teachered Archives - Page 29 of 29

October 2, 2015

3 Trends in Classroom Management and Discipline

Managing your classroom is all about the balance between learning within the classroom and discipline. Today, there are several popular schools of thought regarding classroom management and discipline. Strategies that come to mind include Wong’s Pragmatic Classroom, which stresses the need to define expectations for students, and Canter’s Behavior Management Cycle, which emphasizes a distinct discipline model.

So far, however, all of these strategies floating around have their pros and cons, strengths and weaknesses. The most important thing to consider is that classroom management seems to be considered more valuable these days. Educators are becoming more open-minded about disciplining their students (e.g. the recognition that it is not better to punish the child for inattention or some other indiscretion).

What does this mean, exactly? It means that we can expect to see the following three trends in classroom management in the coming years:

Some strategies will become to go-to methods for classroom management.

Existing strategies for classroom management and discipline approaches tend to be, in general, quite effective. Of course, there is also the need to make some allowances for teaching style. Some teachers excel with one approach to classroom management and discipline. Others prefer alternative methods. While it is unlikely that one strategy will reign supreme, we can be fairly sure that there will be a few top recommended strategies. We should see an increase in their strengths and a corresponding reduction in weaknesses as overall efficiency and effectiveness are improved.

Technology will somehow be integrated into classroom management and discipline.

It probably comes as no surprise that there will be more of an integration of technology within the classroom, in part as a management approach but perhaps also as a discipline approach. Teachers may well find means of applying technology. Whether it is some sort of integrated system used via a system like the iPad (with more and more public school classrooms enjoying access to this type of technology) or some online database for monitoring student behavior in class will depend on the circumstances. Teachers will have increased scope to experiment, very likely knowing ten or fifteen years down the line precisely which of these various resource types is likely to be the most effective.

Children will become more independent, self-reliant, and self-regulating.

With a bit of luck, although this trend is less certain, teachers may well also see a greater transfer of learning responsibility to the child. This is one of those advantages that comes with the integration of technology to the classroom. Technology increases the scope for independent activity among children. In many other areas of school life (for instance, library use and general self-care areas), children are already encouraged to take a lead, to the effect that they learn relevant skills faster and that much more effectively. Very likely, teachers will have means of encouraging students to be more independent in their discipline – in their self-discipline –and, depending on the way in which curriculum and standards develop, perhaps also in terms of how they go about learning within the classroom, moving from task to task and perhaps even having independence in their learning choices.

One thing is for sure though — we can expend change to classroom management and discipline strategies in public education classrooms. We may not have the full story yet on what is likely to happen five to ten years down the road, but we have some signs of change, some definite evidence of the types of shifts. How exactly these individual shifts play out? Only time will tell.

September 26, 2015

The First Year Teaching: How do I involve parents and the community?

Teachers are often the first line of defense when it comes to their students overall well-being. Academics aside, teachers have a big responsibility to students, both legally and ethically. So how can teachers involve other people outside their profession to enrich the lives and academic success of their students?

Be aware of civic support.

Ernst Boyer, a former U.S. Commissioner of Education, once said, “Perhaps the time has come to organize, in every community, not just a school board, but a children’s board. The goal would be to integrate children’s services and build, in every community, a friendly, supportive environment for children.” As his quote explains, to address the social problems prevalent in many areas of America, different parts of communities must come together for the good of students. The goal is not only to nurture the next generation, but also to keep children at risk out of trouble by using the community as a resource.

Civic organizations play a big role in helping with additional funding to improve the quality of education (i.e. in Pittsburgh, The American Jewish Committee and the Urban League work to raise funds). Sponsors’ aid is not limited to funding, but extends to resources and services as well.

Some groups concentrate on specific demographics, not confined to a particular geographical region. One example is Concerned Black Men (CBM), which is a group of mentors setting positive male role models for metropolitan African American male youth. Based in Washington D.C., the CBM has 15 divisions and more than 500 African American volunteers from various fields. The CBM mentors go through training, assist teachers and run after-school programs for children. The program has been successful in motivating students to stay out of trouble, and has offered scholarships to more than 4,000 youth. This is just one example and there are surely more that address your particular students.

Tap your local business community.

The local business community can offer wide-ranging support: from funding for school materials, political lobbying for education reform, scholarships, job search help for underprivileged students, and even school building construction. Projects sponsored by business firms tend to be very specific to the local need. A good example is Minneapolis, where General Mills provided funding to create the Minneapolis Federation of Alternative Schools. Businesses have a vested interest in the community where students are learning and are often willing to help with finances and resources.

Seek out parent volunteers.

Families influence children in many aspects, and academics are no exception. Every child’s first network is the family and even though teachers are “second parents” to children, families and schools do not always work well together.

