I.

Observation #2
Classroom Management and Routines

II. Grade level and Subject Area

3rd and 4th grade, English Language Arts and Math

III. Setting
Self-contained classroom; Special Education; Elementary school; Urban setting; 1 educator and
2 para-educators; 12 students present

IV. Pre-Observation
Before analyzing the classroom management present in my fieldwork placement
classroom, I conducted research revolving around classroom management, specifically in an
Elementary school and Special Education setting, to gain a greater understanding of management
concepts. Firstly, the basis of classroom management falls on having clear and concise rules and
expectations. Each school and teacher differs when it comes to their classroom rules, regulations,
and expectations, which makes it crucial for the students to be aware and have a solid
foundational understanding of what the etiquette is. In order for these rules to be comprehended
by students, thorough explanation and consistent repetition is needed. According to the National
Association of Special Education Teachers (NASET), “When teaching the rules, teachers need to
use the same methods that are used for teaching academic skills; model the expectation, check
for understanding, have students practice with guidance, and provide immediate and consistent
feedback,” (Lohmann, Boothe, & Nenovich). Teaching the rules of the classroom should be
conducted at the same importance level as academic learning is. The environment that the
teacher produces through their classroom management style heavily impacts students' learning
outcomes and ability to function on a day-to-day basis. Additionally, the National Association of
Special Education Teachers (NASET) also states that, “Rules should be posted where students,
and adults, will see them on a regular basis; for younger children, it is beneficial to also include
visual cues on the rules charts,” (Lohmann, Boothe, & Nenovich, n.d.). Once rules are solidified
and taught to students through academic methods, the next important step is to reiterate the
rules through repetition. An example of this is to have the classroom rules placed where
everyone is able to see in order to consistently reinforce them. Furthermore, when rewards and
consequences are attached to certain behaviors, the teacher needs to fulfill them in order for the
rules to be respected, stuck to, and taken seriously. Secondly, the teacher needs to fulfill a strong
leadership role in the classroom by exercising “appropriate dominance”. According to education
researchers, Theo Wubbels and Jack Levy, appropriate dominance is defined as, “The teacher's
ability to provide clear purpose and strong guidance regarding both academics and student
behavior,” and, “studies indicate that when asked about their preferences for teacher behavior,
students typically express a desire for this type of teacher-student interaction,” (Marzano &
Marzano, 2003). The dominance teacher’s should uphold is not forceful or harsh, but rather
exudes clarity and assertiveness, which can be honored by the students similar to a parental
figure. Students not only prefer this type of teacher behavior, it has been demonstrated that
students thrive under a strong leadership figure and consistent structure based on research.

V. Data

Schedule
● The classroom follows a daily routine of morning meeting, ELA, Lunch/Recess, Math,
Specials, and Science/Social Studies, however, there are many students who get pulled
out for different reasons daily. For example, 3rd and 4th grade students get pulled out
separately for Extra PE, Science, and Social Studies in their designated inclusion
classrooms in addition to specific students who are pulled out for ESL and Speech.
● Due to the amount of diverse accommodation and modification needs, the daily schedule
is flexible. Cancellations or time switches for pull-out groups happen frequently. This
causes the teacher to have to reconfigure the schedule in order for each student to receive
the proper amount of accommodation service and academic instruction.
● While certain parts of the schedule differ daily, the foundational schedule is maintained
and the teacher keeps her class running on-time even under the conditions of schedule
changes.
● The daily schedule is displayed on a hanging vertical chart organizer that is clearly
visible to students. The display cards, which have each subject and event written on it
along with a visual depicting it, are easily moveable to reflect the schedule. When
students have questions or forget the schedule, the teacher directs them to view the chart.
● Overall, the scheduled time for the core subjects is sufficient as the teacher is able to
incorporate a lesson, individual work, and stations/ pull-out groups. The main issue is that
the teacher and the aides do not always have enough one-on-one time with students for
individual help or conducting assessments. Due to each student requiring different
amounts of time to complete an activity, it causes the aides specifically to only meet with
a few students per day. Additionally, they may not meet with select students for days on
end due to them not being present in the room when they begin conducting their sessions.
● To stay on track, the teacher projects an online timer on the Smart board to allow students
to be aware of how much time is left for the designated activity. Once the timer is done,
students understand that they need to stop and clean up.
● The administration creates the main schedule for each grade and the teacher follows it
even with the flexibility of her classroom.

