Classroom Management Plan

            In my classroom, I will maintain clear and consistent lines of communication between myself and the parents of my students.  I will accomplish this through several means of communication: mainly occasional emails detailing the activities of class, postcards or phone calls explaining how their student is succeeding, and a class blog or webpage.  I think it is important that parents know what is going on in the classroom.  Several of my college classes have emphasized the importance of giving the students a “real” audience—not just the teacher.  For instance, students could write blogs online instead of keeping a journal, write letters to the editor instead of the teacher, and publish their presentations on YouTube.  I could then forward all this information and the links to the parents, along with explanations of the projects. 

            Along with keeping the parents informed, I want the attitude of my class to be a productive and enjoyable.  I want my classroom to be a place where students feel free to be themselves and are comfortable with one another, yet still focused on doing school work.  Attitude is a bit more difficult to determine a plan for, but I will tackle it by using a series of ice-breaker and get-to-know you games, especially at the beginning of class.  Jigsaw-ing and other activities can get students up and moving around the classroom and get them comfortable interacting with one another.  Additionally, I will provide clear and simple rules and procedures at the beginning of class to ensure students know my classroom policies and expectations.  Most of all, however, I want to keep a positive and productive attitude myself.  I must lead by example, and like my students, leave my worries at troubles at the door.  Keeping a positive attitude and maintaining parental communication are just two ways to provide a productive psychosocial environment.

            Three procedures I will teach in my class are students (and the teacher) must raise their hand when participating in discussion or working on an assignment, only water is allowed in the classroom, and cell phones and iPods are not allowed in the classroom.  Of course, there are always exceptions to these procedures.  I realized this while I was student teaching, but these were procedures that were implemented in the classroom in which I student taught.  I felt they were important and only reinforced my initial ideas for the classroom.  I like these procedures because although I want to keep my students comfortable and provide a relaxed environment, I also want us to be professional and respect each other with our behaviors.

            As an English teacher, I would like my classroom to be malleable, that is, that desks could be arranged into any number of configurations throughout the lesson.  To do this, I like the idea of a horseshoe arrangement.  For review sessions or class discussions, this could easily become a circle, but for lectures, students are all able to see the board.  Additionally, students could pull their desks or chairs into pods for small group discussions when necessary.  During student teaching, Mr. Ross’ classroom was arranged in rows and pods, which made for a confusing arrangement in some situations.  However, he did this to work on behavior management of some students, so there are always pros and cons to any arrangement.

            I hope to use a great deal of technology in my classroom, namely laptops or desktop computers for students, a projector, and a document camera.  I feel these are some of the most useful tech tools that can exist in a modern classroom.  It is also important to keep students up-to-date on the different technologies, websites, and programs around them that can be helpful in their in-school and out-of-school lives.  Laptops would be ideal for every student because they are small and compact.  Mr. Ross’ students each have access to a Chromebook, which I think was extremely beneficial in the classroom because students had immediate and easy access to the internet and their writing.

            I had always assumed that the teacher would come up with the rules for the classroom, especially since they are in the classroom more than the students.  After discussions with professors and my cooperating teacher, however, I like the idea of students assisting in coming up with the classroom rules because they become directly accountable for their behavior in class.  To do this, I would have to explain to the students the difference between rules and procedures.  Then, we would work collaboratively to create the rules for our classroom.  I would break students up into groups and have them brainstorm the rules they think should exist.  Then, the groups will share their ideas and we will mesh them together into a few simple rules.  Examples may (and hopefully will) include “be respectful,” “be responsible,” “be invested” and “be safe.”

            In my classroom, if a student were to speak out of turn and keep interrupting a speaker with his or her thoughts or questions (breaking our hand raising procedure), I would use the extinction tactic to correct the behavior.  Instead of allowing them to continue talking, I would plow on through and not give them the chance to speak, instead calling on those students who had raised their hands.  If a student were to bring a cell phone to class and text during a lecture or discussion, I would take the phone away and return it at the end of class.  I would also use an I message to explain why cell phones are not tolerated.  I may say, “When you use your cell phone in class, it makes me feel disrespected and upset because you are not giving me or your peers your full attention and insight.”

