Motivating Students

Motivating Students

            The motivational technique that seems to be most effective in my clinical placement is to introduce the day’s lesson by reviewing the key terms and concepts that students have previously learned and will need to keep in mind for the lesson. This type of anticipatory set ensures that students are on the same page as the teacher, and helps provide a quick recap for anything students may have missed due to absences. After reviewing the key concepts my host teacher will lay out the activity in steps, starting with the first set of instructions and informing students about what the next phase of the lesson will be. Once students have begun the second part of an activity, she delivers the instruction for the third, and so on.

            By spacing out instruction it prevents her students from feeling overwhelmed and helps to “chunk” the information. Another important factor for this type of instruction is that my host teacher is very aware of the amount of time she gives students to work on certain parts of an assignment. Instead of giving students the entire lesson instruction in the beginning and risking them rushing through it she carefully paces out the lesson. She communicates with her students asking who has finished the portion of the lesson and who could use a few more minutes, which helps to keep students from becoming bored and veering off task and disrupting those that are not yet finished.

            Awareness of pacing a lesson and making expectations clear for students are two areas of instruction that I would like to make improvements in. During one of my lessons I made the mistake of providing students with too much time to complete the task and not enough instruction for the second part of the lesson. This resulted in many students choosing to not start the lesson right away, instead talking to their friends and veering off topic. For those that did start the lesson immediately, many finished early and quickly brought out their cell phones and iPods once they were done, assuming that instruction was over. This experience left me feeling very rattled, knowing that I had made a mistake that could cost me my lesson. Instead of allowing the disruptions to continue my host teacher helped me regain the focus of the students and continue on with the lesson. It was much more difficult to regain the attention and focus that I had lost than it would have been to maintain engagement throughout had I been more aware of my errors.

            Keeping my mistakes in mind, I conducted the same lesson for the following class, which went much more smoothly. My host teacher set the tone at the very beginning of class, stating that cell phones would be confiscated if they were not put away. I picked up on my host teacher’s strategies for maintaining an efficient pace with the lesson, and was relieved that students seemed to respond very well to it. We were able to complete all of the pieces of the lesson and still engage in a discussion of the lesson, ensuring that we were not simply “checking boxes” off of the lesson plan, but instead were aiding in the students’ overall comprehension of the material.

Bullying

Bullying

            On my first day at my clinical placement my host teacher had to run some quick errands during the lunch hour, leaving my fellow teacher candidate and I to debrief in the teacher’s lounge and compare notes. While in the lounge we were asked a variety of questions about our teacher education program, our plans for the future, etc. After the small talk wore off the other faculty slipped into their everyday conversation, and I was shocked at some of what we heard. Certain faculty members exchanged comments on students that were far from productive and were mostly negative in nature. It seemed like the adult equivalent to the high school gossip that when engaged in by students we refer to as bullying. This made me wonder, how gossip and bullying is dealt with when even some of the faculty participates in negative gossip about both students and colleagues?

            I brought the conversations I had overheard up to my host teacher, and she informed me that that is why she usually eats lunch in her room or with other teachers that she trusts and that speak positively about students and each other. She remarked that the “boys club” in her department can be a toxic environment to surround yourself with. I was relieved that not all of the faculty engage in that sort of activity, and really appreciated my host teacher allowing me to make my own decisions about that group of people. Not only does my host teacher not tolerate gossip from her colleagues, but she does not tolerate it in the classroom as well.

            My clinical placement has a “no tolerance” policy against bullying, but from my own experiences those policies are hard to enforce when bullying can take on many different forms. My clinical placement is a prime example of this. I never witnessed a fight in the halls, or even a loud argument between students, which upon first glance led me to wonder if miraculously this school didn’t have a bullying problem. I asked my host teacher about the lack of outright bullying that I had seen, and she informed me that it takes on a much less direct approach in the school. Students have taken to cyber-bullying, using Twitter and other outlets such as Ask.fm, a site where students create a profile for people to ask anonymous questions, opening the door for rude comments and rumors to be said without having to account for your actions. I did a quick search for my clinical placement by name on Twitter, and sure enough found dozens of tweets that were about classmates or faculty members at the school.

