Chapter 11 Creating Learning Environments

1. Chapter 11Creating Learning Environments • Cathy is the class rebel of the ninth grade. She attempts to undercut all authority figures, especially her history teacher. Today she is making sarcastic remarks to her best friend while the teacher lectures. The teacher says, “All right, Cathy, I’ve put up with your wisecracks for as long as I can. Even a teacher runs out of patience sooner or later. Now shut up.”

2. Characteristics of Classrooms • 1. Multidimensional: individuals with differing goals, performing various tasks within particular time pressures. • 2. Simultaneity: many things happening at once. • 3. Immediacy: very fast pace. • 4. Unpredictability: even with best plans, disruptions are likely. • 5. Public: students evaluating interactions between students and teacher. • 6. Histories: current events often depend on past.

3. Gain Students’ Cooperation • Gaining cooperation: product of many managerial skills, not merely controlling behavior. • Age-related needs: four levels of classroom management: • 1. Early elementary grades: direct teaching of rules and procedures. • 2. Middle elementary grades: time spent monitoring and maintaining management system; less time on direct teaching of rules.

4. 3. Late elementary-early high school: motivating students concerned with peers; channeling challenges to authority productively. • 4. Late high school: fitting curriculum to student interest and abilities; helping students become more self-managing in learning.

5. Goals of Classroom Management • 1. More time for learning • Much time lost to interruptions and rough transitions. • Significant positive correlation between content taught and student learning. • Learning is highly correlated with amount of engaged time (time on task; time spent attending actively to specific learning tasks).

6. Goals of Classroom Management Continued… • 2. Access to learning • Explicit participation structures: rules defining participation in various activities. • Teachers need awareness and communication of rules. • 3. Management for self-management: help students learn to manage themselves.

7. Creating a Positive Learning Environment • Rules and Procedures Required • Procedures: describe how to accomplish activities in the classroom. • 1. Administrative routines: lunch count, etc. • 2. Student movement: entering and leaving room • 3. Housekeeping: taking care of classroom and personal items

8. 4. Routines for accomplishing lessons: collecting and distributing papers • 5. Interactions between teacher and students • 6. Talk among friends

9. Rules: expected and forbidden actions in the classroom • Please get with a few classmates who plan to teach at about the same grade level that you plan to teach. Design a plan for creating classroom rules for your future classrooms. How would you go about this task? What specific rules would you enforce? How would you let the students know your rules and the consequences for breaking them?

10. Rules for Elementary Schools • 1. Be polite and helpful. • 2. Respect other peoples’ property. • 3. Listen quietly while others are speaking. • 4. Do not hit, shove, or hurt others. • 5. Obey all rules. • (What is missing from this list?)

11. Rules for Secondary Schools • 1. Bring all needed materials to class. • 2. Be in your seat and ready to work when the bell rings. • 3. Respect and be polite to everyone. • 4. Respect other peoples’ property. • 5. Listen and stay seated while someone else is talking. • 6. Obey all school rules.

12. Consequences • 1. Determine beforehand the consequences for following or breaking rules. • 2. Logical consequences: have student go back and do it right. • 3. Consequences should be clear and enforceable. • 4. Who sets the rules and consequences? (See Table 11.2)

13. Consequences • Please go back to the rules you devised earlier. Get together with the same classmates and determine the consequence for breaking each rule you created.

14. Seven Categories of Penalties for Students • 1. Expressions of disappointment (student needs to like you). • 2. Loss of privileges (homework during recess). • 3. Exclusion from the group (for students distracting others). • 4. Written reflections on the problem (journals, essays; how behavior effects others). • 5. Detentions (to talk about behavior; high school usually used as punishment).

15. Penalties continued… • 6. Visits to the principal’s office (expert teachers seldom use this). • 7. Contact with parents (repeated pattern or problems; should be used to help and support student, not to punish student). • What is the best penalty for catching a student chewing gum?

16. Getting Started: The First Weeks of Class • Effective elementary teachers: • 1. Organized from the first day • 2. Gave children interesting tasks • 3. Monitored behavior as a whole group • 4. Taught rules! • 5. Provided consequences for misbehavior immediately.

17. Ineffective teachers for elementary students: • 1. Gave vague or complicated rules • 2. Provided inconsistent consequences for both positive and negative behaviors • 3. Procedures were not taught or practiced • 4. Teachers frequently left the room

18. Effective Managers for Secondary Students: • 1. Focused on establishing rules • 2. Clearly communicated standards for academic work and class behavior • 3. Dealt with infractions of rules quickly • 4. Students in low achieving classes were given a variety of tasks

19. Maintaining a Good Learning Environment • Encouraging Engagement • 1. Lesson format effects involvement • 2. Involvement without supervision • 3. Prevention is the best medicine

20. Characteristics of Effective Managers: • 1. Are “withit” (aware of what is happening in the classroom) • 2. Stop minor disruptions before they become major • 3. Avoid blaming the wrong student for misbehavior (target errors… Sister Freun) • 4. Avoid timing errors (waiting too long before intervening in misbehavior0 • 5. When multiple problems occur, deal with the most serious one first

21. Characteristics of Effective Managers Continued… • 6. Keep track of and supervise many activities at once (overlapping) • 7. Keep as many students as possible involved in appropriate activities (group focus) • 8. Makes smooth transitions, appropriate pace, and uses variety when changes are necessary • 9. Avoids taking too much time to start new activities (slowdown)

22. Dealing with Discipline Problems: • 1. Make eye, move closer, and use non-verbal signals • 2. Verbal hints • 3. Ask student if they are aware of the negative effects of their behavior • 4. Remind students of procedures/rules • 5. Calmly ask student to state correct procedure • 6. Assertively telling student to stop behavior • 7. Offer a choice • (stop or I’ll grab your neck like Homer does Bart)

23. Are zero tolerance policies a good idea? • Consider your own view on this issue. Now find someone from the class who agrees with you. Prepare to debate your views against classmates who disagree with you on this issue.