Students not completing their assignments? Off with their heads!

I remember the last months of Senior Year of high school. AP Exams were over, college decisions had been made, and our teachers were just as relaxed and done with school as we were. Except for one class. One teacher kept assigning paper, vocabulary work, reading, and nightly homework. I will admit it now – the work I did in that month, if I did it at all, was substandard and hastily thrown together. Why didn’t that teacher just give up? I think I understand now that her conscious wouldn’t let her.

When students are not completing assignments, I believe that there are 3 steps to go through, changes to make, and factors to look at.

1. The Students

2. The Assignments

3. The Teacher

1. The Students

First and foremost, I believe in looking at the students. Are they bored? Or are they overwhelmed? Either are plausible explanations for not completing work. My first course of action would be to speak to students. Remind them of the assignment, the expected outcome, and the manner in which it should be completed. This in the time when I believe that consequences, both positive and negative, should be leveled. Those who have completed or worked on the assignment would be rewarded positively. Those who have not completed their assignment will either be negatively rewarded, or told of the negative repercussions that can and will arise if their work is not completed (lowered grade, note home, etc.)

2. The Assignments

After the students have been spoken to, addressed, or warned of consequences, if assignments aren’t yet reaching completion, the assignment in and of itself needs to be addressed. Is it challenging? Does it connect to students? Why are they being asked to do this assignment? I also believe that looking at the assignment in relation to the students is a helpful step. If students aren’t completing, say, a model of Ancient Egypt because they are busy completing 2 hours of challenging math homework on a nightly basis, this is a factor to be taken into consideration. This is the time when I would change the assignment. If a great number are still struggling to reach completion, something about the work must change.

3. The Teacher

If both of these factors have been looked at, addressed, and used to change the assignment, it is now the time that I would address my own actions and practices. Have I explained the assignment fully to my students? Do they understand what is necessary for its’ completion, as well as the purpose and function of said assignments? This is the point in time when I would change my approach. I would change things such as my directions, the content and approach of my instruction, or my opinion of the assignment as a whole.

All in all, I think that if assignments are not being completed by my students, I would reflect on these three topics or areas, in sequential order. Ultimately, a combination of the three must be contributing to the lack of completion, so addressing all of them would be the most comprehensive, holistic approach.

April 11 - Reflection

As my case study finishes, I have to say that I think it went well overall, though there are some things that could have improved. I believe that my students were willing and able to adjust their behavior and be kind and respectful to one another. I was able to see though, that they did so only at the urging of an outside force. For their own personal happiness and decision-making, they did not need or want to make this decision.

Now, I must keep in mind that my students are 6 and 7 year olds. I don’t believe that I can genuinely be disappointed or surprised that their self-control and general discipline is not supremely present in their thoughts and actions. I was pleased to see that with an external stimulus/force (my encouraging them and asking them to behave in a certain manner) they were able to work together amicably and show kindness and respect. The week that I left them to their own devices, though, with no external force, they slipped right back in to their old routine, and fought, name called and disrespected one another.

Part of me wonders though – Is this just their pattern? Their routine? Or a component of their personalities?

Response to Article - April 4

I read the article “Creating A Culture of Peace in the Elementary Classroom” by Tiffany J. Hunter, a selection I made because I believe that a classroom that is filled with stress, discomfort or conflict is not an effective one for learning. I was especially interested in the portion of this article entitled “Empathy Training.”

These paragraphs describe ways of teaching students to understand feelings of themselves, others, and even fictional characters. I enjoyed reading about this immensely, as it never occurred to me that you could teach others how to empathize. Until reading this, I was under the impression that sympathy, empathy, and general understanding, are innate qualities and abilities.

A portion of the article says that learning about emotions and feelings isn’t enough, it is important also to capitalize on and teach the “capacity to recognize feelings and understand them as contextualized responses.” I love the idea not only of teaching students about feelings, but the effects they have on our actions, responses, and interactions with one another. I believe that this kind of “empathy training” would help a classroom to run in a more peaceful, resolved way.

Powerpoint

Bip

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BIP so far - March 21

For the BIP, I began by speaking to the whole class. As we gathered to review what each center activity would be for the day, we stopped to talk about Puzzles & Games. “Remember today, friends, that when we are in Puzzles and Games – we’re there to have fun. Are we only there to have fun though?” I spoke to the class about how we are having fun, but what’s even more important is that we are learning. We reviewed not calling people “cheater pants” – and especially that winning or losing was not the end goal.

When the 3^rd Puzzles & Games group arrived at the center, I went over and spoke to them as a group. “Friends, I would really like to see and hear some new things in this center. I would like to see people helping one another, and I would especially like to hear some kind words to our volunteer. If we are rude to a volunteer, we won’t be able to have them any more. That means that puzzles and games will be silent work at your desk, and I don’t think anyone wants that.”

That particular day I saw kindness and respect to the parent volunteer – I hope that’s a step in the right direction!

Melloy Article - March 7

In a mock interview at my placement recently, I was asked what my behavior management would look like in a classroom. I immediately launched into a system of green, yellow and red, with students not only understanding what actions earned them a negative consequence, but how to rectify this behavior. After this mock interview, the panel told me “You went straight to negative. Why not positive?”