James P. Comer, a child psychiatrist has said, “In the most severely dysfunctional schools, parents, teachers and administrators don’t like, trust or respect one another.” This distrust leads to a school environment where no one takes the responsibility for the disturbed learning environment and students do not gain much from school. This failed environment will just worsen the situation where teachers and parents blame each other and show animosity.

Teachers need to first change their mindsets, from regarding parents as sources of frustration whom they merely have to tolerate to cooperative parties in all aspects of student education. When such attitudes are not changed, families can become very distant from the teachers. For a student to develop into a responsible citizen while receiving an education, teachers and parents are actually the natural allies. Parents may not be inclined to think of teachers in such way, especially when teachers already have low opinions of the students.

Instead of actively getting involved at school, some parents especially African-American, Asian and Mexican parents see their roles as helping a school by assisting children with school work at home. Bear this in mind and do not be inclined to interpret this reluctance to get involved in their children’s school as disinterest in their child’s school life. Encourage these parents to be active in all aspects of the learning process.

Comer says that although teachers should encourage parents’ involvement, teachers need to learn to respect different types and different levels of parental involvement, and lack of parental involvement cannot ever be blamed for failure. Parental involvement can assist the learning atmosphere in taking a big leap forward and when the teachers and parents learn to work together, children are the beneficiaries.

Check out all our posts for First Year Teachers here.

September 25, 2015

These 3 Advancements in Early Childhood Education Could Change Society

Even though education should begin as early as possible, there are only 15 states and the District of Columbia that require Kindergarten by law, and there are actually six states that do not even require public schools to offer Kindergarten. That is not to say anything about pre-K and preschool programs! Nonetheless, many schools and states across the nation are working to make early childhood education a priority. Here are three advancements in early childhood education that are simply game-changers for our society.

Early childhood education in Michigan would slash the crime rate. By putting more money into early childhood education in Detroit, the crime rate would go down, according to a recent study.

Jose Diaz of the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation conducted the study “Cost Savings of School Readiness per Additional At-Risk Child in Detroit and Michigan” where the findings appear. The research was commissioned by the Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher Foundation and it suggests that investing in early childhood education could cut Detroit’s crime rate and save taxpayers in the state millions of dollars, according to a story on the study by The Detroit News. The story says that Detroit taxpayers would save around $96,000 for each child who was enrolled in a quality early education program and Michigan taxpayers would save $47,000 for each child.

The figure was derived from adding cost savings to special education, public assistance, childcare subsidies, the victims of crime and the criminal justice system. The majority of the savings would come from the criminal justice system.

These findings prompted Diaz and law enforcement officials to call on the Legislature to invest more dollars in early childhood education to help halt the alarmingly high crime rate in Detroit.

At the present time, only 4 percent of prisoners in Michigan under the age of 20 years old graduated from high school.

Learning begins at birth, which is why early education programs are so important. These programs provide an integral foundation for young minds and prepare children for success at school and in life. At-risk children who don’t receive high quality early education are more likely to drop out of school and more likely to be arrested for a violent crime.

I think investing in early childhood education programs is a cost-effective way to promote positive development of children and get to the root causes of high crime in the city. I hope that Detroit can see early childhood education as an initiative that could finally pay off and cut crime.

More Native Americans could go to college with some early childhood investment. The Ké’ Early Childhood Initiative convenes today in Albuquerque and will bring together 45 representatives from four American Indian tribal colleges who will discuss strategies for better early childhood education and family involvement in the community.

The meeting is sponsored by the American Indian College Fund’s Early Childhood Education program which attempts to “strengthen the role of Native families in early learning opportunities, building culturally-responsive programming with families and tribal partners.” Specifically, the representatives will look at ways the American Indian community can better prepare children for long-term academic success, targeting learning opportunities from birth to 8 years of age.

In education circles, we talk a lot about the way black and Latino students struggle in K-12 classrooms through a combination of cultural circumstances and inequality. The reality is that American Indian K-12 students are the most at-risk of any minority group for either dropping out of high school or never making it to college. The American Indian Fund reports that American Indians who earn a bachelor’s degree represent less than 1 percent of all of these degree earners. It is not shocking then to realize that 28 percent of American Indians lived in poverty compared to 15 percent of the general population, according to 2010 U.S. Census figures. A college education opens doors for a higher quality of life.

The path to college starts long before the application process, of course.

Early childhood education has such an enormous impact on how students fare throughout their school careers. It’s the reason why President Obama has called on more states to implement universal preschool programs and has ushered more funding to Head Start and other early childhood education initiatives. There is a reason why an organization with “college” in the title is going back to early childhood to strengthen the potential of future students in the American Indian community. Better quality early childhood education, and families that are on board with supporting kids through the K-12 process, will lead to an uptick of interest in college degrees and a higher percentage of college graduates too.

