The teacher provides a safe, challenging, and supportive learning environment for the student that encourages both individual efforts and productive collaboration with other students.
The teacher must develop a classroom environment where students can learn to respectfully and appropriately communicate and collaborate with other students. When students accept accountability for their individual learning as well as their roles within a group work environment, they acquire critical skills that will be needed in work place connections. I will foster this positive and supportive learning environment through the implementation and reinforcement of my Classroom Management Plan and through developing a classroom culture of respect. In addition, a priority for me will be getting to know my students more personally and developing relationships with them so they can feel the classroom is a safe place. Making these personal connections should also help me make the most appropriate learning decisions for the classroom.
Classroom Management Plan
By designing and implementing my classroom management plan, I will show students that I have high expectations for them and that I expect them to have high expectations for themselves. My purpose statement affirms this: “Our classroom will be a safe and encouraging place where we work together to learn. In this classroom, we recognize that each of us has a story and special talents that make us unique and contribute to a creative and challenging environment. While we may each learn differently, we are all capable of achieving our best when we support and respect each other.” The classroom managment plan is only as effective as the way in which it is implemented. I intend to focus on creating an inclusive, challenging, and supporting environment in the first few weeks of the school year by making sure that everyone understands the classroom rules and the consequences of not following them. These rules will also be reinforced throughout the year. While there will be non-negotiable aspects of the plan, other elements will be developed through discussions with each class. I will also continually reevaluate my classroom management plan to incorporate new situations and experiences as they arise.
Respect people. Respect property. Respect learning.
This audio file captures a discussion between two students in the classroom. They had differing interpretations of a poem they had just read, but each listened to the other and respectfully allowed him to express his opinion.
A critical component of my classroom management plan is respect: respecting people, respecting property, and respecting learning. The student who respects people will understand that each student in the classroom is different, possessing unique strengths, skills, and talents, and each has his or her own weaknesses, but each student is there to learn. The student who respects property understands that the tools in the classroom are there for the benefit and equal access of all who are there to learn. The student who respects learning will be engaged in the classroom and putting his/her best efforts into the learning, participating in discussions, completing assignments on time, and working collaboratively with other students. Respect can have different meanings to different students, so one of the first activities I will do in the classroom is invite students to discuss what respect means to them and come to a mutual understanding of the term. One way I can show respect to students and enable them to feel trust in their learning environment is by welcoming diverse opinions and encouraging students to respectfully allow other students’ thoughts to be expressed without ridicule or condemnation.
“My Story”
Another way I can build the trust and respect that is required to develop positive and productive learning environments is by getting to know my students more personally. When I better understand the diverse backgrounds and experiences of the students in the classroom, I can better choose strategies and materials that will enhance their learning experience. I introduced the “My Story” assignment for MAUS not only as a way for students to connect with the idea of an author telling his story, but also as a way for me to get to know the students as individuals and find a way to build a relationship with them. I began by telling them a part of my story and then added a chapter each week so they could learn more about me. Then, for each student’s story that was submitted, I identified a personal connection and responded to the student with an explanation of that connection. For some, it was easy to identify and talk about something we had in common. For others, it meant researching something in their stories so that my responses could show them that I was truly interested in what they had chosen to tell me.