Classroom Management Rationale
My cooperating teacher during my internship in a seventh grade class at Alton Middle School told me that he doesn’t smile for the first two weeks of school. Because he wants to give students the first impression that he is serious and strict. In real life, he actually is the funniest and most easy-going teacher I have ever met. It seems like a very popular trick among classroom teachers to set the tone that tells students who is in charge. I do believe setting the right tone is the most important part of classroom management. When I look at the reason behind this trick there is a common belief that students give their best performance when they are afraid of the teacher or afraid of getting in trouble. I start wondering if that is the right tone I would like to have set in my classroom. Esquith (2007) says that Level 1 thinking, which is based on fear, is typically the first thing we are trained in school (p.15). Yes, I was impressed by those obedient and respectful students in my classroom. They do whatever I ask them to do. But is that really the goal of classroom management? Many teachers tend to think classroom management is to have the classroom under the teachers’ control and have the students meet the teachers’ expectations. I believe that for a student–centered classroom, classroom management should create a safe, engaging and supportive learning community together where every student takes part of the managing role.
I believe there are three components of classroom management: 1. Setting the right classroom culture and expectation; 2. Maximizing student engagement in learning; 3. Responding to problematic behavior.
Setting the right classroom culture and clear expectation
When I am thinking about the tone of a classroom, I think about classroom culture. When I consider classroom rules, I would rather talk about what qualities we want to express in this classroom. The first week of Ed block, we wrote down all the qualities we want to see in our teacher and fellow classmates expressing in this classroom and put them up on the whiteboard. When we had all the words up on the board, we realized how similar our expectations for each other were. Later, we discussed what we can do to meet those expectations and how we can create a classroom we all wished for. It was a great way to explore the classroom culture together and set up rules and expectations in a democratic and organic way. If I have my own classroom, I will let my students be involved as much as possible in designing classroom rules and expectations.
I agree with Esquith that “Discipline must be logical” (p.8). When I give rules, I must explain and make them clear to my students. When students understand the rules are not made to limit who they are, but instead to help them become a better learner and person, in the long run, it will not only make implementing classroom rules easier, but also nurture students to be independent life-long leaners.
I believe the best way a teacher can help with creating a positive classroom culture is to express the same qualities you want to see your children express, such as openness, respect, trust and understanding. Children learn through following, not listening. We can’t expect our students to be respectful, if we don’t respect them physically, mentally and emotionally first.
Maximizing student engagement in learning
I believe it’s a teachers’ job to make the lesson engaging and relevant, so that students all want to be part of it. I agree with Montessori’s statement, “Education is a natural process carried out by the human individual, and is acquired not by listening to words, but by experiences in the environment.” (1989) I believe every student naturally wants to learn and grow, when he/she is in a safe place to express himself/herself and is able to connect/relate to the content with his/her own experience.
During my internship I observed many good examples of using different methods and activities to motivate students in learning, included WIW (walk in work). In the book, Teach Like a Champion, it is called “Do Now”(Lemov, 2010, p.152), which can be a prompt question, math problem, or even just writing about how you feel today (like we often did in the Ed. Block classroom). As soon as students enter the classroom, they know exactly what they need to do without any instruction. There were many other successful activities that were used in the classroom, such as the Family Feud Game, role-play debating, making interactive workbook, etc. I used two techniques which I adopted from Lemov’s book in my history classroom and found them effective in engaging students in learning. The first one is “Cold Call.” Students naturally pay more attention when they know everyone is expected to think and answer the question in their head no matter what (p.111). Another one is “Stretch it” (p.41), which is to not simply respond by saying “Yes” or “good,” but to ask more critical questions (using why and how) in replying to their answers. “Why do you think slavery is evil?” “Is that evilness only in the act of slavery?” “How do you react to that evilness in your life?” One of the most engaging moments I experienced during my internship was a conversation we had on slavery during the Revolutionary War. Because I used this technique, I found the students were pushed to think beyond a historical fact and connect the information to the life they live now.