Vermont is set to receive $33.4 million for pre-K programs from the Education Department. Vermont has been awarded $7.3 million in what is anticipated to be a $33.4 million grant for pre-K programs at public schools and Head Start agencies across the state.

In 2014, President Obama announced that he is fulfilling his promise to expand early education for thousands of children with a $1 billion investment in programs for the country’s littlest students.

Vermont was one of 18 states awarded Education Department grants to create or expand high-quality preschool programs. A total of 36 states had applied for the money.

Governor Peter Shumlin announced, “This is great news for Vermont, our children and our economic future. Vermont is one of the top states in America when it comes to early childhood education, and we are committed to being the best.”

Last year, 28 percent of America’s four-year-olds were enrolled in state-funded preschool programs. The new $1 billion investment in learning programs is for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers in lower-income communities.

The education summit also highlighted a series of 60-second public service announcements that focus on various aspects of early childhood education. Actors Jennifer Garner and Julianne Moore and singers Shakira and John Legend all narrated a part and conclude with the tagline, “When we invest in them, we invest in us.”

I am thrilled about the $1 billion dollars that is dedicated towards early education and want to congratulate Vermont, as well as the other recipients of the grants. Of course I am an advocate for programs that help students of all ages, but I firmly believe focusing on our nation’s youngest students is irreplaceable.

What do you think an investment in early childhood education could do for our country?

September 8, 2015

6 Ways to Create a Culture of Learning

When schools make a positive change in the academic performance of their students, they are often led by highly involved and active school leaders. This doesn’t mean that administrators are in the classrooms putting their skills to use. Surprisingly, research shows that the best way for school leaders to be effective at improving academic performance in students is to create a culture of learning throughout the school environment. Creating a culture of learning is possible for every school. Here are six ways that administrators can foster an educationally enriching environment.

Start with a Mission

The mission of the school as crafted by the administration is the most influential contribution – more than hands on classroom participation or higher level advocacy. That doesn’t just mean creating a mission statement, rather it means an active implementation of that mission statement that shapes the school environment to create a place that fosters learning from every level. A school’s mission is the key tool for administrators in the pursuit of academic excellence. Once a strong mission has been created, then it should be discussed and broken down with every stakeholder in the school community, allowing everyone to realize its importance and to see how it guides the culture of the school environment.

Communicate Effectively

People can’t do what you’re asking of them if they’re not clear on your expectations. In schools that have a culture of learning, administrators clearly express the ways that they want their policies and educational methodologies to be implemented. Of course are still questions, but these are largely clarifications that are based upon the prior information that’s been given to staff. Administration shouldn’t wait until information is requested, but rather should preemptively offer what they find to be most important. In addition, it’s important that when questions and clarifications do come up, that the administration is open to improvement rather than rigid.

Implement Strong Policy

The impact of administration on the outcomes of student learning is a significant one. Administrators shape the school’s vision – the big picture of the educational environment, through the policies that are implemented throughout the school. That means creating policy that fosters rather than inhibits learning in students, and which views everything through the lens of education. Discipline is of value only when it’s part of the educational process. Schedules are structured to promote academic performance. Non-academic activities are recognized for their enriching role in the academic process, and fostered appropriately. When principals are consistent in their articulation AND execution of the school’s objectives, then support their staff in the carrying out of those solidly founded policies, we see students grow academically in meaningful ways.

Be an Active Presence

Administrators who sit in their offices are not able to effectively lead their staff and students. In order to create a culture of learning, administration has to be a visible presence in the hallways and in the classroom, interacting with students and staff in a way that reinforces the mission statement and implemented policies. That means not just walking the halls or performing disciplinary actions, but rather looking to further reinforce educational ideas in meaningful ways.

Provide Resources

In these times of tight budgets, when we think of resources, we tend to immediately think of school supplies. But resources are so much more than that. Administrators themselves are resources, and when they’re highly visible it’s offering something important to students and teachers. Incentives that aren’t tied to the budget can be an important driver for teachers and students, think about school wide competitions or perks that can be provided. Perhaps the biggest resource that administrators can offer is time: instructional time, planning time, down time. There are never enough hours in the school day, but how those hours are structured can make a huge difference in the amount of time that teachers have at their disposal.

Guide Instruction

When school goals are coordinated with curriculum, then it is possible to raise student performance through more codified and effective instruction across the school environment. What’s perhaps most surprising here is that it is NOT hands on implementation of the school’s vision that affords the most value to students. It’s not about administration directly implementing instructional programs, or even directly creating them. Rather it is when administrators create a vision for learning that they then trust their skilled teachers to implement. The framing of educational and academic goals that is the most effective offering of administrators in the pursuit of higher levels of performance in students. Administrators can effectively create positive academic outcomes for students by promoting the mission of the school with academic standards, timetables and academic curricula.

