"If a child can't learn the way we teach, maybe we should teach the way they learn." Ignacio Estrada
Monday, March 28, 2011
Classroom Management
How does the physical arrangement of the classroom impact management? How do you think adapting student assignments (for those with learning disabilities or those who need enrichment) has an impact on classroom management?
The physical arrangement of the classroom has a huge impact on management. The class that I am in is arranged in three groups with four desks at each group. Some of the groups have very chatty students, so that would be where management would be difficult. It would also be hard if you wanted the students to work individually and being arranged in groups would make it easier for students to cheat if they chose to do so. On a positive note, being arranged in groups would make group projects or assignments easier to accomplish.
The students with adapted assignments might require more attention or additional instruction for their adapted assignments. Therefore, more time will need to be spent with them and less attention on the other students.
Physical arrangement of the classroom can have a rather large impact on classroom management. First of all, high traffic areas need to be strategically placed so as not to draw attention to those areas. If a student arrives late, you do not want them walking across you to sharpen their pencil or throw away a Kleenex while you are giving a lesson. Another example is the placement of the teacher’s desk. It should be placed in a location that the teacher can see all the students and not in a position that is directed away from the students. You never know what they could be doing behind your back! When arranging the student’s desks, teachers need to take into account what type of learning they will be doing most often and what feeling they want to give to their classroom environment. If the teacher plans on implementing a lot of group-based learning and enforcing a sense of community within his/her classroom, then group seating may be most appropriate. The student’s desks should also be placed so they are able to clearly see where the teacher plans on doing most of his/her lessons, typically facing the white board, projector, or any other type of large display. Of course, once the year begins changes are going to have to be made accordingly. A teacher may realize that some students may not work best next to each other and a seating chart may need to be modified.
Adapting assignments may affect classroom management because it may take more time to prepare not only one assignment for the majority of the class, but also other variations for those students with disabilities or in need of enrichment. Providing instructions for those same assignments may need to be directed one-on-one rather than in front of the whole class. It may be a good idea to explain to the class why an individual student may have a different assignment than the rest of the class to prevent any questions or problems in the future.
When thinking about the impact of the physical arrangment of a classroom, there's many things to keep in consideration. The physical arrangement of a classroom determines many things such as how well students can see the board, how well they can see and hear the teacher, how effectively they can see and talk to other students, how easily they can reach materials such as a pencil sharpener or garbage, along with how well they can work independently without being distracted when they need to. Materials or devices needed often should be set up/stored in an area where students will distract the rest of the class the least, being as out of the way as possible. Simple changes such as how the desks are arranged can greatly determine the type of environment you as a teacher are trying to create. By setting the desks in a half-circle like this classroom is arranged currently, it facilitates collaboration since students can easily see each other to discuss, but still has the teacher up at the whiteboard or elmo as the main focal point. Other little factors like having the windows on the side of the classroom provides less distraction so students' minds don't waunder to thinking about recess activities or be distracted by commotions outside the classroom.
By adapting student assignments for those with learning disabilities or students who need enrichment, the teacher will need to plan his/her time in order to implement those changes, affecting classroom management. Not only will the teacher need more planning time for lessons or need to come up with extra materials, but during class the teacher will need to cater more to the student(s) requiring extra help. Being available and paying attention to those students needing extra monitoring will help the classroom environment if the whole group of students have as small as a gap between scores as possible. If all of the students are achieving and understanding a certain level of material, the teacher can then move up to the next level, beiing confident all of the students are ready and can be successful, some just needing a little differentiated instruction requiring more planning on the teacher's part. The classroom environment will continue to overall be a positive place to be if all students are experiencing success in some way and feel as though they are being understood by the teacher.
Physical arrangement of the classroom impact management in many different ways. This can make or break a student from their concentration levels. Where children are placed in the classroom can decipher whether they can see the board, hear or see the teacher, get distracted from other students, get distracted from outside factors such as people in the hallway or outside, etc. There is also other things to think of in the physical arrangement of a classroom such as posters, decoratives, pencil sharpener, and the teachers desk. You do not want students getting up randomly and distracting other students so they can sharpen their pencil.
