Running head: CLASSROOM AND BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT 1

Classroom and Behavior Management

Lydia Hicks

Regent University

In partial fulfillment of UED 496 Field Experience ePortfolio, Fall 2017

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Introduction

One very important part of being an effective teacher is creating a positive learning

environment. To do this, a teacher must manage the classroom and student behavior in an

organized and consistent way. This is no easy task considering that students come in with unique

skills, interests, and characteristics that do not always perfectly mesh with the whole class.

Students also come in with different backgrounds, experiences, and habits. A major part of

classroom and behavior management is modeling and upholding clear expectations on behavior

and mindset. I believe that if a teacher does these two things, students will excel as people and

scholars.

Rationale for Selection of Artifacts

My first artifact is a PowerPoint I created during my classroom management class at

Regent. This PowerPoint was created for the purpose of explaining to students during the

beginning weeks of school what classroom behavior and organization will look like. I believe

that these classroom agreements to show respect, be kind, work hard, and believe the best are

four principles that contribute to a positive learning environment. This PowerPoint is an example

of communicating class expectations to students. Depending on the grade level and school that I

will teach in, I plan on having a system that incorporates feedback with logical consequences and

incentives for student behavior. In my first placement of student teaching, this was done with the

format of ClassDojo and the daily incentive of free ten, ten minutes in which students had to

finish unfinished assignments or have free time if they had completed everything.

Another major part of managing a positive learning environment is ensuring that things

are prepared and organized for students. This PowerPoint shares several classroom procedures
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that enable the teacher to manage the class with the help of her students. These procedures

continue the expectations of kindness, respect, and hard work. If students know what the

expectations are during transitions, group work, instruction, and even as students finish early,

there will be less interruptions and time for students to be off task.

The second artifact I have chosen is two screenshots from my evaluations during my first

placement of student teaching. One of the evaluations is from my cooperating teacher. She

mentions that I ran a well-managed classroom and that I had set and upheld expectations clearly.

Furthermore, she notes the mutual respect between myself and the students. This is one of the

most important things for me as a teacher. To effectively manage classroom behavior, a teacher

must model the expectations and respect her students for them to return the behavior. The second

evaluation is from my director of student teaching. She comments that students were engaged

and on task. When teachers prepare for their lessons, students will be more engaged. Preparation

and engaging content will aid in a positive learning environment where student do not have the

opportunity to get bored and make poor choices.

Reflection on Theory and Practice

Classroom management had a foremost emphasis in my classes at Regent. Bergin and

Bergin refer to classroom management as all aspects of managing the classroom, from setting

clear rules, to scheduling daily events, to the emotional relationship between teacher and

students (2012, p. 277). Without good classroom management, learning will not reach its full

potential. Some teachers focus classroom management on disciplinary systems and controlling

student behavior. However, skillful classroom management can reduce the need for discipline

by preventing misbehavior before it happens (Bergin & Bergin, 2012, p. 277).

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I believe that classroom management is more about modeling and expecting positive

behavior than disciplining poor behavior. To do this, teachers can establish procedures for

classroom routines, prepare interesting lessons, have a simple set of rules for the community, and

create an environment that fosters proper behavior (Bergin & Bergin, 2012, p. 277-78).

Rutherford confirms this be stating that when humans are bored or frustrated, we tend to act out,

however, she encourages teachers that when students are given clear and realistic expectations

along with engaging and relevant learning exercises kids will often take part in learning with

excitement (2008, p. 259).

One major part of creating a positive learning environment is not only expecting students

to be kind and respectful, but also teaching and modeling how to do so. I have met a lot of

teachers with the classroom rule of being kind and respectful, however, somewhere it gets lost in

the day to day. My goal as a teacher is to create an authentic community where students learn to

accept one another through respect and kindness. Ryan and Bohlin note that teachers can not

only model friendship, but also directly confront the put-down culture in the classroom (1999,

p. 180). I believe that this is where students of this generation need help the most by being held

accountable to the rules of showing respect and being kind.

As a Christian educator, my main purpose and goal for teaching is to serve the students

that I am honored to teach with the gifts that God has given me. I have found that this is not just

my desire, but a Christian principle written about in 1 Peter 4:10, As each has received a gift,

use it to serve one another, as good stewards of Gods varied grace (English Standard Version).

To effectively serve my students, I must create a positive learning environment by managing the

classroom and community well. In Titus 2:7-8, Paul exhorts Christians to show ourselves in all

respects to be a model of good works and in teaching show integrity, dignity, and sound
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speech (ESV). Because of this deep purpose, I value positive classroom community and culture

greatly. Classroom and behavior management starts with a caring, steady, and uplifting teacher.
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References

Bergin, C. C., & Bergin, D. A. (2008). Child and adolescent development in your classroom.

Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.

Radford, C. P. (2013). Strategies for successful student teaching: A guide to student teaching, the

job search, and your first classroom. New York City, NY: Pearson.

Ryan, K., Bohlin, K. E. (1999). Building character in schools: Practical ways to bring moral

instructions to life. San Francisco, CA: Jossey Bass.