1. Stacy Keyte EDCI 538 Dr. Stetson

2. Rules and Procedures What I learned:  I learned the difference between rules and procedures as well as the way to effectively establish each in my classroom. I was shocked by the study findings of the difference of effectively managed classes gain 52% points in achievement and the least effectively managed class only gains 14% points in achievement over a year. Impact on my beliefs about management:  There are many things that are thought of as rules, but should really be an expectation or procedure. The worksheets that we did for this course helped me to understand all of the different procedures that are needed in the classroom throughout the year. In addition, it is important to have strategies to use when ones that were working are no longer effective. Changes I will make in the classroom:  I will ensure that students understand the classroom rules, expectations and procedures. This information will always be posted in the classroom and provided to the students’ parents. I will adjust strategies for either the entry or exit from the classroom if the students begin to take too long to complete the process or continue to get off task during the process.

3. Teacher-Student Relationships What I learned:  The activities for this topic helped me to understand the importance of student inventories, resources for this topic, the different communication styles and what my dominant communication style is. Impact on my beliefs about management:  I have always believed it is important to not only know your students, but to know your self and be open to increasing self-knowledge. The activities for this supported my ideas in this area and helped me to improve my understanding of the type of communication style that is dominant for me and the impacts that it will have on others around me (students, peers, parents, etc.). Changes I will make in the classroom:  I will use age appropriate inventories to learn more about my students’ interests and learning styles. This information will help me to connect with them and be more effective with my instruction.

4. Home Visits What I learned:  The article on home visits opened my eyes to a side of teaching that I have not seen first hand. The statistics and other information shed light on the obstacles and ways that the teachers overcame them. I was surprised by the large increase in improvement on behavior, work habits and achievement. Impact on my beliefs about management:  This section opened my eyes for the need to build relationships with our students and their families outside of school as it will have an impact on the classroom. Changes I will make in the classroom:  I will continue to communicate consistently throughout the week with my students’ parents throughout the week through various means, but want to incorporate home visits and other activities outside of the classroom with my students and their families. As a way to help transition to home visits for those that are not comfortable, I will make sure that I participate in local community events and let my students’ and their parents know that I will be there as a way to connect with them outside of the classroom. I might even host ‘class connections’ at the park where parents can come and meet each other while the kids play.

5. SMART Goals What I learned:  I learned about the importance of writing SMART goals as a way to increase desired student behavior and decrease undesirable behaviors. SMART goals contain three components: 1) the behavior; 2) by how much; 3) by when. Impact on my beliefs about management:  SMART goals will help to make changes and collect data as needed to see if the changes are working. It will also help to identify goals or strategies that are not effective. This activity helped me to see that these are short term goals and are something that I can easily apply to problem solve achievement or behavior issues. Changes I will make in the classroom:  I will use this strategy to help me find solutions for behavior or achievement problems and document the findings from each to support the strategies that work or those that do not work. I will use these on an individual basis or for the class as a whole depending on the problem.

6. Extending SMART Goals: MAP What I learned:  With this activity, I learned how to take a SMART goal and develop a plan that helped to achieve it. I learned that a MAP consists of four parts: 1) SMART goal; 2) need for the goal; 3) assessment plan; 4) strategic plan. Impact on my beliefs about management:  In the past, I have done Developmental Action Plans (DAP’s) and this was familiar to me based on my experience. I see how these plans are beneficial and that documentation may take time, but be beneficial. It is something that can be shared to support strategies that were used and to help other teachers. I do think that there is a way to streamline and create a simple template to use for this process. Changes I will make in the classroom:  I would like to use these in the classroom as I am just starting my teaching career. I will use these to evaluate my teaching strategies and make necessary adjustments based on my findings. I think that these would serve as a way for me to self-evaluate how effective my management and instruction is.

7. Domestic Violence What I learned:  I learned that the negative spillover from domestic violence impacts the academic achievement levels of others in the classroom. I did find it interesting that the girls that were exposed to domestic violence while lower than those that were not, had a higher percentage in achievement (41%) than discipline (19%) while the opposite occurred for the boys who had achievement at 37% and discipline problems at 43%. Impact on my beliefs about management:  I felt that students ‘reflected’ other behaviors demonstrated by their peers and this article supported that idea. I do not think every misbehavior is due to domestic violence, but I do realize based on the statistics from this article that the numbers in a classroom are possibly higher than I think. This article brings this topic into perspective and how it can impact the classroom. Changes I will make in the classroom:  I need to maintain my awareness of how these types of experiences that the students bring to the classroom can impact the overall learning of all the students. I will use effective management strategies, rules and expectations to manage student behaviors. SMART goals for behavior problems will be used to help identify strategies to assist in managing students’ behaviors.

8. Summary This class was excellent! It was well organized and a perfect example of how to be clear and concise in communicating to students. The textbook and handbook provided good information and increased my knowledge. These are ones that I will keep for my own reference later. The worksheets provided opportunities for me to practice the skills that we learned about. The discussions and articles were enlightening and the feedback from peers was beneficial. I feel that what I have learned has prepared me to step into a classroom armed with knowledge on effective classroom management strategies.