Bret Guldins
learning environment
learning environment
Hi! my Name is Bret Guldin , welcome to my website dedicated to my teaching philosophy and my plans for managing my classroom!
Positive Reinforcement
Positive Reinforcement is such an important theme in classroom management because when students are repeatedly punished and yelled at for disruptive behaviors, it does not change how they act, it just makes them see school as a chore and their teachers as the enemy. Allowing the students to have the ability to speak freely about things they don’t feel are working for them in terms of their learning lets them have a sense of self which will minimize disruptions. Also acknowledging the positive aspects of their behavior and not solely focusing on what they are doing wrong helps make students feel more welcome in the classroom. Skinner spoke about behavior modification (shaping behavior) in terms of reinforcement to student behaviors. Regarding Behavior Modification Skinner stressed that punishment should not be used because you could not predict the outcome. Skinner had multiple different forms of reinforcement which ranged from consistent and often to gradual and occasional.
Democratic Classroom/ Collective Decision Making
Democratic Classroom/ Collective Decision Making means they every student should have the opportunity to help shape the classroom. Students and teachers should work together to foster learning and create an environment of mutual respect instead of “the teacher teaches, and the students listen or else will suffer a punishment”. This creates an effective way to minimize disruptive behavior by giving the students free will and a sense of self within their learning. Instead of Mr. Guldin’s second grade class it should be room 204’s second grade class, because every individual in the classroom should feel as though they have a voice.Ginott spoke about the importance of the classroom being more of a community instead of just the teacher’s sole responsibility/ the students sole responsibility. Ginott spoke about the self-discipline that is needed from both students and teachers, “The teacher needs to watch themselves just as closely as they watch their classroom”(Hunter, Presentation, Fall 2023).
Teaching in 2023 is so much different than teaching in 2000 and teaching 23 years from now will be so much different than it is today. This is because as the world around us grows and evolves so do the students we teach. It’s important for teachers to learn from their students just as they expect their students to learn from them. Finding out what interests your students and the best ways that they learn is vital to creating a strong learning environment. If the students do not see themselves in the content they are learning they are not going to care about their learning.Glasser spoke about choice theory and that the teacher needs to be aware that all students are different and exhibit unique behaviors that are out of their control so within the classroom they make sure that students feel comfortable enough to express themselves but are aware of their limits”(Joyce ,Presentation, Fall 2023).