EDU 6130 Course Reflection

EDU 6130 Course Reflection                           Ian Lewis                                             December 5, 2016

Physical, emotional, and intellectual well-being are all taken into account by effective teachers when creating a learning environment that is safe and inclusive. Two elements of the Learning Environment program standard emphasized during this course are 5.1 Component 2a: Creating an Environment of Respect and Rapport and 5.4 Component 2d: Managing Student Behavior by Establishing Expectations. While a teacher proficient in creating an environment of respect and rapport creates an age and culture appropriate environment where teacher-student interactions are friendly and demonstrate general caring and respect, a distinguished teacher’s interactions reflect genuine respect and caring, not just for individuals, but the class as a whole. What sets a distinguished teacher apart from a proficient teacher with regard to establishing expectations to manage student behavior is that while standards are clear to all students in both scenarios, the distinguished teacher incorporates student input and development into the creation and implementation of standards of conduct.

Within my internship experience so far, many ideas discussed in this course relating to establishing classroom environments based out of respect, rapport, and high expectations for student behavior and learning success have been applied. First and foremost, as was likely mentioned in this class at least once per meeting, the importance of relationships is one of the shiniest, golden keys for success. Especially with building a classroom environment based out of respect and rapport, the idea of positive relationships is paramount. In order to promote diversity and cultural competency, positive relationships not only with students, but their families and communities, are incredibly valuable. With culturally competent teaching practices in place, a teacher can gradually incorporate more background knowledge of student diversity into everyday teaching and learning activities, fostering a learning environment built around mutually established respect and rapport. Wong’s discussion of what appear to be trivialities, for example, the importance of pronouncing and using names properly, and teaching and emphasizing “please” and “thank you” (1998, p. 69-76) are actually quite important to creating a positive classroom environment. On the first day of school, for example, I made a point to ask a certain Muslim student to say his name for me a few times so I would not ever mess it up. Later, during the social studies unit on the spread of the Muslim Empire, after further building a relationship with this student, I consulted with him on pronouncing certain words and cities, even allowing him to guide the class, which resulted in great enthusiasm and engagement on his part, and that of his peers.

Another strong way in which my mentor teacher advised me in creating relationships in order to create a positive classroom environment was through student and parent reflection. For the first quarter, students reflected on their progress, goals, and adherence to the model classroom characteristics Friday of each week, and also had a parent/guardian comment and sign the reflection sheet. With a reflection sheet as a vehicle, a positive web of relationships was created between student, parent/guardian, and teacher. If students and/or parents had noted concerns, my mentor teacher and I addressed them to the best of our abilities. In most instances, we simply commented on the positive results of tracking self-reflection and encouraged the students to continue. In addition to how relationships are key in creating a classroom environment of respect and rapport, student behavior management also relies on positive relationships with students.

As mentioned of the program standards before, distinguished educators incorporate student input when establishing standards of conduct. This was done at the beginning of the year in my classroom not only with my home room students, but the students of my teaching partner as well. Together, the two classes of students voted on a list of top ten behavior characteristics necessary for classroom success. With their input in creating a list of guiding principles for the class, our relationship and trust increased immensely. In addition to the PBIS rules of BE Respectful, Responsible, and Safe, our list of characteristics for success is prominently displayed in class. In addition to the PBIS rules, our own set of characteristics is often referenced when necessary. In order to further make standards clear to all students, immediate response to rule violations is necessary, as promoted by Wong (1998, p. 157). However, there are also certain situations where delayed consequences may be useful in order to not disrupt the flow of direct instruction, as discussed by Fay and Funk (1995, p. 44). Various contexts may call for different approaches to discipline, but as long as expectations and outcomes to violations are clear, we set up enforceable ways to manage student behavior through established expectations.

Overall, it has been an interesting experience to be simultaneously learning classroom management strategy by the books and in class/online while also engaged in a field experience daily. There is certainly no better way to gain experience in classroom management than to live it, which is one of the reasons I chose this program, with its extensive field internship experience. While numerous classroom management strategies seem to work in my field experience, some do not. That is not to say, however, they could not work in the future, in a different context. Each year anew, then, it will be interesting to experiment with which strategies are most effective with certain students in specific situations.

Reference List:

Fay, Jim and Funk, David (1995). Teaching With Love and Logic. Golden, CO: The Love and Logic Press Inc.

Wong, Harry K., and Wong, Rosemary T. (1998). The First Days of School. Mountain View, CA: Harry K. Wong Publications, Inc.