Classroom Management Philosophy and Strategies, Thesis of Accounting

Download Classroom Management Philosophy and Strategies and more Thesis Accounting in PDF only on Docsity! 1 C572 Task 3 Classroom Management, Engagement, and Motivation C572 Task 3 A. My classroom management philosophy aligns with Skinner's operant conditioning theory. The Operant conditioning theory is when learning occurs through reinforcement and consequence which leads to the student making connections between a particular behavior leads to a consequence or reward. The above theory mixed with a constructivist approach would create an environment for students that give praise when goals are completed with positive and proper feedback that allows them to learn from any mistake that has been made. Utilizing the different parts of Skinner's operant conditioning allows students to have a functional reaction of the classroom management while giving the teacher the ability to create a suitable classroom environment. As a paraprofessional I already utilize my classroom philosophy by rewarding students' good behavior with positive reinforcement but on the other hand still apply consequences where unfavorable behavior has happened. As a teacher it will always be my goal and responsibility to create a positive learning environment and classroom management is the first step to completing this. CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT 2 A1. Skinner's operant conditioning theory is an important tool to utilize in the classroom and I base my classroom management philosophy on it. As an adult we go to work to receive reinforcement to do our job by receiving a paycheck. If we don't go to work our negative consequence is that we don't receive that paycheck. Therefore creating an environment that allows a student to earn positive reinforcement by doing their job such as following classroom rules and completing classroom assignments will give the student self motivation to complete the task given. On the other hand such positive reinforcement is not given to students that choose not to follow directions or completed work and they are given a consequence to their decision. At the end of the day we are trying to teach our students how to be productive members of society but at their learning capability. (Snowman, J) B. Working as a paraprofessional in the school district and working with many different teachers and students I have learned that the first requirement is creating clear and precise expectations and rules for the classroom on day one of school. Also another really important tool is the follow through of these rules and expectations. I have seen so many classrooms be out of control because consequences are never followed through. The number one rule is don't give a consequence if you are not willing to follow through with them. Being in an Elementary SPED classroom I have to say the following rules are my favorite we have come up with. 1. Listening Bodies (I will listen and follow direction) 2. Raised Hands (I will raise my hand to share ideas) CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT 5 10:45 snack 11:00 writing 11:30 lunch 12:15 Storytime 12:30 ELA 1:30 Specials 2:15 pack up/clean up 2:30 dismissal So that the kids knew what everyday would bring and be prepared for the day. My second classroom routine that I plan on setting up in my classroom is what to do when class work is finished early. The special education class I work in has students from kindergarten to second grade. We have students that can finish an activity fast and some that are working on it for a while. One of the biggest issues I have noticed in our classroom is the down time between activities for some students. I want to create a routine that will have the kids going to a choice board if they finish early and it will have activities such as reading a book, drawing a picture, practicing sight words, math flash cards, etc. This will give them something extra to do without little down time. D. I will create a progressive discipline process for the classroom that will be a step by step outline of consequences for misbehavior in the classroom. These are extremely important to establish and have in place on the first day of school. I have been in situations where the teacher doesn’t establish these and no one is on the same page. Also it is important that the teacher and staff in the classroom make sure that these consequences are followed through because when they are not followed students catch on and then think that it doesn’t matter. My step by step discipline plant is as follows. CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT 6 1. Class reminder 2. Individual reminder 3. Reflection in the classroom 4. Time away in another room 5. Parent contact 6. Office referral. On the other hand, hand by hand you have to consider the severity of the situation. If a student hits another student that is a 3, 5 and 6 because keeping hands to yourself is really important. Having your staff all on board in understanding different scenarios and how to approach them is important as well. E. 1. The number one priority as a teacher is to create a safe learning environment that is productive for all students. Creating an environment that has a set routine with clear expectations and realistic consequences will help create a safe environment for students and their emotions. In the special education classroom that I work in now we take the first part of the year to deal with emotions and feelings by giving lessons to the students so that they understand what they are feeling. With students with needs at times they dont understand what they are feeling. Once this is done we have created a check in system where students get to tell us how they are feeling in morning check in during calendar time. Also there is a chart where they can clip their name next to their feelings which has pictures and words if they don't want to talk about how they are feeling in circle time. When a student places their name on a sad or angry face then a paraprofessional will take them for a walk or pull them aside so that we can discuss how they are feeling and how they want the day to go. There is also a quiet corner for CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT 7 students who just need a moment to themselves. Giving students multiple ways to deal with how they feel is important because not all students are the same and you need to serve you many different style students. Also being an open book is very important as well. E. 2. Being in a special education classroom you see a lot of conflict between students. I find that meditation works the best to solve student conflict. Talking to each student to find out their part of the situation and then meditating a conversation between them. I find that a lot of students don't know how to express how they are feeling to one another verbally and instantly goes physical. If you teach students how to verbally express themselves and their feelings during meditation, students begin to utilize this skill without the teacher. E. 3. One of the biggest strategies to utilize serious behavior is learning to pick your battles and I have learned this from many years as a paraprofessional in the classroom. Some students will purposely create behavior to see if you will react to it. If it's something that is not severe and is not worth the time then simply don't react. Not giving reaction to the behavior will usually end the behavior but not always. Also remaining calm while dealing with a behavior is important. It's not always easy but I have learned over the years that if you give a reaction to the students you are giving them what they want. Remaining calm means they are not getting attention or reaction out of you. I have had students throwing things at me and I have remained calm, with no face expression just simply moving when objects came my way. Once the student realized they were not going to get the reaction they wanted, the situation slowly came to an end and they deescalated from the situation.