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Week 1A Assignment Classroom Management Video Critique

Alisha Carlin

National University

June 12, 2019

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Abstract

This paper records a summary of the three most effective expectations and strategies on

classroom management, from the video speaker Jessica Ballsley, that will support my future

classroom management plans. The talk was given at the Art Educators of New Jersey 2013

Conference in New Brunswick, NJ.

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Jessica Ballsley is an Art Teacher in New Jersey. Although I will not be teaching Art, I

chose her talk because I will be teaching Fashion Design, which is a subject that is very similar

in execution and strategy. The three strategies that aligned with me most were: “Make a Plan and

Stick to it Like Glue”, “Building Independence” and “Try Story Telling.”

The first strategy and expectation I plan to implement from the very first day is to

establish the rules or as Jessica states, “Make a Plan and Stick to it Like Glue.” Like Jessica, my

classroom rules will be short and simplistic. “Respect the tools/supplies, respect the students and

respect the teacher.” In Fashion Design, students will be dealing with expensive thousand dollar

sewing machines. It is vital that I establish the “Shop Code” (referenced from my Mentor

Teacher) early as a preventative measure. To not only keep the supplies and tools safe, but also

keep the students from potentially injuring themselves. In my college Fashion Design program I

saw a fellow classmate run their fingers through the sewing machine needles. It was not pretty,

and is the last thing I want happening in my future classroom. In a Career Technical Education

course, rules, routines and procedures are very important. In fact, they are core state standards,

that help students establish the skills to become job ready. In addition to helping students know

what to expect in class so that they will spend less time off task and hopefully less time causing

trouble. I can foresee these rules and procedures being crucial during times of transition like

entering the classroom moving from a demonstration space to the workspace/lab, cleanup and

more.

The second strategy that struck a chord with my teaching philosophy is “Building

Independence.” Jessica states that many of her students suffer from the constant need for

approval. Dependent on her affirmation, Jessica began to wonder “How can I build their 

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independence?” She came up with a phrase that she implements in class called “Ask Three, Ask

Me.” This requires students to ask three classmates the question that they have for Jessica, before

approaching her with the question. She found that her students were not listening and knew that

Jessica would be there to answer their questions. This strategy helped save Jessica energy

because she was not answering the same questions over and over again. If after asking three

classmates the student still did not have the answer, then they could approach Jessica to seek

more clarification. This allows students to be responsible for listening, but also helps build their

understanding of the subject by restating and explaining to students who might be struggling. I

also found her suggestion to number assign things incredibly smart. I plan to assign students a

number at the beginning of the year which will correlate to a number on the sewing machines,

scissors, needles, pins, mannequins, etc. This will keep students responsible for their items in the

lab and also lets me know who is responsible if things are damaged or missing.

The last strategy from the video that I plan to implement is “Try Story Telling.” As a

second career teacher (currently a substitute) who is fresh out of the fashion industry, I know my

personal experiences excite the students. When I sub for my mentor teacher, she allows me to

lesson plan and teach, when I bring up past work examples the students are completely drawn in.

My mentor teacher has also asked me to come in while she is in the class and even she said she

learned quite a few things. I know it helps motivate the students to hear from someone who was

where they are striving to be. She mentioned three different types of story telling: Historical

Story (I visited Paris Fashion week…), Process Story (last year’s class did not use the supplies

correctly…) and Backstories (When I was a kid…). I have already seen such a positive response 

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to this strategy and plan to implement it along with the others in order to have a successful

management plan for my future classroom.

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References

The Art Educators of New Jersey. (2013, October 14). Jessica Ballsley - Keep Calm and Teach

Art: 10 Strategies for Managing the Art Room. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/

watch?v=MT8PRa3aeww