Dianthe Morgan
PROBLEMS IN THE CLASSROOM
1. Students did not follow line procedures.
When students were asked to line up, they were expected to stand in line, facing
forward quietly. Instead, students would talk, lean on shelves or tables, and ignore
the order to be quiet. In an attempt to alleviate this issue, the teachers decided to take
one afternoon to practice the procedures. However, the students had already been in
school seven weeks and the procedures had not been posted or enforced. During that
afternoon, the teachers intended to practice five times, but it took over an hour for the
students to get the procedure right one time.
Plan of action: Immediately upon return from fall intercession, teachers will review
the procedures with the students. Then they will have the students practice the line
procedures over and over until all students demonstrate a clear understanding of the
procedures. This solution will work because practice makes better, the procedures
will be practiced to automaticity, and the students will then know from the start what
is expected of them when they line up.
2. Teachers were inconsistent with the bathroom procedures.
At Starms Discovery Learning Center, the students are not allowed to go to the
bathroom without supervision. Therefore, my cooperating teachers scheduled two
class bathroom breaks, one at 10:15 a.m. and another one at 3:15 p.m. Well, one of
the teachers stuck to this rule, and did not take students at any other time. The other
teacher would do the exact opposite. If students asked her to go to the bathroom, she
would take groups of them at unscheduled times at all times of day. Then the
students started asking me to take them because she told them to, and that became
tiresome. Plus, the other teacher would get upset whenever the students would be
allowed to go to the bathroom aside from the scheduled times. To alleviate this issue,
I stopped taking students to the bathroom and started reminding them about the
procedures.
Plan of action: Teachers will adjust the scheduled bathroom breaks. The 10:15 a.m.
break will remain, but the last break will be changed to 2:15 p.m. The teachers will
inform the students of the change, and the students will be told that there will be no
other bathroom breaks. This solution will work because most students were asking to
go to the bathroom between 1:45 and 2:15 p.m. anyway. The newly scheduled time
will suit most of the students’ needs.
3. The classroom was too large.
There were 34 students in the classroom. The classroom area was made up of two
classrooms. The teachers were not able to stand in one place in the classroom and see
Dianthe Morgan
all the students. There were aisle ways wide enough for students to run through them.
I believe the abundance of space contributed to the students constantly getting out of
their seats. To alleviate some of these issues, the principal and her assistant came in
the room and discussed the physical arrangement with my cooperating teachers.
Then during the next planning period, the principal came back to our room and
changed the arrangement of not only the student tables, but the shelves, and teachers’
desks. The intention was to close wide areas of space, so students could not run.
Plan of action: Use the dividers to separate the two classrooms and only use one side.
This solution will work because the students will have less space to move, and the
teacher will be able to choose a spot where he/she could see all students at one time.
It may seem a little compact, but it is easier for the teacher to manage his/her class.
4. The classroom was not secured and my belonging was stolen.
Since the classroom was comprised of two rooms, there were two doors. Each
teacher had a key for classroom doors. Teachers were instructed to always lock the
door whenever they leave the classroom. Well, on this particular day, one teacher
locked her door and the other teacher either chose not to or forgot. I placed my purse
in one of the teachers’ desks as I usually do. We walked the students to Specials.
When we returned, it was brought to my attention that a suspicious-looking, young
lady walking through the hall had a bulge under her jacket. When I checked the
teacher’s desk, I realized that my purse had been stolen. The young lady was gone
from the building by this time. Luckily, she was one of my students’ siblings. I had
that student help me get my purse back, but her sibling ended up keeping my money.
To keep this from happening again, I stopped bringing my purse in the building, and
the teachers made sure they locked their doors when they stepped out the room.
Plan of action: I suggest that the teachers have one door for entering and one door for
exiting. The door that students exit should remain locked from the outside at all
times. The door that students enter should be locked by the teacher when everyone
leaves the room. This solution will work because the teachers will only have to worry
about locking one door, which is easier to remember to do.
5. The cooperating teachers had clashing class management styles.
The two teachers I worked with had different expectations. One teacher was lenient
and the other teacher was more concentrated on structure. It was obvious to the
students that the two teachers did not work well together as a team. The students and
their parents could sense the incompatibility between their teaching styles. One
teacher preferred babying students and the other one preferred to teach the students
responsibility. The students tried to use this situation to their advantage by playing
one teacher against the other. Not much learning took place during the last eight
weeks because the class was unruly. To alleviate this issue, the principal came to talk
to the teachers during their planning time. She told them that they need to figure out
a plan to get on one accord. The principal also sent one of the teachers to a teacher
Dianthe Morgan
workshop, so she would hopefully come back with some ideas to implement into the
classroom to help the situation.
Plan of action: Rearrange the teacher teams in the upper level classes. The teacher
who has built the most positive relationships with the students and provided structure
should remain the classroom with the students. The other teacher should swap places
with another teacher who shares similar values as the teacher who will remain in the
classroom. This solution will work because the new teacher team will be on the same
page. They will both expect the students to demonstrate responsibility in their
classroom. The teachers will push the students to strive to do their best without
babying them. They will provide a learning environment that will produce quality
work. Students will know that they cannot play one against the other because it will
not be tolerated. The students will have the understanding that the teachers will back
each other in whatever is said. Most important of all, when procedures and rules are
set and reviewed, the students will know that they will be enforced and that there will
definitely be consequences rather than empty threats.