Chapter 13 QtC's

When we discussed in class different ways to transform a classroom into a learning environment, I couldn’t help but think of the classrooms which simply can’t be much improved. I will probably be in a situation at some point in my teaching point where the room is too small to rearrange the desks, there are too many “trouble kids” to place them all at the front, or disorganization cannot be avoided because materials which are not mine are in the room. I thought of Hardin Valley High School, which has teachers moving from classroom to classroom with their teaching materials on a cart because of overcrowding. I thought of classrooms in rural or urban areas which do not yet have the funding to put new desks or technology in their rooms. Ultimately, I had to come to the conclusion that what matters more than any perfect classroom arrangement is the teacher. I have the final responsibility to work around a less than ideal classroom setting, keep students in line, be interactive and enthusiastic enough to keep their attention, and be able to cue when problems are on the verge of ensuing. 

The misbehaviors in the Secondary School CSEL case study sound to me like the result of boredom.  These problems could be ameliorated by making sure the students are always productively engaged in some activity, rather having down time while certain students are practicing their soprano or tenor parts.  Having the other students involved in anther activity would disallow them to make fun of the practicing students. Disinterest in the course is also most likely a factor for texting and passing notes, but this is no excuse for bending the rules. The case study teacher seems to have enough withitness to catch on to the fact that these actions are going on, so the consequences established at the beginning of the year simply need to be consistently doled out. The behaviors of Tony, Jeff and Morris have escalated to the point where private conferences with each are necessary.  In these meetings, the teacher should express her concern for the student, re-state the rules and consequences, and work out a behavior contract with the student which lays out further consequences for further misbehaviors.