Experiencing Success and Failure
Setting up and enforcing classroom rules and procedures is critical to a successful classroom, and a positive classroom environment. Classroom rules lead students into forming mental models of the classroom, which students can rely upon when reflecting upon the classroom experiences. Clearer impressions of the classroom give students greater freedom when reflecting to imagine future scenarios of accomplishments or challenges; without a clear model the reflections are not strengthened by certain knowledge of causes and effects and become more like daydreams and less like actionable steps. A huge variety of classroom rules exists, in part because of the role that the teachers and students play in creating them. When done effectively, these roles have an immensely positive impact and, very importantly, create a safe working environment (Rosevear, 2009).
Classroom rules and procedures differ in many important ways, and I would like to highlight that whereas rules generally exist at all times or the majority of times whether or not they are called upon, procedures can be initiated infrequently according to whether or not the situation to use them arises. Rules against bullying exist and are in effect at all times whether or not bullying is occurring, whereas earthquake procedures only come into effect during an earthquake. In appreciation of this, classroom procedures can often take on an experimental model, and allow students to experience control over the classroom that is transient and less capable of long-term damages. It also allows for more procedures to be created, in excess of the low number of rules that needs to be maintained in order for everyone to simply remember them all (Parton, 2009). Failure is an important experience, and there are opportunities in classroom procedures for students to experience failure of creating solid procedures. For example, procedures governing the presentation of science projects may only occur once a semester, so if mistakes are made it would be easy to reflect upon them as a class after the event.
Guiding Method
My personal model of discipline is the guiding method. I begin semesters with a higher amount of teacher decision making, but gradually imbue the classroom with control. Initially I create all classroom rules, relying upon convention and generalizations openly with my students. Establishing this quickly is a foundation of the classroom environment, so that expectations for the rest of the year are set (Wong, 2012). For example, asking students if they are okay arrive on time and answer roll call, based on what they’ve seen in other classes, or if I need to personally create rules and enforce them. However, after the class has experienced some success in typical behavior, I enjoin the students to debate the necessity for fine details of typical rules and call for classroom buy-in to any suggestions that I feel are reasonable. The expectations can be set early, but still need to be built upwards.
Group Work Rules
Group work classroom rules and procedures are a useful testing ground for incorporating student input. Group work frequency can be controlled by the teacher, and group work procedures can be trialed before the teacher initiates conversations around generalized classroom rules. For example, during group work periods, special procedures can be created for students leaving to use the bathroom. Due to the self-management of individual groups, it may be appropriate to set up procedures that rely less upon raising your hand and asking the teacher for permission, and more upon evaluating the situation and deciding if it’s appropriate to step out of the class or not. Invariably, boundaries are tested, and teacher involvement is needed, but often an acceptable procedure can be created with student input because of the additional commitment they put into things they create, as William Glasser believed and advocated (Parton, 2009, p. 31). In the best case, this procedure can become a rule that is used at all times in the classroom, not only a procedure that is in effect during group work periods.
Positive Environments Grown from Failure and Success
In these situations, positive classroom environments are created from rules created in cooperation with students. Classroom rules are tested out as procedures and only become rules if they are proven to have a positive impact. However, positive environments are not always immediately created from procedures created in cooperation with students. When Parton says that meaningful lessons are the best thing to nurture positive behaviors (Parton, 2009, p. 30), I believe the lesson itself can be on behavior. By design, failure is built into this methodology where students are empowered to create procedures with negative outcomes. This is done with long-term positive impacts in mind, and all members of the classroom must be aware of this, especially when things are going poorly. Generally, control that is not given to students includes to ability to lead the classroom into conclusions that are not obvious, or to contextualize non-standard situations as successes or failures.
Classroom Management and Order
A teacher can assess the effectiveness of their policies around creating classroom rules and procedures by observing how frequently students stay on task, and whether the students themselves are aware of if the classroom order is contributing to work being done or not. Teachers often know whether or not students are on-task, but students should also be able to easily observe whether other students are on-task or not. This contributes to a feeling of fairness and safety, which is important in establishing an effective classroom environment (Rosevear, 2009). If a class commonly seems disorganized and chaotic, but all students are both on-task as well as being aware that the classroom is, on a whole, on-task, then the teacher can feel relieved that an effective system is in place.
Conclusion
This review has shown a guiding method of discipline influencing the creation of classroom rules and procedures. It involves a heavy amount of student input, and results in both successes and failures. The method creates a positive classroom environment through testing, reflection, and selection of the best procedures. It helps maintain classroom order by focusing on classroom order as an ability of students, imbuing them with self-agency, but also allowing them to observe the behavior of other students in order to see how effective their choices have been when other students must follow the same rules. This assessment of effectiveness is critical for both students and the teacher to be able to reflect and act upon and should lead to a positive learning environment.
References
Partin, R.L. (2009). Classroom teacher’s survival guide: Practical strategies, management techniques and reproducibles for new and experienced teachers. John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated.
Rosevear, J.E. (2009). First month: Classroom rules that work. Instructor, 119 (1), 57.
Wong, H., Wong, R., Rogers, K., & Brooks, A. (2012). Managing your classroom for success: Organization in the first week is the foundation for a successful school year. Science and Children, 49 (9), 60+.