How Do School Leaders Assess the
Physical and Social/Emotional
Learning Environment of the
Classroom?
NSIP National Conference
February 2013
Introductions
Presenters:
• Brenda Maynard
– bmaynard37@gmail.com
• Orin Simmerman
– oms3@bellsouth.net
• Debbie Daniels
– debbie.daniels@roadrunner.com
In this session we will:
• observe a variety of classroom settings;
• explore vocabulary, tools and
understandings to assess the physical and
social/emotional environment of
classrooms and their impact on student
and teacher performance, and
• understand how school leaders can use
these resources and information to assess
teaching and learning and provide
feedback to teachers.
Essential
Question:
Does the physical
and social-emotional
environment of a
classroom impact
student and teacher
performance?
• Turn to your
neighbor and
discuss. Share
Out
So how do we measure the
environment’s impact on
teacher and student
performance?
Videos
• Observe the video clips and
• Individually write on post-it notes as
many positive and/or negative
characteristics that describe the
classrooms' physical or
social/emotional environment.
• Video Links:
Daily 5 Kindergarten
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=9B6NBWYR6zA
Crazy Science Teacher
https://www.youtube.com/watc
h?v=4yHaYFiNv_8
Activity
• In your group, discuss and collapse
your descriptors and place them on
the T-Chart under appropriate
category.
• Post your chart.
Physical and Social/Emotional Characteristics
Physical Environment
Positive
Negative
Social/Emotional Environment
Positive
Negative
Gallery Walk
• Conduct a gallery walk and take note of all
the descriptors that are posted.
• What do you notice about the descriptors?
• What did you learn about observing the
physical and social/emotional environment of
the classroom?
Learning Centered Schools
• Rutherford Learning Group
• Mike Rutherford, President and National
Presenter
• Six Big Ideas and 13 Principles
• Supported by neuroscientific research
• Developed as a result of his work on
conducting Instructional Practices
Assessments (Instructional Rounds).
• Initially used all of these descriptors and
the work evolved
History Behind This Work
• Work with developing tools and resources
for principals to use in supporting and
providing feedback to teachers on
improving teaching and learning
• Focus on Learning Environment
• Too many descriptors to manage and
measure to show growth
• Realized we needed to narrow the focus
• What is it about the classroom
environment that impacts teacher and
student performance?
Classroom Environment
Enriched environments
over time increase the brain’s
ability to connect, communicate
internally and to learn
Impoverished environments
have the opposite effect – they
shrink the brain’s ability to
connect and communicate and
limit learning potential
Enriched
ENRICHED
Physical
Interactive
Welcoming
Print Rich
Comfortable
Hands on
Small groups
Bright
Colorful
Organized
Student work
displayed
Impoverished
Physical
Cluttered
Disorganized
Bland
Seats in rows
Commercial
wall postings
Permanent
bulletin
boards
Crowded
Smells
PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENTS
The ability of the
teacher to shape
the physical and
social environment
of the classroom to
enhance learning.
MYTH:
Most of what is
learned in the
classroom comes
from the
curriculum.
Truth:
Most learning in a
typical classroom
comes from the
environment.
Mike Rutherford,
Creating the Learning
Centered School
Learning centered teachers seek to create
an enriched physical environment.
Attractive
Physical
Classroom
Environment
Engaging
Changing
Sends a message
14
• Enriched Physical Environment
– Attractive - sight, inviting, inquisitive, friendly,
greenery(alive), lights and rugs (homey),
– Engaging – something to do and do with, sounds,
smells, bathtub (reading is special), live bunny (safe
place), touch
– Changing - varied, changes every week or unit to
support the current learning, mood settings
• Impoverished Physical Environment
– Unattractive – cluttered, bare, commercial/not
student centered
– Non-engaging – not content focused, teacher
centered
– Unchanging – permanent bulletin boards, no
student work posted
ENRICHED
Enriched
Impoverished
Social/Emotional
Social/Emotional
Student Centered
Risk free
Non-threatening
High Expectations
Friendly
Respectful
Valued
Supportive
Cooperative
Smooth
transitions
Creative
Collabortive
Tense
Favorite
students
No rituals
Threatening
Low
expectations
Screaming
Rude
Confusion
Stressful
Competitive
Intimidation
SOCIAL/EMOTIONAL ENVIRONMENTS
The ability of the teacher
to shape the physical and
social environment of the
classroom to enhance
learning.
MYTH:
Most of what is learned in
the classroom comes from
the curriculum.
Truth:
Most learning in a typical
classroom comes from the
environment.
Mike Rutherford, Creating the
Learning Centered School
Learning centered teachers seek to create
an enriched social/emotional environment.
