I was happy that the narrator in this video distinguished between goals, rules, and procedures and I like the idea of goals (as well as rules and procedures) being displayed in the class as broader expectations. The video also stated that "the level and depth of student-teacher relationships determine the effectiveness of classroom management" as it builds trust. I think this is especially important in inclusive classrooms, since students with neurological-based disorders would probably respond better and learn more effectively from teachers with whom there is a high level of trust.
I think developing classroom procedures would be tedious, and impossible to remember everything. I searched online and found a really great checklist from Scholastic; I'm going to print it out and keep it as a resource for later.
Here is the link: http://printables.scholastic.com/printables/detail/?id=29648.
Is is better to have a short list of broad, more general class guidelines or a longer list of detailed and specific classroom rules?
Scholastic, Inc. (2010). Classroom procedures checklist. Retrieved May 28, 2010 from the Scholastic Web site: http://printables.scholastic.com/printables/detail/?id=29648.
In Response to Brett's question: "Is is better to have a short list of broad, more general class guidelines or a longer list of detailed and specific classroom rules?"
I feel that a short list of broad, general class guidelines would work best. In helping to build a classroom community, you can have the students work with you do elaborate on the general guidelines. This would instill in them a sense of ownership of the classroom.
I do like the checklist you found. At first it seemed overwhelming, but once you completed the checklist you can just make minor adjustments at the beginning of each new year.
I like the idea of having more than just rules. By combining it with goals and procedures the students gain a better understanding of what you expect as a teacher. One key statement the narrator made was that we need to clearly and explicitly communicate our expectations and directions to the students. Breakdowns and barriers in communication can lead to confusion amongst the students. We often only use one modality when relaying information to students...lecture. By offering other modalities such as visually displaying the information in the room, we help ensure that there are no breakdowns in communication. Soliciting feedback from the students is a great way to check for understanding (effective communication). If there are questions or concerns you can address them at that time.
Question: The narrator tells us how she helped the students develop a partner clock so that they were not choosing the same partner every time. What are some other ways we can ensure the same partners are not always chosen?
Ben, something as simple as drawing straws or names/popsicle sticks help in choosing partners. The teacher could always assign study groups based on seating arrangements at the beginning of the year and change them if necessary. I do agree that creating a rules/ procedure/ discipline plan will be difficult, especially for a first year teacher, but it is also very necessary in order to maximize learning time, as the narrator said. I believe that procedures help to bridge the gap- or create a road map -between rules and goals. It allows the learners to understand what their responsibilities and outlines how they may contribute to their success. Displaying these procedures are silent reminders to the students to stay on task, and allow for different learning styles to be addressed as well (visual vs linguistic.)
Question: Would it be prudent for the students to make a list of rules they expect their teacher to follow as well? For example, do not yell, always use your manners, etc. Would this help increase accountability for their own behaviors?
To Brett: Thanks for the resource. I have the addrerss saved in a file of things I'll need in order to get a classroom organized. I believe some of the things on checklist will eventually be weeded out, according to what each teacher may find works the best in his or her classroom. It's still a great jumping-off point and gives me many things to consider before accepting the responsibility of teaching our children.
Katie: I think it's a good idea for the students to make a list of rules for the teacher but depending on the age, I dont know how serious some students would take it. I would just set the classroom rules up so it applies to all people in the classroom, students, teachers, aids or whoever will be in the room during the time of learning. I like how the narrator really focuses on the goals of the class since it really is the biggest party of the classroom. She has three goals, but they are all very effective and acheiveable goals for the students. I always like the rules she has set up in the classroom. It not only gets them to be responsible in class but it carries over to their everyday life for accountability and being respsonsible for getting places on time, doing your homework etc. Question: In response to the narrators bathroom policy..do you think it's a good idea to just let children come and go from the bathroom as they please without asking for permission to leave the classroom?
The narrator touches on the key elements to an effective classroom management plan. Goals, rules, and procedures are all necessary elements to a positive and effective classroom. Goals provide students with something to work towards. Rules provide boundaries in which the goals are to be attained, and procedures outline the proper way of achieving goals. If a teacher can formulate an effective trifecta of these three elements then the elements of classroom management would be laid out in a very simple manner.