There were also times that the teachers were forced to pause the lesson and handle whatever came up in the classroom. The most common techniques my teacher used to redirect the classroom was banging on the desk or blowing his whistle. One time he totally changed the whole lesson plan to a pop quiz as a “punishment” for not quieting down after the class started. All of those seem to be effective for him, but they are not necessary things I will carry on to my own classroom.
Responding to problematic behavior
Discipline is probably the most essential part of classroom management in K-12 classroom. How a teacher responds to problematic behavior in the classroom can tell so much about this teacher. Educational theorist William Glasser’s choice theory helps explain why people do the things they do. I believe reality therapy, which is developed based on choice theory, will be a great tool to use to respond to problematic behavior. The goal of this theory is to help people to reconnect, since all the problems come from “unsatisfactory or non-existent connections with people.” While handling misbehavior, teachers need to “focus on the present” and “help them make specific and workable plan to reconnect to people they need”(“Reality Theory”, 2015). One strategy I observed in another teacher’s classroom is the “Safe Seat.” When students act out in the middle of class, the teacher will encourage them to move to the seat and fill out a “think sheet”(see picture below) . It does not serve as punishment, but a place for students to reflect independently first before having a conversation with teachers after the class. I think it’s a great first step and I would use “safe seat” to response to problematic behavior in my classroom.
I found great inspiration in reading Education at Principia and an article titled “Scientific Discipline” speaks to my heart. It says, “If a particle of pride, excitement, resentment, haughtiness, hurt personality, or anger enters into our thoughts, we are not in fit condition to handle the case. We are not truly disciplining. True discipline is entirely impersonal” (Morgan, 2013, p.18). Every time there is problem in the class, I will take it as an opportunity to “feed the famished affection,” to love more.
I think Montessori’s quote sums up my solution to classroom management, “Of all things, love is the most potent.” If we express love while setting up the classroom culture, implement our love for learning as the way to plan our lesson and set an example to inspire others to learn, use love to discipline and help students to reconnect, then there will be much more success in our education.
Reference
Esquith, R. (2007). Teach like your hair's on fire. New York City, NY: Penguin Group.
Lemov, D. (n.d.). Teach like a champion:49 techniques that put students on the path to college. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Montessori, M. (1989). Clio Montessori: Vol. 5. Education for a new world. Oxford, England: CILO.
Morgan, M. K. (2013). Education at Principia (11th ed.). St. Louis, MO: The Principia.
Reality Theory. (n.d.). Retrieved November 30, 2015, from Willian Glasser Institute website: http://www.wglasser.com/the-glasser
approach/reality-therapy
I believe there are three components of classroom management: 1. Setting the right classroom culture and expectation; 2. Maximizing student engagement in learning; 3. Responding to problematic behavior.
Setting the right classroom culture and clear expectation
When I am thinking about the tone of a classroom, I think about classroom culture. When I consider classroom rules, I would rather talk about what qualities we want to express in this classroom. The first week of Ed block, we wrote down all the qualities we want to see in our teacher and fellow classmates expressing in this classroom and put them up on the whiteboard. When we had all the words up on the board, we realized how similar our expectations for each other were. Later, we discussed what we can do to meet those expectations and how we can create a classroom we all wished for. It was a great way to explore the classroom culture together and set up rules and expectations in a democratic and organic way. If I have my own classroom, I will let my students be involved as much as possible in designing classroom rules and expectations.
I agree with Esquith that “Discipline must be logical” (p.8). When I give rules, I must explain and make them clear to my students. When students understand the rules are not made to limit who they are, but instead to help them become a better learner and person, in the long run, it will not only make implementing classroom rules easier, but also nurture students to be independent life-long leaners.
I believe the best way a teacher can help with creating a positive classroom culture is to express the same qualities you want to see your children express, such as openness, respect, trust and understanding. Children learn through following, not listening. We can’t expect our students to be respectful, if we don’t respect them physically, mentally and emotionally first.
