Classroom Management Plan
Classroom Management Plan
Philosophy of Classroom Management…
I believe that learning is a collaborative process occurring with, and between, students and teachers. I believe every student is a learner who can be successful in school and in the classroom. Furthermore, it is the teacher’s responsibility to construct an environment where students have the opportunity to be individually and collectively successful–whatever that may mean at their ability level. Teachers must provide a wide array of learning opportunities embracing the diversity of their classroom whether it is physical, cultural, or in learning styles. This means acknowledging the differences among students by fostering circumstances to develop unique personal connections with the material (Culturally Responsive Classroom, 270).
I believe learning is a personal and social experience. Teachers have the duty to provide a solid foundation for students to determine what learning means to them in order to construct meaning from the content area. But, nonetheless, a good teacher also sets up a system where learning is the shared responsibility of the collective whole and students challenge each other to deepen and widen their understanding (InTASC: Learning Environment). A classroom should be designed to be social and dynamic where the teachers builds a rapport with the students and uses this to influence lesson design (InTASC: Planning for Instruction). To that end, there is no standard model for what the classroom should look like from year to year because each learner has intrinsic differences making the classroom ever evolving. As a science teacher I feel I can capitalize on these many differences to build lessons which meet the needs of my students, the standards for science education, all the while creating invaluable learning opportunities through creative application of the content area (InTASC 5).
Through my purposeful classroom design in conjunction with the atmosphere I intend to fashion for learning, I want my students to question what they are learning and why they are learning it through the use of provocations. Asking questions is at the very heart of science, and I believe my students should be excellent at asking questions–something which can be achieved in the way I will set up my classroom. I believe it is imperative for students to understand there are no limits in science: we can question and wonder about all things. However, there are clear limits and boundaries for how we behave in science classrooms, and it is my responsibility to maintain, as well as model, this behavior for my students therefore providing a safe classroom where discipline aids learning instead of disrupting it (Developmental Need: Structure and Clear Limits).
The students I will be entrusted with the responsibility of educating will have many needs. These young people will be looking for a consistent and structured individual to lead them in their educational pursuits. In addition to a teachers who allows them to explore and develop their own sense of autonomy (Developmental Need: Self Definition). I hope to invite my students to learn where they fit in our classroom community by promoting collaboration and appreciation for diverse histories and multiple perspectives (Core Value: Appreciating Similarity and Diversity). By taking part this community of learners, I will design lessons to build and broaden this classroom community into the greater school community, and then the community in which my students live. I wish to help my student fully realize the impact they have in the world through actively being involved in the study of science as it relates to their lives, and the lives of those around them (Developmental Need: Meaningful Participation).
As A Teacher…
I believe as a teacher it is my primary concern to create a learning environment where students are motivated and curious, critical thinkers and problem solvers, collaborative yet independently accomplished when necessary, all while feeling cared for and safe to take risks in learning about science. The classroom will represent the shared experience of the community of learners (myself included) where rules are respected and upheld (Vatterott, 87). It will be my responsibility to enforce the rules designed in our community. This will be accomplished by relinquishing some of my power as teacher, to allow my students to determine the standards for our classroom behavior (Vatterott, Chapters 3&4). I will naturally maintain high standards for the group and furthermore, model this as an instructor. For example, I will take time to listen to each students voice, questions, or concerns and my students will come to understand they are expected to do the same for their peers. Because my primary concern is to care for my students and their learning, putting emphasis on community learning demonstrates I care for each of the students and their needs in my classroom. And, by relinquishing my power, students can feel empowered to build and take charge of their learning experience (Vatterott, 13).
The most important function of my role as teacher is to be a consistent role model for my students. Because the number one expectation of any learning community is respect, I will act in a professional manner at all times with my students. I will not speak poorly about my colleagues or other students and resolve issues immediately (InTASC: Collaboration and Ethics). I will expect my students to come ready to learn each day, and therefore I will be ready as well. This means I will arrive each day prepared, ready to learn, and excited to teach. Because I understand science is a challenging content area for many students and motivation to learn is important, I will work hard in preparing engaging student-centered activities to excite my students and ignite their interest (Vatterott, Chapter 11). I hope that through sharing my passion for science, I will help them to find and determine their own passions.
It is also my responsibility to identify and address the diverse needs of my students in order to accomplish appropriate differentiation. Since I will encourage student empowerment, I will utilize many strategies to engage my students in science activities through modeling, experimentation, collaborative learning, projects, and case-study scenarios. Middle level learners especially are more concerned about social issues instead of learning, so I will need to be prepared to address these as well in my classroom so we can move on to learning (Vatterott, Chapter 5). In handling these issues quickly and directly, I anticipate using them to guide learning through teachable moments, and minimizing their potentiality to have a disruptive impact on learning. I do not want to ignore the needs of my students because I understand these can become barriers to learning; furthermore, addressing student needs is a way to build a connection with each student in a different manner.
