Teacher Interview

Teacher: Kelsey Liaromatis
School: Bristol Grade School
Grade: Kindergarten
Years of Experience: 5

After reading about the various ways in which classroom management can be shaped in a school setting, it was very intriguing to interview my good friend and teaching role model, Kelsey Liaromatis. Mrs. Liaromatis is currently in her fifth year of teaching five year old students. Although, our friendship started from our similar passion for teaching many years ago, this young woman is continuing to succeed in her short, but very successful years of leading a classroom. Over the years, Kelsey has shared many "behind the scenes" tips, complaints, and joys of working in the education field. However, this time around,  I was able to help grasp a better insight on just how rewarding and tiring her work as a teacher can be. The following information will summarize her responses to the questions that were asked in relation to topics that we are covering in this course.

1. How would you define/describe your classroom management philosophy? That is to say, what informs your decisions to make sure your class runs smoothly on a daily basis?

•  Building a rapport with your students will help any teacher have control of his/her classroom management. I base my management off of learning about each student, and the way that works best for them. Not every student can handle their behavior in the same way, or respond the same way to a whole-class management system. I think this needs to be made individual for specific students.

2. How do you handle disruptive/misbehaving students who make it difficult for others to learn?

•   For this I definitely lean on the supports of my colleagues. If the student is so disruptive that needs to be removed from the classroom, I have the support from our school social worker or our building principal. If this is a case that can be handled in the classroom, I make sure to take that student aside as to not draw more attention to him/her. We discuss at the beginning of the year how everyone learns in different ways, and sometimes we need special tools to help us learn (ie. Sitting in a wobble chair, bean bag chair, or using fidgits)

3. How do you “set the tone” the first day(s) of the school year to communicate your (discipline) expectations to students?

• The first week or so of school is mainly “fun, get to know you” kinds of things along with routines/rules and procedures. We read books like “Have You Filled a Bucket Today” “How Full is Your Bucket” “Spaghetti in a Hot Dog” and “Wordy Birdy.” I teach students that my expectations are for them to be kind to one another, and that it feels good to do good. We also use the 5 rules of whole brain learning – Follow directions quickly, raise your hand for permission to speak, raise your hand for permission to leave your seat, make smart choices, and make your dear teacher happy. (we focus a lot on each… but the last is my favorite. The students need to know that they can make you happy (or unhappy) and strive to “fill my bucket.”

4. A student is consistently late to your class. How do you handle the situation?

• At my level, kindergartners are not in charge of when they arrive. I make sure to greet them with excitement and tell them I  am so glad they are there. If it becomes an issue, I will call parents to discuss what their child is missing out on because they are always late.

5. What classroom management strategies work best for you? Are there strategies that some teachers use that you disagree with?

• I mainly use the clip chart system, and there are many people who do not agree with this. However, I think it is important for students to understand not-right choices, and be able to correct them. With having the students be able to clip up and down unlimited times, they have the opportunity to clip up, although they may have made a poor choice. It teaches them we make mistakes, and that they are loved and accepted and can change their choices.

6. What is your behavior management plan? (rules, consequences, rewards, etc.)

• We use a rainbow clip chart that has emoji faces to help them understand good choices go up, poor choices go down. Consequences only mainly come when students land on red – parent contact. Otherwise, I just speak to the student so they understand why they’ve clipped down. When a student gets to pink, the whole class cheers for them – as this doesn’t happen often!

          

7. Instead of sending a student to the dean, what are some disciplinary methods you found effective for in classroom use?

• Not allowing a student to sit by their friend, parent contact, 1 on 1 conversation to problem solve how we can fix the issue, or even taking time away from their favorite activity.

8. How do you feel about “non-traditional” classroom setups (groups of desks instead of rows,open seating etc.)? Do you think they are beneficial, or provide more opportunities for distractions and misbehavior?

• I love non-traditional feels! In my class, you will find tables for the students. I have a variety of sit spots: carpet squares, animal chairs, scoop chairs, bean bag chairs, reading pillows, rubber-banded legs on chairs etc. I think students learn best when they feel the most comfortable.

After taking a look at the dialect that took place between Mrs. Liaromatis and I, I noticed many significant similarities in her methods of handling classroom management compared to chapters 7 and 13 in Woolfolk's text. For instance, in chapter 7, a scenario was presented from the views of a fourth grade student who listed her reasons of liking school. She mentioned that she likes when the teacher reprimands students in a private manner instead of yelling at them in front of the class. Landrum and Kauffman suggest, "soft, calm, private reprimands are more effective than loud, public reprimands in decreasing disruptive behavior". (Pg. 270, Landrum & Kauffman). This information relates to how Mrs. Liaromatis described her ways of handling similar behavior in question two. I believe i handing situations like this in the same way. I believe that in doing so, you are respecting the relationship between yourself as a teacher and your student. As Alberto and Troutman suggest, "punishment can interfere with developing a caring relationship with your students". (Pg. 271, Alberto & Troutman).