Guidance
● When responding to misbehavior, the teacher first uses assertive language to redirect and
allow students to assess their own behavior, such as “our voices are off” and “why are we
talking?” Redirection is used regularly in the classroom.
● For high levels of misbehavior, such as tantrums, screaming, or violent behaviors that
disrupt the environment of the classroom, depending on the severity, the teacher may
teach through the tantrum or put a pause on the lesson and relocate the rest of the students
to another classroom. One student in the classroom is specifically prone to tantrums.
When the teacher begins to notice the signs, she either moves herself or the student closer
to her to keep watch, remove any obstacles, and prevent increasing misbehavior. If the
misbehavior continues to escalate, the teacher will give the student space to work through
their tantrum independently. The teacher remains calm, patient, and alert. Once the
student begins to calm down, the teacher initiates a dialogue with the student to
understand the reason behind the misbehavior, explain why this behavior is not
acceptable, and demonstrate what the student should do next time they feel this way.
● Additionally, the teacher will meet one-on-one with students who demonstrate
misbehavior to discuss and break down the bad behavior. The teacher provides consistent
guidance through the use of “good choice” and “bad choice”. Through the reinforcement
of these concepts, the student comes to their own conclusion of how to prevent the bad
behavior in the future.
● There is leniency with select behaviors, such as humming, solving a problem out loud
when working independently, and not finishing work on time.
● Consequences are not given out vigorously, however, they are still given. Some examples
include not being able to participate in a class activity, not receiving a reward, and
detention for extreme or violent misbehavior.
● There were a few conflicts that went unnoticed, but were either able to be resolved by the
students themselves or were brushed off and did not escalate any further. When there are
conflicts, the teacher guides students towards a resolution, however in order to teach
personal responsibility, the students play an active role in resolving the issues.
● A money rewards system is used in the classroom. When students demonstrate good
behavior, such as participating, being kind, and staying focused, the teacher will give the
student fake money. They can cash it in for small prizes, such as erasers, pencils, and
trinkets located in a rainbow organizer, or save their money for bigger prizes, such as
lunch with the teacher or a toy. The teacher gives out rewards very frugally, which makes
the reward special when earned.
● If parents need to be communicated with promptly, the teacher has access to parents
through the Remind app and email. The teacher updates parents on anything that occurs
in the classroom regarding extreme misbehavior or conflicts timely to ensure that there is
clarity in what occurred and how it is being handled. Additionally, the teacher keeps a log
for the student who is prone to tantrums, which helps update the student's behaviorist on
the time span and the possible trigger of the tantrum.
● The teacher does not use the principal for disciplinary action unless there is physical
contact or HIB, however, she keeps in close communication with the principal and
 verbally reports any incidents that occur in the classroom that are important to inform her
on.
● The teachers are assessed using the Danielson framework and non-tenured teachers are
observed three times a year, while tenured teachers are observed twice a year. If a teacher
is doing something incorrectly, they will be told through a direct conversation or noted on
the observation form. If there is an infraction, the teacher can be written-up or put on an
improvement plan.

