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Lecture Information:  

The best part of this theory is that students just volunteer their belief system to you if you are listening like a clinician would.  When the student shrugs their shoulder and tells you, "I'm the dumb one in my family," they are telling you about what they believe is true about themselves, about life, and about their expectations for the future.   If those words come from your student, you can count on very low motivation from them.  From their point of view, it's hopeless!  They won't even try!  That is where you need to intervene.  Challenge that belief.  Show how possible it really is.  This theory shows teachers where they can have a huge impact on a student's life.  A good teacher would present indisputable evidence that contradicts that they "are the dumb one in the family."

For this assignment, you first have to state a really common excuse that the student uses.  It can be from any subject area.  Then you analyze the excuse by deciding first if it is internal or external, then if it is changeable or unchangeable, lastly if the student believes if it is controllable or uncontrollable.  The most common mistake with this application assignment is to state what you think rather than what the student believes.  You are to summarize what the student believes.