Adapting lessons for different students can impact the classroom management greatly. I see all the time that students wonder why they are not getting things that other students are getting. This distracts a lot of students from what they are doing. It is also a lot of extra work for a teacher to try and make those accomadations in a more discrete way so that those students don't get singled out, feel left out, or embarrased. I feel as making these adaptions are very important because I have seen kids with special needs just give up because they don't get it and a teacher wont give them extra help. On the other hand I have also seen enrichment kids that don't get pushed hard enough so they become known as a "slacker" because they are not being challenged. I feel as if keeping up with the diversity of a classroom is one of the hardest things that you can do, and it effects the classroom management in more of an emotional attitude than a certain physical behavior.
I never even thought about enrichment kids who are not pushed hard enough. There are so many of these students out there and if they are not pushed then they will stop trying because they do not feel as if the teacher is giving them any sort of attention. A student needs to feel challenged in order to learn the classroom material.
The arrangement of a classroom is very important to the type of learning that will be going on in the classroom. If a teacher plans on having a lot of group work, clustering desks together is probably best, so that when group work times comes, students don't have to move around. If it's going to be more "listening" to teacher, then rows is probably best. This isn't how rooms are always set up though. Classrooms set up in rows can move around to work together, or they can easily work in partners.
Often, students who need adapted assignments need some adapted instruction. This can have a big effect on classroom management. If the teacher needs to spend a lot of one-on-one time with a particular students, it may be easy for the rest of the class to get off topic. If a classroom is well structured, this may not be a problem. As long as the rest of the class has something productive to do, this shouldn't be too big of an issue.
The physical arrangement of the classroom can greatly impact management. Arrangement of the classroom should be deliberate and purposeful. First of all, teachers should take into account the direction in which their students’ desks face. Will they be able to see the white board? Will they be tempted to talk if they are sitting across from each other? Will they be distracted if they face toward the windows? The desk arrangement is a crucial aspect of the physical environment. In my classroom, the desks are arranged in three groups of four to five desks. The groups are placed far enough apart from each other that there is plenty of room for teachers and students to walk around. Additionally, they are not near any distracting classroom materials that could divert their attention. The students are also strategically placed so they are not sitting by classmates that easily distract them.
Adapting assignments to fit the needs of students with a large spectrum of abilities also influences classroom management. Differentiating assignments requires more time spent in and out of class. The teacher must devote more time to developing assignments for students who need enrichment as well as students with learning disabilities. Even though it takes more time, it may be helpful in solving classroom management issues. If students with disabilities are feeling frustrated by an assignment that is too challenging for them, they may give up. On the other hand, students who need enrichment might feel bored with an assignment that does not challenge them. Students who are frustrated and bored are likely to misbehave. Adapting assignments to fit their needs and appropriately challenging them can help limit misbehavior by keeping their minds engaged in the activity.
I agree that students with special needs need to be focused on, but I do not agree that kids that do not need adaptives should have less time spent on them. I feel as a teacher you need to plan out your lessons that you are helping every student and make sure that those students who need specials, get them. I have seen many students get agitated because teachers will spend so much time on a couple of students and so they will act out in the classroom because they want the attention because they are not getting it. There could be other factors into that, but I feel you have to make sure that every student is getting what they need.
I think physical arrangement in the classroom is very important in all grade levels. As humans, we all get distracted, and when arranging a classroom setting it should focus on having the students attention to the front and not distracted. I think the classroom that I am in now has an excellent arrangement. The students are all facing the board and Elmo, which makes it very easy for them to see. It also helps the teacher see all the students instead of having some behind him or her. There is plenty of spare for the teacher to walk around so he or she is not just standing up front in one spot. Anywhere the teacher stands though, all the students are visible, which is very important for management. If a teacher can't see a student, they are able to act out and not do work at the best of their ability. There are also tables that aren't always used around the classroom, which can help students spread out when working with partners or even individually when they need more room.
Students with adapted assignments do impact the classroom management because students that need extra help, in the classroom I'm in, are usually taken to the back table and working step by step with a teacher friend or teacher. It takes the attention away from the classroom as a whole to only one or two students. Teachers need to be able to manage both, the students who are working in their desks and the students who need extra help.