In question 3 of the interview, Mrs. Liaromatis discussed how she sets the tone for her classroom. She described the way that she sets her expectations and rules to her class. As noted in her response, I was quickly attentive to the fact that she was very detailed and precise about what exactly needed to be performed in the classroom in order for her students to act appropriately. In chapter 13, the first weeks of classes are discussed. Woolfolk states that a well-managed class is built upon determining a room design, rules, and procedures. In fact, these are the first steps needed to aim towards this successful classroom environment and effective teachers build on this beginning. Evertson, Emmer, and their colleagues found that effective class managers have well-planned systems for encouraging students to manage their work (Pg. 502, Emmer & Evertson). In my future as an educator, I will make sure that I follow this same approach in order to set standards for my students and their behavior. I feel that giving the students specific expectations provides a commonality towards respect between the teacher, the student, and their peers.

Teacher Interview

For my interview I asked a teacher who is in her first year of teaching. I chose this specific teacher because she herself just graduated from the Trinity Education Program a year prior and she was the one who influenced me to do it. Through the interview, I could tell Ms. Harris was as passionate about teaching as she was when she said "I want to be a teacher" a few years ago. Through her wisdom, it is shown that there isn't a one-size-fits-all classroom technique. Within her class, she has noticed some successful strategies, while some strategies that failed. She looks to the other teachers in her school for advice and has learned that just because it may work in another teacher's classroom, it may not work in her own.

The most fascinating discovery from the interview was that Ms. Harris has switched up her classroom environment multiple times and has seen multiple reactions to the change. This was illustrated in Chapter 13's readings on classroom management, and Ms. Harris was able to give me a first-hand experience. Along with this chapter she states that she loves having a non-english speaking student apart of her class. Many first year teachers may be terrified of such a difference, but Ms. Harris is thrilled to learn and grow each day with this student. By understanding differences in the classroom, Ms. Harris encourages a cooperative environment by having the non-english speaker get assistance from the students that speak both English and Spanish. She states that the bond the child has with the other children who help him is very strong and she is happy that she can be apart of it. Her reward system for her students relates to Chapter 7's readings on operant conditioning. She uses both positive and negative reinforcement and sees this strategy working for her fourth grade class. When I asked her if she saw herself always using this strategy, she replied she hopes to think of something more creative.

As a first year teacher she is still learning the ropes, so she is happy to get by with the marble reinforcement technique. It was a pleasure to hear from Ms. Harris because it motivates me to keep moving forward with Trinity's program.



Question: How does the organization of your room (student desk arrangements, teacher's desk, furniture, proximity of students, etc.) affect your classroom?

1)  I have tried multiple kinds of student desk arrangements. I began with groups of 4. It was great for group work, but they did not perform well during independent work because of talking with each other and losing focus. I now have two E shaped rows. This has been working very well because they are able to work with each other as well as focus during independence. I have a U shaped table in the back corner for small groups. I have two carpet areas. One is in the classroom library and it is reserved for 2 students during independent reading time. The other carpet is in the middle of the classroom for use of the Promethean board and chart board for instruction.

Question: What classroom management strategies work best for you? Are these strategies that some teachers use that you disagree with?
2) I use a clip system for classroom management. It works for positive and negative behavior throughout the day. There is also whole class rewards and discipline system put in place. They can gain marbles for positive behavior during specials or lunch and can
lose recess time for whole class misbehavior. If the issue becomes more of a problem, they will receive a lunch detention and talk to the dean. This would result in a call home as well to keep the parents included in their daily behaviors.

Question: How do you work with students who do not have English as their primary language, and you do not speak the language?


3) I have one student who only speaks Spanish. He does have help from EL teachers some time during the day. When there is no EL teacher in the room, I ask other students to help translate things for him because my class is predominantly hispanic. I also will use
google translate to have conversations with him or translate whatever we are working on beforehand.

Question: How do you handle disruptive/misbehaving students who make it difficult for others to learn?


4) I have made “office areas” in my classroom for a quieter area to work. The students who are constantly disrupting others can benefit from these areas because there is less distraction for them. The students may get extra breaks if needed. I will also work one
on one with these students to ensure they are working to their full potential and not distracting others while working. I have also involved social workers and their special ed teachers of my concerns and have kept in contact with their parents.

Question: What is your administrations view of classroom management? Does it align with your own philosophy or does it differ in some way?

5) My administration’s view of classroom management is to deal with the issues in the classroom first. Unless it is a serious issue or an ongoing occurrence is when to get administration involved. I believe that this is a good way to deal with issues because the
less time out of the classroom the better for the students. There should be some sort of discipline plan in the classroom that can be used throughout the day to avoid having the students leave the classroom and miss learning material.

Teacher Interview

For my teacher interview project, I was lucky enough to be able to interview a teacher in my family that has been teaching for 30 plus years.  Starting out with elementary education and moving on to high school students.  I did this interview on Sunday night, the questions were not completed yet, so I just asked her all of the questions listed.   I thought it definitely gave me a lot of insight into teaching and connected one of my biggest questions I have had since the beginning of the cohort. 