VI. Analysis
Throughout my observation, I thought that the teacher maintained consistency even under
the flexible conditions of her classroom. Morning meetings are a great example of this as each
student walked into the classroom and knew exactly what to do, which displays a clear
comprehension of the classroom rules and routine. The classroom etiquette was created with the
students in mind and was clearly articulated and displayed in the classroom for the students'
understanding (Lohmann, Boothe, & Nenovich, n.d.). Likewise, the reward system in place
benefits students by allowing them to learn about money, discipline, and good sportsmanship.
Also, the teacher is able to highlight good behavior, which helps those who do not receive the
reward to have something to work towards and improve on. Reward systems do not always work
or can be used too frequently, which counteracts the whole point of a reward system, however,
the teacher incorporates rewards efficiently by not overusing her reward system, which in return
enhances positive student behavior. On the other hand, while there are many benefits to a
self-contained classroom, there are also difficulties with having a classroom of students who all
have differentiated needs, challenges, and triggers. For example, when one student is having a
tantrum with unknown triggers, the other students become easily distracted, distressed, and are
interrupted from their studies as the class has to be put on pause. The students' behaviors,
whether good or bad, affect one another and their ability to learn.

VII. Recommendations
After observing and analyzing, I have devised two main recommendations revolving
around classroom management. Firstly, I would recommend there to be a spot in the classroom
that is dedicated towards a calm down corner. A calm down corner is an area in the room where
students can go at any time if they begin to feel angry, sad, or distressed in order to work through
their emotions independently, “The peace [calm down] corner provides students with a
social-emotional strategy to practice mindfulness, which contributes to their ability to create a
safe and positive classroom environment … and supports self-regulation and social-emotional
learning among students,” (Thompson, 2021). This addition would allow students to practice
regulating their own emotions, advocate for themselves when they need help, and stay present in
the classroom without disrupting others. The teacher has vocalized her desire to implement a
cool-down corner in her classroom, however, there is little to no room left with the abundance of
cabinets and the small size of the classroom. A bigger classroom would allow for a calm-down
 corner to be added and students to be less squished together, which would positively affect
student behavior and create less opportunities for discourse to occur between students. Secondly,
I would recommend that there would be clearer communication between the main teacher and
the accommodation teachers who pull students out, such as ESL. Many times, certain
accommodation teachers, not all, were absent frequently, which led to students missing out on
their accommodation services entirely or not receiving their full amount of instruction as well as
causing scheduling disturbances for the teacher to have to fix. Communication is key for a
classroom, especially a Special Education classroom, to function properly.

VIII. Post Observation

Through this experience, I was able to learn the importance of classroom management
and how much of an impact it has on the students' learning and growth. Routine and consistency
are important skills for any career or personal lifestyle, especially in education. Without
structure, there is no foundation for the teacher, students, or classroom to fall onto, which can
cause chaos and confusion. Having no structure does not create a comfortable and ambient
environment for the teacher to teach or for the students to learn no matter the grade level. In
addition to the researched topics covered in the pre-observation, through my observation
experience, I also witnessed the importance of creating strong student-teacher relationships as
well as the use of appropriate accommodations and modifications to meet each student's needs.
Even when students were misbehaving or not following the rules, the teacher kept her composure
and was able to resolve the conflict due to the strong bonds she has developed with her students.
Also, the teacher is knowledgeable of each of her students' needs, strengths, and weaknesses,
which helps her in distributing the proper support, guidance, and adjustments for the students to
succeed at their highest potential. These proponents not only cultivate respect and build trust
between the teacher and the individual students, it also stimulates student growth and success,
which is key for an orderly and well-run classroom.

IX. Citations

Lohmann, M. J., Boothe, K. A., & Nenovich, N. M. (n.d.) Using Classroom Design to Reduce

Challenging Behaviors in the Elementary Classroom. National Association of Special

Education Teachers. Retrieved April 29, 2023, from

https://www.naset.org/fileadmin/user_upload/Classroom_Management/2019/Using_Class

room_Design_to_Reduce_Challenging_Behaviors_in_the_Elementary_Classroom.pdf

Marzano, R. J., & Marzano, J. S. (2003). The Key to Classroom Management. ASCD. Retrieved

April 28, 2023, from https://www.ascd.org/el/articles/the-key-to-classroom-management

Thompson, C. (2021). The Impact of a Classroom Calm Down Corner in a Primary Classroom.

Northwestern College. Retrieved April 30, 2023, from

https://nwcommons.nwciowa.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1304&context=education_

masters

X. Appendix: None