Joy Oh

Leading and Managing a Classroom

Rationale
I believe that relationships are one of the driving forces of our lives. At times, it is what builds us
up as well as knock us down. Relationships are crucial to mankind; we were created and called to belong
in a relationship, and in a community. I view people as those with a purpose. We rely on each other to
fulfill these goals; to some it may be physically healing others, and to others, it could be providing
shelter. But every single person, female or male, regardless of their labels, deserve to be loved and
respected. And the world is our playgrounda place where we have fun, fall down and cry, but get back
up. We belong in a broken yet beautiful world that needs the Light more than ever. And relationships
are a part of this Light. These relationships can take place in any setting, but for me, who strives to be an
educator, most of the relationships are going to be taking place within the school setting.
I have been wondering for a while what the difference between knowledge and wisdom is. Am I
supposed to train my children to be knowledgeable or to be wise? To be smart or to be intelligent? To
be honest, I still dont have the exact answer, but I think one major difference is that wisdom is
recognizing and being conscious of the fact that I am not alone whereas knowledge is simply recognizing
without further action. It is not difficult to acquire knowledge; one can simply look up facts online, recite
them, and be considered knowledgeable on that area. But digging deeper than the facts and taking in
the bigger picture, and nurturing it is part of wisdom. With this being said, I think the things worth
learning are the things that we need to know to help us get wiser. And the minute we open up ourselves
to our world and what it has to offer is when we start learning. The main reason why children are
considered sponges and incredible learners is because they are curious. They will fallbut they always
get back up. And true learning starts as they take the step to get themselves back up.
I think the purpose of learning is to be a part of this world. Oaks, Lipton, Andersn, Stillman
describe learning as an active experience that is acquired from interactions, which is a part of
relationships as a whole (Oaks, Lipton, Anderson, Stillman, 2013, pg.163). And that is what I want to
implement in my classroom. What use is it if we are Earthlings and yet know nothing about the Earth we
live in? What use is it if I want to change the Korean education system if I cannot speak or connect with
Koreans? I think we learn best when we have fellow students who can guide us along, asking
questions and forming answers together. Sometimes I think we forget that teachers are students too.
We are all teachers and students in some way, shape, or form.

Policy Statements and Procedures
The teacher will
Be aware of the various backgrounds the learners come from and acknowledge differences,
respecting them, and nurturing them instead of shutting them or replacing them. In light of
this, a Good Morning session will take place to open the day (sharing good news, calendar,
etc.).
View each individual student as an image-bearer, loving, caring, and being open to their needs
(2013).
Give verbal and written feedback to students and guardians based on the students behaviors,
progress, and performance (Froyen, Iverson, 1999, pg.61)
Constantly ask questions instead of making assumptions when a student is misbehaving and
listen to both sides of the story.
Use problem-solving methods with the student to come up with a solution for possible discipline
issues (pg.242).
Make sure to follow up on conversations with students, parents, and administrators. If a child
is seen to have a problem, the teacher will make effort in meeting the needs, and inform the
parents as well as the school (administrators).
The students are expected to
Be in charge of their learning by asking questions, seeing, watching, listening, and feeling
using their senses.
Work in a collaborative group as well as individually to learn (2013) together.
Respect each person (teacher, fellow classmate, or administrator) as those who invest in
his/her life.
Obey the rules and meet learning expectations. Failure to do so may lead to consequences such
as grade deduction, parent contact (which will happen in positive cases as well), and/or principal
contact.
Assess their own work and progress using appropriate assessment tools (art, rubric, etc.).
Never give up.



Froyen, L. A., & Iverson, A. M. (1999). Schoolwide and classroom management (Third ed., p. 50). Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall Inc.
Oakes, J., Lipton, M., Anderson, A. & Stillman, J. (2013). Teaching to change the world (4th ed.).
Boulder, CO: Paradigm.