How will I manage my classroom and get the students to show everyone including the teacher respect.  I thought her answers mostly aligned with Chapter 13, especially page 494 going over routines, procedures, and rules.  Since she taught elementary for so long, a lot of the suggested rules in our text went along with the way Mrs. Baldwin expected her students to engage with her and the rest of the school.   Along with rules, procedures, and routines, she spoke a lot about getting the students attention and respect at the beginning of the year.  Getting Started: The First week of Class (pg 499) brings all of this together.  Stopping problems quickly (pg 506) was another section of chapter 13 I connected to my interview.  If you can get classroom management under control in the beginning of the school year, matters of discipline will be easier throughout the year when needed. 

Although I am related to Mrs. Baldwin, I never really got the chance to talk with her as much about teaching until recently.  Every time we are out and see an old student or a new one, they have so many great things to say.  I am hoping to use her knowledge of teaching to get started.  Maybe I will be as great a teacher as her someday!

Interview Recording

Teacher Interview

Name: Kamila Zaremba
School: DePaul College Prep
Subject: World and US History
Grades: 10-12

1. How would you define/describe your classroom management philosophy? That is to say, what informs your decisions to make sure your class runs smoothly on a daily basis?
I would describe my classroom management philosophy as democratic, respectful, and consistent. Democratic because at the beginning of the year we made a classroom constitution in every class in terms of expectations and consequences if there was behavior that was disrespectful. Respectful in terms of when something happens that is against our classroom constitution or the expectations of school conduct, I will tell a student exactly what was violated and then if they try arguing I ask them to stay after class so that we can discuss it. Or if they are doing things in partners and it will be cause too much of a distraction to the class, I take them outside the classroom and we talk about it 1:1. Consistent since students value consistency in regards to expectations. What informs my decisions is educational research, my own teaching philosophy, and the overall class behavior and needs.

2. How do you handle disruptive/misbehaving students who make it difficult for others to learn?
I partially answered this in my last response, so you can also pull from there. In my morning periods, things are usually more mellow since students are still waking up. If students do talk too much or get off topic, I redirect them and typically that is enough. In my last period of the day, where many of my students struggle with learning and many also have ADHD, I try to keep a tighter hold on the class. Oftentimes, this means we will do individual work compared to partners or groups because then we get very off track compared to the other classes. I stand by my students who usually get off topic more because the subtle action of me standing by them is usually enough to ensure they stay on track.

3. How does the organization of your room (student desk arrangements, teachers desk, furniture, proximity to students, etc.) affect your classroom management plan?
The organization of my room plays a big role in my classroom management plan. We have tables instead of individual desks. I have the tables in a U shape, a bigger U and a smaller U. Smaller U has 3 tables with 8 students there. They are closest to me, so I usually put the students who need to be redirect more often there. The larger U fits the rest of the students. This usually also aids with discussions, since we do a lot of those. My desk is in the back. I never use it. I sit at the podium in the front if I ever get a chance to sit, otherwise I am standing or sitting next to a student and moving to the next kiddo.

4. Instead of sending a student to the dean, what are some disciplinary methods you found effective for in classroom use?
If I have to ask students more than 3-4 times to settle down and it gets to be very loud, I keep them after class 1-2 minutes and they sit in silence. This usually only happens with my 8th period. I have done this once with 4th period, but that was a rare occurrence. We then discuss what should happen next time. Detentions are given out after I have redirected a student 3 times. I usually also email parents if I give a student a detention or if I know that parent participation will solve the behavioral problem more than a detention would. If this problem continues, I confiscate phones, call parents, talk to coaches (this is particularly effective), and have meetings with the student and parent(s)/guardian(s). Sending students down to the dean is not a common practice here since we do not have hall monitors and that is typically what happens when schools have them, so that the hall monitor walks the student down to the dean’s. Otherwise, the student will not go down to the dean’s.

5. Do you believe that a reward system is beneficial to classroom management? Does it help with student management?
I do not have a reward system. I do not think it would help with classroom management all that much. Expectations should be made together with students and then they should be followed. If you step out of those bounds, then there is a consequence. If a student is truly on task, I will speak to them one-on-one and let them know and call home that they are doing well. Especially, if they are usually the student who is disruptive.

6. What classroom management strategies work best for you? Are there strategies that some teachers use that you disagree with?
I believe what works best for me is my seating arrangement, verbal warnings, and one-on-one conversations. Additionally, since our students have iPads, we use Apple Classroom where I can see what they are doing. If they are on social media or playing games, then I can lock them into an app and have them work on what we are doing. I disagree with giving out detentions immediately. Something I wish I could implement brain breaks more often or meditating. When I notice at times that students are especially out of the norm, we stop everything and do a 3 minute meditation. Something that I have implemented once was an apology letter to me. I had turned around to set up a video on one of my classes and a group of 5 students started throwing around a roll of tape. I was disappointed in not just their behavior, but that no one said anything to get them to stop or say that’s not cool. I want them to say something when they see something, since as an American society we struggle with this and I want the next generation to do better. I disagree with reprimanding students in front of all their peers. That is why I have one-on-one conversations with them.