            From my own experiences and discussions with students I have found that cyber-bullying is easily the most emotionally damaging form of bullying because students are unable to escape from it. Every time a student checks their cell phone or social media accounts they are exposed to this form of harassment, which undoubtedly causes disruptions in the classroom. One student in my host teacher’s classroom faces a high amount of Internet harassment from one particular individual. This led to the two students being placed into separate classes by administration, but due to the public nature of the bullying the student still faces the repercussions of being “ganged up on.” This student is particularly unwilling to open up in class discussion or work in groups and seems unsure of whom she can trust and who will turn against her.

            This type of undercover bullying places added emphasis on knowing one’s students and the struggles they are facing. If my host teacher did not have a relationship of trust with her students this particular student likely would not have opened up about her struggles with her peers, causing her to be labeled a “problem student,” or one that just simply wouldn’t cooperate. The Internet has created new and extremely dangerous outlets for bullying that seem to have contributed to the rise in teen suicide, especially considering that many of the news stories cite bullying as the primary cause for the students depression. I believe that it is imperative that students not be taught that “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” It simply is not true. Words can hurt far longer than physical pain and students need to be made aware and accountable for the consequences of “harmless gossip.”

Observation and Feedback

Observation and Feedback

            After my first lesson in my placement I was made aware that my classroom instruction can be rather static, sticking to one particular place in the room to speak from as a sort of comfort zone. In doing this, I lacked the comfort to utilize proximity in addressing classroom management. Another consequence of feeling “stuck” at the front of the room was the feeling of discomfort with projecting my voice and learning the proper volume of a “teaching voice.” The third place of improvement that my host teach brought my attention to was to introduce the lesson in smaller pieces, explaining a handout as it is being passed out so that students are aware of what the task is and what is expected of them.

            Throughout my second lesson I was aware of the advice I was given previously and worked to put that advice into practice. I was much more comfortable circulating the room, despite one class of students taking my time “leading” instruction as an opportunity to use their cell phones and hold side conversations during instruction. Instead of coming to my rescue, my host teacher allowed me to address these issues myself, greatly increasing my confidence in adhering to the behavior policies that are in place in the classroom. To curb side conversations I was able to utilize proximity to particular students, conducting a large portion of the instruction from the back of the classroom instead of the front.

            This opportunity greatly increased my awareness that classroom behavior must be assessed and built from the very first days in a classroom. Despite knowing and for the most part following the rules during my host teacher’s lessons, the students took the opportunity of a new leader in the classroom to test my boundaries and push limits that they ordinarily would not. I was surprised at how rattled the students’ use of cell phones made me. Seeing the pile of fourteen confiscated cell phones on the front table led me to the realization that the students, for whatever reason, were not listening, were not engaged, and I needed to address the issue quickly in order to salvage the learning activity that was planned for the day. I took a minute to regain my thoughts and take a few deep breaths, and then did my best to rebound back into the lesson. After the lesson was over my host teacher reassured me that I had done the best that I could, and that it is in students’ nature to push the limits of “fresh meat.” It was a relief to know that the students’ actions should not be taken personally and that despite the hiccups in the lesson it was not viewed as a failure.

            The hiccups and struggles of this second lesson would have been entirely overwhelming if I did not have the advice from the previous lesson to keep in mind and draw solutions from. I realized very quickly that proximity is an incredibly useful tool and that projecting my voice is not only necessary for instruction, but also a key aspect of establishing authority in a classroom as a beginning teacher. Another lesson I learned from this experience was that timing is key when allowing students to work on an activity in groups. If the students are offered too little time they are unable to engage in group discussion because they are not finished preparing their responses, and if students are offered too much time they are too susceptible to veering off task.