In response to jkeimi01, i think that the bathroom policy is not a good idea for younger students. Growing adolescents just want to move around and will make up any excuse to do so. Giving them the freedom to get up and leave whenever they want would result in chaos. I can envision middle school students leaving different classes at the same time to meet in the halls to chit chat. I don't think it is a good idea.
Question: Do you think that school rules should be universal, meaning that all classrooms in the entire school require the same rules and regulations, thereby simplifying the rule process?
In response to the bathroom policy: Speaking from my experiences as a correctional officer, I feel that the problem lies in not allowing the students to go at will, but rather in not monitoring the halls and bathrooms to make sure students are not taking advantage of the system. Having "hall monitors" would cut out a lot of misbehavior that arises from free bathroom privileges. Students can only do what you allow them to do. You have to weigh what your options of giving free use of the bathrooms, or monitoring the halls. Personally I think monitoring the halls is a practice that should be going on considering all the tragic events over the past few years.
The goal of "Higher Level of Responsibility for Personal Learning and Work Completion" is one of my goals. I think it is important that teachers have high expectations for all of our students.
It is when I have students that have not had to work hard in previous classes that I encounter problems with student behavior. Those students are not used to working; therefore, they are reluctant to work hard.
It is very important to focus on teaching responsibilty for learning. In fact this is just as important as teaching the content we are required to teach. Not all students will use the content that we cover in a specific class; however, all students must learn how to think and learn on their own.
Question: In the video, the speaker discusses a strategy for assigning partners. I try many different strategies for assigning groups but still have not mastered this task! What are other successful strategies for assigning partners or groups?
I've been thinking about this a lot since all of our coursework has promoted the use of group work. When I was in school, teachers wouldn't let you choose partners because the same person(s) was constantly left out. So he or she would come up with some arbitrary way of assigning groups/partners - usually random selection.
When introduced to the interest inventory (or other methods of pre-assessment) a few semesters ago, I thought to myself, this is how I will establish grouping in my classes, and I intend to. This way, no one is left out and the students will naturally work well together because they either have the same interests or abilities. They may not like it (or each other) but they will learn to work together and maybe even grow socially from that experience.
I went online before I replied to you to see if I could find anything creative, and online discourse suggests the same things we've heard already. In fact, the first article I came to gave four methods for assigning groups: by interest, by ability, random selection, and student choice. Go figure...
Wagaman, J. (2008). Student grouping in the classroom: Four ways to divide your class for lessons. Retrieved June 1, 2010 from: http://teachertipstraining.suite101.com/article.cfm/student_grouping_in_the_classroom.
This video was very interesting. I really liked her three goals for students getting excited about learning, working collaboratively, and on a higher level of responsibility. That seems to be great to start out and then see how you as a teacher have accomplished those goals with the students at the end of the year. I particularly liked the clock partners. I have never seen or heard of that being done before. I am really excited to try this with elementary students as they always seem to pick the same person to work with. In response to John's question about the bathroom policy, that is a hard question to answer for me. I would hate to deny a student the right to use the bathroom, but I have seen so many students use it as a way to get out of class or doing work. Maybe if they were allowed to go one at a time. That might work. The narrator said incorporating goals, procedures and rules, while being beneficial, would be time consuming. What are some easy ways to incorporate this into lessons without the issue of time?
Katie: I think that asking the students to ask for expectations from their teacher is incredibly important. One of my teachers in high school practiced this every year. I think asking the students to have expectations for the teacher creates a feeling of unity in the classroom. Not only is the teacher creating a list of rules that the students should follow (as the students expect), but now the students have something to ask of their teacher. Going through the process of rules for the teacher at the beginning of the year would be a great way to get to know your students and get to know what they value and respect from their authority figures.
I loved the idea of breaking down classroom expectations into the three categories as well. Goals are a great way to start out the year as well as a great way to keep on task as the year goes on and attention dwindles. The only part of this video I was not previously familiar with was actually introducing the classroom procedures, but now that I think about it - it is a fantastic idea. Students with various learning disabilities or neurological-based behavior problems would benefit most from having the procedures laid out for them at the beginning of the school year.
My question: Would you create these expectations in your first year of teaching and have those hold true throughout the rest of your career or refresh each year? Why?
