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Ed. 4273

Assignment #3

Oct. 2014

MIDDLE SCHOOL VISIT

The table below is for your observations (both rough during the visit and typed... although you should bring
extra paper to write on). Feel free to reorganize, add diagrams, modify the categories etc in order to make
this document more useful to you.
Behaviour, Interactions, and Classroom Management
What do you notice
* Student-Student interaction was frequent and fun/socially driven. The students clearly all
about student-student had their own groups that they preferred to socialize and interact with. This was good
interactions?
because it was clear that they were all comfortable working with each other, however on the
(remember to
other hand it also sparked talking and disruption during silent reading/learning time. I
consider non-verbal)
noticed that there was one specific troublemaker at the back of the class who had no
What elements of
intention of partaking in the silent reading. He was constantly trying to get the attention of
them are disruptive to other students and distract them by making faces at them.
learning? Do teachers *Teachers try to leverage student-student interactions in effective ways by getting them to
leverage studentwork together in hopes of every students desire to learn rubbing off on each and every one
student interactions in of their peers. This is good if it works, because it enables them to learn from each other and
effective or
build of one anothers work ethics.
empowering ways?
What do you notice
about student-teacher
interactions? How do
teachers approach
talking to different
students? Are there
non-verbal cues?

* Student-teacher interaction was very friendly in most cases. The teacher would definitely
give each student the benefit of the doubt to begin with by treating them nicely and fairly.
However, if a student started to misbehave or talk, such as the troublemaker in the back of
the class, the teachers approach would quickly turn to a stern, serious attitude towards that
student in hopes of altering their behavior and setting an example for the rest of the class.
*Non-verbal cues included facial expressions, both friendly and upset, as well as the use of
hand signals in order to quiet students that were talking.

Examples of how the

teachers interact with
one another?
Thoughts on this?

* The teachers seemed to have a fairly good relationship with each other they
communicated before class and collaborated when there was a disagreement with a special
needs student in the computer/lunch room

What are some

* Students found a football sitting on the side counter and began throwing it around the
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examples of
disruptive student
behaviour? Why do
you think they
happened? How are
they managed? Why
do you suspect they
are managed this
way?
How do teachers gain
or keep the attention
of students when they
need it?
What do teachers do
to manage the
students when talking
to the whole class?
(think especially
about subtle things).

room. Kids were talking out when others were trying to read and one student was blatantly
trying to cause a nuisance to all around
* For the most part, most of the behaviors in the class were due to there being a supply
teacher in the class. From my own experience, students seem to think they can get away
with more when their regular classroom teacher is away

What goes on in the

class that helps
maintain a culture of
respect?

* The teacher listened to the students and considered their feelings. She also let everyone
have their say if need be before coming to a conclusion on a decision
*Children were also given choices Silent reading was suggested however students were
able to work on homework or science textbook work if preferred.

What do you notice

about teacher,
student, teacherstudent, and studentstudent behaviour at
the beginning and
end of learning
episodes.
How are transitions
between learning

* At the beginning and end of learning episodes students are very hyperactive and talkative.
They dont seem to have any interest in what is going to be learned or what was learnt. It is
evident that all of the students have their own little groups and friendships
* Teacher-student interaction at this time consists mostly of the teacher sitting at her desk
and walking around the classrooom making small talk with some of the students.

* Teachers would use the phrases listen up guys, please be quiet as well as raise their
voice, change the tone of their voice and snap their fingers
* Teachers use eye contact, speak fluently and directly at the class, as well as use an up
tempo tone of voice
* They also use effective and frequent pauses to better help the students digest and
understand what is being parlayed

* Transition periods are handled fairly chaotically from my account. Students seemed to rush
out of the classroom as quickly as possible and started mingling and interacting with other
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episodes handled
(both within one
period and when
transitioning between
periods).
Examples of kids
'acting like Middle
School kids'?
Thoughts?

students from other classes. Between learning episodes in period, it seemed as though it
was hard for the teacher to get the students back on task after switching subjects/topics

* Students throwing footballs in the classroom, making faces at each other, pushing/shoving,
being noisy
* Although irritating and disruptive, this is probably to be expected from kids this age group
and as a teacher it is important to handle behaviours such as this with patience and
calmness.

