What to Look for in a Classroom

 What to Look for in a Classroom

Author: Alfie Kohn 

Reflection: It was really interesting to me that there are factors that can impact the dynamic of a classroom. There were a couple points that stood out to me; one being the teacher's voice. In my own experience I have seen how a condensing voice can create a negative learning environment. Of course, as a teacher it is important to have control over the classroom. However, I have seen some take it too far and I notice students disengaging when the teacher treats them as inferior and they are the only ones speaking. In my Inspiring Minds classroom, when I walked in the teacher was yelling and or humiliating certain students. It was clear they seemed dissociated, irritated, and most likely less motivated to learn. Another teacher I have had for history in high school had a poor attitude. He would complain about our generation, cell phones, and would speculate we were against him. It only ended up making the students not motivated and arguing with him to be understanding of us. As a future teacher, you have to be firm sometimes, but at the end of the day you have to treat your students with respect and have faith in them. Another very important detail from that list was group work and peer collaboration. In my educational psychology class we learned that Vygotsky believed that a coconstructed process can foster learning in students. In this way students are actively speaking through, teaching, and perhaps learning it a way a peer can better explain it. Also, it can be disengaging and monotonous when a teacher is rambling on for a long time. Lastly, the physical environment in a classroom and school building can encourage students. A safe and resource filled setting is crucial towards getting the best education possible.

Comment for the class: Something mentioned in the video Introduction to Culturally Relevant Pedagogy reminded me of when we spoke about Delpit’s piece. Each student is coming from different cultural backgrounds and rules. Which can be different than the rules that school forces upon students. It was interesting to me how the woman interviewed said the school should accommodate all the different cultures. Would anyone have any advice on how to go about this?