The physical arrangement can easily make or break a classroom. You have to worry about seating your students next to things that will easily distract them such as the windows, computers, their friends, books, or the hallways. The classroom I am in has three pods of four desks. I absolutely love how the desks are set up! The students are seated by other students that the teacher knows and trusts that they will be able to get the job done.A good thing about grouping desks like this is that it leaves and open walk way through-out the classroom. It is also easier for the students to do group work and I believe students learn and attain more when doing group work and discussing the content rather than individual work. The students are not sitting to close to distracting items so they are focused on the teacher and her lessons.
A disadvantage of having pods is that they can easily get distracted by their group partners and will focus more on the student across from them rather than the teacher giving instructions. Materials and supplies such as pencils, markers, and pencil sharpeners should be placed at an area that when students use it they are not distracting others while getting up and walking there.
I believe adapting assignments to fit to each and every students needs is very important and at the same time can be time consuming. The teacher might have to take time both inside and outside of the classroom to create the lesson plans. Not all students are at the same pace. Some assignments might be to hard for some students that they get frustrated and quit but at the same time other students might fly through that assignment and not put a lot of effort into it because they thought it was to easy. Students with disabilities may need one-on-one instruction with the teacher. So teachers have to find a middle ground that accommodates both the students with disabilities and the students who are misbehaving because the assignments are to easy.
I can definitely see where kids can act out if the teacher is paying attention to the students who need extra help and kind of ignoring the rest. That's where management comes into play. Teachers need to know how to divide their time with the students who understand and the students who need extra help. While the teacher is working with students who need extra help, he or she need to still keep an eye out on the rest of the classroom because they might understand one question but we stuck on the rest, and that's when the attention needs to be shifted back to the whole classroom. I find my level two teacher doing a good job with working with students in the back and still paying attention to the whole classroom. I think it just takes time and practice.
Katrina, I agree with you when you said that the way the desks are set up determines the type of classroom environment the teacher is trying to create. Personally, when I think of desks that are all separate and in rows one by one I think of not a lot of student based and more teacher based learning. Desks that are set up in a half circle invites the teacher or speaker to sit in the middle and be the center of attention and the focus point for the students. When I see desks that are set up in pods I think of student based learning. The students can easily work together on projects and can enhance their social skills.
To add to my previous statement about classroom arrangements, and to agree with other comments, there are many other ways a classroom can be affected. Students need be placed a in fashion so that each student, no matter where there are sitting, can see and hear all the information being presented. Also, if you feel there are more "troublesome" students in the classroom, you may want to place them closest to where you, the teacher, will be a majority of the time. I have seen many teachers call students to sit next to them or in a desk close to them during the class time. If the classroom is already arranged in a way that can make it possible, it would be more simple to just place that student near you to begin with. If the student feels they can't get away with doing something that will get them in trouble, they will be less likely to try to do anything.
An alternate form of effective classroom management I have quickly picked up on my first week at Price Lab is the cue used in my class when students need to direct their attention to the teacher and/or speaker. The cue is simply, "Give me five." I've noticed the students know exactly what the cue means and attend to it rather quickly. They raise their hand and are ready to listen. Simple cuing strategies such as "give me five" can be extremely useful for classroom management. Other forms of this strategy I have witnessed are chimes, bells, clapping patterns, and other catch phrases. I like this cue specifically because the combination of the cue and the raised hand ties into the Five Character Expectations of Price Lab perfectly! I am curious if a majority of the teachers use this same cue due to the appropriate ties it has with PLS. Seeing how effective the cuing strategy is, I will be sure to use this cue while teaching my lessons, if needed.
This week in my class, I observed several math lessons. I focused on the classroom management strategies I saw being used throughout the lessons. Lauren, I also quickly picked up on the "give me five" cueing strategy. Additionally, I like that it refers to the Five Character Expectations of Price Lab (respect, responsibility, integrity/honesty, learning, and attitude). I also noticed my mentor teacher often reminds students of their expectations. The students helped develop the expectations themselves at the beginning of the year, so they know what they are and have some ownership over them. Another strategy is to move students if they are getting distracted by the person beside them. My mentor teacher moved students around and placed disruptive students next to her. These were just a few of the effective classroom management strategies I picked up on during my first week.