Maximizing student engagement in learning
I believe it’s a teachers’ job to make the lesson engaging and relevant, so that students all want to be part of it. I agree with Montessori’s statement, “Education is a natural process carried out by the human individual, and is acquired not by listening to words, but by experiences in the environment.” (1989) I believe every student naturally wants to learn and grow, when he/she is in a safe place to express himself/herself and is able to connect/relate to the content with his/her own experience.
During my internship I observed many good examples of using different methods and activities to motivate students in learning, included WIW (walk in work). In the book, Teach Like a Champion, it is called “Do Now”(Lemov, 2010, p.152), which can be a prompt question, math problem, or even just writing about how you feel today (like we often did in the Ed. Block classroom). As soon as students enter the classroom, they know exactly what they need to do without any instruction. There were many other successful activities that were used in the classroom, such as the Family Feud Game, role-play debating, making interactive workbook, etc. I used two techniques which I adopted from Lemov’s book in my history classroom and found them effective in engaging students in learning. The first one is “Cold Call.” Students naturally pay more attention when they know everyone is expected to think and answer the question in their head no matter what (p.111). Another one is “Stretch it” (p.41), which is to not simply respond by saying “Yes” or “good,” but to ask more critical questions (using why and how) in replying to their answers. “Why do you think slavery is evil?” “Is that evilness only in the act of slavery?” “How do you react to that evilness in your life?” One of the most engaging moments I experienced during my internship was a conversation we had on slavery during the Revolutionary War. Because I used this technique, I found the students were pushed to think beyond a historical fact and connect the information to the life they live now.
There were also times that the teachers were forced to pause the lesson and handle whatever came up in the classroom. The most common techniques my teacher used to redirect the classroom was banging on the desk or blowing his whistle. One time he totally changed the whole lesson plan to a pop quiz as a “punishment” for not quieting down after the class started. All of those seem to be effective for him, but they are not necessary things I will carry on to my own classroom.
Responding to problematic behavior
Discipline is probably the most essential part of classroom management in K-12 classroom. How a teacher responds to problematic behavior in the classroom can tell so much about this teacher. Educational theorist William Glasser’s choice theory helps explain why people do the things they do. I believe reality therapy, which is developed based on choice theory, will be a great tool to use to respond to problematic behavior. The goal of this theory is to help people to reconnect, since all the problems come from “unsatisfactory or non-existent connections with people.” While handling misbehavior, teachers need to “focus on the present” and “help them make specific and workable plan to reconnect to people they need”(“Reality Theory”, 2015). One strategy I observed in another teacher’s classroom is the “Safe Seat.” When students act out in the middle of class, the teacher will encourage them to move to the seat and fill out a “think sheet”(see picture below) . It does not serve as punishment, but a place for students to reflect independently first before having a conversation with teachers after the class. I think it’s a great first step and I would use “safe seat” to response to problematic behavior in my classroom.
I found great inspiration in reading Education at Principia and an article titled “Scientific Discipline” speaks to my heart. It says, “If a particle of pride, excitement, resentment, haughtiness, hurt personality, or anger enters into our thoughts, we are not in fit condition to handle the case. We are not truly disciplining. True discipline is entirely impersonal” (Morgan, 2013, p.18). Every time there is problem in the class, I will take it as an opportunity to “feed the famished affection,” to love more.
I think Montessori’s quote sums up my solution to classroom management, “Of all things, love is the most potent.” If we express love while setting up the classroom culture, implement our love for learning as the way to plan our lesson and set an example to inspire others to learn, use love to discipline and help students to reconnect, then there will be much more success in our education.
Reference
Esquith, R. (2007). Teach like your hair's on fire. New York City, NY: Penguin Group.
Lemov, D. (n.d.). Teach like a champion:49 techniques that put students on the path to college. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Montessori, M. (1989). Clio Montessori: Vol. 5. Education for a new world. Oxford, England: CILO.
Morgan, M. K. (2013). Education at Principia (11th ed.). St. Louis, MO: The Principia.
Reality Theory. (n.d.). Retrieved November 30, 2015, from Willian Glasser Institute website: http://www.wglasser.com/the-glasser
approach/reality-therapy