1. Maintaining a student-centered classroom.
Student-centered learning is the catalyst for engaged learners. When a teacher is lecturing the entire time, being the keeper of knowledge, students do not construct or play a part in what they are learning and this leads to poor retention and not very much relevancy. I believe that creating a student-centered classroom is an important choice because it might be easier to just give the students information, but the students do not benefit as much when they are secondary parts to their own learning. 2. Reacting in a professional manner when confronted with challenges. Sometimes students bring out emotional responses in teachers; it has happened to me and also to many of my peers who are beginning teaching as well. However, the most important part about dealing with these emotional challenges is how one reacts to them. By choosing to react appropriately and professionally, a teacher keeps her students safe, upholds school code and the law, and allows for incidents to be handled productively. 3. Encouraging students to work together (grouping, separating). In regards to this essential decision, I contacted my aunt who was a fifth-grade teacher in California and I will always remember her response to my inquiry. She explained that “Managing a learning environment is like being a chef, mixing and combining ingredients to complement one another and adding a little dash of hot sauce to spice things up and keep it interesting. The result is sometimes surprising but delightful! The ingredients (students) are the most important part of the process and [a teacher’s] job is to encourage them all to blend well, yet keep their individual flavor!” (M. Stephens, personal communication, May 10, 2016). 4. Remaining consistent in instruction and discipline. When teachers are consistent in instruction and classroom rules, students know what is expected of them and are set up for success. Because I want every one of my students to succeed, I will create logical routines in my classroom (such as supplies come out after instructions are given or we get dismissed after the classroom is clean) in order to make our learning environment comfortable, productive, and conducive for success. 5. Establishing meaning and relevancy in education. At least once in their their schooling, every student has the moment where they think “why am I doing this? I will never use this in real life.” Well, when teachers make content relevant, these feelings are diminished. Choosing to implement authentic assessments into the curriculum is important because students will begin to see why the content matters and how it pertains to them. According to Charlotte Danielson, “In a classroom with a strong culture for learning, teachers convey the educational value of what the students are learning” (Danielson, 2013, p. 37). |