Establishing and Managing a Safe Learning Environment PDF

C H A P T E R 12 Establishing and Managing a Safe Learning Environment Chapter 12 Establishing and Maintaining a Safe Learning Environment  Management Skills of Effective Teachers As a teacher you need to establish a safe and learning-oriented...

C H A P T E R 12 Establishing and Managing a Safe Learning Environment Chapter 12 Establishing and Maintaining a Safe Learning Environment  Management Skills of Effective Teachers As a teacher you need to establish a safe and learning-oriented environment by identifying rules, routines, and expectations for equipment, space, and people; create an environment focused on preventing off-task and inappropriate student behavior; manage inappropriate student behavior as necessary; manage the learning environment during instruction; and construct a socially just learning environment that addresses the needs of all students.  Establishing Gymnasium Rules Rules guide the learning environment and keep students physically and psychologically safe. Rules should stress safety and respect. Rule infractions can be addressed by using an intervention scale, ensuring that your response is appropriate to student behavior. For example... (continued) Establishing Gymnasium Rules (continued)  PEACE P—Protect PE equipment. E—Enter and exit quietly. A—Attention: Follow directions the first time. C—Cooperation: Work well with others. E—Esteem: Respect others.  Behavior Management A sample intervention scale: 1. Eye contact and “teacher look” 2. Proximity 3. First verbal warning 4. Second verbal warning 5. Temporary removal from activity for reflection 6. Removal for the duration of the lesson 7. Office visit 8. Call home Question: Where should I intervene?  Routines Routines ensure the smooth running of lessons. Develop routines for entry to the gymnasium, transitions, starting and stopping activity, use of equipment, getting into pairs of groups, and exit from the gymnasium.  Managing Equipment Some general guidelines: Appoint and use equipment managers. Have equipment collected from and returned to the same place. To avoid congestion, have more than one site for equipment retrieval and return.  Gathering Your Students Gather your students when it is worth it for the time spent in transition, but not if it isn’t. Think about where you want them to come to, usually the site of a demonstration. Sit them down if it helps keep their attention. Semicircles are good gathering formations because everyone can see reasonably well.  Giving Management Instructions Give complete management instructions before signaling students to begin. Make these management instructions routine so that students get accustomed to your management style. In particular, when giving instructions for students to disperse to different parts of the gym or field, tell them what they should do when they arrive. Use checks for understanding to determine whether students understand what they have to do, particularly regarding the organization of their activity.  Monitoring Activity Four key questions after activity is started (Graham, Holt/Hale, and Parker, 2013): 1. Is the activity safe? 2. Are my students on task? 3. Do I need to make any changes for the class as a whole? 4. Do I need to make any changes for individuals?  Managing Stations How many students you have per station, how you assign students to stations, and how you demonstrate stations depends on – the age of your students, – the number of students in your class, and – the size of your gymnasium. Use students to demonstrate station activities if possible. (continued)  Managing Stations (continued) Time activity at each station using a stopwatch or prerecorded music. Give specific instructions for rotations. Use rotations to give instruction if appropriate. Use figure-eight movement patterns to observe. Use students to help you take down stations.  Game Rotations Scenario: 1v2, 3v4, 5v6, 7v8 with further rotations to follow (continued)  Game Rotations (continued) Possible rotations in the previous scenario: Keep one side of the court (or net) stationary and have the other side rotate one court down for the next game. If the left- hand side stays in place, team 8 would go to the top and play against team 1. Split your gymnasium into two halves and play two minitournaments. Teams 1 through 4 play in a round robin format, and teams 5 through 8 do the same. To have every team play against every other team, during each rotation leave one team (the same team each time) where they are and rotate all other teams one place clockwise. For example, leave team 1 at their court and keep rotating the other teams one place clockwise (or counterclockwise). All teams will have played each other after seven rotations.  Social Justice Issues Related to Management Team selection possibilities other than having students pick teams: Students self-select partners. Pairs select another pair to work with if groups of four are needed. Count off strategies that distribute talent levels evenly (although this takes a little time). (continued)  Social Justice Issues Related to Management (continued) Group by color of shirt or birthdate. Students find a partner, and partners face each other along a line to make two teams. You select teams. Students select teams, and you then assign the selectors to teams.  Key Points Rules for your gymnasium are essential to ensure a safe and learning-oriented environment. Behavior management is best addressed through implementation of an intervention scale, the point on which you would intervene as necessary depending on student behavior. Routines are essential for effective management of the learning environment. Necessary routines include those for entry to and exit from the gymnasium, transitions between activities, and monitoring student activity.