Effective Learning Environment - Report Example

Through the chosen (year 4) of the Burwood Public School, the teacher Mrs. Bronwyn Daniels was able to demonstrate how she ensures effective teaching by also establishing an effective learning environment. The school is in a metropolitan area composed of a diverse community. The classroom is organized based on her personal beliefs on children’s learning. Through her actions and planned curriculum, her pedagogy is also revealed. In the corner of the classroom, is a reading corner. This reading corner is important as “each day, a different reading group gets to go there” (Daniels, 2008, p.2). In this area, there are cushions and stools where the children can read independently. Independent reading includes rules like “no talking,” and basically, just reading to oneself. The reading corner also features books of authors they are currently studying as a class. Through this reading corner and through the rules of “no talking,” a learning environment is established. This corner is therefore highly beneficial to all the children. Most importantly, the teacher has established a comfortable environment in placing the cushions and stools. However as this reading corner has its own routine, and as it focuses on an author or a theme, the English outcomes are still being accomplished based on the English Syllabus. Under these conditions, the class is working at Stage 2, Learning to Read- Reading and Viewing Texts (Board of Studies, 2007, pg 29). The way in which Mrs. Daniels has designed the corner for reading is bound to attract the children’s attention as the space is exclusively for the children. The corner will encourage them to read, and have moments to read to themselves. Hence, attracting children’s attention and getting them excited to read links to their literacy as declared by Radcliffe (2007) in her article about literacy in the classroom. She states that “acknowledging students’ attitudes and beliefs has become (the) first step toward the literacy divide” (Radcliffe, 2007). The teacher has accomplished this by encouraging the students to read the reading materials that Mrs. Daniel uses and the activities that are related to literacy. In addition, an overall effort in organising the ‘library’ and choosing books children are interested in reveals that reading for the students’ learning is very important. More importantly, as the class may have different abilities, Mrs. Daniels adjusts to pedagogical practice (Winch, Johnston, Holliday, Lijungdhal & March, 2010); hence a big choice of texts allows for all the different students’ needs to be met. In addition, through the reading corner, Mrs. Daniels has demonstrated the National Teaching Standard 4 – to create and maintain supportive and safe learning environment. The reading corner is a safe environment with the cushions. Moreover, the fact that it is devoted to their needs, assures the children of a safe corner to read (Ministers, 2011). Through the panorama, it is also clear that Mrs. Daniels has done pigeon holes for the children. This reveals her organisation in the classroom. All the pigeon holes have the students’ name and are easily accessible to the children. The children can also put all their belongings in the pigeonholes and if they find their classmates’ stuff, they can put these in the correct pigeon hole. Through Mrs. Daniels’ approach, she is also training the students to take responsibility for themselves and to be autonomous. Hence, it is a means of self-regulating and managing the children’s behaviour, also teaching them to respect other students’ belongings. This supports the belief that “classroom environments that support student self-determination and autonomy are associated with greater student interest, sense of competence, creativity, conceptual learning and preference for challenge” (Woolfolk & Margetts, 2007, pg 397). Hence, as Mrs. Daniels is also training the children to gain the values of responsibility and independence, values which can help them in the future. As can be seen from the panorama, Mrs. Daniels’ desk is located at the front of the classroom. She has all her needs in one place, including timetables, her laptop, and everything she needs to organise her paperwork. The time tables are an important addition to the classroom, based on Daniels’ (2008) discussions. This setup is easier for her and for other casual teachers who can also use the resources present in the classroom. In addition, the way the teacher has placed her desk at the front corner is an interesting aspect. In this position, she is easily able to monitor the students in the classroom and accomplish behavioural management method. In order for a teacher to successfully manage the classroom “the teacher should be able to readily see and access students, and she should be able to examine a students’ work without having to disturb another” (Cope, 2007 pg 35). The position of the desk enables Mrs. Daniels to see all the children without disturbing other children’s learning. This position can also help her with positive reinforcement (Skinner in Woolfolk and Margetts, 2007, p 225). Overall, she has created an easy way to access resources and materials she believes is beneficial. Around the classroom, it is clear that Mrs. Daniels has decorated it and has taken pride in the process. Her decorations include the children’s work and other educational resources. One of the resources is the ‘theme wall’ which changes with the theme of each term. The last term was ‘our fleeting past’ (Daniels, 2008, pg 18) where she was covering outcomes from HSIE (CCS2.1, Significant Events and People) (Board of Studies, 2007). When they were focusing on science and technology, they were discussing the ‘earth and its surroundings’ (Daniels, 2008, pg 18; Board of Studies, 2007). Mrs. Daniels does cover a few Key Learning Areas at the same time with the use of these themes. The words are usually related to English and the rockets made by the children are related to Visual Arts. Hence, I do believe that she has planned her curriculum in order to cover all Key Learning Areas even with the limited time she has. More importantly, Mrs. Daniels demonstrates the National Teaching Standard 2, which is Professional Knowledge-or knowing the content and how to teach it. More specifically, the following focus areas are covered: 2.1. Content and teaching strategies of the teaching area; 2.2. Content selection and organisation; 2.3. Curriculum, assessment and reporting (Ministers, 2011). It is clear that Mrs. Daniels knows the content and she knows how to teach it to a group of year 4 students. The way that Mrs. Daniels displays her students’ work and the educational materials on the walls of the classroom indicates that she believes and understands the fact that using space in the classroom for students’ work and for classroom content can make for an effective learning environment (Whitton et al, 2004, pg 180). It is also clear that she believes that by displaying the students’ work in the classroom makes the students feel valued (Daniels, 2008,pg 2008). More importantly, by valuing the work of the students, Mrs. Daniels is allowing the students to gain self-efficacy. This leads to an increased motivation and performance level (Bandura and Locke, 2003, p 87). However, the teacher is responsible in giving students the correct education materials. Displaying the students’ also promotes the students’ self-esteem, motivation, and their sense of belonging (Whitton et al, 2010, p.209) In conclusion, through the interview, panorama, and the resources on the Learning Environment DVD, it can be assessed that Mrs. Daniels at Burwood Public School has personal beliefs about children learning. These personal beliefs have influenced Mrs. Daniels in creating an effective learning environment. It is clear that the teacher has created an environment where the children can learn self-regulation. More importantly, she has created a classroom environment which appeals to the students. Through her methods, she has allowed her students to be independent. Overall, she has created a space effective for the learning of the students. References Bandura, A., & Locke, E.A. (2003). Negative Self-Efficacy and Goal Effects Revisited. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88(1), 87-99. Board of Studies NSW (1993). Science and Technology K-6: Syllabus and Support Documents. Sydney: Board of Studies. Board of Studies NSW (1998). Human Society and Its Environment Syllabus. Sydney: Board of Studies. Board of Studies (2006). English K-6 Syllabus. Sydney: Board of Studies. Cope, B. (2007). How to Plan For Behaviour Development and Classroom Management: Maximising Student Engagement (2nd Edition). NSW: Pearson Education Australia. Daniels, B. (2008). ‘Burwood Interview Transcript’ in Nanlohy, P. & Whitton, D. Learning Environments CD. Sydney: School of Education, University of Western Sydney. Ministers, A. E. (2011, Febuary). Retrieved 9 2, 2012, from The National Professional Standards for Teachers: http://www.aitsl.edu.au/verve/_resources/AITSL_National_Professional_Standards_for_Teachers.pdf Radcliffe, B. (2007). “Stuck in the Middle”: Helping Students Begin New Literacy Lives. Voices From the Middle, 15(2), 18-29. Whitton, D., Barker, K., Nosworthy, M.,Sinclair, C., , Nanlohy, P., & (2010). Learning for Teaching: Teaching for Learning. Melbourne: Cengage. Woolfolk, A., & Margetts, K. (2007). Educational Psychology. NSW: Pearson Education Australia. Winch, G., Johnston, R. R., Holliday, M., Ljungdahl, L., & March, P. (2010). Literacy: Reading, writing and children’s literature (4th e.d.). South Melbourne, Vic Oxford University Press. Read More