            With the little experience I have now, my teaching philosophy is that student-centered learning, based around peer-based discussions and authentic, practical projects, is the best method to engage and enlighten students.  The teacher should be in control and act as a facilitator of knowledge and not a lecturing dictator.  The classroom is an environment that should foster creativity and knowledge and must be respected both by the students and the teacher. 

            In my classes (and in keeping with my personal philosophy), I will represent my information to students in numerous ways.  I will provide handouts of the information as well as project lectures or assignments on a document camera or through the computer, using PowerPoint, YouTube, Google Docs, or other such programs.  I will also present my information orally—not just visually.

            To engage in the information, I will provide students with the opportunity of working in different mediums.  Instead of only writing papers or taking tests, students will be able to engage in information differently each day and for each project.  For instance, I may have graphic organizers one day.  Another day, students may get on laptops and investigate YouTube videos and post their findings in their blogs.  My hope is that classes will not become repetitive and students will be able to come to class each day and engage in information in new and different ways.

            Students will be able to express information in multiple ways by working independently, in small groups, and as an entire group.  For example, students may begin the class by journaling, share their ideas with the entire class, break into groups for an assignment, come back to the class and discuss their findings, and reflect on the lesson in their journals.  Students will discuss information, create presentations using computer programs and software, write essays and papers, and build interactive projects such as short films.

            To manage paperwork and the different assignments that students will be handing in, I’m going to steal the procedure that my high school Life Skills teacher used.  I will have a folder for each period and that folder will be opened in the front of the class.  Students can hand their paperwork into that folder.  Once I have collected work, I will place the folder back in its shelf to be graded.  There will be an “in folder” and an “out folder” of the same color for each period.  I really liked this strategy because everything was clear and organized and she never lost our homework (unlike other teachers with less organized strategies).  I appreciate Mr. Ross’ attempt to have a paperless classroom, but some lessons just work better with paper.  However, I do like the idea of having essays written in Google Documents because it saves a great deal of time and paper.

            In order to facilitate an appropriate work environment with collaborating with colleagues, I will, of course, attend faculty meetings and be sure to check in with other teachers about specific students.  Since it is important for teachers to be aware of all of their students and how there are doing in other classes, I might create some sort of online forum or email chain where teachers can keep tabs on certain students.  This way, all information is documented and can be referenced throughout the year if something comes up.  Instead of just ducking my head into a classroom and hoping to find the teacher at a good time, teachers will be able to respond to each other on their own time, when they have time.  Through a forum or similar format, my colleagues and I will be better situated to share information of any and all natures.

            As I engage the various dimensions of classroom management in my classroom, I will also be sure to observe and manage the different behaviors that arise in the classroom.  I think one of the most important will be to use Functional Behavioral Assessments to determine the cause of a specific behavior.  For instance, if a student becomes irritated every time I ask them to read out loud in class, I should be able to examine the circumstances and develop a hypothesis for his behavior.  I should also be able to identify the correct behavior and work with the student to achieve that behavior.  In order for FBAs to work, I need to document and pay close attention to changes in behavior in students as well as their “normal” behavior. 

            Formative assessments (Curriculum Based Measurements), Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports, and the Response to Intervention procedure will also be used to manage troubled behaviors in my classroom.  I may be able to tailor student’s environment to their preference to help monitor a behavior.  Working in a classroom should involve some compromise.  A student shouldn’t have to change everything about him or herself just to make the teacher happy.  The teacher should have structure, but also be a bit flexible too.  Assessments will be taken through every unit to see how the student is doing in the classroom.  When comparing assessments, I should be able to see trends that may be occurring in a student’s behavior.  Hopefully, using the aforementioned techniques, I will be better equipped to handle different behaviors in my classroom.