Written June 2011

Portfolio Writing:

Classroom Management

Write a paper in which you discuss your management philosophy and style. What types of individual and group activities have you used? What are the factors of teaching that contribute to a well-managed classroom? What strategies do you use to encourage all students to participate and become intellectual risk takers in your class?

 

Classroom management comes first; without it, there can be no learning. In order to create and manage a stimulating, inclusive, and safe classroom, I implement interesting content in engaging ways, foster a caring and respectful learning community, and have a few solid rules.

I believe that the best defense is a good offense – in the form of interesting and engaging lessons. As documented extensively in my other Portfolio Writings, my favorite lessons connect literature to issues my students can help but find relevant. In the House on Mango Street, (read in my 10th grade class, which is 70% first or second generation immigrants) we explored the American Dream through a young Latina immigrant’s eyes. We addressed issues relevant to my students’ lives; the difference between “hoping” and “waiting” for dreams to come true; the variety of “American Dreams” held by different generations or immigrant groups. In a later A Raisin in the Sun unit, we connected back to this idea, comparing and contrasting the dreams of these two different immigrant groups from different eras. While we watched Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech, we color-coded which dreams he shared with each of the main characters of the book on paper copies of the speech, and compared and contrasted this historical figure with these fictional characters. Afterwards, students were charged with writing their own “I Have a Dream” speech about a current group of individuals struggling to attain “the American Dream”. The American Dream, civil rights, the differences and similarities between members of different races and cultures are all issues quite relevant to my students’ lives. These lessons are just a small portion of the poignant lessons I serve up to my students.

By creating individual assignments that allow students to connect to literature on a personal level, I am able to foster a caring classroom environment. From these assignments, students gain the opportunity to explore and reflect on their own identities, a favorite topic of most teenagers, and a critical one, as they are developing into adults. Also, such assignments give me the opportunity to learn more about my students so that I can better cater to their individual needs. From my detailed feedback on such assignments, the students realize that I care about them as individuals, and the more they open up to me. When students feel that I am personally invested in them, it not only benefits their well-being; they also want to learn from me, and are open to the assignments and activities that I present to them.

One activity critical to my classroom management is “the paragraph prompt”, which both engenders classroom respect, and gets students focused and ready to learn. When my hyperactive 9th-graders enter my classroom fresh from lunch, they immediately get to work silently writing a “five sentence plus” response to the prompt on the board. Prompts include questions ranging from “Would you rather be a bird or a fish. Why?” to “If you could be any member of your family, who would you be?” to “How do you think you could be a better friend?” After the time is up, I take a survey of the class when relevant (“Who put down that they would want to be their mom? Raise your hands.”), and invite individual students to share their responses. The rest of the class must listen respectfully. This exercise allows students to share aspects of their opinions, feelings and identities after lunch in a manner that is beneficial, creating an accepting class community in which students feel comfortable sharing their answers, both personal and academic. It also provides a smooth transition into our lesson for the day.

The to Kill a Mockingbird Mock Trial was one of my favorite group activities this year, as it provided every student with an important, collaborative role, involved both cooperation and competition, and required students to creatively apply their learning in a real-life problem-solving situation. The four different “trials” within the classroom provided a range of difficulty to accommodate different learners; one mimicked the original trial, whereas another involved a crime that minor in the novel and somewhat complicated. Similarly, the witness role was typically easier to prepare than the lawyer role, and each witness worked with their lawyer, which meant that I could pair students such that they could assist their partners, if necessary. Finally, a trial is inherently fun to watch; students were rapt as jurors, paying close attention to decide who “won”. Every watcher was respectful, because they knew that, sooner or later, they would be performing as well. This practical activity brought fiction to life, created a positive classroom climate in which everyone worked hard and was respectful, and brought my highly heterogeneous 10th grade class a little closer together.

Finally, in my classroom, I maintain three simple rules. They are implemented successful only in the context of a caring, respectful classroom community. I implement discipline in the spirit of my belief that students want to be successful, and that it is my role to help provide students with the skills necessary to attain success. The rules are:

1.     Let the teacher teach and the students learn.

2.     Actions equal consequences.

3.     Obey ASD and School rules.

The first rule recognizes the mission of the classroom; education. Whenever I have cited this rule, it has never provoked argument from my students, and almost always elicits the desired behavior. Secondly, rather than “punishments” for behaviors, I promote the idea of “consequences”, a perspective that places the responsibility for good or bad outcomes squarely on the students’ shoulders. When a student is behaving in an inappropriate behavior, I typically warn them, explain why the behavior is not okay (rule #1 or #3) and state the consequence for the continued behavior. Using this method, I have never had a student fail to comply with my requests – or consequences – and I am on good terms with all students for whom there were consequences, as I always debriefed the exchange with them afterward. I always end such exchanges with students by expressing that I am glad to have them in class and it is my urgent wish that they succeed.

To conclude, to create a fun, safe, learning environment, I create engaging lessons, foster an empathetic classroom community, and maintain fair and simple rules. When it comes down to it, students cannot learn without such an environment. However, when students are properly learning, such an environment is created. When it all goes smoothly, it is hard to tell which of these factors causes the other, but in my teaching practice, I will continue my earnest efforts to promote both.