After graduating from Dutchess Community College, I became a substitute teacher first in Poughkeepsie City School District, then recently in Newburgh Enlarged City School District. The first thing, I noticed upon entering the classroom is how the classroom is arranged. I find some classrooms to be cluttered unfortunately those classes are chaotic. The classroom with the students in groups is chatty. The classroom with the rows are the most common. How I would arrange my classroom is something, I often think about! So I truly enjoyed using http://classroom.4teachers.org to create my classroom. I created my classroom based on the teaching method used.
Using the teaching strategy picture, I have a solid understanding of how the specific teaching methods look in the classroom. So based on this information, I have designed these arrangements for my classroom.
Design #1: Direct instruction Arrangement
Design #1: Direct instruction Arrangement
In the classroom, direct instruction is lectures, guided reading and explicit teaching. During this style of teaching, straight rows all the way to the back of the classroom, keeps the attention of the classroom on the front of the classroom. Since the front of the class is where I will be using the smart board to display the materiel.
Cognitively, I believe, this arrangement will appeal to students: Perception, Attention Memory and Language thinking. I will use visuals to appeal to the students visual perception. Since I will be teaching new material, I am hoping students will learn by means of drill and practice if necessary. The rows give me an opportunity to work one on one with students without distracting other students. I can walk around the classroom and give back the necessary feedback in a positive manner, hopefully in an effective manner.
For the most part, students will work independently which eliminates competition and feelings of anxiety. When students are learning new material, it's important that they have a sense of privacy. By the desk not being in groups, when I pass back quizzes or discuss skill level, students aren't overwhelmed feeling embarrassed because others know the areas that need improvement. The emotional security of students is crucial to how they responded to learning. The rows create healthy isolation for each student.
Although, students are not clustered together in groups, this arrangement still enable students to be close enough to socialize. If there is a period in the learning that demands students to collaborate and socialize, then they can put their chairs together and work as partners.
Physically, students as well as myself are able to move around the classroom.
Design #2: Indirect/ Experimental Learning
This will most likely be how the class is setup for review or to conclude a union. Students will probably engage in games and/or debates to review material. This is also the set-up for partner presentations/ research assignments. There is no way to have each and every student present so they will probably be in pairs.They can choose however to take a stance with each other or against each other. Debates are greatly welcomed because students need to know arguing and disagreeing are ways of life but there are guidelines to effective formal arguing. Here students can stay in their role as typical teens who want to argue with a friend or against a friend about a topic. Students will get to choose their partners and where they want to sit, for the most part. This gives them a level of comfortably especially since they are in control.
For the most part, students will work independently which eliminates competition and feelings of anxiety. When students are learning new material, it's important that they have a sense of privacy. By the desk not being in groups, when I pass back quizzes or discuss skill level, students aren't overwhelmed feeling embarrassed because others know the areas that need improvement. The emotional security of students is crucial to how they responded to learning. The rows create healthy isolation for each student.
Although, students are not clustered together in groups, this arrangement still enable students to be close enough to socialize. If there is a period in the learning that demands students to collaborate and socialize, then they can put their chairs together and work as partners.
Physically, students as well as myself are able to move around the classroom.
Design #2: Indirect/ Experimental Learning
This will most likely be how the class is setup for review or to conclude a union. Students will probably engage in games and/or debates to review material. This is also the set-up for partner presentations/ research assignments. There is no way to have each and every student present so they will probably be in pairs.They can choose however to take a stance with each other or against each other. Debates are greatly welcomed because students need to know arguing and disagreeing are ways of life but there are guidelines to effective formal arguing. Here students can stay in their role as typical teens who want to argue with a friend or against a friend about a topic. Students will get to choose their partners and where they want to sit, for the most part. This gives them a level of comfortably especially since they are in control.
Design #3: Collaborative Learning
During collaborative learning, students are presented with a puzzling situation and have to rely on one another to work through it. So with that students are put into groups, generally speaking, I will pick the groups because as the teacher, I have knowledge and insight beyond teens who will most likely pick their friends. The groups will be based on grouping the strong ones; moderate one and improvement groups depending on the subject. Collaborative work should be all about still maintaining independent excellence. The stronger group (Grou 1)will have to decide who is best suited for the role at the time given the topic; all the leaders will have to work out how are they going to decide who will lead, who will speak, so on and so forth. The moderate group (Group 2)challenges maybe distributing tasks based on skill-level but not with the topic. While the improvement group (Group 3) may struggle with the topic as well as skill-level, I will already know this is the group, I will have to guide the most.
The intent of my collaborative learning is to enable students to move from level to level academically/cognitvely. This means group one students maybe 8/10 academically but because of this assignment collectively they move to a 9/10 and so on and so forth. Unfortunately, the struggling students are least likely to learn from group work because it is easy to hide. Students easily feel like collaborative learning is academic camouflage. Not in my class!
This way of implementing collaborative learning socially impacts students by seeing the strengths and/or weakness of peers who may struggle just like them or excel just like them. It's important for teens to see they're not the only ones because at this point of development they are working so hard to fit in. Although, they know they dress like their peers, act like their peers, have facebook pages like their peers in the classroom there isn't that level of confidence knowing there's a peer in the classroom like me academically. I think that is crucial not just socially but emotionally as well.
A student's level of confidence greatly impacts their performance in the classroom. The way to generate confidence is by comfortable. Students are comfortable with each other outside of the classroom but in the classroom, it's like they tighten up, out anxiety. I believe group work help them see each others skill-level and breaks the ice to open up, share and improve.
In the classroom, observed the desk are typically in rows like design #1. For discussions, students put the desk in a circle so they can see each other. Looking at a person, while they are speaking, shows a sign of respect. In this specific classroom, despite the changes in the set-up of the chairs/desk, every opportunity is seized to emphasize respect; Respect for self and respect for others. The classroom motto is: "There is no, if, ands or buts about RESPECT!" This is recited every class period before the lesson.One student put it like this: "Respect is like Nike "Just do it!"At that point the teacher and I both knew that learning took place by the agreements of the other students who were nodding and answering in the affirmative.
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