            While leading the instruction for this learning activity in the next class period I was able to keep all of these key elements in mind, causing the lesson to be much more fluid and productive. To start off the class on a firm note, my host teacher very sternly informed students not to be on their cell phones, or risk them being confiscated for the rest of the school day. This immediately set the tone that any disruptions would not be tolerated. In order to keep the flow of the class moving along I was much more aware of my timing, asking students who needed more time and who was finished, ensuring that the students stayed on task and were neither left behind or left waiting for others to catch up. By utilizing all of the hiccups of the first lesson as learning experiences I was much more confident in my abilities for the second lesson. Had those students not pushed my limits I do not believe I would have felt as confident in my last lesson. They provided me with the mentality that it could only get better from there instead of leaving me feeling defeated on my last day in my clinical placement.

Sense of Belonging

Sense of Belonging

            Upon entering my clinical placement it is immediately clear that the school is very student-centered. There is a two story “Atrium of Excellence” that serves as a main hub of the building. The walls in this area are bordered with words like “courage” and “integrity” and many more. Large showcases feature student athletics and student radio achievements, along with an area that acknowledges academic scholarships that the students have received. Along the main hallway is student artwork, with each graduating class allowed to decorate a set of tiles that have their class photo hanging next to it. The students see this artwork as a rite of passage, a way of leaving something to be remembered by.

            The classroom itself is decorated with numerous posters of historical figures, as well as a large collage of current events that help students realize that the things they hear on the news today will be the things their children study one day in a textbook. In addition to these posters, my cooperating teacher has a “women’s” sign hanging next to her door, which she refers to in order to remind her female students that her room is a safe place for them to speak out and voice their opinions, despite history being seen as a typically men’s subject.

            Whenever a group discussion is planned students first work through the set of questions in a small group, helping to increase their confidence and include the opinions of others. Students, particularly female students, will have a wonderful answer in small group discussion, and yet not offer it in the whole-class discussion setting. To work on this issue my host teacher provides students with extensive feedback to reinforce their thoughts, and does not allow for the class discussion to be dominated by the few students that openly offer to speak. She asks students individually for answers to questions, but does not push for answers that they clearly do not know. Instead she shapes the information they provide her with by taking pieces from various students to form a more complete answer. In doing this, she ensures that students have a positive outlook on classroom discussions and do not feel as intimidated when they do not have the entire answer.

            The number one thing my cooperating teacher does to enhance students’ sense of belonging in the classroom is display genuine interest and concern for themselves as people. Instead of writing of so-called problem students she works to delve deeper into the issue to its source, and address the behavior that is stemming from that source. Despite the lack of racial diversity in her classrooms, the students come from a wide range of socioeconomic statuses, which she remains acutely aware of. Knowing which students are facing homelessness or living below the poverty line does not lower her expectations of them, although it does shape her tolerance and understanding that it can be hard to remain focused in school. For students that need extra class time but are unable to find transportation home after school hours my cooperating teacher arranges a schedule with parents that she will bring them home on certain days in order to ensure that they do not fall behind.

            The results of her effort to build a bond with her students become apparent every time students trust her with information that they may not openly share. My cooperating teacher has been dubbed the “Freshman Mother” because of her compassion for the struggles that students face. Rarely in my placement did I experience a day that a student did not stop in to share what is going on with their life, whether it be as small as a conflict with another teacher, or as large as coming to her for consolation after the death of a terminally ill parent. In all circumstances, both academic and personal, it is very clear that she has her students’ best interests at heart and wants them to become productive and informed citizens, as well as resilient individuals whom believe in themselves. 

What do you know about your students? Week Three

Although all three of the classes I regularly observe are Foundations courses in history, the required class for freshman, the way the lesson is executed and responded to differ vastly from class to class. The lesson objectives are the same for all three classes, and all are held to a high standard, regardless of one class having a large number of students with learning disabilities, and another having students that are at the comprehension level of an Advanced Placement class.

            In second hour the students tend to be very quiet, even during the times before class has started. When offered the opportunity to do work as a group many of the students shy away from the idea, preferring to work alone. This causes the work to be more difficult for the students, because they are not utilizing their peers in order to enhance their zone of proximal development. After inquiring with my cooperating teacher as to why this is, she explained to me that many students with learning disabilities struggle with opening up to others, and lack the confidence necessary to present their ideas and opinions in a group setting. It is a goal of the school that students with special needs advance their confidence and social skills, particularly in regards to formulating the questions they are trying to ask.

