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"Children, like adults, are not passive receptacles into which knowledge is poured. They are not clay to be molded, or computers to be programmed, or animals to be trained. Rather, they are active meaning makers, testing out theories and trying to make sense of themselves and the world around them."( Kohn, p.66)

This portion of the text resonated with me because I think it highlights just one of the many facets of the art of teaching. Teachers, being humans, have egos, and sometimes are ego can be an obstacle. Wanting to be the authoritive figure, wanting compliance, respect, and obedience from students. Thinking that, if students just behaved and did what their told and suppose to do, it would make their lives and the lives of their students much easier. As a fan of the constructivist learning style, I think this quote highlights beautifully the importance for students to explore, make mistakes, and make meaning on their own. Because the truth is, that they will not be in school for the entirety of their lives, and therefore, will need to learn how to function on their own to be successful through the duration of their lives.

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"Culture, race, and ethnicity do not operate on their own," (Pinto, 14, Kindle).

When thinking of the above quote it initially makes me think of intersectionality across the social spectrum. Its related to the interconnectedness of key points, which comes down to many issues in sociology, behavioral health etc. Students come from many background, not just ones of physical of mental decline but from a world there their family theories or lack of family contributes to how they learn and behave in class. Behavior has many influences and it is important not only to recognize this in the classroom but to provide a holistic lessons/methods in a class to make it more inclusive.

Trying not to view the world and its concepts as black and white, but rather having them be seen through a lens that views the above concepts as intersecting and overlapping components will hopefully be beneficial in all classroom environments.

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"There are few educational contrasts so sharp and meaningful as that between students being told what the teacher expects of them, what they are and are not permitted to do, and students coming together to reflect on how they can live and learn together. It is the difference between being prepared to spend a lifetime doing what one is told and being prepared to take an active role in a democratic society (or to transform a society into one that is democratic, as the case may be)" (Kohn, p. 73).

This quote stood out to me as a prime example of the contradictions that exist in the educational system. What we claim we want for our students long term tends to be very different than what we end up prioritizing in our schools. While most educators would say that their main goal is for their students to be happy people who are able to think critically about the world, in reality we are setting them up to be docile members of a society that thinks for them (Kohn, p. 61-62). Giving our students the skills to think about how their actions affect others, and to allow them to be co-creators of the classroom dynamic, involves much more gray area than just having rules that are established at the beginning of the year, but it can ultimately lead to the creation of more self-assured and compassionate people.

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"To begin the journey toward becoming a Compassionate School, there has to be a foundational agreement of values amongst school staff and what goals and outcomes, collectively, the school wishes to achieve. It is essential that the
school leadership is fully supportive of the motivation and direction in order for it to succeed." (Steele 191)

I recently did my analytical paper in Engaging Adolescent Learners on bullying and its effects on student engagement and identity formation. One of the resounding findings is the importance of school climate in combatting all types of violence. What was suggested in my research on school climate is exactly what Compassionate Schools are and it is what I want to strive for in my school. I picked this quote because I've seen a lot of students and teachers go through great hardships because of the educational team not being on the same page or having different goals. School climate is of the utmost importance for overall student success and  I feel that the idea of Compassionate Schools really aligns with my overall view of what an ideal school climate community should be.

"Schools are the only public places where we have the opportunity to interface with such a diversely concentrated and impressionable group of young individuals. Embracing whole child education as the assumed expectation of student support becomes the strategy to support students toward becoming excellent analysts, problem-solvers, and critical thinkers. For some, it may be
their last opportunity for such development. We cannot afford to squander that opportunity." (196)

I felt the need to also discuss this quote because it stresses the importance of our work as compassionate teachers. Educators are vital to not just the academic development of their adolescent students, but to their development as whole people. We have an opportunity that only the media and the government has otherwise, influence over a large, diverse, and impressionable group. We must recognize and value this opportunity and seize the chance to make such an impact on our future.

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“You will have to judge for yourself, based on your own goals and those of your colleagues, how typical and candid are the responses I’m reporting here. But if compliance is, in fact, not what most of us are looking for in the long run, then we may be faced with the same basic conflict: our ultimate objectives for kids versus our short-term goals (control of the classroom) and methods (coercion, consequences, rewards). Something has got to give.” (Kohn, A. (2006). Beyond Discipline, p.62).

I feel like this quote expresses the predicament that the majority of teachers find themselves in. They have goals and expectations of what they want or need their students to reach, but most know that they can not be a strict authoritarian educator that forces compliance to meet these goals. Reflecting back on my own experiences, the teachers that did, in fact, act in an autocratic manner were rarely successful and only encouraged more acts of resistance to learning. Despite this effect, a “discipline focus” approach to classroom management persists within many classrooms across the country. I think this because it can be seen as a common default model of classroom management for many teachers, as they believe that if they can get students to behave, obey, sit quietly, and complete their tasks then learning must be occurring. But as we know, learning stretches far beyond grades, compliance with school rules, or conforming to the role (often one that favors white students) that many teachers believe fits the mold of a “good” student. It is important to remember that seemingly critical content objectives can conflict with the ultimate objective for students to be “sophisticated people who think for themselves”.