Administrators indirectly influence student learning, though powerfully so. These practices foster academic growth in students across socioeconomic and cultural boundaries. Again, notice that none of these involve hands on classroom interventions on the part of administrators, but all foster a structured environment that’s focused on student learning – a school culture of learning.

July 23, 2015

The Ultimate Demise of Common Core – Part III: The Logistics

From an idealogical perspective, the differences that divide Americans are also what make the nation unique and great. When it comes to education, however, there seems to be a competing theory that differences should be dismissed in favor of finding a standardized way to teach all K-12 students. Time and again when it comes to national policy on education, stringent sets of benchmarks are consistently put in place that are accompanied with funding incentives. The latest example of this one-size-fits-all approach to education policy is Common Core standards and the testing that goes with them.

This week I’ve already written about the way politics and parents will contribute to the end of days for Common Core and today I’d like to add in exactly how the logistics will too.

American students really are multi-faceted.

It seems everywhere you look, we celebrate diversity in this country. From skin color, to language spoken, to sexual preferences, the national message seems to be “Be you. Whatever that looks like.” Except when it comes to measuring a “good” education. It’s widely accepted that students learn in different ways and customized learning initiatives are a trend fueled by in-classroom technology. HOW students learn is varied, but WHAT they are learning is somehow expected to fall into some neat, standardized package. Laying down countrywide rules of sorts for learning, and attaching those to funding, is an easy way to check off boxes on a spreadsheet but not an effective way to teach each student exactly what he or she needs to know based on career paths, interests and life circumstances.

Regionalisms exist.

It’s true that the world is becoming smaller and that the differences that once divided K-12 students by geography are shrinking. Still, there are some learning standards that just make more sense in one area over another. The benefits of learning a foreign language should be shared on a national level, but the specifics of those benchmarks should be considered. A state like Arizona or Texas, for example, with a high percentage of Spanish-speakers could benefit from more curriculum customized to that population, and in a much more effective way than a state like Iowa or Maine. Common Core is not a curriculum set, of course, but I use the language example as a way to show the difference between students and how where they live really does impact what they really should know. Industry specific learning is also a consideration when it comes to what should be taught more heavily, not as a way to pigeon-hole students but as a way to set them up for the best chance at career success. Considerations for subject areas that have been weak in a particular region should also be thought about and given priority.

There is not one model student.

The idea that all U.S. K-12 students should know exactly the same things, and graduate from high school with the same shared learning experiences is flawed. Of course no one expects any two students to be identical in their learning outcomes, but the implication of Common Core standards are that there should be a cookie-cutter which every district and every teacher uses. Such an educational model goes against every other American ideal – like innovation, creativity and individuality – yet is prevalent throughout the public school system. If there were one leading flaw in Common Core requirements, it would be this: it allows no wiggle room for letting students be the people they were meant to be.

If you could pinpoint the crux of the problem with Common Core standards and implementation, what would it be?

February 21, 2015April 6, 2025

Teachers: How to Use Google Drive

By Catlin Tucker

For teachers who are just getting started with Google, Google Drive can be intimidating! In preparation for a Google training, I’ve put together a short explanation of Google Drive and its basic features. Although an increasing number of people have a Gmail account, I run into teachers all the time who are not sure what Google Drive is or how it works.

Google Drive is like a big virtual bucket! It’s where everything you create with Google apps–documents, forms, sheets, slides, drawing–are stored. And unlike a traditional word processing document, you never need to click “Save”…EVER. Your work is automatically saved every 5 seconds (or so).

Google Drive comes with 15 GB of free storage, so you can save files, photos, and videos. You can access any file in your Google Drive from any device as long as you have internet access. This means you are no longer tethered to a piece of hardware. You can open, edit and share files from any device that can get online.

For those with unreliable internet access, you can also install Google Drive onto your devices and work offline. Then when you are back online, your devices will sync and store your work!

Here are some screenshots to help you navigate your Google Drive.

Organize your files in whatever order makes sense to you. You can limit your view to the files you’ve created, the files that have been shared with you or the files that have been most recently edited. This makes it easy to locate the files you’re looking for.

Click on a file or folder and check out the “More actions” icon (3 vertical dots) to manage your documents more easily.

Enjoy total transparency with the “View Details” icon (black circle with the letter “i” in the middle). Simply click on a file or folder and see all of the activity associated with it. You can see when documents were created, when they were edited, and who edited them!

Last, but not least, you can insert files, photos and videos directly from Google Drive into your emails.

If you use Google Drive and have tips to share, please post a comment!

This post originally appeared on Catlin Tucker: Blended Learning & Technology in the Classroom and was republished with permission.

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