Through exploring multiple learning theories and reflecting on my own teaching beliefs, I have developed my own theory of learning. As I developed my theory, I wanted to consider what it takes to be a highly effective teacher. An effective teacher must have mastery of instructional strategies, classroom management, classroom curriculum design, and use assessments as feedback (Laureate Education, 2010a). By using a variety of instructional strategies, teacher’s can meet the learning styles of all the students in the classroom. Effective classroom management can lead to students feeling safe and more willing to take risks.
Abstract My classroom management philosophy is a constant work in progress, but based off of personal experiences and major management theorists I have developed a basic philosophy to guide me through student teaching and the early years as a teacher. The core principles of my philosophy are rooted in establishing a classroom community and mutual respect between students and the teacher. The following essay outlines the theorists that have impacted my philosophy as well as ways I plan to implement my management philosophy. The foundation of an effective classroom is a strong, supportive classroom management plan. The first hurdle many new teachers have to overcome is the ability to maintain control of the classroom they are teaching.
Also, my classroom management plan may need to be altered to fit my specific group of students. Implementing a Student-Centered Classroom Management Program My classroom management approach will be student-centered as I will help students to develop a sense of responsibility for their actions. The behavior standards in my classroom will be high and developmentally appropriate for the age I am teaching. The students will play a large role in creating the rules for our classroom community. Together, we will decide what is appropriate behavior for our classroom, and I will write these rules as positive statements to be displayed in the room.
Individuality, active participation, cooperative learning and developing social skill are some of the progressive ideas I will use in my classroom. For my students to become self-motivated learners they will need to be able to reason, as suggested in perennialism. Reasoning will help them to work through problems and make decisions. Existentialism states that students should accept responsibility for their actions and should be self-paced. These ideas are important to my philosophy of self-motivated learners because my goal will be to create students who can do what this philosophy states.
This I Believe Philosophy statement will include my thoughts and beliefs about classroom management with comparison to other theorists’ models. The major theorists that will be mentioned are Barbara Coloroso, Linda Albert, and Lee & Marlene Canter. I highly agree with the Canter’s and Coloroso’s models of classroom management because it best fits my personality as an individual teacher. I believe that an affective classroom management plan is first practiced and then modeled for improvements. My ultimate goal for my Classroom Management Plan is to model self-discipline by teaching it through my daily actions so that students may be able to self-manage themselves accordingly.
Rules and consequences fall under both the needs of the student and the teacher, so those are essential as well. In the following, I will discuss what I find to be the needs of the student, the needs of the teacher, and how my philosophy on rules, consequences, and discipline play into these needs. According to several educational psychologists and theorists, there are many different needs of a student. I agree particularly with Glasser, who states that students have a need for belonging, "fun", freedom, and a warm environment with a meaningful and engaging curriculum. Linda Albert contributes more by theorizing that the student needs to feel accepted (by being who they are, without judgment), and that student needs attention and affection (Devito, 2004).
However, in my observations the focus was not always on instruction. To mitigate this, the leadership team was rebranded to Instructional Leadership Team (ILT). Our mission was to support and improve the staff’s instructional capacity and practices in order to impact student learning. Most of our teachers’ pedagogical approach was still sticking to the “script” using Houghton and Mifflin or Treasures as thei... ... middle of paper ... ...y walkthrough feedback template. I used this on a regular basis to not only provide teachers’ on-going feedback but also engage them for further discussion and coaching opportunities.
Working with special education students, the learning styles in my classroom are extremely diverse. It is essential to take all the different learning styles in my classroom and utilize them in my lessons, in order for my students to be successful. Throughout a school day, I think it is important to have students use all their different intelligences, to make learning meaningful to every student. Piaget’s theory of constructivism states that humans create knowledge from their interactions between their experiences and ideas, and I relate strongly to this. Along with constructivism, the theory of discovery learning, from Piaget, Bruner, and Papert, is a theory I utilize in my teaching.
Behavioral Management can be accomplished in several ways. Which of the many different theories and methods is right for you, will depend on your own philosophy regarding student behavior in your classroom. Different teachers will chose different methods, but all will agree with the importance of some type of a behavioral management plan. The best way for a teacher to develop their own management plan is to look at several of them and either chooses the one that is best for them, or use bits and pieces from several and merge them into one cohesive plan. In this paper I will introduce Lee Canter’s Behavior Management Cycle method of behavioral management, show you how it is applied, and relate my own personal thoughts as to the good and bad points of it.
After carefully considering the various theories regarding classroom management and addressing individual thoughts and concerns I have decided that my philosophy of classroom management will be a combination of medium and high control. I have chosen these styles of management because I can identify with the reasoning behind these levels of control. Unlike medium and high control, low control offers the idea of intrinsic motivation which I like; however, I feel that many students need extra guidance not provided in theorists like Kohn. I also believe that structuring classroom management with medium and high control will provide opportunities for students to be fully successful. Finally, as an individual, I feel if I established medium and high control I will be able to handle student’s behaviors more efficiently, where as low control might be difficult for me to implement without risking a loss of control in the classroom.