            In order to conduct the lesson with this group of students my cooperating teacher and I often answered students’ questions individually, expanded on the answers they gave, and gave them positive feedback in order to increase their confidence in themselves.  Discussion with this group of students involves a more active role of my cooperating teacher, who encourages the students to offer their input and is always quick to take the opportunities and insights they offer her, however small they may be. The students in this class, while quiet, do not strike me as disinterested in the material. They simply seem nervous and anxious to share with the class, at the risk of being “wrong.” To help them overcome these worries my cooperating teacher keeps the group sizes small, ensuring that each student will be heard by the others and will be acknowledged.

            In contrast, my cooperating teacher’s third and fourth hour classes have a dynamic that is a 180-degree shift from their second hour peers. The students often have trouble reigning in their discussions and take full advantage of opportunities to work in small groups. The students are more open with their thoughts, yet they still seek reinforcement before discussing a topic with the entire class. Many of these students are interested in sports and pop-culture, which can be used to enhance the lessons. For example, the students’ interest in current events may lead to a discussion of racism, in which the comments made by Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling can be used to analyze the institutional racism that exists to this day. The student demographic contains a largely conservative population, leading to tensions when discussing the policies and practices put in place by President Obama. My cooperating teacher is always very quick to spin any negative comments in a more constructive manner, and places a large emphasis on the rights of marginalized groups in the historical context. In doing this, my cooperating teacher helps ensure that no one is left feeling excluded, under valued, or unwanted in the classroom discussion.

            In addition to the class with a large number of students with special needs and the class that is near AP level, my cooperating teacher has another class with a large number of students that are considered to have emotional/behavioral disorders. When discussing her actions and reactions with these students, my cooperating teacher reinforced how important it is for students to trust their teachers, which will in turn lead to their respect for the teacher. Many of these students are reported as disruptive, aggressive, and in some cases violent with other faculty. Yet, in her classroom, these same students show a high level of respect for my cooperating teacher and the behavioral expectations of her classroom. Students are very aware of the lines that they cannot cross, such as being demeaning to their peers, and they behave accordingly. One student in particular has had a couple of instances where she will not engage in the lesson or participate in the class. My cooperating teacher has a “pick and choose your battles” approach, choosing when her disengagement risks the efforts of her peers. Whenever this student has an “off day” she usually will stop into the classroom later in the day, explain what was wrong, and then apologize for letting it interfere with the day’s lesson. The students trust my cooperating teacher with highly sensitive information, and even when defiant they do not lash out with personal disrespect towards her.

            Knowing that some students need added guidance in discussion, some prefer group work, and others act in ways that they do not intend to be disrespectful all help to tailor the lesson to each particular group. If I were unaware of the struggles of the quiet class, it would seem as though they are disinterested, instead of anxious. If I was unaware of the struggles a student faces outside of my classroom, her defiance would seem like a personal attack, and so on. The number one thing my cooperating teacher has showed me is how important it is to know your students, and for them to know you as well. 

Behavior Plan

Behavior Plan Week Two

            The first thing I noticed during my current placement is the significant difference in classroom management compared to what I have previously observed. Both teachers are very clearly well liked by students, respected by faculty, and fluent in their content areas; yet my current placement experiences far fewer interruptions and distractions from students. After wondering why this was the case, I asked my host teacher how she had implemented her classroom rules in the beginning of the year.

            Firstly, she admitted that it was a painstaking process to build the respect and classroom environment that she has achieved. During the first week of the year she laid down some very basic ground rules, all of which are very fair and lenient on the students. An example of these rules is that students are not allowed to not be on their phone or iPod during lecture or activity time, but they may be used during personal work time. Another surprising rule is her tolerance for occasional swearing as long as it is not directed at any person or group. By acknowledging that swearing is a part of the language of many youths she dodged many confrontations that would have arisen otherwise. She explained that when you tolerate certain behavior during specific time and occasions it takes away the “forbidden-ess” of that behavior and diffuses the situation.