Physical Classroom Setup and School Space

Tell me about what
* The classrooms in the hub were filled with graphic organizers and visuals that made the
you notice about how learning environment very kid friendly.
the overall physical
* The desks were pushed together in rows in most classrooms, which made for close contact
space of the hub is
between the students.
organized. How do
* The students used the space to get ideas and converse with their peers beside them
students interact with * One classroom had students working in groups and the desks were positioned so that they
the space? Does this
were all facing the middle of the classroom which could make for good group discussion
seem to match
teacher expectations
(as far as you can
tell)?
Tell me about what
* The walls had lots of pictures, visual wordings and colours that were both related to school
you notice on the non- subjects and for mere decorative purposes.
seating parts of the
* These spaces in my opinion were used to prompt constant reminders of some of the topics
classrooms (walls
they were learning in class, as well as to create a nice, warm, friendly atmosphere in the
etc.). Are these
class which in turn improves learning development
spaces leveraged to
improve learning or
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development?
Tell me about the
seating setups. Why
do you think things
are set up this way?
How does this seem
to affect learning and
interactions?
How is the classroom
organized for
functional use (ex. is
it easy to get to the
scissors? Can the
students move around
if they need to?)
Tell me about the
differences between
classroom setups.
Why do you think
these differences
exist?
Notice anything
creative that a
teacher has done in
setting up their room?
Instruction
What is the pace of
instruction like?

What instructional
strategies are used?

* Seating was different in each class. One classroom was in vertically separated rows,
another classroom was in horizontally separated rows and another classroom had a more
circular, face-to-face setup.
* There can be pros and cons to each of the different seating setups. A classroom setup in
vertically separated rows creates for optimal lecture learning because none of the students
are close enough to touch or bug each other and the desks are all pointing to the front. A
circular, round setup is good for classroom discussion as it allows all of the students to see
each other
*Learning utensils are neatly put away in cupboards around the classroom. Appears to be
easily accessible by the students

* The main differences were what were on the walls and the way the desks were setup
* These differences exist likely due to the grade and subjects taught in the classrooms.
Topics that require more lecture style learning would be better suited to have desks aligned
in rows whereas a hands on science class would benefit by having the desks grouped
together
N/A

* One teacher was teaching about history and music and showed a really neat video on the
history of music. I felt like the students were very interested and attentive and in turn, were
able to learn a lot in a short period of time. The other classroom I was in was having a period
of silent reading and had a supply teacher so it was tough to gauge the pace of instruction
* Instructional strategies such as organization of information was displayed on the walls of
the classrooms. The teachers also used motivation to help them focus if we get through
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How would you assess

their effectiveness?

this reading, we can have an extra 5 minutes at snack time.

* Its hard to assess the overall effectiveness on their learning because we were only there
for a very short period of time, however I could definitely see the neatness and creativity
displayed by the teachers as having a positive impact on student learning. A teacher did
however ask the students to draw on their own ideas and past experiences, and I believe It is
really important to draw meaningful connections between skills and ideas, as well as real-life
situations.

Any quick or small

tricks that teachers
use to help with
instruction and
learning?
What do you notice
about where students
are at cognitively?

* None that we havent learned/practiced frequently in our classes so far this semester

* Students level of cognition varied largely from what I saw. Some students were very
competent in answering questions and coming up with interesting ideas whereas others
were much less skilled when called upon to answer a question.

Other Insights, Powerful Observations, or Best Practices

Handling of
* There was one student who had an exceptionality and threw a temper tantrum because
misbehaving/exceptio another student turned off his computer. I thought the staff handled the whole situation very
nal students
calmly and professionally. They didnt lecture/scorn the student in a harsh way at all, instead
they were very polite and respectfully tried to talk the student out of what was troubling him