Last
week was a continuation of their personal narratives and how they are learning
more about themselves and the writing process. We really haven't been moving as
fast as I would like because so far they have only written a few paragraphs and
will be typing this week. I know you cannot judge your classroom by another
classroom pace but it worries me that we are reading our first short story this
week and other classrooms are on their 2nd or 3rd and have written essays.
Another issue we have come across is that one student has been removed from our
classroom while three new students have been placed within the last week. We
are working together to get them caught up while still moving the students
along in the lesson. We are co-teaching
together at the moment but we will work on my 5-7 day unit after this lesson of
narratives and short stories.
The
pressing issue I decided to research and look into for this week was classroom
management and student accountability. Instead of rowdy students, we have tired
8:00am "quietitis." Other than that, right now there's two students
who do not take notes or bring supplies to class. Lined paper and writing utensils
are provided in the back of the room so there is no excuse of not taking some
notes down if they forget their notebook for one day; however, these students
are consistent on not having supplies. My CT asked whether or not they had
access at home or needed to be supplied with a notebook for their classes. Each
student said they had their own notebooks and pencils but simply forget them on
a daily basis. She offered leaving them in the classroom if needed but students
said they would remember them next time. One student is also tardy each class
and has racked up detentions and write-ups already. We had a private conference
with him after class today and kept a positive attitude. What else can we do to
promote positivity and responsibility to him? I think we should make contact to
his guardians and see how he is doing in other classes with notes and
tardiness. According to the National
Education Association, this is definitely a step in the right direction because
keeping a encouraging atmosphere and
parent involvement helps the student not make excuses for why they are late or
not showing up with their tools. One thing I keep in mind is that students do
better when they feel they are in charge. "Students seem to respond productively when teachers give them
the opportunity to take charge of their academic success." This
gives them some power over their own lives and helps them take responsibility
when they might not have any at home or in other classrooms. I'm worried that
tomorrow he will be late again and it will turn into a behavioral issue instead
of an academic issue. The other student who did not have her supplies is always
on time to class and usually works with other students so she might be easier to
influence to turn in her assignments and get her work done. How do other
teachers deal with this type of situation or how would others do this
differently? Let me know!
Citation:
Citation:
Graham, Edward. "Keeping Students Accountable." NEA. National Education Association, n.d. Web.
Miss Vaughn,
ReplyDeleteThe student(s) which you describe near the end of your blog post seem to fit into what we are learning in class in terms of literacy at home—an idea Randy Bomer really emphasizes in his text. Maybe in order for your students to feel in charge of their academic success they could chose some writing assignments concerning topics they enjoy. The writing that students do when they are interested in the topic, or feel as though they are “experts” on topic tend to be of high quality. By assigning a few informal writing assignments throughout the semester that could ignite students interest may be enough make students more apt to come to class and come to class prepared. My CT has told me of an incident where a student was showing up to school, going to his class, and then disappearing the remainder of the school day. Other teachers and administrators could not believe it. If a student can feel like a part of the class family, then who knows how committed they may be! As you have mentioned being discouraged about many students leaving the class, or joining the class, I feel your pain. I have heard time and time again, that this is just part of the system, and as many teachers will say, “Welcome to education” is the cliché I have heard too much. I am afraid that facet of education will not go away, and our best bet as teachers is to have prepared materials for when those new students arrive in our class!
Mr. Wike