1. This chapter was a little different from the rest. In this chapter we discussed decision making and the factors that affect it. One major area I thought was interesting was the biases. Belief bias is a major factor in decision making because we can let what we think we know or believe not let us make informed decisions. Another bias is confirmation bias. This says that most people tend do prove the affirmative than to deny it. I believe this falls in line with how we take in stimulus and remember. In an earlier chapter, Maitlin described how human memory is more efficient when it is dealing with positive stimuli. Therefore, I believe we have a built in mechanism to go after the positive.
4. What I would like to apply to my own work is bringing together both two points of decision making discussed in this chapter. Overconfidence and Availability Hueristic. At my school I have ran into many students that make poor decisions based on being overconfident either in their own ability or in the lack of ability of authority in school. It would be very interesting to teach this technique of availability hueristic and see if decision making improves. Instituting the frequency of something and the familiarity of an event are both techniques that can help this overall decision making process. It would be interesting to see how they respond.
8. I believe that decision making processes can be improved through a combination of theory and practical application. In schools today we spend so much money on character education--what to do, what not to do...but it is not in-depth. There are very few programs that allow for practical application. Mentors, Parents, Teachers, and high level school officials can implement decision making program and opportunities that will make children/students more successful. This would not take any more money than what is available now, just a redistribution of current funds and a more in-depth policy to implement it.
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Hi William. I agree with your points in #3. We do spend a lot of time and resources only skimming the surface of character education. It all too often becomes some kind of extra money source to a district and less in the way of character development. It is about decision making when you get down to it. I talked about a decision making lesson I included in my tobacco education unit in health class...but it could be done in may other classes too. At the very least, teachers can model this behavior in class with students so they can see the application of positive decision making.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! Hope you are well.
William, I don't disagree with your statements in # 3 , but it is alot easier said than done. I teach two character education classes at the 7th and 8th grade levels, and I try everything to make a difference. It is very difficult to come up with ideas that are authentic with limited resources. It is very difficult to simulate the decisions we make in life, but more feasible to help guide those decisions. Very tough situation in schools. You are definitely correct though when it comes to changes. Good Post.
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