Unconditional
Positive Regard
Social/Emotional
Classroom
Environment
Relaxed Alertness
Special Treatment
More collaboration,
less competition
Positive Rituals
17
Enriched Social-Emotional Environment
– Unconditional Positive Regard - student believes they are liked
by teacher and students for who they are, not what they wear or
what they can do, fun to be here, personal actions that indicate “I
like you”
– Relaxed Alertness - measure of the anxiety level, students are
focused, but not stressed, accountable talk
– Special Treatment - degree to which students feel that the
classroom is individualized, where their special needs are met,
selecting students to be leaders (where all get the opportunity to
lead), prizes, coupons, starfish story “make a difference for this
one”
– Positive Rituals - how teachers intentionally embed social
shaping messages into everyday life – being present, being on
time, moving in an orderly manner, process for dismissal, waiting
your turn
– More collaboration, less competition - build classroom climates
that are cooperative, collaborative, sharing, team building,
communicating (21st century skills)
Impoverished Social/Emotional
Environment
Negative energy and disrespectful of others –
intimidation and teacher centered
Stressful – tense, threatening, no rituals
No one feels special – opinions not valued,
made fun of, ridiculed
Lack of organization – no routines or transition
processes
All about competition, who is the best? - no
collaboration, team building, lacks cooperation
• Discuss at your table: What enriched
environmental cues should school leaders
“look for” when observing classrooms?
• Brainstorm your responses under the
appropriate headings.
• Share out
Physical Look-Fors
Attractive
Engaging
Changing
Social/Emotional Look Fors
Unconditional
Positive
Regard
Relaxed
Alertness
Special
Treatment
Positive
Rituals
More
Collaboration, Less
Competition
“Look Fors” in an Enriched Physical Environment
Attractive
Well-lit and dimly-lit
areas in the
classroom
Student work,
artwork and projects
displayed
Enriched
ENRICHED
Enriched physical
environments are
attractive, engaging,
and interactive with
students. The physical
environment should
change every two
weeks.
Different areas in the
classroom for
reading, working on
projects
Many resources,
print and non-print,
related to the
content being taught
Engaging
Changing
Learning stations for Desk clusters for small
individualized
groups
The
ability of the teacher
instruction
to shape the physical and
Circle
or u-shapedoffor
social
environment
the
Informal furniture classroom
whole group
to enhance
arrangements
learning.
MYTH:
Most
of what
is learned
Desks placed so
Posters,
charts
and in
themodels
classroom
from
teacher can make
that comes
relate to
thecurrent
curriculum.
eye contact and
content are
Truth:
reach each student
displayed
with ease
Most learning in a typical
classroom comes from the
environment.
Opportunities for
A comfortable
Mike Rutherford, Creating the
students to move
temperature
Learning
Centered School
around
Physical Environments
“Look Fors” in an Enriched Social/Emotional
Environment
Unconditional
Positive Regard
Special
Treatment
Teacher uses
mistakes as a
springboard for
learning and risk
taking
Students
selected to be
leaders
Teacher
acknowledges
every student as
a contributing
member of the
class
Students
engaged in their
learning
Student choice in
how they learn or
demonstrate
learning
Teacher and
students use
positive language
in their
communication
with each other
Students feel
accountable for
maintaining the
rules, policies,
and norms of the
group
Teacher
negotiates rules
and routines for
students
Consistency in
rules and values
Enriched
ENRICHED
“Emotion is
the on-off
switch of
learning.
We don’t
talk about it
enough as a
pedagogical
tool. Fear
and shame
shut it off;
hope,
enthusiasm,
and safety
turn it
on.” Ed
Hallowell
Teacher greets
students
personally
Relaxed
Alertness
Social/Emotional Environments
Positive
Rituals
Collaboration
Not
Competition
Clearly
Cooperative
The
ability
of
the
teacher
presented
learning
to shape the physical and
classroom
social environment
of the
expectations
Projects
to enhance
andclassroom
goals
learning.
MYTH:
Process for
Students
Most of what is learned in
dismissal,
sharing their
the classroom comes from
moving to
learning with
the curriculum.
lunch, taking
other students,
Truth:
and
the class
Most
learning
in a typical
distributing
classroom comes from the
papers
environment.
A predictable
Students
Mike Rutherford, Creating the
environment
working as a
Learning Centered School
team with
teacher
facilitating
Putting it all together: Observation
Focused on Enriched Environments
Using the observation instrument record
characteristics and evidence that
describes the classroom environment.
Working with a Science Partner
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k
K4FSFuSGPQ
With a partner, discuss:
• Essential Question: Considering the
elements of an enriched physical and
social/emotional environment, what
feedback would you provide the teacher
to make their physical and
social/emotional environment more
enriched?
Learning Environment
Resources
• A Positive Classroom Environment:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9J9GbbR6u7Q
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4yHaYFiNv_8
• https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/when-lessonplans-fail
• https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/sixth-gradebiology-lesson
• https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/reading-likea-historian-contextualization-complete-lesson
Learning Environment
Resources
• https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/teachingstudents-to-reassess-reliability
• https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/enhancinglearning-through-drama
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9B6NBWYR6zA
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kK4FSFuSGPQ
• https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/art-andexpress-social-issues
•
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