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“Children, like adults, are not passive receptacles into which knowledge is poured. They are not clay to be molded, or computers to be programmed, or animals to be trained, Rather, they are active meaning makers, testing out theories and trying to make sense of themselves and the world around them.”
(Kohn, p66)

This quote really stuck out to me because I feel like as teachers, sometimes we forget that our students are active participants in their knowledge-making, not “animals to be trained” to demonstrate desired behaviors. It also reminded me of the theme seen throughout all of our graduate coursework: it important to tailor our teaching process to match our students because all learners are unique, have needs specific to them, and bring to the classroom different strengths and areas that they need support. It can be easy to fall into the trap of mundane routines or just looking to achieve specific outcomes, but it’s really important to see our students as people first, not behavior/outcome generators.

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"We want children to continue reading and thinking after school has ended, yet we focus their attention on grades, which have been shown to reduce interest in learning (Kohn 1993a, 1994). We want them to be critical thinkers, yet we feed them predigested facts and discrete skills— partly because of pressure from various constituencies to pump up standardized test scores. We act as though our goal is short term retention of right answers rather than genuine understanding." (Kohn, p.66)

I think this quote really sums up a lot of the issues inherent in our educational system, especially when it comes to building critical thinkers. As an ELA teacher, I'd much rather see my students discuss and debate their interpretations of a work of literature, than have them memorize vocab definitions or Shakespeare quotes. While it might be easier to teach them rote memorization skills, these skills don't "suggest someone who is developing intellectually" (Kohn, p.67).

Unfortunately, we can't simply assess students based on classroom discussions, but ultimately, I think keeping the focus on their deeper understanding is key. As an ELA teacher, I'm greatly motivated to look for ways that I can improve each student's learning experience, so that they find their work rewarding on a deeper level, rather than just memorization.

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"If we feel as though we do not have control, our motivation for moving forward is often compromised" (Steele, P. 190).

This statement resonated with me because I think it captures an important piece of student engagement and trauma informed practice. Students that feel as if their environment, education, or future is out of their control may disengage or activly reject the system around them in order to regain that control. A good teacher learns to help students have agency in their educational experience. Doing this allows greater accessibility for students of trauma that may have less control of their lives outside of the classroom. If we want to engage all students in our classrooms than we must use pedagogical practices that allow students of trauma to feel safe and comfortable. Providing agency also assists in culturally sustainable practice because students can use materials and methods that are culturally relevant to them.

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"Educating children today includes far more than academia. It is holistic. The physical, emotional, and cognitive functioning of students must be addressed for learning to take place." (Steele 184)

This is one of the most important aspects of teaching to me. I feel like it is important to make sure students are grounded and feel comfortable in your classroom. Investing time in establishing rapport and relationships is as good as spending time lecturing because it ensures less of your students' headspace is filled with their other problems. I know I can hardly focus on a casual conversation if I'm feeling stressed or depressed, so expecting students to absorb and master complex ideas would be hypocritical. Steele explains that creating a safe and friendly environment can even build resilience (Steele 184). What this tells me is that by prioritizing students' emotional needs we give them strength to deal with some of their situations and enhance their learning.

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”If the overriding objective is to get students to do whatever the teacher demands, it makes perfect sense to spell out specific rules that mandates specific behaviors. If, however, the goal is to help students grow into compassionate, principled people, then having students ”define the real meaning” of rules is the best way- perhaps the only way- that a list of rules prepared by the teacher can help students become thoughtful decision makers. (Kohn 71)

The traditional classroom models followed an authoritative model for quite some time where educators tell students “do as I say or here’s what exactly will happen.” Students should not be threatened to get them to change. By threatening students you are cognitively disturbing them by hovering a dark cloud of fear above them and subjecting them to strict guidelines with little to none innovation or change. There has been a significant change in classroom management being made in many different school systems by including students in rule-making process. By allowing students to engage in the rule-making process provides them with a sense of ownership to the rules instead of the autothorative model where the teacher decides and enforces the rules. Students will be able to learn how to self-regulate their behaviors based on the agreed standards by them and their teachers. Students need the opportunity to reflection why something is right or wrong and a chance to disagree. The job of a student is not to just do what they are told instead they should be taught knowledge and skills so they can formulate the autonomy to become a productive member of society.

