Classroom Culture

As an incoming high school mathematics teacher the classroom culture is critical to my success and to the ability of the students to learn.  The trick is to balance the rules and organization without stifling the students desire to learn.  A classroom must be a place of safety that allows students to open their hearts and minds for learning.  The rules must clearly state what behavior is unacceptable while allowing the student enough freedom to escape the traditional constraints and open his mind to new possibilities in education.  In my classroom, I will discourage bad behavior and reward good behavior, innovative thinking, group discussions, openness, and  learning.

Class control is extremely important.  I believe that rules and structure provide one necessary component of class control but the culture of the classroom must be developed for a student to want to go to class.  The concept of an ideal classroom , at least in my mind, includes a culture that promotes happiness in learning.  Students should want to come.  They should believe that I care about them and know each one of them individually.  I want to be the students support and mentor for advancing their skills in math.  Math is extremely important in the new economy and students who do not learn math will not be able to participate in many jobs within the economy.  The students are our future and we need to arm them with the knowledge they need for success in life.  The classroom culture should harness technology, reward innovation, support individuals, solve problems in groups, and create a desire to learn more.  I hope that my students want to come to my class.  If I spend all of my time focused on broken rules I will have failed.  I want my classroom environment to be so interesting and innovative that students want to come even if hard work is required.

Rules have to be followed but should not be the focus of our classroom.  Our purpose is to learn.  I will use innovative teaching methodologies and technology to interest the students.  Many students in math have already developed an aversion to the subject area.  Many students, and the majority of female students, do not feel that they can excel in math.  I want my classroom to be the place they can break through the barrier and build a foundation. 

In order to have an effective classroom with a positive and caring environment the teacher must also follow

certain rules.

Rules for the teacher:

-          Talk to your students by using their first name.

-          Start and end class on time.

-          Reward learning behaviors.

-          Arrange the environment for group and individual work sessions.

-          Provide a safe environment for all students.

o   No Bullying Zone

o   Work Together

o   Keep Trying!

o   If you fail, don’t quit, try again.

-          Integrate technology and innovative teaching methods.

-          Make every student feel important.

-          Communicate your expectations.

-          Communicate rewards and praise.
-          Ask for student participation and opinions.
-          Be Available for students.
-          Work with the math club.
-          Show the students why I love math!
-          Use a new method if the students do not understand the lesson.

-          Encourage your students!

References: 

1. Teaching Tolerance. Culture in the Classroom | Teaching Tolerance. Retrieved March 25, 2014, from http://www.tolerance.org/supplement/culture-classroom

2. Center for Teaching and Learning. Positive Classroom Climate | Center for Teaching and Learning. Retrieved March 25, 2014, from http://cte.udel.edu/publications/handbook-graduate-assistants/getting-started/positive-classroom-climate.html
3. Teacher Certification, Teaching Certificate, Teacher Education & Training. Maintaining a Positive Classroom Environment.Retrieved March 25, 2014, from http://www.teachercertification.org/a/maintaining-a-positive-classroom-environment.html
4. Kelly, M. Secondary Education | Teaching Strategies and Resources for Educators. Creating a Positive Learning Environment. Retrieved March 26, 2014, from http://712educators.about.com/od/classroomhelpers/tp/Creating-A-Positive-Learning-Environment.htm
5. Dennis, K. Kelly Dennis: Chapter 7: A positive classroom environment. Retrieved March 26, 2014, from http://sitemaker.umich.edu/keldenn/chapter_7__a_positive_classroom_environment

My 5 Digital Tools to Engage Your Students!

Check out my video that shows my top 5 digital tools that your students will be excited about!!

Check out each of these tools websites:

5. Wolfram Alpha http://www.wolframalpha.com/about.html

4. Prezi http://prezi.com/about/

3. Twitter https://about.twitter.com/

2. ThingLink http://www.thinglink.com/learn

1. BrainPOP http://www.brainpop.com/about/tour/

How Objectives Affect the Usage of Technology Tools in the Classroom...

Teachers are constantly writing new and exciting lessons by first creating a lesson plan. What is in a lesson plan you may ask? Well, here is an example of what should may be in an lesson plan:

1. Objective 

2. Anticipatory Set

3. Checking for Understanding 

4. Closure 

5. Formative Assessment.

Note: Lesson plans are very unique and have the tendency to look different based on a teachers content area and what their school requires of them.

Below, we can see a comparison of lesson plans. The lesson plan template that is shown first is made for middle school students. This lesson plan includes: Content Objective, Language Objective, Anticipatory Set, Lesson Activities, Closure, and Homework and Practice. The lesson plan includes many of the items that I mentioned above, but not all of them; it even adds a few extra categories. The lesson plan below that is made for high school students. It includes: Daily Objectives, Methods, Instructional Strategies and Assessments. This lesson plan has even less categories, but each category is very specific and detailed with the types of strategies, methods and assessments that are being used.

Now that we have established what is in a desired lesson plan we can now focus on the topic of my blog: 

OBJECTIVES! 

First, what are objectives and why are they necessary?

Definition: "Objectives specify what learners will be able to do, or perform, to be considered competent." (Schuman) Objectives are the heart and soul of the lesson plan. The objective clearly states what the students will be able to do to ensure that there is a measurement of learning. In order to make sure you have achieved this goal when writing objectives, make sure the meet the criteria of the P.A.C.E. framework. (Uretsky) So, what is the P.AC.E. framework???

"Pertains: The objective should pertain to a standard or broad topic.

Attainable: The objective should be designed to be achievable by the end of the lesson.

Crafted with a Question: The objective should be crafted with a corresponding question to promote student       thinking. 

Evidence-Based: The objective should be designed in a way that enables evidence to determine if the target       of the lesson was met." (Uretsky)

These 4 areas of an objective are extremely important when considering the topic of the lesson and the what is going to be achieved from the standard. The purpose of objectives is to improve both students' and teachers' performance in the classroom. (Schuman) By showing what is expected of the students for the day, they will be better organized and prepared for the days lesson.

Now that we have defined what an objective is for a lesson plan, we can now look at their importance. Let's say that we asked students to measure the perimeter of a cube. Would students be able to accomplish the task if you handed each student a measuring cup? I am sure that they
would look at you with puzzling faces. So the question is what would be the best tool for the students to work with to accomplish the task? For this task, a better tool would be a tape measure or a ruler, right? I am sure that you are thinking, what is your point with all of this tape measuring stuff? Well, my point is that we need to understand the objective before deciding what tool would be best used to accomplish the task.

Now that we understand that the objective is the most important factor in deciding which tool to use for the assignments, we can now apply this same idea when choosing technology for the classroom. There are so many technological tools that can be used in the classroom this may feel like a daunting task. However, if you
are aware of the lesson's objective you can narrow down the list of tools based on the task at hand. For example, if you wanted students to find a
YouTube video that is based on the concept of the lesson you would not have only one computer for the entire class to share, right? For this lesson's objective, you would much rather have a classroom that allows every student to have their own laptop or tablet to effectively accomplish the objectives task. The goal of technology in a classroom environment is to encourage students to engage in a deeper level of learning. Technology is more efficient at accomplishing this level of learning if it is being used appropriately and effectively in the learning environment. Having all of the students huddled around one computer does not create efficient learning for each student. When every student has their individual tool, they can accomplish a deeper level of learning and doing work individually. 

References:

1. Schuman, L. (1996, 9). Understanding Objectives. Retrieved March 11, 2014, from http://edweb.sdsu.edu/courses/EDTEC540/objectives/ObjectivesHome.html

2. Uretsky, M., & Andrews, D. Key Lesson Components. Handout.