Sources of Elementary Education Essay Example

Elementary or primary education is essential to every individual regardless if they are citizens of a developed country or a developing state. Elementary education begins from the first class, when the age of a child is hardly five years. This education means more than just a teacher, classroom and books. It is also subject to the attire, the type of feeding and a suitable surrounding for a child to have new experiences daily, a surrounding that can aid in obtaining the best abilities of a child. Teachers need to educate children on how to explore their inner skills and talents to use in their future lives. For teachers to take children through appropriate courses of study, they are obliged to use the best sources of information. In my discussion below, I will explore the best sources of information for elementary education. I have recommended the sources following their broad scope of knowledge in early education, in comparison to other sources.

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Among the most appealing materials for elementary education is the book of Daniel T Willingham, WhyDon't Students like School. The book has particularly-based approaches for involving learners in the class. Willingham targets his research on the cognitive and biological basis of education. Through his ideas in the book, teachers can make their practice better. He explains how teachers and their learners reason and perceive knowledge. The book brings out the value of context, emotion, routine, memory, and story in creating lasting experiences of learning and developing understanding. The book also has nine principles which are easily understood and applied apparently in the classroom. It includes findings like intelligence is malleable and that one is not able to build skills of thinking in absence facts. Due to the ease of applying the book, I find it helpful to teachers by helping them optimise their skills through understanding the reasoning of their students (Willingham, Pg20).

Martin Robinson's book on, Trivium 21c, is another work in the field of elementary education which is rich in methodologies of running primary school classes. The book finds out if a trivium of contemporary such as dialect, rhetoric and grammar can cause unity to all the members of the society by greatly educating children. Practice and policy of education are troublesome. Some people ridicule teaching of the past things and great work considering skills of the twenty-first century. Such skills are thinking critically and creatively. On the other side, traditionalist people look down upon the soft skills. They support the learning of a lucky hard knowledge type. From the creative works of Robinson, teachers can get inspired by their work class work and nurture students who can cope with the issues of our era (Robinson, Pg15).

Daisy Christodoulou's work on primary education also carries great significance. In her book, Seven Myths about Education, she gives an idea-provoking critique of educational orthodoxy. Through her experience gained through teaching in schools of challenges, she reveals how much scientific principles differ with class practice. The book is perfect in examining the beliefs which are delaying teachers and students in teaching and learning respectively. The beliefs include: instruction led by a teacher is passive; facts block understanding; the twenty-first century primarily changes all the things; skills taught should be transferable; knowledge of teaching is indoctrination; one can just look it up every time; the best way to learn is through activities and projects. This important and blisteringly incisive text is necessary reading for all head teachers and teachers in elementary education (Christodoulou, Pg30).

The best way to come up with a good and reliable text material in the primary level of education is through carrying out sufficient research about the text one wants to build. Visible Learning and Science of How We learn, a book written by John Hattie and Gregory Yates is a recommendable resource due to its vast research work. On its publication in 2009, Visible Learning by Hattie the book posted most extensive collection ever of research into what apply in learning institutions to improve learning of students. The research was based on the actual producer of the best performance by promoting educational and learning outcomes. In this current text, Hattie and psychologist Greg Yates have combined efforts in doing more research and developing on the legacy and original data of the project of Visible Learning. The book proves how it is creating a framework for enhancing classroom learning. This text is aimed at any teacher, student or parent. It takes a wide coverage through results arising cognitive and social psychology and displaying them in a format useful for teachers and students at all levels (Hattie & Gregory, Pg27).

Choice of words and language used in classes is a primary determinant of active learning in elementary education. Bringing Words to Life, Second Edition, a text authored by Isabel and other authors, is a suitable course material in enhancing appropriate language in learning. Many teachers have made use of this practical guide to help learners widen their vocabulary and get used in realising, comprehending, and making use of new words. Based on research, the text describes a way of selecting words for instruction, give their meanings, and build activities for learning which encourage reading comprehension. Authors of the book are experts have much experience in different institutions of education. The book's utility as a suitable class resource and a course text is enhanced by its learning activities. These activities include end-of-chapter summaries, suggestions of children's literature and "Your Turn" (Beck, Margaret & Linda, Pg19).

Without common, explicit curriculum, tests are lowered to measuring of skills instead of content. Therefore, learners from unstable backgrounds are not able to develop a base of knowledge to enhance high achievement. In E.D. Hirsch's book, Why Knowledge Matters, he addresses crucial issues in reform of contemporary education. He also shows how valued education truisms and child development have caused negative and unintended results. Hirsch in proves from his findings that knowledge-based, a carefully planned elementary curriculum is necessary to providing a basis for life success of children and upholding equal opportunity for learners of all the backgrounds. A knowledge-based way of schooling has developed equity and achievement in every place it has been upheld. The text proves that reform of primary educational ideas is the essential equality force and education reform.

The Elementary School Journal, edited by Michael Coyne and Jeanne, has an explored research on what motivates students of upper elementary classes to read nonfiction and fiction. The ones who did the research built different surveys to gauge reading nonfiction and fiction motivation. The journal brings out clearly that according to the research, girls' motivation to reading fiction is higher than that of boys. This result means that there are differences of gender to read. The journal also explores the intentions for the use of survey results in class and importance of enhancing the reading value of students (Parsons et al., Pg2).

In conclusion, a process of reading is complicated and involves skills. Good learners create connections from their knowledge to want they do not know. It is also a laborious process to teach children to read. Learners have different styles of reading and different abilities to comprehend. Their learning may be subject to various factors such as their environments and experiences. Teachers must, therefore, be able to help students of all learning types get the necessary skills out their schooling. Because of the diverse experiences needed by the teachers, it is, therefore, recommendable to use different types of materials. It is critical also to give learners access to varying types of source materials to enhance their understanding and give them a wide source of knowledge

Work Cited

Beck, Isabel L., Margaret G. McKeown, and Linda Kucan.Bringing words to life: Robust vocabulary instruction.Guilford Press, 2017.

Christodoulou, Daisy. Seven myths about education.Routledge, 2014.

Hattie, John, and Gregory CR Yates.Visible learning and the science of how we learn.Routledge, 2017.

Parsons, Allison Ward, et al. "Upper Elementary Students' Motivation to Read Fiction and Nonfiction." The Elementary School Journal 118.3 (2018): 000-000.

Robinson, Martin. Trivium 21c: Preparing young people for the future with lessons from the past. Crown House Publishing, 2014.

Willingham, Daniel T. Why don't students like school?: A cognitive scientist answers questions about how the mind works and what it means for the classroom. John Wiley & Sons, 2015.