I was happy that the narrator in this video distinguished between goals, rules, and procedures and I like the idea of goals (as well as rules and procedures) being displayed in the class as broader expectations. The video also stated that "the level and depth of student-teacher relationships determine the effectiveness of classroom management" as it builds trust. I think this is especially important in inclusive classrooms, since students with neurological-based disorders would probably respond better and learn more effectively from teachers with whom there is a high level of trust.
ReplyDeleteI think developing classroom procedures would be tedious, and impossible to remember everything. I searched online and found a really great checklist from Scholastic; I'm going to print it out and keep it as a resource for later.
Here is the link: http://printables.scholastic.com/printables/detail/?id=29648.
Is is better to have a short list of broad, more general class guidelines or a longer list of detailed and specific classroom rules?
Scholastic, Inc. (2010). Classroom procedures checklist. Retrieved May 28, 2010 from the Scholastic Web site: http://printables.scholastic.com/printables/detail/?id=29648.
In Response to Brett's question: "Is is better to have a short list of broad, more general class guidelines or a longer list of detailed and specific classroom rules?"
ReplyDeleteI feel that a short list of broad, general class guidelines would work best. In helping to build a classroom community, you can have the students work with you do elaborate on the general guidelines. This would instill in them a sense of ownership of the classroom.
I do like the checklist you found. At first it seemed overwhelming, but once you completed the checklist you can just make minor adjustments at the beginning of each new year.
I like the idea of having more than just rules. By combining it with goals and procedures the students gain a better understanding of what you expect as a teacher. One key statement the narrator made was that we need to clearly and explicitly communicate our expectations and directions to the students. Breakdowns and barriers in communication can lead to confusion amongst the students. We often only use one modality when relaying information to students...lecture. By offering other modalities such as visually displaying the information in the room, we help ensure that there are no breakdowns in communication. Soliciting feedback from the students is a great way to check for understanding (effective communication). If there are questions or concerns you can address them at that time.
ReplyDeleteQuestion: The narrator tells us how she helped the students develop a partner clock so that they were not choosing the same partner every time. What are some other ways we can ensure the same partners are not always chosen?
Ben, something as simple as drawing straws or names/popsicle sticks help in choosing partners. The teacher could always assign study groups based on seating arrangements at the beginning of the year and change them if necessary. I do agree that creating a rules/ procedure/ discipline plan will be difficult, especially for a first year teacher, but it is also very necessary in order to maximize learning time, as the narrator said. I believe that procedures help to bridge the gap- or create a road map -between rules and goals. It allows the learners to understand what their responsibilities and outlines how they may contribute to their success. Displaying these procedures are silent reminders to the students to stay on task, and allow for different learning styles to be addressed as well (visual vs linguistic.)
ReplyDeleteQuestion: Would it be prudent for the students to make a list of rules they expect their teacher to follow as well? For example, do not yell, always use your manners, etc. Would this help increase accountability for their own behaviors?
To Brett: Thanks for the resource. I have the addrerss saved in a file of things I'll need in order to get a classroom organized. I believe some of the things on checklist will eventually be weeded out, according to what each teacher may find works the best in his or her classroom. It's still a great jumping-off point and gives me many things to consider before accepting the responsibility of teaching our children.
ReplyDeleteKatie: I think it's a good idea for the students to make a list of rules for the teacher but depending on the age, I dont know how serious some students would take it. I would just set the classroom rules up so it applies to all people in the classroom, students, teachers, aids or whoever will be in the room during the time of learning.
ReplyDeleteI like how the narrator really focuses on the goals of the class since it really is the biggest party of the classroom. She has three goals, but they are all very effective and acheiveable goals for the students. I always like the rules she has set up in the classroom. It not only gets them to be responsible in class but it carries over to their everyday life for accountability and being respsonsible for getting places on time, doing your homework etc.
Question: In response to the narrators bathroom policy..do you think it's a good idea to just let children come and go from the bathroom as they please without asking for permission to leave the classroom?
The narrator touches on the key elements to an effective classroom management plan. Goals, rules, and procedures are all necessary elements to a positive and effective classroom. Goals provide students with something to work towards. Rules provide boundaries in which the goals are to be attained, and procedures outline the proper way of achieving goals. If a teacher can formulate an effective trifecta of these three elements then the elements of classroom management would be laid out in a very simple manner.
