Establishing a Positive Classroom
Climate
Preet Khinda
Module 4: Unit 1: Activity 3
An important aspect of effective
teaching, that I learned during this unit, relates to creating a supportive
positive classroom environment. A warm, safe, and caring environment allows
students to “influence the nature of the activities they undertake, engage
seriously in their study, regulate their behavior, and know of the explicit
criteria and high expectations of what they are to achieve” (Queensland
Department of Education, 2005).
A lot was said in this unit about
positive relationships with students, anti-bullying and positive classroom
environment. All these issues are directly related to each other, where in
there will be positive learning in a school if and only if all the three are
taken care of positively. So in order to have a positive learning experience in
any school, we need to have:
Good Ambience
This is an extremely important –
and fun – part of creating a positive learning environment. The teacher need to
keep the décor related to both particular students and
to the topic being taught. This creates a welcoming site for the students.
The
placement of the desks should be such that there can be a group activity done
without disturbing the classroom decorum but at the same time, they can work individually, undisturbed. The teacher should be able to keep an
eye for any miscreants and keep a vigilant eye to make sure that the students
are having positive learning experience at all times.
Light
music at the time when students are entering, creates a mystical atmosphere and
de-clutters their mind to make your lesson accessible , interesting and
welcomed.
Respect:
This depicts respect of the
classroom, respect of teachers, respect of the teaching assistants and respect
of the students. Thus to have mutual respect between all the participants, the
main job is that of the teacher. Educational research supports creating an
atmosphere of mutual respect and support in the classroom, where students feel
safe in expressing concerns or asking questions, and where tolerance and a
sense of common identity and community are promoted (Stronge, 2002; Wilen et
al., 2004; Shepard, 2000).
1.
The teacher needs to be in the
classroom ahead of time, to be prepared and to welcome the students. This will
show the students that the teacher takes the teaching time seriously and the
same is expected from them.
2.
The teaching assistant need to be introduced at
the same time as the teacher introduces herself, to make sure the TA is given
the same respect as the teacher herself. This also proves to the student that
the teacher and the TA are a team and to be treated respectfully.
3.
The classroom decorum has to be maintained at
all costs. Any participant or situation
disturbing the decorum needs to be handled in a firm and direct way.
4.
Students need to be addressed and talk to with
respect at all times. They need to feel valued in the class in order for them
to feel positive and motivated to learn. There has to be assertiveness of the
teacher towards positive student behavior rather than aggressiveness.
Humor:
Humor can be used as a very important and useful tool to
create positive atmosphere in a classroom. But it can be a two-sided knife and
create quiet an opposite effect if not used in a proper way.
The teacher needs to be aware of the socio demographics of the
class with different religious faiths, and other differentiating factors, so
that the humor generated should hurt anybody’s feeling and thus create a
negative spiral.
Classroom management:
The most important aspect of establishing and maintaining a respectful
and positive atmosphere in a classroom is classroom management. For this
1.
The teacher needs to be fully prepared with the
content, front, back and center.
2.
The students should not be given an opening, to
question the teacher’s authority, expertise or ability.
3.
The teacher should know her audience well and be
prepared to ward off any kind of bias whether it may be social, racial or
ethnical.
For example, I come from Northern India to
a cultural group called Sikhs. The boys belonging to my cultural and religious
groups have long hair, which is tied in a certain way with a head band/ turban.
This creates a lot of problems for them in an international arena, wherein other
students do not understand the criteria for this head gear and such students
become an easy target for bullying.
I would like to invite parents to my class
to talk about their religious beliefs and to make other students understand
more about the particular religion thus creating an atmosphere of acceptance
and tolerance amongst the students.
Knowing the students will also help the
teacher to have differentiated teaching practices wherein everyone is motivated
and challenged equally thus having a positive learning experiences in the
classroom.
4.
There should be clear and concise rules of the
classroom, which can be displayed at a prominent position in the classroom. If
you establish your expectations for student behavior early and keep them
consistent, you may be able to avoid many classroom management issues.
5.
The teacher should make sure that she is not a
distant and foreign figure but someone who can be approached at any time for
any kind of help.
To Teach Positive Actions and behaviors:
We need to teach students positive behaviors in a thorough, consistent, systematic way; we cannot assume that students just know them. The Positive Action curriculum covers the following concepts.- The importance of doing positive actions to feel good about yourself.
- Positive actions for a healthy body (such as nutrition, exercise, and sleep).
- Positive actions for the intellect (such as thinking, decision-making, and problem-solving skills).
- Positive actions for self-management (such as managing time, energy, emotions, and other personal resources).
- Positive actions for getting along with others (such as treating others fairly, kindly, and respectfully).
- Positive actions for being honest with yourself and others (such as taking responsibility, admitting mistakes, and not blaming others).
- Positive actions for improving yourself continually (such as setting and achieving goals).
Zero
Tolerance Bullying Policy in the class
Bullying
is a very big problem and road-block to positive class environment. It needs to
be dealt with promptly and firmly, in order for it to be in-effective. In order
to counter bullying the teacher needs to:
1.
Be very vigilant to notice any drastic
behavioral changes in a student.
2.
Have a box in the classroom, which can
be used by students to report cases of bullying anonymously.
3.
Discuss in the class the negatives of
bullying and how to check it.
4.
Emphasize on the students to stand upto
their classmate/school mate or anyone else who is doing an act of bullying and
not be just a bystander.
In conclusion the atmosphere of
the class is a micros of the atmosphere of the school. In this regard, the
teacher requires a strong school policy dictating zero tolerance of any kind of
bullying and every student and parent is aware of the terms.