Through the use of extrinsic and intrinsic motivation techniques, I anticipate that with practice, I will be able to minimize the negative distractions of students social development, while maximizing social learning and problem solving. In applying both external motivation through grades and feedback, I hope to maintain open lines of communication with my students so they continually understand their progress in the study of science (Marzano, Chapter 8). I will also employ intrinsic motivation techniques to excite my students about learning by drawing from their personal interests to guide my lesson. Using student interest can be a highly underused technique by teachers who might otherwise use teacher-focused instruction like lecturing.
In Anticipation of a New School Year….
Before each new term I will set up my classroom to reflect the collaborative student focused nature of my teaching style. I will take time to learn and reflect about each student on my roster. I will look at any available files to know what to expect from my students and address any immediate needs I notice. This will also help to prepare me for learning each of my students names, something I hope to do within the first few days/first week of school through student interest flashcards, ice breaker games, and name games.
I will also prepare a course outline and syllabus documenting the pace and key objectives for the class. It will also include guidelines about homework, grading, and tests. It will be explicit and direct about these details. I will confer with the school student handbook to make certain these details are in line with the school and district expectations. I will also prepare a letter for the parents of my students, if I can find an email or address, I will send this information in these manners as well. The letter will contain information about grading, homework, my contact information, availability for conferencing, with an impetus on the idea I welcome significant parental involvement (InTASC: Communication).
Because I would like parents to explicitly understand that I welcome parental involvement in my classroom, I will also provide them with a list of dates for important activities such as presentation or demonstration days where they would be welcome to join the class for the lesson. I anticipate setting up a class blog, and potentially a twitter, so the parents of my students can stay up to date on our progress and many activities. This will also be a unique forum for alerting parents to other school-wide activities and important dates such as the start of state wide standardized testing. I will also call home to parents to report good things their child has achieved in the classroom, a positive call home will also serve to motivate the students in my classroom and their learning (Developmental Need: Competency and Achievement).
Finally I will set up my classroom. Depending on the space I have available, I hope to set up any desks I have in a U shape. This will reinforce the idea that all students have unique equal voice without putting emphasis on any one front of the room. I want to create various spaces where any one area could be the “front” of the room in order to encourage an active and dynamic classroom. If the lab stations are positioned to the outside of the room I hope to set up each station with the materials the students will need throughout the year in clearly labeled areas. This will provide structure in a classroom where a lot can be happening at one time (Developmental Need: Structure). I hope to have an area with science related reading materials to encourage investigation and involvement with the academic institution of scientific literature. I will decorate the walls around the room minimally at first because through my lessons I hope to create physical exemplary student work to display (Marzano, Chapter 4; Developmental Need: Competency and Achievement). I will, however, also display specific graphics relating to each unit we are on.
The one focal point I would like to have in my classroom is an investigation station. This will be at the head of the U arrangement of desks, and a place where I can display a piece for students to wonder about. As I noted earlier, I hope through my purposeful design my students will develop the skills to ask difficult and critical questions, and I think this is an activity and space which can provide this opportunity. This station will be home to unique models, physical examples, lab demos, and other “warm up” activities. At the start of the year the students will be informed this is a space for them to investigate and come up with questions surrounding what is happening. I will not provide “clues” or any other evidence for what is displayed. The students will be expected to learn and discover the object for themselves throughout our lessons.
On the First Day…
On the first day of class, I plan to allow time for introductions, building classroom agreements, going over the course outline and answering any questions. I will be outside the door greeting students as they enter my classroom, showing them I am prepared and excited to begin. For the first week or two, I will allow my students to pick their own seats because I view them as competent individuals capable of making good choices. I will develop a seating chart as necessary, but I will purposefully design lab groups after I learn the names, needs, and skills of my students. I will learn student names as quickly as possible reinforcing the idea they are valuable members of our learning community (Developmental Need: Competency, Meaningful Participation).
In my introduction, I will include information about myself, my interests, and my hobbies to connect with students building a relationship based on mutual respect. I intend to foster this mutual respect by being honest with my students from the first day of class. From this point, we will transition to an ice breaker activity so I can learn more about my students.
We will then transition to going over the syllabus and course outline. I will be detailed, but concise about my expectations in regard to grades, homework, and testing procedures. I will also inform the students of my attention getting procedure: Counting down from 3, clapping my hands, or waiting quietly on them. I will explain that I will at no point try to talk over them, and if this becomes a habitual problem I will begin to take points from the class for the day. I will also go over classroom procedures letting students know where they will put their science notebooks, where they will find assignments, where they will turn in homework, and where they can get work if they are absent, etc. Addressing these things on the first day will help to ensure that we spend the majority of time learning, not dealing with late work and passing out papers. At this time, we will then move into forming our classroom agreements which I will let the students dictate through a mock legislative procedure (circa. Professor Pangan). Middle level learners especially are highly idealistic, I hope that through modeling the democratic process, I can encourage the students to take control over their own learning (Vatterott, Chapter 4; Marzano, 93). These agreements will then be posted and referred back to as necessary if issues arise. They will also be relayed to parents in a contact, and each student will be expected to sign and return the contract to ensure they are completely aware of the agreements and the consequences (detailed below) for breaking them (Marzano, 95).