I believe that the physical arrangement of the classroom has a huge impact on classroom management. The way your classroom is arranged will determine how the classroom is managed day to day. The arrangement of the classroom including items such as: the desks, centers, resources, the front of the room, where the teacher’s personal items are located, etc will affect how the students and teacher work together to manage the classroom. Although there are many different ways to arrange a classroom, I do believe in variety and change over the course of the year. The students need to have their desk moved occasionally so they are able to work with other students and experience different learning strategies. As a teacher, I will want my room to be open to easily have conversation with one another as an entire class, but to also have plenty of manipulative supplies and resource material available to the students at all time. I believe it is important to keep learning disabilities in mind when arranging a classroom. Many of these students will have assistance throughout the day that you will have to open and willing to work with. This will be a great experience and change to have as a teacher. Although there is a difference in learning academically, there should be little to no different in a teaching style when applying classroom management to students with a learning disability. Many of these students will need different learning strategies and individualize attention on their own, but this does not mean that they should be treated any differently or that your classroom management is changed at all.
I also agree that the students who are not receiving the one on one attention may act out when the teacher is giving extra help to the student who needs it the most. Classroom management is important when dividing time and realizing which students really do need the one on one help. It is important to not neglect the students who are achieving the expectations of what is being asked. Praising them and providing them with appropriate attention is as equally important. I have witnessed this many times over the past week without even realizing it. I just hope as a teacher myself I will know how to manage time and use it appropriately to my students.
I have been spending a lot of time observing Ava and Ian and somewhat different learning and working strategies that could be worked in with changing some seating around. Ian seems to just blow through all of the math problems and with great accuracy, because Ava and Ian sit next to each other and he excels at math so well Ava seems to somewhat be relying on Ian to complete the work. I do think however that she is very good with math and division but that she takes the easy way out of doing the work and if seats were changed she could work independently on the actual problem, more thinking would be done by her helping her in the long run when it comes down to tasks that include more problem solving skills.
In response to what Bethany said earlier about the arrangements of desk, also relating somewhat to my post about Ava and Ian I think changing the way the seats are grouped could be beneficial to the class. In all of the lessons I have observed, most of them have been able to be taught with pairs of two children in each group. This is true except for the Math lesson that was taught with groups of four I believe? Changing the arrangements of seats in two so that both students work side by side instead of face to face could limit some of the distractions for the two students so they are not as easily tempted to talk to one another. There are also a lot of distractions that take place below the desks with students kicking each other as well as dropping things so they can play underneath the desks, and placing objects into each others desks. This could help ease the process of teaching to the class in its entirety
Jen, I agree that some kids are not challeneged enough in the classroom and hence eventually stop trying. When I think about the challenges I will someday have in my classroom, I often focus my attention on students that will be falling behind and ways in which I can try to keep them on track with their scores, rather than what I will need to possibly do with students who are excelling more than the rest. I need to equally spend my attention on both kinds of students!
Brienna, you bring up a great point about the arrangement of the desks and whether the arrangements are more student-centered or teacher-centered. I personally prefer my students in groups so they can collaborate with each other, which occurs on a daily basis. I know that they are more chatty this way and there are more possibilities of distractions, but in order to have a student-centered classroom where collaboration is essential, this is what I feel is the best way to have the desks arranged to accomplish this goal. You have to decide for yourself what type of classroom you want to have and what arrangement would be the best for your goals for your students.
The physical arrangement in a classroom is very important. In some cases the students need to have their own space and not be in such close contact. In other circumstances I think that students need to be in groups because most of the work that the teacher has them doing is group work. By having them doing group work may benefit some students because they can see other ways of learning that they might not have thought about. Other students work better on their own and separated from others because they need that space and get distracted or tend to distract other people. I think that by adapting lesson plans to work better for different students does in fact effect the management in a classroom because you have to have a classroom accessable for all students in your class.
The physical arrangement of the classroom has a huge impact on management. The class that I am in is arranged in three groups with four desks at each group. Some of the groups have very chatty students, so that would be where management would be difficult. It would also be hard if you wanted the students to work individually and being arranged in groups would make it easier for students to cheat if they chose to do so. On a positive note, being arranged in groups would make group projects or assignments easier to accomplish.
