Proactive Inclusive Learning Plan

Carlos Vasquez

National University
 Introduction

The difficulties of classroom teaching have been severely underestimated by the patrons

of other professions; it is not uncommon to have heard that teachers have been taking advantage

of the system and leeching off of taxpayer money. The truth is, teachers are expected by parents,

students, administrators, and the court of public opinion to sacrifice their time and energy to

ensure that every person that walks into our classroom is a better person than they came in. The

Proactive Inclusive Learning Plan is precisely that.

The purpose of this plan is to create a space in my classroom (and any other classroom

that this plan may have influence on) that is equitable for all students so that every student in the

classroom may learn and grow in an efficient manner. Creating this space should not only have

academic benefits, but should also have a positive effect on the social and emotional well being

of the students. In a classroom where students feel comfortable learning, growing, and

expressing themselves, the students should be able to self-regulate and become reliant on nothing

other than themselves to grow academically and emotionally. Students should be able to have

intrinsic motivation to study and excel on test scores, as well as learn skills like patience, hard

work, and teamwork. The goal is to learn these skills so that they can be applied to a student’s

life outside of academics as well as in the classroom.

 Positive Rules and Procedures

I plan on teaching in a high school music classroom; given this particular situation,

procedures and expectations may look different from other core classes. Nonetheless, student

expectations will be set explicitly on the first day of class. These expectations and procedures are

as follows:

● Students will enter the classroom respectfully

● Students will safely grab and set up their own chairs and music stand from their
respective racks, and properly put them back at the end of class.
● Students will use the storage facilities strictly for instrument and sheet music storage
● Students will follow safe procedures setting up their instruments out of their instrument
cases; every instrument case should be lined up on the outer edges of the classroom.
● Students will only handle school equipment/ instruments when authorized to do so.
● For the safety of the instruments and facilities, all food and drinks (not including water) is
expected to be kept outside of the music facilities.
● Students will remain quiet and direct their attention forward when a conductor (the
teacher) is on the podium. Students will refrain from playing their instruments
● Students shall treat each other with respect; students will refrain from being disruptive,
will refrain from insulting and hurting each other, and keep a positive attitude in the
classroom.
The positive rules and procedures will be communicated by the following methods:

❖ Syllabus: The students will be handed with a contract stating the above along with other

stipulations of our classroom; the contract will be read to the class out loud for student

understanding.

❖ Walk through: The students will be taught through modeling the specific behaviors of the

classroom, and will practice these behaviors with regular corrections on the first week of

class.

❖ Students will create a poster within the first week of class in which they will work

collaboratively to decide on a set of basic rules to uphold while in the classroom. These

rules can include short handles like “respect one another” and “work hard”
 Rewards

It is important that with every plan involving behaviors that we reward those students

who participate and excel in these positive behaviors. Students should be commended and shown

appreciation so that they understand that there are positive outcomes to their behaviors. These

rewards are as follows:

● Positive reinforcement: This reward is a subtle way to show students how much you

appreciate their positive behaviors. Students will be given positive affirmation when they

engage in good behaviors. It is important to be specific about the positive behavior that is

being commended.

● Extra credit: If a student engages in outstanding positive behavior, they can be given the

opportunity to add points to an assignment they may not have done so well on. This can

show the students that just because they struggle academically, it does not mean they

have to act out in class and that their positive behavior can help them achieve

academically. Students will also notice their positive behaviors will have a positive effect

on their grades without even needing the extra credit.

● Gold Music Stand: In a music classroom, students all use black music stands; a student

who is achieving musically as well as serving as a great example to his/her peers will be

given a gold music stand to indicate that they are a high achieving student.

● Electronics pass: this can be given to individuals or to students as a whole; students may

be given temporary allowance to use electronics in class if they show positive behaviors

throughout class time.

 Consequences

Most times, if students are shown and taught the proper behaviors and procedures of the

classroom, consequences are rare and unnecessary. In the case that this method is subject to

outside factors like a difficult home life or distractions outside the classroom, consequences may

be in order to help the student stay on track.

● Stern, immediate warning: The details of this consequence are very important. It is vital

that you let the student and the rest of the class be aware of what you will tolerate in your

classroom. During out behavior, the student should be immediately addressed and asked

to correct their behaviors in a firm and immediate manner. This can serve as a warning to

the student as well as a measure of the behavior you will tolerate in the classroom.

● Time-out: as infantile as this consequence may seem, sometimes students just need some

time to themselves to compose themselves and gather their thoughts to engage in positive

behaviors again.

● Loss of privilege: It is important that this loss of privilege serves a direct purpose; if a

student refuses to do classwork or homework, that student will not be allowed to

participate in the fun class activity and will work on their assignments during that time

instead.

● Phone call home: Many times, students will only respond to consequences if their parents

are involved. A phone call home can go a long way in that it brings awareness to the

student's parents and can help you start a discussion about what kinds of things the

student needs in order to achieve success.

 Interventions

When the consequences are not reaching the student, it usually means that there are

outside factors that are heavily influencing the moods and behaviors of the student. Often, these

factors are out of an educator’s control, and require administrators and teachers to intervene with

those factors to help the student as effectively as possible.

● Parent-Teacher conference with administrator: This can be very useful when a student is

engaging in a pattern of poor classroom behaviors. The parent and the teacher have a

private meeting with an administrator in the room to discuss the behaviors and try to find

a solution that works for all parties.

● Accomodations/adapting environment: Sometimes, there may be factors that are

unknown to the teacher that are affecting the students behavior. In these instances, you

can discuss this with the student and adapt the students environment so that they can

focus on what is important in the classroom. This can be something like placing that

student in a different part of the classroom, or allowing them extra time to complete

classwork.

● Counseling: It may be useful for a student who is acting out to speak to a counselor on a

regular basis to discuss any matters that may be affecting their behavior. This can help

both the student and the teacher understand what the student needs in order to be

successful, as well as help others see where the trouble is coming from.
 References

Logical Consequences as Classroom Management for Teens. Math Giraffe. (n.d.).

https://www.mathgiraffe.com/blog/logical-consequences-for-teens.

Dean, M. (2020, November 12). 14 PBIS incentives for high school students - Classcraft

Blog. Resource hub for schools and districts.

https://www.classcraft.com/blog/pbis-incentives-for-high-school-students/.