Summary of interview:
While conducting the interview with Kamila, I realized how much truly important an effective classroom management plan is. Although we read about how significant they can be, hearing it from an actual person and their way of reasoning for it was a completely eye opening experience. She started the interview off with a very strong point, which I also thought was important, regarding her philosophy as "democratic, respectful, and consistent". I could not think of 3 better words or ways of creating a classroom management plan. During the interview I kept thinking about to chapter 13 and the importance of rules, learning environments, communication, and disciplinary tactics. Each of these 4 things she mentioned in her interview and her explanations of how she implemented them made it even more clear to me as to how important they are. I was very happy to see that she mentioned the topic of technology since that is going to be my research paper topic and she made a very good point as to how technology can be used effectively. Kamila briefly spoke about methods of teaching and how her students learn best which I also enjoyed listening to. She was able to relate some of the things she does to chapter 7 in the book, which allowed me to get a deeper more personal understanding for effective ways to create positive student learning experiences. Overall the interview was a major success in my opinion and allowed me to get a more personal, first hand experience as to how teachers create the best environments for their students.

teacher interview

Dan Stekala

Teacher Interview

Mr. Darrell Reed, Physical Education/Health instructor at St. Laurence High School

Current experience: 13 years as a high school teacher, two years as a program adviser for a universities track team.

1. How would you define/describe your classroom management philosophy? That is to say, what informs your decisions to make sure your class runs smoothly on a daily basis? The philosophy is the 5 E learning model. Which is engage, explore, explain, extension and evaluate. Also to make sure every student participates, students are treated fairly and that he consistent with everything he does.

2. How do you handle disruptive/misbehaving students who make it difficult for others to learn? Talk to those students by pulling them to the side. Never wants to leave someone who just got in trouble alone. After you've taken them to the side, explain why you did so. If they continue to disrupt class, get them removed and have them serve a detention.

3. How does the organization of your room (student desk arrangements, teachers desk, furniture, proximity to students, etc.) affect your classroom management plan? Too many students in one class can be a challenge and separated locker rooms because you can't supervise all students at once.

4. How do you “set the tone” the first day(s) of the school year to communicate your (discipline) expectations to students? Have the student review the syllabus by themselves and have them go over it with their parents. Once they acknowledged what's to be expected from them have them both sign it and bring it back.

5. A student is consistently late to your class. How do you handle the situation? He would email the previous teacher to see if possibly they're letting them out late. If he finds out that's not the case, he begins to deduct point. However, he gives passes on coming late because the freshman lockers are on the opposite side of the building and the passing period of 3 minutes can still be too little for many.

6. What classroom management strategies work best for you? Are there strategies that some teachers use that you disagree with? What works best for him is holding kids accountable, whether that's good or bad. If it's bad, he doesn't want to prolong anything and have them know what they just did was wrong and on the other hand give them positive feedback for when they do something right or good. If the student has an excuse everyday for not participating or dressing, a deduction of points. The strategy he doesn't agree with is allowing students to go to the bathroom every day. The students should be able to use the bathroom during passing periods or during longer periods should use that time.

7. What is your administrations view of classroom management? Does it align with your own philosophy or does it differ in some way? The administration also follows the five E's. It 's the same one he uses in his class and was one of the one who came up with the idea for the school.

8. What is your behavior management plan? Point system for participation and seeing if they go above and beyond expectations. For good behavior, will recommend to principal for student of the month, which may include free lunch for the week or other such prizes.

9. Have you had to deal with students who have gotten into physical altercations? How did you handle it? Yes, had to get in the middle of a fight and got the area cleared out. Then sent a trustworthy student to grab a dean so they can escort the students from the class. Never want to leave the class unattended after something like that.

10. Instead of sending a student to the dean, what are some disciplinary methods you found effective in the classroom? Being consistent , firm, fair. Have to eliminate all issues as soon as they come up. Discuss the plan for the day with the students.

11. As an experienced teacher, what is one thing you wish you knew in your first years of teaching? Are there trends you can see in your school with new teaches and some of the struggles he or she may face? How to say no faster, you want to be liked by all your students so you usually let them get away with certain things such as going to the bathroom frequently. Once they see you're too friendly, they'll try to take advantage of that. The trends with new teachers are being inconsistent with their disciplining. They will let the students walk all over them and then let them feel like the job is overwhelming. The teacher must come in and set the rules day one and let them know this is how class will be and you must deal with it, but to also show that you'll be fair in doing so.

12. How do you work with students who do not have English as their primary language, and you do not speak that language? Ask another student to translate for them or a faculty member, but at the current school doesn't have that issue.

