Oct 21st, 2016
Today went by really fast. The third day of practicum was spent very efficiently and a lot of housekeeping got done. I got assigned an SA (school advisor) and have a decent vision (at the moment) of what I can do for this class as well as others to come. I look forward to learning from my SA in hopes to better my own practices as a professional. I made a real effort to get to know the names of the students in the class. Almost all names have been learned. I’m glad I’ve exercised my mind in such a manner as this will help build better relationships with the students. The SA also helped build that relationship by asking them to use their name-card and allowing me to introduce myself.
I really have to start giving consideration to my name. I have had teachers used their first name, an initial, just their last names or use entirely creative titles. My SA today helped me decided (simply by fluke) that I should simply use my traditional Croatian name. It started out with Mr. Svorinic in a plain old English accent which most people mispronounce. The SA used interdisciplinary connections by writing my name out linguistically as everyone was pronouncing my name in a variety of ways. I then figured why not tell them how to really say it? The SA wrote down my name again and everyone seemed to agree with this new version of my name. The harsh “S” and “eeech” sounds were a perfect segway into a French pronunciation and conversational lesson.
I was fortunate enough to be incorporated into this lesson in a smooth manner. The kids certainly appreciated my fake French name as I did theirs. The SA introduced the activity to her classroom by using a worksheet the students were already familiar with from a previous lesson. This incorporated introducing themselves, asking what the name was of the person next to them, and then continuing this cycle. Some students really got into their roles which took the engagement level of other students to a higher ground. Before the activity started, the teacher reminded the class to be respectful of one another when speaking. She asked how the class would feel if someone would speak while they were speaking. Answers were obvious (I don’t like it) and simply reminded them of being courteous and respectful. The SA throughout the whole day was very effective in implementing preventative measures that could incite possible behavioral problems. It’s amazing; simply by addressing this in advance can be a whole game changer. I’ve always heard from my old Sport Science professor that prevention is always greater than a cure!
I was asked specifically to observe classroom management and to note anything significant. I noticed with the first activity of the day that a bar/policy/regulations have to be set almost instantly, and at times reminded. Where the teacher was standing to placement of activities was very interesting to see. For example, when I first entered the classroom I noted five figures painted in every odd corner of the classroom. I thought a student may have drawn on the window or the board, but it was the SA. She stated that this was a way for students to focus in on their groups and attempt to have their own space in order to avoid distractions. It was quite effective overall. The class is quite high energy and there are a few students who have quite the teacher voice. This can be an issue as it can lead to one group speaking louder than other groups. This simple drawing is an effective tactic in teaching subtle personal and social responsibility.
It is always nice to be able to see other people’s strategies in action. It’s exceptional to see them succeed (and usually this success is backed by a lot of experience or research)! I’ve learned basic classroom management skills, but have always looked to enhance them. Small tactics like this make me take a step back and realize how something so simple can be effective. By itself, it’s not extremely effective; it needs to be accompanied with proper instruction and guidance for it to be successful. An activity seems to be only as good as its teacher. It seems as anything can work if implemented in an appropriate manner. I’ve noticed that most of the time, adaptions are required to properly tether knowledge for certain dynamics.
The quality of the lessons also depend on the quality of the teacher. A teacher can’t effectively deliver a lesson if there are certain distractions that are present. There is always an opportunity for people to fall off task, but it’s up to teachers in their creative ways to figure out how to keep everyone engaged. Using classroom management strategies mixed in with building relations really helps create an engaging and effective learning environment. The students respect the rules as they know what to expect. It is pointed out before-hand and elaborated on through questioning to establish a common ground of courtesy. I would definitely like to finesse and perfect this portion of my practice as it is half the battle in winning a student’s cooperation.
At the end of the school day, I offered any help to the SA before leaving. The SA took up my offer and asked me to work with a student in organizing (and finding) his homework. To do this, we went to their version of homework club. They gave out juice boxes and cookies to the students working in the room. I was offered the food and said no to feel like a responsible adult leaving more for them. This student and I got through organizing and thanked me before homework club was finished. Remembering preventative measures from earlier in the day, I asked the student if he could make an agreement with me in which he would put every paper he received into his binder right away (in the proper category as well of course)! We’ll see if this agreement system works! I also really admire such programs as they gave me a place in the past to go study and seek help with ease. I even made friends with tutors who were a few grades older than I was. Interestingly enough, I can see myself volunteering for such a program.