connections a conscious feeling solutions to the
psychically achieve extend to the rest of that becomes problem of your day-
from the food they the society as he is imperative to give to to-day living. And
eat to the exercises now building his other people that give guided by a moral
they take. In short, identity for himself you the feeling of compass to always
they are now the and taking up a role love, trust, and choose the right and
ones that take care of that he had assigned respect such as your correct application of
themselves. to himself in society. parents. Moreover, his knowledge. And a
And as an adult, the you create your citizen who thinks not
decision of engaging emotional connection only of his good but
in risky behavior for instance when the rest of the society
imposed lesser you got married because he knows
pressure because wherein you show that one way or
people would let you your love and care to another his existence
now decide on your your wife or husband has connected the
own. and children. lives of others in the
society.

Notes on what my students need for physical well-being, and the special physical needs
my students may bring to the classroom:

Needs for Physical Well-Being (food, Special Physical Needs

physical activity, rest & sleep, other
behaviors)
Some students may go to class without
having a meal which in the worst case may
lead to malnutrition which makes it difficult for
students to learn and understand the lessons.
Students may be physically challenged by
having chronic medical conditions, serious
injuries and health hazards, and other
physical disabilities. Nothing should be a
 And due to addictions to social media, hindrance for a child to enter school and
computer games, and other internet functions achieve his dreams. This kind of need should
most students are less engaged in sports and be accepted as a reality to not let any
other physical activities that are important in students be left behind just because of their
maintaining a healthy body and mind. There special physical condition. As long as he can
would also be students who would fall asleep manage his special needs the teacher can do
during classes and it is important from the his part by using different methods and
very start to ask the reason to make techniques to be assigned according to the
necessary adjustments, techniques, or even ability and capacity of the student without
solutions if the problem finds out be brought sacrificing the quality of education given to
by external factors in the condition of the them. What matters at the end of the day, is
students. For instance, a student needs to be not to add up to their difficulties by supporting
absent to take a rest or fall asleep in the and encouraging them.
class because he takes a part-time job to
support his studies. And the external or
outside the school context of the students
also draw an influence on how the students
behave in school. Acknowledging this would
help you understand gather enough patience
and understanding in teaching students the
appropriate behavior that they need to learn
and the ones that they should refrain from
doing.

Part B: Reflective Application

If given the chance I want to pursue teaching in college, I would like to stick to subjects in line
with my undergraduate degree which is Political Science, in that case, subjects like social
studies and other subjects that fall under social sciences. I would be glad to teach all students
regardless of economic, social, and even physical background and capacity as long as these
students are driven and motivated to learn.

On physical aspects, the development of each student through puberty would impact their
learning depending on how they can accept and cope up with those changes in a classroom
setting. Since, college education requires more time studying, doing an assignment,
researching, and other same activities the quality of sleep would deteriorate and the physical
capacity of students would be challenged by fulfilling all those tasks. On the social aspect, the
university would present wider social interactions among students coming from different
backgrounds, at first it would leave the student in shock and confusion with the diversity of
culture. And comes the question of whom are they going to join and be acquainted? What kind
of peer pressure practices do they want themselves to be in? These people would eventually be
your friends that could influence some of your academic decisions especially in group activities
because the possibility is that you will be always in the same group if possible. And the
possibility of becoming an influence for to you venture the risky behaviors. On the emotional
aspects, the source of emotional support and your emotional investment would also find new
people to share within terms of intimacy. Additionally, since a college education prepares you
for the career you want to take in the future, the pressure on finding your own and identity would
make you assess if you indeed are in the right course and it is really what you want to become
in the future. And lastly, the cognitive aspects, since they are capable of thinking logically and
rationally, can understand varied perspectives, and even follow multiple instructions it is
expected that they can handle the diverse culture and increase in education requirements
presented by a university education.

The bottom-line of physical, social, emotional, and cognitive characteristics in assessing the
before and after is that all would change. Hence, your teaching should also be open to change
and modifications to adapt to the change in each characteristic. The teaching methods and
techniques you use years before should not be the same as the methods and techniques you
are going to use in the after.

Knowing the physical factor in the development of a child would help us in assessing the
appropriate physical activities that should be given to students. Moreover, knowing the physical
situation of the child and the reason behind it could be one of the ways to address the problem
especially it if posed a serious threat to the quality of learning of the student. The same goes for
the child with special needs, if compared to the performance of a normal student we can say
that a normal student can get higher grades compared to his other counterparts' needs. We can
address this by assessing the situation of the child in need to know what particular activities
apply to him to encourage child participation in classroom activities.

To foster a positive and enjoyable learning environment is what a teacher should achieve
effective delivery of his lesson. Because no matter how well you know your content if your way
of teaching failed to capture the attention of the students to be an enjoyable learning
experience, the knowledge would just be a bubble that can be pierced easily in the minds of the
student. I believed that the one effective way is by assessing the capacity and context of your
student and then relating the discussion to their own experiences. Additionally, it is also
important to ask the students directly about their ideas on how they want to experience the
learning and teaching process. In this way, we make an atmosphere of open communication
wherein both students and teachers are helping each other in coming up with a learning
experience that they mutually agreed.

Reference:

McDevitt, Teresa M., & Ormrod, Jeanne Ellis (2014). Child Development and Education Fifth
Edition. Pearson, Pearson Education Limited: Edinburgh Gate, Harlow, Essex CM20 2JE,
England, and Associated Companies throughout the world.

Bastable, Susan B. & Myers Gina M. Developmental Stages of the Learner. Chapter 5, pp. 117-
155. Jones and Bartlett Learning LCC, an Ascend Learning Company.