Teacher Interview

Name:  Nicole Cesari

School:  Moore Square Middle School (Raleigh, NC)

Grade level taught: 6th-8th (mostly 7th) (Middle School Science)

Interview questions:

1. What is your behavior management plan? (rules, consequences, rewards, etc.)

• At the school level, we have ROAR expectations that are posted in each classroom and throughout the school.  ROAR stands for: Respect everyone and everything, Own your own actions, Achieve your own goals, Remain Safe.
• In my classroom, I have 4 rules that are posted in my classroom and that are used to remind students of the most basic expectations.  They are to respect yourself and your future, respect your classmates and their right to learn, respect your teacher, and respect our school’s community and property.
• I use the online behavior management tool called Classcraft for daily behavior management.  This is similar to Class Dojo. It is a gamified behavior managment system, based off of World of Warcraft.  Each student becomes a different “character” and is put into a team of various characters to work collaboratively to help each other be successful.  Students earn XP (experience points) for meeting and exceeding expectations - such as when they are on task, helping a classmate, actively participating in class, etc.  Students use these XP to “level up” and earn “powers” when they do level up. These “powers” are what I use as rewards in my classroom. I’m not a huge fan of object rewards (candy, prizes, etc.), so these powers work as a great alternative.  Powers are freedoms that students earn based on their good behavior - such as the power to teleport to the seat of their choosing, or the power to become invisible and be able to use the restroom without using a hall pass, or the power to absorb a teammates damage.  Students also lose HP (or health points) for not meeting classroom expectations - such as when they are disrespectful to a teacher or classmate, when they are off task, or when they are not prepared for class, etc. When students have lost all of their HP, they “fall in battle” which is when they are given a consequence (such as a parent phone call home, isolated seating, letter of apology, etc.).
• In summary - Behavior management in my classroom is multifaceted!  There are school level requirements, such as documenting referrals and interventions in our online system, Easi.  And there is also freedom for me to design my own behavior management within my classroom. I chose to use Classcraft because it helped make expectations more explicit and tangible for my students so that they can actually see that good things happen when you meet/exceed expectations and negative consequences happen when you don’t do that.  

2. What is your administrations view of classroom management? Does it align with your own philosophy or does it differ in some way?  

• I believe it aligns with my own!  My admin gives us freedom to structure our classroom behavior management how we see fit.  They do require us to document more serious behavioral issues and actions or consequences that happened as a result, which can be tedious but is helpful when it comes to keeping data on student behavior to determine if more serious intervention is needed with a student.  My admin also encourages very equitable practices within the classroom. In other words, meeting students where they are and giving them the tools they need to be successful, even if that varies from student to student. They do not believe in a “one-size-fits-all” type of consequence or behavior management system.  They look at student behavior on a case by case basis - what other behavior issues has the child had at school, what’s going on in their home life, what interventions are in place/are effective/are ineffective, - and take all of these factors into consideration before just assigning a consequence. I try and do the same in my classroom.  

3. How do you “set the tone” the first day(s) of the school year to communicate your expectations to students?

• MOST IMPORTANT THING - I learn ALL names by the end of the first school day.  How can I expect my students to listen to me or to care what I have to say if I don’t know who they are by, at the very least, identifying them by name.  That requires some studying on my part to memorize all 130 names, but I make it happen, and they are very responsive to (and impressed by!) that.
• On the first day of school, I stray away from spending the entire time talking about rules and expectations.  Instead, I try and plan an activity for them to interact with each other, work in teams, and do something related to science.  In middle school, they get enough rules and expectations drilled into their head and enough being talked at in their other classes, and I want them to know that this is a place where learning is enjoyable.  This also gives me an opportunity to get to know them as learners and to assess what strengths and weaknesses I have within each class.
• I send home a letter with more specific classroom procedures and expectations, and include a form that needs to be signed by students and parents saying they understand and adhere to those expectations.  This is a CYA kind of thing so that expectations have been communicated with both students AND parents at the start of the year so that if issues arise I have documentation that expectations have been communicated.  I don’t allow students to do labs in the classroom until this form is signed, so that gets them brought back to school pretty quickly!
• After the first few days, when I give them this letter/syllabus, I’ve done several different things to review rules and expectations.  I HATE talking at my students - it’s exhausting/boring for me, and I don’t think they get much out of it. One thing I’ve done in the past is a syllabus scavenger hunt, which I create based off of what I think is the most important info regarding classroom expectations and procedures.  I’ve also done an escape room type activity which requires students to 1) work in a team, 2) locate important things in the classroom (work turn in drawers, absent work binders, eye wash, fire blanket, school supplies), 3) read through the syllabus, and 4) do it all quickly and with a purpose!  That has been very well received by students, and I’ve seen that they remember more of that information afterwards.
• Another MOST IMPORTANT thing is to make sure I’m enforcing those rules and expectations consistently from the get-go.  In my earlier years teaching, I had a tendency to be more slack at the beginning of the year and then found myself having a hard time getting my students to behave as we got closer to the end of the year because I wasn’t consistent the whole time.  So, whatever expectations you set, make sure you are loyal to them and enforcing them with consistency. Kids know what they can get away with and they will CERTAINLY try it all!