ReplyDeleteThe students with adapted assignments might require more attention or additional instruction for their adapted assignments. Therefore, more time will need to be spent with them and less attention on the other students.
Jennifer Rich
Physical arrangement of the classroom can have a rather large impact on classroom management. First of all, high traffic areas need to be strategically placed so as not to draw attention to those areas. If a student arrives late, you do not want them walking across you to sharpen their pencil or throw away a Kleenex while you are giving a lesson. Another example is the placement of the teacher’s desk. It should be placed in a location that the teacher can see all the students and not in a position that is directed away from the students. You never know what they could be doing behind your back! When arranging the student’s desks, teachers need to take into account what type of learning they will be doing most often and what feeling they want to give to their classroom environment. If the teacher plans on implementing a lot of group-based learning and enforcing a sense of community within his/her classroom, then group seating may be most appropriate. The student’s desks should also be placed so they are able to clearly see where the teacher plans on doing most of his/her lessons, typically facing the white board, projector, or any other type of large display. Of course, once the year begins changes are going to have to be made accordingly. A teacher may realize that some students may not work best next to each other and a seating chart may need to be modified.
ReplyDeleteAdapting assignments may affect classroom management because it may take more time to prepare not only one assignment for the majority of the class, but also other variations for those students with disabilities or in need of enrichment. Providing instructions for those same assignments may need to be directed one-on-one rather than in front of the whole class. It may be a good idea to explain to the class why an individual student may have a different assignment than the rest of the class to prevent any questions or problems in the future.
Lauren Hanzelka
When thinking about the impact of the physical arrangment of a classroom, there's many things to keep in consideration. The physical arrangement of a classroom determines many things such as how well students can see the board, how well they can see and hear the teacher, how effectively they can see and talk to other students, how easily they can reach materials such as a pencil sharpener or garbage, along with how well they can work independently without being distracted when they need to. Materials or devices needed often should be set up/stored in an area where students will distract the rest of the class the least, being as out of the way as possible.
ReplyDeleteSimple changes such as how the desks are arranged can greatly determine the type of environment you as a teacher are trying to create. By setting the desks in a half-circle like this classroom is arranged currently, it facilitates collaboration since students can easily see each other to discuss, but still has the teacher up at the whiteboard or elmo as the main focal point. Other little factors like having the windows on the side of the classroom provides less distraction so students' minds don't waunder to thinking about recess activities or be distracted by commotions outside the classroom.
By adapting student assignments for those with learning disabilities or students who need enrichment, the teacher will need to plan his/her time in order to implement those changes, affecting classroom management. Not only will the teacher need more planning time for lessons or need to come up with extra materials, but during class the teacher will need to cater more to the student(s) requiring extra help. Being available and paying attention to those students needing extra monitoring will help the classroom environment if the whole group of students have as small as a gap between scores as possible. If all of the students are achieving and understanding a certain level of material, the teacher can then move up to the next level, beiing confident all of the students are ready and can be successful, some just needing a little differentiated instruction requiring more planning on the teacher's part. The classroom environment will continue to overall be a positive place to be if all students are experiencing success in some way and feel as though they are being understood by the teacher.
Katrina Bauer
Physical arrangement of the classroom impact management in many different ways. This can make or break a student from their concentration levels. Where children are placed in the classroom can decipher whether they can see the board, hear or see the teacher, get distracted from other students, get distracted from outside factors such as people in the hallway or outside, etc. There is also other things to think of in the physical arrangement of a classroom such as posters, decoratives, pencil sharpener, and the teachers desk. You do not want students getting up randomly and distracting other students so they can sharpen their pencil.
ReplyDeleteAdapting lessons for different students can impact the classroom management greatly. I see all the time that students wonder why they are not getting things that other students are getting. This distracts a lot of students from what they are doing. It is also a lot of extra work for a teacher to try and make those accomadations in a more discrete way so that those students don't get singled out, feel left out, or embarrased. I feel as making these adaptions are very important because I have seen kids with special needs just give up because they don't get it and a teacher wont give them extra help. On the other hand I have also seen enrichment kids that don't get pushed hard enough so they become known as a "slacker" because they are not being challenged. I feel as if keeping up with the diversity of a classroom is one of the hardest things that you can do, and it effects the classroom management in more of an emotional attitude than a certain physical behavior.
