Personal Statement-Part One

Where does my teaching philosophy fit?
TLW begin the process of developing a personal statement that considers ow a Classroom Management as Discipline fits my beliefs, values, experiences, and the learners I expect to work with.

Schema Activation:  Review the ideas discussed in chapters 2-5 in ECM (Classroom Management as Discipline) and review my current teaching philosophy (that as much described by Kohn & Canter and Canter).

I do not like the ideas of behaviorism, and assertive discipline entirely on its own does not appeal to me. In fact, the word discipline does not appeal to me. Both are authoritative approaches, both can be intimidating and cause students to dislike the teacher and school-the opposite of what I want. Both would seem to treat adolescents like children, rather than promoting them to behave like adults.  However, I would use the idea of a set of rules or guidelines that are expected of students for a positive, functional learning environment and let the students know what they can expect from me. I want to teach them how to help create a positive atmosphere, for them to be feel comfortable in that atmosphere, to enjoy my class, and to be paticipatory in interacting with me and their classmates.  I want them to know that they can achieve what they came her for; to learn.  I feel that behaviorism is more individual (would be extremely time consuming) and gives different rewards to different students--which would be inconsistent.  Assertive discipline is all about rules, rules, rules and exercising them.  To me, this creates a negative atmosphere/perception from the very beginning, but again, some need to be discussed for their own benefit and so I can be the best teacher possible to and for them.  Neither discipline looks at the causes of disruptive behavior; it could be problems the student is dealing with at home, or it could be the tasks and method that the teacher is using in the classroom.  Neither cause the teacher to reflect on what he/she may be doing to influence this behavior or what he/she could change that may curb the behavior (e.g., assignments too difficult and frustrating, talking to students authoritatively instead of respectfully, not presenting lessons in a way that is engaging to students).  If there is one method of management as discipline that I think I could use to a degree, it would be positive classroom discipline with limit setting, responsibility training wit PAT (Preferred Activity Time) as a group, and a backup system for the most problematic individuals as I realize that no matter how much trust I earn or how engaged I can make my class or how positive the atmosphere is, there may be those individuals that will continue to be a challenge and display problematic/disruptive behavior.  Therefore, I will need some form of  action in place when all else fails, some kind of intervention or consequence. I am hoping that I will find an even better way to manage problematic behavior with additional reading in this book.  I like the idea of giving the students something grand to look forward to, perhaps once a month or at the end of a unit, such as a fun field trip outing that includes learning at the same time.

Here I am going to paste an excerpt from my discussion board response because it completely applies and goes along with my philisophies for pragmatism, progressivism, and existentialism.  I am fond of both classroom management as a system and as instruction, primarily the latter (and would like to do more reading on this one):

Classroom management as a systematic approach with solid instruction and a purposeful learning environment that keeps the students engaged in hands-on activities or group discussions that are interesting, which are contributing factors to success.  I want to learn how to effectively manage a classroom while not being viewed as authoritative. With management as discipline there are still rules, rewards and disciplines, and this style lacks the teaching of prosocial behavior and self-regulation that could go even further.  I do feel there has to be an understood classroom etiquette that needs to be respected in order to have an optimal learning environment.  I want students to feel comfortable asking questions,being interactive discussing material with me and with each other, and learning from each other, etc.
Canter (2010) states in Chpt. 3 that instead of using management as a discipline with punishment, establishing a positive relationship with students can reduce disruptive behavior by up to 50 percent.  Part of this is getting to know your students on a personal level, contacting students and parents before school begins to begin a welcoming, positive relationship, and attend extracurricular activities that show you are interested which offers students the opportunity to talk to you about things they do or are interested in.  I agree that assertive discipline does nothing to find the cause or treatment for misbehavior, it merely treats the symtoms (with discipline).  Misbehavior could be occurring as a result of stresses such as child abuse, malnourishment, rejection, insecurity, loneliness, and emotional distress.  I would add that economic status and the established norms of behavior by the adolescents in their immediate community are also contributing factors.  There is the hope that a caring teacher can help.
In Chpt. 8, Kohn suggests that communication, not rewards and punishments, is the key to effective classroom discipline.  He states that discipline may temporarily change behavior but cannot help students become ethical adults.  He argues that the goal of traditional discipline programs is to make children behave a certain way and to comply with adult demands rather than to support and facilitate children's social and moral growth.  Here, the ultimate goal of classroom management should be having students behave appropriately because they know it's the right thig to do and because they can understand how their actions affect other people.  Teachers need to look at their own behaviors as well and see if they are playing a role in contributing to the disruptive behavior.  Are teachers giving too many worksheets, are they disrespectful or are they modeling good, positive interactions, are they keeping students engaged with interesting material, are they asking students the right questions (or asking questions at all) to get at the real source when a disruption occurs?  In this classroom as management system, problem behavior is addressed as a class, where the class is the community and they discuss the problem, what the appropriate behavior would have been, and how to best rectify and prevent that behavior again. The consequence is discussion rather than punishment where other people's feelings are considered, students learn how to openly discuss issues, and it is thought that students learn how to build community skills that they will continue to use in society throughout their lives.  I can see this classroom community style of management working in grade school and perhaps middle school, but I am not sure this would go over well with high school students.  They may think it silly and uncomfortable ? 

 When we get these kids in high school, they have likely been exposed to and are quite accustomed to more authoritative instruction in school (and perhaps at home) and thus acting out with disruption.  Changing these expectations, mindsets and behaviors in a classroom is problematic because it is timely, especially given that each class only lasts about an hour.  I would try to keep them actively engaged with hands-on problem solving, experiments or projects that are interesting and hopefully apply to real world situations they can relate to.  It's interesting that in the beginning I did not think it was a teacher's responsibility to try and shape moral development with students.  I felt it important to be a good role model displaying good moral behavior, but ultimately that role is the parent/family's responsibility.  I am beginning to change my mind about teaching prosocial behaviors.

Engagement level: 10