4. How do you handle disruptive/misbehaving students who make it difficult for others to learn?

• This is usually on a case by case basis in my classroom.  The first thing I always try is changing seating/grouping for a student.  If they feed off of certain students, I try and remove them from those students and put them with students who will not react to their behaviors.  If that doesn’t work, I usually try isolated seating. My goal is always to try and keep them in the class using whatever method I can - a lot of times those disruptive or misbehaving behaviors are a tool for students who are struggling to be removed from the class.  They know that teachers don’t want to deal with all of that and will ask them to sit in the hallway or leave if they’re being disruptive, and it’s often easier for a struggling student to save face by just acting out and being removed from a class that’s proving to be difficult for them.  At my old school we had something called “Refocus” which was when you had a buddy teacher to send a student to if they needed to be removed from the classroom for some reason. That way, students weren’t sitting out in the hallway without an adult and they also weren’t completely missing instruction.  My buddy teacher was another science teacher, so if someone was misbehaving, they would go to her classroom, fill out a “Refocus sheet” which required the student to reflect on what they were doing, why they were doing it, and what they could do better next time, and then they would come back when they had cooled down/calmed down and reflected.  That also gave me as the teacher a chance to collect myself instead of reacting emotionally to a child who may have been really working my nerves.
• Ultimately, if nothing else works, I will remove a child from the class.  This is the absolute last option for me, or one only used in extreme situations.  I will try all other options before simply sending a child out in the hallway or to the office.  That’s part of my duty as a teacher is to accommodate for behavioral issues. However, if I do not have the authority to deal with the behavior, I will ask a child to wait in the hallway, call for an administrator, or ask another teacher for assistance.  

5. How does the organization of your room (student desk arrangements, teachers desk, furniture, proximity to students, etc.) affect your classroom management plan?

• This is part of my classroom management plan!  I have students set up in groups because we very frequently do group or partner work and I also often ask them to discuss things with a partner or group.  I also have several different seat assignments at any given time, which will change from day to day depending on the activity. Students have more stringent assigned seats that I have them sit in when the activity we’re doing requires more individual work.  Students are put in these assigned seats for many reasons - proximity to me if I need to keep an eye on them, placement near a buddy if they are a struggling student who is easily influenced positively by a fellow classmate, separation from students who cause reactive students to be disturbed, and of course preferential seating based on IEP or 504 plans.  
• Another part of my classroom setup that is intentionally designed for classroom management is my student center and supplies setup.  I have “Student Center” bookshelf which is where supplies are kept that students can use whenever they need to, without needing to ask me for permission or where something is.  I keep turn in drawers, basic school supplies, tissues, hand sanitizer, absent work binders, and a pencil sharpener on this shelf so students can freely use those things. I also have a tech station setup for students to check out technology in an orderly fashion when they need to use our class laptops, headphones, or tablets.  
• One of my most effective classroom management tools in the middle school setting is posting a warm up when students come into the classroom.  It’s difficult sometimes to manage that transition, especially since we are required to monitor students in the hallway, but also are required to allow our students to immediately come into the classroom, not have them idly waiting in the hallway.  I always have a Warm Up on the TV when students come in that tells them which seats they are sitting in, reminds them to copy HW in their agenda and/or turn assignments in from the day or night before, and gives them some basic task to work on until the bell rings.  In middle school, tight transitions are ESSENTIAL, and this warm up time can really help start the class productively without the teacher needing to be there doing it herself.

6. How do you feel about “non-traditional” classroom setups (groups of desks instead of rows,open seating etc.)? Do you think they are beneficial, or provide more opportunities for distractions and misbehavior?

• I think these kinds of setups could be either beneficial or distracting, depending on the surrounding circumstances.  If I’m asking students to individually work on something that requires a lot of focus, like reading and annotating an article, groups can prove to be distracting.  If I’m asking students to collaborate on a project together, rows of desks doesn’t foster the kind of environment they need for that activity. I try to plan my classroom setup around my activity - If I know students need to have a big discussion, I may set my desks and chairs up in a circle that day so they can easily talk without stuff in their way distracting them.  If I know students need to read a news article and take notes on it, I may give them the opportunity to spread out around the room to distance themselves from those who may distract them. If I have planned a lab activity, I may have students choose their own groups and, therefore, would allow them to choose their own seats with their groups.

I think one of the things that stuck out to me the most, is how much Ms. Cesari cares about making her class engaging for everyone. This is one of the things discussed between chapters 7 and 13. How do we teach our children in order for them to learn. Ms. Cesari takes something as boring as a syllabus and tries to make it fun and engaging for all of her students.

Another thing is the classroom management tool she uses. Ms. Cesari states that she likes to use Classcraft because it is makes her expectations very clear and lets her students see what happens when they exceed expectations and what happens when they do not complete their tasks.

I like that through all of this interview she really shows how much she tries to ebb and flow to meet the needs of her students. She tries to find what works for each classroom that she teaches and then she models her classroom around that.

Teacher Interview

AEDU Experienced Teacher Interview -
Questions were asked via email with an amazing 4th grade teacher Mrs. Taulbee.
I have the pleasure of working with her, but she has been out all week at a workshop/conference.
After reading her responses to the questions I asked, I couldn't help but smile a little at how much she
cares about students collaboration in the room, and the best part is she really does,
and I know this because I get to see it.