Kristina Srog
I never even thought about enrichment kids who are not pushed hard enough. There are so many of these students out there and if they are not pushed then they will stop trying because they do not feel as if the teacher is giving them any sort of attention. A student needs to feel challenged in order to learn the classroom material.
ReplyDeleteJennifer Rich
The arrangement of a classroom is very important to the type of learning that will be going on in the classroom. If a teacher plans on having a lot of group work, clustering desks together is probably best, so that when group work times comes, students don't have to move around. If it's going to be more "listening" to teacher, then rows is probably best. This isn't how rooms are always set up though. Classrooms set up in rows can move around to work together, or they can easily work in partners.
ReplyDeleteOften, students who need adapted assignments need some adapted instruction. This can have a big effect on classroom management. If the teacher needs to spend a lot of one-on-one time with a particular students, it may be easy for the rest of the class to get off topic. If a classroom is well structured, this may not be a problem. As long as the rest of the class has something productive to do, this shouldn't be too big of an issue.
Kaitlin Kivell
The physical arrangement of the classroom can greatly impact management. Arrangement of the classroom should be deliberate and purposeful. First of all, teachers should take into account the direction in which their students’ desks face. Will they be able to see the white board? Will they be tempted to talk if they are sitting across from each other? Will they be distracted if they face toward the windows? The desk arrangement is a crucial aspect of the physical environment. In my classroom, the desks are arranged in three groups of four to five desks. The groups are placed far enough apart from each other that there is plenty of room for teachers and students to walk around. Additionally, they are not near any distracting classroom materials that could divert their attention. The students are also strategically placed so they are not sitting by classmates that easily distract them.
ReplyDeleteAdapting assignments to fit the needs of students with a large spectrum of abilities also influences classroom management. Differentiating assignments requires more time spent in and out of class. The teacher must devote more time to developing assignments for students who need enrichment as well as students with learning disabilities. Even though it takes more time, it may be helpful in solving classroom management issues. If students with disabilities are feeling frustrated by an assignment that is too challenging for them, they may give up. On the other hand, students who need enrichment might feel bored with an assignment that does not challenge them. Students who are frustrated and bored are likely to misbehave. Adapting assignments to fit their needs and appropriately challenging them can help limit misbehavior by keeping their minds engaged in the activity.
Bethany Olson
I agree that students with special needs need to be focused on, but I do not agree that kids that do not need adaptives should have less time spent on them. I feel as a teacher you need to plan out your lessons that you are helping every student and make sure that those students who need specials, get them. I have seen many students get agitated because teachers will spend so much time on a couple of students and so they will act out in the classroom because they want the attention because they are not getting it. There could be other factors into that, but I feel you have to make sure that every student is getting what they need.
ReplyDeleteKristina Srog
I think physical arrangement in the classroom is very important in all grade levels. As humans, we all get distracted, and when arranging a classroom setting it should focus on having the students attention to the front and not distracted. I think the classroom that I am in now has an excellent arrangement. The students are all facing the board and Elmo, which makes it very easy for them to see. It also helps the teacher see all the students instead of having some behind him or her. There is plenty of spare for the teacher to walk around so he or she is not just standing up front in one spot. Anywhere the teacher stands though, all the students are visible, which is very important for management. If a teacher can't see a student, they are able to act out and not do work at the best of their ability. There are also tables that aren't always used around the classroom, which can help students spread out when working with partners or even individually when they need more room.
ReplyDeleteStudents with adapted assignments do impact the classroom management because students that need extra help, in the classroom I'm in, are usually taken to the back table and working step by step with a teacher friend or teacher. It takes the attention away from the classroom as a whole to only one or two students. Teachers need to be able to manage both, the students who are working in their desks and the students who need extra help.
