My Ideal Environment
As I looked for ways to combat the negative influences of certain external factors that seemed to permeate the classroom environment, I oftentimes found myself feeling trapped and overwhelmed by those very same factors. Of these factors, the school’s current behavior model had been the toughest for me to cope with. “In an environment where structure is deemed necessary for the success of students and is therefore heavily emphasized, teachers [and administrators] at M.S. Middle/High School assume authoritative roles as enforcers of school culture and codes of conduct” (Altman, Leonard, Neilson, &Todd, 2011, pp.6-7).
When thinking about students’ behaviors it is very easy to place them in complete blame, overlooking all of the external factors that may contribute and give rise to their behaviors. But the truth of the matter is that students’ behaviors are oftentimes simply responses to their surroundings and/or environments. In school, this environment is driven by administration, teachers, and students alike. While they each play different roles in establishing and sustaining the environment present at school, they are all intertwined inevitably feeding off of one another:
“In looking at disparities in urban student achievement, we consistently see relational
factors at the center of the picture. Time and again students tell us they work hard “for” the
teachers they like, teachers by whom they feel respected or valued or, as some students put
it; teachers who treat us like real people. In schools where students experience a lack of
agency due to restrictive policies and punitive disciplinary responses…it is no wonder that
adolescents choose to construct adversarial relationships with adults in school. Like anyone
else, youth want to be engaged as thinking, feeling, valued members of a community in which
they are understood as stakeholders. If the adolescence desire for autonomy is met with
enforced powerlessness or if the need for connection yields only isolation, students rightfully
resist” (Nakkula & Toshalis, 2006, p.81).
If I wanted to promote student engagement in the reflection process my approach would ultimately have to be centered on nurturing internal assets that support more positive classroom culture and relieve the sense of powerless and control. By doing so, I hoped that it would ultimately eliminate the presence and prevalence of behaviors and attitudes that “warrant punishment”. As I contemplated the various roles that each individual must play in fostering that classroom culture, I sought input from the students themselves through the following prompt:
What characteristics of the teacher, students, and administrators do you think are needed in order to have a positive classroom environment?
When thinking about students’ behaviors it is very easy to place them in complete blame, overlooking all of the external factors that may contribute and give rise to their behaviors. But the truth of the matter is that students’ behaviors are oftentimes simply responses to their surroundings and/or environments. In school, this environment is driven by administration, teachers, and students alike. While they each play different roles in establishing and sustaining the environment present at school, they are all intertwined inevitably feeding off of one another:
“In looking at disparities in urban student achievement, we consistently see relational
factors at the center of the picture. Time and again students tell us they work hard “for” the
teachers they like, teachers by whom they feel respected or valued or, as some students put
it; teachers who treat us like real people. In schools where students experience a lack of
agency due to restrictive policies and punitive disciplinary responses…it is no wonder that
adolescents choose to construct adversarial relationships with adults in school. Like anyone
else, youth want to be engaged as thinking, feeling, valued members of a community in which
they are understood as stakeholders. If the adolescence desire for autonomy is met with
enforced powerlessness or if the need for connection yields only isolation, students rightfully
resist” (Nakkula & Toshalis, 2006, p.81).
If I wanted to promote student engagement in the reflection process my approach would ultimately have to be centered on nurturing internal assets that support more positive classroom culture and relieve the sense of powerless and control. By doing so, I hoped that it would ultimately eliminate the presence and prevalence of behaviors and attitudes that “warrant punishment”. As I contemplated the various roles that each individual must play in fostering that classroom culture, I sought input from the students themselves through the following prompt:
What characteristics of the teacher, students, and administrators do you think are needed in order to have a positive classroom environment?
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The overarching theme that resonated in students’ responses was the willingness and desire to connect and collaborate as well as a mutual understanding. More specifically students felt that both teachers and administrators must be attentive to students' needs in an effort to connect with them on a personal level. As for students, they felt that students must be receptive to the teachers and administrators and work with them to foster that connection and understanding. Though students did not go into more detail, simply seeing the commonalities in their responses solidified the importance of collaboration in action and attitude above all else.
This emphasis on collaboration intrigued me and raised questions about what collaboration meant and looked like through the eyes of administrators, teachers, and students. I often got the sense that there were conflicting ideas of how collaboration was defined within those groups which influenced how they interacted with one other and subsequently what type of environment that produced. This was most evident through my observation of the growing tension between students and teachers or administrators as the behavior model and other disciplinary actions were being enforced:
“This is why disciplinary interactions in classrooms can be so revealing- it is then that
students’ and adults’ understandings of one another and the classroom situation are
most exposed and most at risk, when the relationship is most tenuous. By paying
attention to how our work with adolescents is relational rather than purely pedagogical
or clinical, we open our eyes to the ways in which reciprocity, interdependence, and
connection shape our decision making and development.” (Nakkula & Toshalis, 2006, p.81)
Building off of students’ thoughts, the type of collaboration that is needed between students, teachers, and administrators in order to have a positive classroom and school environment is one grounded in principles of mutual respect, empathy, effort, support, and inclusion.
Next Page: "Opening up the Conversation"
The overarching theme that resonated in students’ responses was the willingness and desire to connect and collaborate as well as a mutual understanding. More specifically students felt that both teachers and administrators must be attentive to students' needs in an effort to connect with them on a personal level. As for students, they felt that students must be receptive to the teachers and administrators and work with them to foster that connection and understanding. Though students did not go into more detail, simply seeing the commonalities in their responses solidified the importance of collaboration in action and attitude above all else.
This emphasis on collaboration intrigued me and raised questions about what collaboration meant and looked like through the eyes of administrators, teachers, and students. I often got the sense that there were conflicting ideas of how collaboration was defined within those groups which influenced how they interacted with one other and subsequently what type of environment that produced. This was most evident through my observation of the growing tension between students and teachers or administrators as the behavior model and other disciplinary actions were being enforced:
“This is why disciplinary interactions in classrooms can be so revealing- it is then that
students’ and adults’ understandings of one another and the classroom situation are
most exposed and most at risk, when the relationship is most tenuous. By paying
attention to how our work with adolescents is relational rather than purely pedagogical
or clinical, we open our eyes to the ways in which reciprocity, interdependence, and
connection shape our decision making and development.” (Nakkula & Toshalis, 2006, p.81)
Building off of students’ thoughts, the type of collaboration that is needed between students, teachers, and administrators in order to have a positive classroom and school environment is one grounded in principles of mutual respect, empathy, effort, support, and inclusion.
Next Page: "Opening up the Conversation"