Please see Mrs. Taulbee's responses below:

1. How would you define/describe your classroom management philosophy?
That is to say, what informs your decisions to make sure your class runs smoothly on a daily basis?

My philosophy on classroom management is really to focus on the positives and to
include the students in the process.  I think that it is crucial to have the students be a part of the
decision making when it comes to classroom rules and procedures.  
With that being said, there are most definitely some “non-negotiable” procedures that I need in
place for our classroom to run effectively.  The students’ involvement and buy-in really helps ensure
that our class runs smoothly most days.

**

2. How do you handle disruptive/misbehaving students who make it difficult for others to learn?

I use class DoJo as my management tool for behavior.  When students are being disruptive
I first try to find a student doing the right thing and compliment them.  For a good majority of the
students, this is enough to redirect their behavior without having to give a consequence.  
However, for students who are making it difficult for others to learn, I try to give them a quiet signal to
stop the behavior.  At the next step they will lose a point for the behavior. Again, most times this
happens it is enough to stop the behavior. In extreme cases, I have students take a “break”.  
Sometimes these breaks can be done in a portion of the classroom. Other times, the classroom aide
might take them for a walk, or another faculty member will step in to help.

3.How does the organization of your room (student desk arrangements, teachers desk, furniture,
proximity to students, etc.) affect your classroom management plan?

I am a firm believer in collaboration while doing work; this however can
sometimes promote talking within the class.  I change my set-up frequently as I see the students are
getting “too comfortable” next to the ones that they are sitting next to.  My desk is located in the
back of the room, but most of my teaching is done toward the front or on the carpet. This helps me
be in areas where I have a view of the entire class at most times.

4.How do you “set the tone” the first day(s) of the school year to communicate your (discipline)
expectations to students?

Our first day of school is dedicated to relationship building.  I make a big deal that the “rules”
come later and first really focus on building those positive relationships.  I divulge personal information
about myself to help them see me as a person, and not just the teacher in charge.  I do however, keep
the boundary between “friend” and “teacher”. I don’t want to set a tone that I am just there to be their
friend, but I do want them to know how much I care about them and want to learn about them.  
Toward the 3rd-4th day of school we start to work on writing the rules. We go over the difference
between rules and procedures. I set the procedures; as a team we write the rules. I make sure my
rules are written to reflect the positive, rather than the negative as well.

5. As an experienced teacher, what is one thing you wish you knew in your first years of teaching?
Are there trends you can see in your school with new teachers and some of the struggles he or she faces?

I wish I knew it was okay to change my management system at any point in the year.  I reflect on
my first two years and cringe at the thought of my “lack of management”.  I can see new teachers
struggle with the general classroom management and some of the more “extreme” cases.  I think a
strong mentor program would be so beneficial for our new teachers. I think experienced teachers
need to continue to talk to new teachers and tell them it’s ok.  We have all been there, and had many
of the same struggles. Telling them what worked for us and telling them stories of our failures and
eventual successes would hopefully encourage them to keep trying.

Summary of Interview:
 Mrs. Taulbee using many aspects of chapters 7 & 13. She demonstrates applying operant conditioning using praise appropriately (see guidelines on page 264) She praises students through class Dojo to their parents, but as well in group projects and "centers" for Math. I also find it interesting and beneficial that she has her 4th graders help collaborate with class rules. She enforces confidence and personal class management from the first day, creating trust and building relationships as a foundation to her room. I love her idea for a mentor group for new teachers, and that it is okay to change your management style when needed. Each class will be different, heck classes are different even when a certain student is absent. You have to trust that putting the students and their back stories first will direct you and your classroom in the right direction. 

Teacher Interview

I interviewed an excellent teacher, Sally MacFarlane, who has served as a role model for many years.  Sally also happens to be my mother-in-law. Although now retired, Sally taught for decades at St. Patricia School in Hickory Hills, IL.  She was a favorite teacher among students and an esteemed teacher among parents and her co-workers.  In the twenty years I’ve know her, it’s become a routine experience when she and I are together in public for people I don’t recognize to approach Sally to give her a hug or thank her for all she did for her students.  It’s inspiring to think of just how many lives she impacted in such a positive way!

In regards to Sally’s classroom management philosophy, Sally mentioned “the look.”  While she was still teaching, I brought her grandchildren to visit her classroom on numerous occasion and I saw this “look” in action.  I was amazed at the level of respect her students showed her - if she stepped to the door to talk to me and the volume of the classroom became too loud, she would literally look at the students disapprovingly, and they’d stop talking.  I believe her students held her in such high esteem, and they valued her approval so much that a disapproving look from her was enough of a negative reinforcement that students would immediate stop their behavior so as to remove her disapproval (Woolfolk, 2016, p. 257).

For students who misbehaved, Sally explained she'd often asked them for an explanation of their behavior.  They usually could not explain why they were doing what they were doing, and it led to stopping the problem behavior.  Similar to Sally's method, Woolfolk mentions three questions to ask students when problem behavior arises: "What are you doing? Is it against the rules? What should you be doing?"  (p. 506). 