The physical arrangement can easily make or break a classroom. You have to worry about seating your students next to things that will easily distract them such as the windows, computers, their friends, books, or the hallways. The classroom I am in has three pods of four desks. I absolutely love how the desks are set up! The students are seated by other students that the teacher knows and trusts that they will be able to get the job done.A good thing about grouping desks like this is that it leaves and open walk way through-out the classroom. It is also easier for the students to do group work and I believe students learn and attain more when doing group work and discussing the content rather than individual work. The students are not sitting to close to distracting items so they are focused on the teacher and her lessons.
ReplyDeleteA disadvantage of having pods is that they can easily get distracted by their group partners and will focus more on the student across from them rather than the teacher giving instructions. Materials and supplies such as pencils, markers, and pencil sharpeners should be placed at an area that when students use it they are not distracting others while getting up and walking there.
I believe adapting assignments to fit to each and every students needs is very important and at the same time can be time consuming. The teacher might have to take time both inside and outside of the classroom to create the lesson plans. Not all students are at the same pace. Some assignments might be to hard for some students that they get frustrated and quit but at the same time other students might fly through that assignment and not put a lot of effort into it because they thought it was to easy. Students with disabilities may need one-on-one instruction with the teacher. So teachers have to find a middle ground that accommodates both the students with disabilities and the students who are misbehaving because the assignments are to easy.
I can definitely see where kids can act out if the teacher is paying attention to the students who need extra help and kind of ignoring the rest. That's where management comes into play. Teachers need to know how to divide their time with the students who understand and the students who need extra help. While the teacher is working with students who need extra help, he or she need to still keep an eye out on the rest of the classroom because they might understand one question but we stuck on the rest, and that's when the attention needs to be shifted back to the whole classroom. I find my level two teacher doing a good job with working with students in the back and still paying attention to the whole classroom. I think it just takes time and practice.
ReplyDeleteKatrina, I agree with you when you said that the way the desks are set up determines the type of classroom environment the teacher is trying to create. Personally, when I think of desks that are all separate and in rows one by one I think of not a lot of student based and more teacher based learning. Desks that are set up in a half circle invites the teacher or speaker to sit in the middle and be the center of attention and the focus point for the students. When I see desks that are set up in pods I think of student based learning. The students can easily work together on projects and can enhance their social skills.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteTo add to my previous statement about classroom arrangements, and to agree with other comments, there are many other ways a classroom can be affected. Students need be placed a in fashion so that each student, no matter where there are sitting, can see and hear all the information being presented. Also, if you feel there are more "troublesome" students in the classroom, you may want to place them closest to where you, the teacher, will be a majority of the time. I have seen many teachers call students to sit next to them or in a desk close to them during the class time. If the classroom is already arranged in a way that can make it possible, it would be more simple to just place that student near you to begin with. If the student feels they can't get away with doing something that will get them in trouble, they will be less likely to try to do anything.
ReplyDeleteKaitlin Kivell
An alternate form of effective classroom management I have quickly picked up on my first week at Price Lab is the cue used in my class when students need to direct their attention to the teacher and/or speaker. The cue is simply, "Give me five." I've noticed the students know exactly what the cue means and attend to it rather quickly. They raise their hand and are ready to listen. Simple cuing strategies such as "give me five" can be extremely useful for classroom management. Other forms of this strategy I have witnessed are chimes, bells, clapping patterns, and other catch phrases. I like this cue specifically because the combination of the cue and the raised hand ties into the Five Character Expectations of Price Lab perfectly! I am curious if a majority of the teachers use this same cue due to the appropriate ties it has with PLS. Seeing how effective the cuing strategy is, I will be sure to use this cue while teaching my lessons, if needed.
ReplyDeleteThis week in my class, I observed several math lessons. I focused on the classroom management strategies I saw being used throughout the lessons. Lauren, I also quickly picked up on the "give me five" cueing strategy. Additionally, I like that it refers to the Five Character Expectations of Price Lab (respect, responsibility, integrity/honesty, learning, and attitude). I also noticed my mentor teacher often reminds students of their expectations. The students helped develop the expectations themselves at the beginning of the year, so they know what they are and have some ownership over them. Another strategy is to move students if they are getting distracted by the person beside them. My mentor teacher moved students around and placed disruptive students next to her. These were just a few of the effective classroom management strategies I picked up on during my first week.