ReplyDeleteIn response to jkeimi01, i think that the bathroom policy is not a good idea for younger students. Growing adolescents just want to move around and will make up any excuse to do so. Giving them the freedom to get up and leave whenever they want would result in chaos. I can envision middle school students leaving different classes at the same time to meet in the halls to chit chat. I don't think it is a good idea.
Question: Do you think that school rules should be universal, meaning that all classrooms in the entire school require the same rules and regulations, thereby simplifying the rule process?
In response to the bathroom policy: Speaking from my experiences as a correctional officer, I feel that the problem lies in not allowing the students to go at will, but rather in not monitoring the halls and bathrooms to make sure students are not taking advantage of the system. Having "hall monitors" would cut out a lot of misbehavior that arises from free bathroom privileges. Students can only do what you allow them to do. You have to weigh what your options of giving free use of the bathrooms, or monitoring the halls. Personally I think monitoring the halls is a practice that should be going on considering all the tragic events over the past few years.
ReplyDeleteThe goal of "Higher Level of Responsibility for Personal Learning and Work Completion" is one of my goals. I think it is important that teachers have high expectations for all of our students.
ReplyDeleteIt is when I have students that have not had to work hard in previous classes that I encounter problems with student behavior. Those students are not used to working; therefore, they are reluctant to work hard.
It is very important to focus on teaching responsibilty for learning. In fact this is just as important as teaching the content we are required to teach. Not all students will use the content that we cover in a specific class; however, all students must learn how to think and learn on their own.
Question: In the video, the speaker discusses a strategy for assigning partners. I try many different strategies for assigning groups but still have not mastered this task! What are other successful strategies for assigning partners or groups?
Rusty,
ReplyDeleteI've been thinking about this a lot since all of our coursework has promoted the use of group work. When I was in school, teachers wouldn't let you choose partners because the same person(s) was constantly left out. So he or she would come up with some arbitrary way of assigning groups/partners - usually random selection.
When introduced to the interest inventory (or other methods of pre-assessment) a few semesters ago, I thought to myself, this is how I will establish grouping in my classes, and I intend to. This way, no one is left out and the students will naturally work well together because they either have the same interests or abilities. They may not like it (or each other) but they will learn to work together and maybe even grow socially from that experience.
I went online before I replied to you to see if I could find anything creative, and online discourse suggests the same things we've heard already. In fact, the first article I came to gave four methods for assigning groups: by interest, by ability, random selection, and student choice. Go figure...
Wagaman, J. (2008). Student grouping in the classroom: Four ways to divide your class for lessons. Retrieved June 1, 2010 from: http://teachertipstraining.suite101.com/article.cfm/student_grouping_in_the_classroom.
This video was very interesting. I really liked her three goals for students getting excited about learning, working collaboratively, and on a higher level of responsibility. That seems to be great to start out and then see how you as a teacher have accomplished those goals with the students at the end of the year.
ReplyDeleteI particularly liked the clock partners. I have never seen or heard of that being done before. I am really excited to try this with elementary students as they always seem to pick the same person to work with.
In response to John's question about the bathroom policy, that is a hard question to answer for me. I would hate to deny a student the right to use the bathroom, but I have seen so many students use it as a way to get out of class or doing work. Maybe if they were allowed to go one at a time. That might work.
The narrator said incorporating goals, procedures and rules, while being beneficial, would be time consuming. What are some easy ways to incorporate this into lessons without the issue of time?
Katie: I think that asking the students to ask for expectations from their teacher is incredibly important. One of my teachers in high school practiced this every year. I think asking the students to have expectations for the teacher creates a feeling of unity in the classroom. Not only is the teacher creating a list of rules that the students should follow (as the students expect), but now the students have something to ask of their teacher. Going through the process of rules for the teacher at the beginning of the year would be a great way to get to know your students and get to know what they value and respect from their authority figures.
ReplyDeleteI loved the idea of breaking down classroom expectations into the three categories as well. Goals are a great way to start out the year as well as a great way to keep on task as the year goes on and attention dwindles. The only part of this video I was not previously familiar with was actually introducing the classroom procedures, but now that I think about it - it is a fantastic idea. Students with various learning disabilities or neurological-based behavior problems would benefit most from having the procedures laid out for them at the beginning of the school year.
My question: Would you create these expectations in your first year of teaching and have those hold true throughout the rest of your career or refresh each year? Why?