Sally mentioned that a key to successful classroom management is to stay organized.  As noted by Woolfolk, effective teachers’ classrooms are well-organized starting on the first day (p. 499).  In regards to advice for a new teacher for setting up a classroom management policy, Sally emphasized establishing clear rules and procedures, and she emphasized the importance of reviewing these rules repeatedly in the first quarter. Sally's students soon knew the procedures and rules for things like completing "seatwork" or taking bathroom breaks, and in turn they followed these procedures or rules. Establishing rules is important, but for rules to be understood and followed, examples, practice, discussion and are needed (Woolfolk, 2016, p. 495). Focusing on establishing these rules early in the school year, as Sally mentioned, is sure to help set positive policies in place.

Reference:

Woolfolk, A. (2016). Educational Psychology (13th ed.). Boston: Pearson.

Teacher Interview - Connors

Here is the link to my video interview with Mrs. Kula: 

Teacher Interview Connors

Summary of text connections and learning: 

1. Research suggests that teachers who start the year off with good routines and rules end up having less management problems later in the year. What are some of your favorite classroom routines? How did you come to these routines, did they come from past fails? Woodfolk suggests on page 493 that teachers who got started on positive learning environments from the start of the year had higher achieving students. Mrs. Kula has several classroom routines that she uses in order to create calm environments that are conducive to learning. One of the key take aways that I learned was to never assume what your student's know when it comes to routine. Give everything a place and call that place out with clear and explicit directions. This was discussed by Woodfolk on page 494 in the Housekeeping section. Mrs. Kula also points out that student movement need to be clear as well and what that movement will consist of. Do they need a bathroom pass etc. Mrs. Kula also mentions how she models and demostrates how students will interact with each other on the carpet during "turn and talk" she never assumes they will just know what to do. She teaches everything first and gives clear expectations so everyone has the opportunity to be successful in her room. 
2. I have noticed that you chunk out to the minute your instruction time, I assume this is for a specific reason. Have you in the past managed your time in this way? Do you think these blocks of time allow for more engaged learning time and serve the class better now than in the past?  As discussed in Woolfolk and in this interview using good classroom management isn't just to "keep students docile and quiet" it is used to provide an engaged learning environment. Mrs. Kula uses a blocked out instruction timeline everyday so that her students not only know what the day will look like time wise, but gives them a sense of urgency in terms of completing assignments. Woolfolk would agree to this method because it gives students the opportunity to self manage. "The movement from demanding obedience to teaching self-regulation and self-control is a fundamental shift in discussions of classroom management today. (Everston & Weinstein, 2006) Mrs. Kula gives students a high expectation of managing their time within her block of specific instruction. 
3. What is one classroom learning environment change you wish you could make in the future? Why? This was kind of more of a curiosity question that I had, which ties perfectly with what I am currently researching for my paper. A smaller class size would be her go to change to creating a more suited learning environment. 
4. Prevention is said to be the best medicine when it comes to behavior. What are some of your go-to best ways to prevent behaviors from taking over the classroom? Mrs. Kula mentions that she never sits and is constantly watching. She shows that she is always watching so she knows who is causing any disruptions and will know even if they don't want to admit it what is going on in the classroom. "Withitness" is how Woolfolk would describe Mrs. Kula's techniques. 
5. How does incorporating social emotional skills prevent undesirable behaviors? Can you tell me a time where you informally taught a social skill that prevented a behavior later? Mrs. Kula incorporates social and emotional lessons throughout her day. Giving the students high expectations of being a good person allows her to prevent behaviors from lack of social and emotional regulations. She also reads the book Wonder to her students that has many lessons on friendships, hardships and bullying. The book accompanying the lessons gives students a multi-layered approach to learning about how to handle frustrations. (Woolfolk, 503)
6. One of my favorite techniques that you use is when a student has the ‘wrong’ answer you quickly praise them by stating “I like how you took a risk.” This provides a community where risks are promoted almost as much as the right answer. Do you think that this statement improves your classroom environment? How do you think this environment/statement helps students who learn differently? Mrs. Kula creates a caring environment in her classroom where risks are valued and are an everyday part of learning that everyone, including her needs to take. Mrs. Kula and myself open up about our past experiences as learners and not taking enough risks as students in our younger years and how our students now appreciate seeing us take risks and learn from them. Their risks even if they are wrong answers show that they have ideas and their voices matter even if they have an IEP. I added another question at the end and Mrs. Kula responded that making personal connections with your students would be her biggest take away for creating a good classroom management and learning environment. I think we both agreed that students can't learn from you if they don't like you, meaning as Woolfolk mentioned, "students also value teachers who show academic and personal caring by acting like real people, sharing responsibility, minimizing the use of external controls, including everyone, searching for students' strength, communicating effectively, and showing an interest in their students' lives and pursuits." Mrs. Kula shows me that these connections and bonds also students to learn more effectively and create a caring environment in the classroom because they are a family as she mentions.