            Once students understood the ground rules and accepted that they are both fair and consistent disruptions began to subside. One key factor in her classroom management is that the students are consistently engaged in the material. Certain subjects in history are difficult to avoid lecturing on, however she gets very creative in her efforts to keep lecture to a minimum. Since the students are occupied with activities and discussions they are less likely to be falling asleep in class or scrolling through social media sites.

            This realization meant a lot to me as a teacher candidate. Classroom management is just that, management, not absolute control. My host teacher is careful to pick only the necessary battles, making sure to not escalate any trivial situations. I feel that many teachers forget to question why students are misbehaving or disrupting the class. Do they feel the rules are unfair? Inconsistent? Are they bored or lost? Are they actively engaged or passively receiving information? All of these questions have been addressed by my host teacher when she creates her lesson plans, and are continuously re-addressed as the class dynamic evolves. Students within her classroom are given respect and taught that their opinions and thoughts are valuable to other students and to her as a teacher, and because of this they respect her in return, rules and all.

Fears and Joys

Fears and Joys Week One

            Despite having a small amount of clinical experience prior to my current placement, I was surprised at how much it felt like starting over on the first day. It was very nerve wracking to meet a new group of students and faculty after having grown comfortable in my previous placement. One of my main fears as a teacher candidate is the unfamiliarity of certain content areas. Having not studied certain subjects in the history class’s curriculum, I was very nervous of being asked a question I would not be able to answer. For example, on the first day students were working on a project where they were instructed to explain how one of the first ten amendments relates to their life today. While answering students’ questions I often had to ask them to show me the actual amendment, because I do not know them by heart. This didn’t seem to change how they viewed my ability to help them, but it made me uneasy to admit to not knowing something that is so basic and fundamental to United States’ history as the Bill of Rights.

            Another worry that has found its way into my clinical placement is my desire and need to be accepted by the host teachers and faculty members that I am learning from. I found myself in a very uncomfortable situation while sitting in the teacher’s lounge on my first day, while my host teacher ran a few quick errands. I expected the standard small talk and to be asked about my teacher education program by the other faculty members, and was very thankful for the input of a few individuals. Once the small talk had faded out I overheard a few individuals make remarks about programs and individuals that were at best, uncalled for, and at worst, almost demeaning. This type of gossip was said in such a lighthearted manner that I could tell it was nothing out of the ordinary for this group, and it made me question the things that are said when a stranger is not sitting four feet away. After this encounter I reevaluated my need to be accepted and decided that it is more important to hold true to what I believe is correct and moral than it is to be well liked and included in conversations. As it turns out, my host teacher had had similar experiences, but wanted me to decide for myself. Her belief that I would come to this conclusion on my own made me feel reassured that I have been placed with a woman that has similar beliefs and ideals to myself, and is someone I consider a role model.

            One of the most joyful moments I have observed within my placement was the students’ reaction to my host teacher’s announcement that she would be having surgery over spring break. She told me that she believes in being honest with her class, and it was clear that the students were concerned for her well being. The students’ reaction to her return after two days absence following the break was very heart warming. Students gave her very careful hugs, stopped in the classroom during passing time to say that they missed her, and so on. These seemingly small acts showed me the bond that takes place within a classroom when students know that their teacher genuinely cares for and about them. Oftentimes, I hear all kinds of stories of awful classroom behavior and disrespect for teachers, and yet very rarely hear about the moments that I witnessed that day. I feel that this is a shame and an injustice that students are painted in such a negative light. The students in my classroom experience showed an outpouring of respect and compassion for their teacher’s situation, and it was clear that it touched her heart to know that they care for her and genuinely miss her when she is gone.

            In my career as an educator I hope to remember that it is okay to admit when I do not have all of the answers, it is okay to remove myself from conversations and friendships that I feel are toxic to myself and my approach towards teaching, and lastly, I hope to build a bond of trust and compassion with my future students like the one I have been so fortunate to observe within my placement.