This is what I thought about when I focused in on the “Common Causes and/or Antecedents of Disruptive Behavior” within the Melloy reading. I definitely believe in a positive reward system for students, and to be quite honest, I feel like I provide positive reinforcement a lot, it just isn’t something that is a conscious effort for me. Telling a student “thank you so much for standing in line quietly” is easier and generally more effective than calling someone else down for talking in line.

The Melloy reading references “inappropriate behavior management.” I definitely think that to positively reinforce behavior would instead be considered appropriate behavior management.

Project So Far - February 21

For my project, I have decided to create a social behavior plan for one of four center groups. This center group consists of 5 students, and they are the group that seems to struggle the most with social interactions. Within this group, two of the girls are best friends, and, as most best friend six year old girls will do, seem to hate each other 90% of the time. My personal observations lead me to believe that some of the issues here are the ripple effect of tension within this pair.

The time in which these students seem to be conflicted the most is in the Tuesday/Thursday Puzzles & Games center. Most days this center is run by a volunteer, but these students still argue, call each other “Cheater-Pants” (thank you, Junie B. Jones!) argue over who’s turn it is, who won, etc. During this center on Tuesday & Thursdays at least one student receives a warning from the group. This could be for rudeness, not listening, not following directions, or disrespecting another student.

The ultimate goal of this Social Behavior Plan will be to have these students interact in the 20 minute long Puzzles and Games center twice a week (Tuesday and Thursday) without anyone receiving a warning or having behavior corrected.

This first step of this Social Plan will begin the week of February 28^th, and the first step is to assist these students in showing respect and kindness to the adult volunteer who runs the center. Once these students have begun to understand the way to show someone that you value their time and help, they will begin to apply these same principles to working with their peers.

PBS for Kids - Arthur, Elmo and Clifford not included

PBS. Ew. When my mom began mentioning PBS to me during my Sophomore Year at UNC, I was very confused as to why the Public Broadcasting System was sponsoring programs in elementary schools across the country. Seriously. When I finally got around to asking her and finding out for myself what PBS (Positive Behavior Support) is all about, I, to put it bluntly, hated the idea.

My personal beliefs in management and behavior are this: Students/Kids/People in general should behave in a respectful, kind manner that involves following rules, laws, and meeting expectations. If and when these are exhibited, that person may receive a reward, at an unexpected and random rate. Basically, I think that the work/behavior/etc. should be done all the time, and if you happen to get rewarded for it, then that’s just a bonus. My impression of PBS was that of constantly being bribed --- as opposed to what I believe the actual concept is, which is rewarded as a positive consequence.

Through my time in a PBS school this semester, I hate to admit it, but I’m singing a different tune. Many of the reasons and thoughts that I have come to are outlined amazingly well in the “Creating A Classroom That Promotes Positive Behavior” article. I think what is the most logical thing to me is a bulleted point early on in the article. “Agree on unified expectations, rules and procedures.” For a student to adequately and appropriately behave and perform in a classroom, they must know what is expected of them. The PBS system definitely lends itself to clarifying for students what is expected of them, and giving them goals and commendations for reaching these expectations.

CT's Classroom Management

My CT’s classroom management is through a system called Helping Hands. Each student has 2 “hands” on the wall with their names on them. If they are called down or reprimanded, they receive a warning, and their name is written on a small portion of the board. If they are not called down, or receive a warning, at the end of the day, they color a smiley on their homework sheet green. If they lose a hand, they are required to have Silent Lunch, or a “Thinking Walk” at recess, depending on the time of the day. If they lose a hand, then they must color a yellow smiley on their homework sheet. Additionally, whoever called the student down and asked them to remove their hand will write a small note on the bottom of the homework sheet for the parents to initial. If a student loses both hands, then a note is sent home and they are sent to the office. Additionally, they must color their smiley face red for the day. I have yet to see or hear about a student having a “Red Day” so far. In fact, I have seen only about 2 “Yellow Days” since January, and I find that accurately reflects the dynamic of my classroom.

My students are well behaved and quick to follow instructions. The school is involved in a PBS program that allows classes to earn beans for good behavior. Just the reward of getting to put the class’ bean in the jar can and does motivate my students to follow directions, stop talking, or sit quietly.

I believe that a great deal of the management and order within my classroom comes from respect. I am lucky enough to have a class of 22 students that know, inherently or through practice, to respect their teacher. In return, they are shown respect and receive independence, rewards and recognition.

Classroom Management in Inclusive Settings

I enjoyed and definitely agreed with the portion of this article subtitled “Facilitating Friendships.” I am a firm believer that once of the greatest things students learn while in our classrooms is social skills. The skills are further strengthened and expanded in an inclusive classroom. Not only are students learning skills for interacting with those of differing racial, religious and socio-economic background, but how to relate to those who are different on a fundamental cognitive level. During our lifetimes, we will interact with others who are different than us on at least a daily level. Our checker at the grocery store may have different color skin, the mailman may sport a star of David around his neck, that differs from my own cross necklace, the driver who you cut off this morning may take medicine to combat his ADD, while you can sit and focus for hours on your own – these are all possibilities. The way most of us gain our so called “life skills” is in the classroom, whether we know it or not. We learn here how to interact with others, wait our turn, reconcile differences, and even gain factual information on others’ beliefs and cultures. I agree with Soodak’s assertion here that friendships “provide students the opportunity to develop important skills and attitudes”.