At this time, I will move into discussing the type of learning environment I hope to create with my students. I want to make my students aware, this is more than just a classroom, we are a community and this is their shared space as well (InTASC: Learning Environment). Students need to know I am supportive of their learning and the ways in which they learn. This may mean an English language learning student may need to speak in their native language, a visual learner may need to draw a picture, and a kinesthetic learner may need to act out a process (Marzano, 73). Each type of learning will be appreciated and valued because student learning is as diverse as students themselves. Furthermore, this means bullying because of differences or bullying for any reason will not be tolerated in our classroom. There will be a no tolerance policy towards the matter and offenders will be spoken to privately and handled in accordance with the strictest classroom procedures (to be mentioned subsequently).
Finally, I think it is also important to privately address student concerns, so I will provide a notecard for students to write down a question or concern for me. They can turn this directly in and I will respond to them with feedback in the most appropriate manner (either privately or to the class). This is a practice I will continue periodically as a check in with my students.
In Regard to Managing Behavior…
I believe students are in school to learn, to that end, when it is necessary to address student behavior, it should be accomplished in a manner which interrupts learning only when absolutely necessary. As the teacher I will try to resolve all situations as quickly as possible so learning can continue while upholding the classroom procedures and agreements. These boundaries are clear and definite and they provide structure for the students so they consistently know what to expect.
For small behavior issues I will use my body language so that I do not disrupt the learning environment for anyone but the student causing the disruption. Using my body language by making eye contact, physically pointing to the classroom agreements, or moving closer to the student, I am alerting them I am aware and not tolerating their behavior (proximity control). In addition, I will not be inviting the student to respond verbally and instead will invite them to change their behavior physically to a more constructive manner. If that does not effectively resolve the situation, I will engage the student by asking a question about the content at hand in attempts to get that student back on track.
If this behavior becomes perpetual, I will follow the procedures outlined the first day of class and I will only remove students from the classroom if the student is disrupting the learning of others, endangering himself, herself, or others, or verbally disrespecting me or another student. A student who refuses to participate will not be removed from the class but will instead be spoken to privately because the converse action is not shown to increase motivation. If allowed by school policy, I would like students to serve detentions with me, as they will be asked to reflect on their behavior. Anytime a student is disciplined past a verbal warning, they will need to speak with me privately after class. An example of discipline steps are as follows.
1. Verbal warning
2. Speak to the student privately or with other teacher present
3. Call home
4. Send the student to the main office for a referral.
Daily Procedure…
Students should enter the class each day prepared and ready to learn. The goal of each day is to spend as much time as possible in the learning activities, and therefore it is important to minimize the time it takes to return papers, taking attendance, and other menial tasks.
Each day, students will come into the classroom fully prepared with all items necessary. However, a student may go to their locker if the student will miss out on learning by not having the item. Students may not return to their lockers for homework or items such as pens, pencils, paper or calculators. I will provide pencils and colored pencils for students to borrow if necessary.
Each day, I will write the schedule for the day on the board as well as any homework assignments, upcoming tests and their respective due dates. Middle school and high school students will be expected to write in his or her planner daily and will be giving the first few minutes of class to do so.
Homework will be turned in at the start of class each day into specified trays when the students enter the room. However, because there is little evidence that homework actually aides learning, I will not be assigning extensive homework at any time (Vatterott 344). If homework is not turned in at the start of class only partial credit will be given. If the assignment is 1 day late the grade will be reduced by 1 letter grade. If the grade is 2 or more days late the student will have the grade reduced by half. This will cut down on students working on homework during the class in which it is due. I plan to assign short homework assignments several days a week to emphasize key points in the lesson, however, the assignments will be short. In addition to homework, I plan to use a variety of tests and assessments to ensure that every student is being graded accurately. Due to the importance of standardized testing, I will be giving students tests so they can learn to express their knowledge of a subject area in this way.
Safety Procedure…
Please refer to the links below for all science safety procedures, safety contracts, MSDS sheets, etc.
Conclusion….
Overall, I plan to use this classroom management plan to meet the needs of students and enhance student learning in the most efficient way possible. By following these steps I will develop meaningful relationships with my students, minimizing distraction and discipline issues and develop a mutual respect between my students and myself in order to create a social learning community where students feel safe and are willing to take risks, which will result in a positive learning experience for everyone.
Works Cited
Marzano, Robert J. Classroom Instruction that Works: Research Based Strategies for Increasing Student Achievement. Alexandria, VA. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. 2001.
Vatterott, Cathy. Becoming a Middle Level Teacher: The Student Focused Teaching of Early Adolescents. New York, NY. McGraw-Hill. 2007.
Weinstein, Carol, Curran, Mary, and Tomlinson-Clarke, Saundra. Culturally Responsive Classroom Management: Awareness into Action. Ohio State University. 2003.
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