ReplyDeleteBethany Olson
I believe that the physical arrangement of the classroom has a huge impact on classroom management. The way your classroom is arranged will determine how the classroom is managed day to day. The arrangement of the classroom including items such as: the desks, centers, resources, the front of the room, where the teacher’s personal items are located, etc will affect how the students and teacher work together to manage the classroom. Although there are many different ways to arrange a classroom, I do believe in variety and change over the course of the year. The students need to have their desk moved occasionally so they are able to work with other students and experience different learning strategies. As a teacher, I will want my room to be open to easily have conversation with one another as an entire class, but to also have plenty of manipulative supplies and resource material available to the students at all time.
ReplyDeleteI believe it is important to keep learning disabilities in mind when arranging a classroom. Many of these students will have assistance throughout the day that you will have to open and willing to work with. This will be a great experience and change to have as a teacher. Although there is a difference in learning academically, there should be little to no different in a teaching style when applying classroom management to students with a learning disability. Many of these students will need different learning strategies and individualize attention on their own, but this does not mean that they should be treated any differently or that your classroom management is changed at all.
I also agree that the students who are not receiving the one on one attention may act out when the teacher is giving extra help to the student who needs it the most. Classroom management is important when dividing time and realizing which students really do need the one on one help. It is important to not neglect the students who are achieving the expectations of what is being asked. Praising them and providing them with appropriate attention is as equally important. I have witnessed this many times over the past week without even realizing it. I just hope as a teacher myself I will know how to manage time and use it appropriately to my students.
ReplyDeleteI have been spending a lot of time observing Ava and Ian and somewhat different learning and working strategies that could be worked in with changing some seating around. Ian seems to just blow through all of the math problems and with great accuracy, because Ava and Ian sit next to each other and he excels at math so well Ava seems to somewhat be relying on Ian to complete the work. I do think however that she is very good with math and division but that she takes the easy way out of doing the work and if seats were changed she could work independently on the actual problem, more thinking would be done by her helping her in the long run when it comes down to tasks that include more problem solving skills.
ReplyDeleteConor Bertling
In response to what Bethany said earlier about the arrangements of desk, also relating somewhat to my post about Ava and Ian I think changing the way the seats are grouped could be beneficial to the class. In all of the lessons I have observed, most of them have been able to be taught with pairs of two children in each group. This is true except for the Math lesson that was taught with groups of four I believe? Changing the arrangements of seats in two so that both students work side by side instead of face to face could limit some of the distractions for the two students so they are not as easily tempted to talk to one another. There are also a lot of distractions that take place below the desks with students kicking each other as well as dropping things so they can play underneath the desks, and placing objects into each others desks. This could help ease the process of teaching to the class in its entirety
ReplyDeleteJen, I agree that some kids are not challeneged enough in the classroom and hence eventually stop trying. When I think about the challenges I will someday have in my classroom, I often focus my attention on students that will be falling behind and ways in which I can try to keep them on track with their scores, rather than what I will need to possibly do with students who are excelling more than the rest. I need to equally spend my attention on both kinds of students!
ReplyDeleteBrienna, you bring up a great point about the arrangement of the desks and whether the arrangements are more student-centered or teacher-centered. I personally prefer my students in groups so they can collaborate with each other, which occurs on a daily basis. I know that they are more chatty this way and there are more possibilities of distractions, but in order to have a student-centered classroom where collaboration is essential, this is what I feel is the best way to have the desks arranged to accomplish this goal. You have to decide for yourself what type of classroom you want to have and what arrangement would be the best for your goals for your students.
ReplyDeleteThe physical arrangement in a classroom is very important. In some cases the students need to have their own space and not be in such close contact. In other circumstances I think that students need to be in groups because most of the work that the teacher has them doing is group work. By having them doing group work may benefit some students because they can see other ways of learning that they might not have thought about. Other students work better on their own and separated from others because they need that space and get distracted or tend to distract other people. I think that by adapting lesson plans to work better for different students does in fact effect the management in a classroom because you have to have a classroom accessable for all students in your class.
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