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“What are your long-term goals for the students you work with? What would you like them to be— to be like— long after they’ve left you?” [ . . . ] Psychological and social characteristics (for example, “caring,” “happy,” and “responsible”) [ . . . ] goals that do pertain to intellectual development have been conceived broadly (“curious,” “creative,” “lifelong learners”) rather than in terms of specific academic content.[ . . . ] 2nd and 6th grade students were surveyed about what their teachers most wanted them to do, they didn’t say, “Ask thoughtful questions” or “Make responsible decisions” or “Help others.” They said: “Be quiet, don’t fool around, and get our work done on time” (LeCompte 1978, p. 30).

This long quote from Kohn chapter 5 stuck out to me as one of the massive issues our profession has engrained into it. Teachers are focused on creating classrooms, lesson plans, and year-long goals for students that maximize student’s growth as learners and they can very easily fall short when focusing on compliance over community building. I had a discussion with my CT about this and he and I discussed how it is important to show new students in the music program how we behave in class, using phrases like, “We do it differently here,” rather than “Stop doing that. Do it this way.” This helps new students who are acting on what they know to be proper classroom behavior (from either from a previous school or previous class) understand that it is not bad behavior, we just do it differently. They aren’t penalized from applying their knowledge of good behavior, we are adding to their knowledge of good behavior. We are helping them get set up for success in our classroom and letting them hold onto the knowledge that their initial behavior is not necessarily bad, rather that we have a different model behavior to achieve success as individuals and as an ensemble. Even if that behavior is inherently bad (running around in the band room), it is more effective to remind them of their new setting and the new set of norms that come with it.

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“What is the goal of classroom management? Is it to achieve compliance or control or to provide all students with equitable opportunities for learning?” (Pinto 27). I’m a goal-oriented person, so this quote in particular stood out to me. In the past I often mistook the term “classroom management” for meaning student management. I feel like I have heard many teachers talk about the challenges of getting their students “under control,” and how often students are disruptive, distracting, etc. And whenever I hear teachers discuss these concerns, they usually speak of solutions in regard to how they “deal with” the students. Through my teaching education, and with support from this text, I think it’s clear that classroom management is not an issue of how much control the teacher has over their students, but rather how they set up their classroom for their students to thrive (or not thrive) in. It’s important to think of control (or more aptly, order) as something that helps your students — giving them agency. Not something that gives us authoritative power. The classroom is meant to be a community where “teacher and students are in the process of education together” (Pinto 27), thus it’s valuable to look at the classroom without any hierarchal order, and instead a discourse community.

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“Rewards and punishments are instruments for controlling people, and the real problem, I came to see, is the belief that the teacher should be in control of the classroom, that the principal objective—and sometimes the objective of the principal—is just to get students to comply” (Kohn p. 58).

The assigned chapter really resonated with me and a course that I took during my undergraduate degree. Up until this course, my classes had taught me to run a “rehearsal” as quickly and tightly as possible so that students didn’t “misbehave.” During this particular course we were asked to work with students at an elementary school that was demographically different from what I was used to. I was struggling to get my students to engage with the assignment I was told to work with them on and they would often disregard what I said no matter how I approached the topic. Thankfully I had a mentor teacher work with me and the students at a few points. This mentor teacher said that it was all about giving up power and control, and then finding a way to connect with the students and draw them into the activity using what that connection. It was a new way of looking at classroom management, and it reminds me of the readings from this week and last week.

It is important to give the students room to explore the subject and have meaningful conversations about what they are thinking. I particularly liked the section of Kohn ch. 5 that discussed the importance of having a relationship with the students so that when blind trust is needed it is given more easily. My whole philosophy of classroom management stems from the relationships between teacher and students (and student to student). It is important for there to be a understanding of the person behind the role.

Aside from my ramblings, I think it is important to acknowledge that the author makes a point to deconstruct how studies have defined efficiency and behavior in studies; however, as Kohn builds their arguments they uses studies on these topics without telling us how these terms are defined. Does this mean that Kohn was building an argument using statistics designed for a management structure that he was arguing against?

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"Trauma and toxic stress occur when intense, regular, and/or
long-term adversity is experienced in one or more areas without
employing or having access to adequate resources and supports. Trauma is not the event itself but rather the perception of and subsequent reactions and responses to significant challenges. We may ask ourselves why one
person can easily glide through a challenging experience whereas another may
be incapacitated by it."(p.182)
When I had first learned about the ACEs inventory I thought it was absurd to attempt to quantify such a subjective information and experiences. However, I eventually learned to appreciate it as a step towards acknowledging the life a child leads outside of school, and how that shapes them as a person. In addition, I saw how we could use that inventory to explain behavioral challenges and form potential plans to work with the child without re-traumatizing them in the name of standardized testing.

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“A deeper look to determine which students were not likely to be successful in completing their K-12 school careers revealed that students who struggled most with family and economic issues topped the list” (Steele 180). This quote further accentuates a process that has been shown in other readings that we have had. I think that it is really important that we take into account what the students are potentially dealing with at home. As Steele says later on page 180, “If attention is not paid to these struggling students, these struggles will likely continue”. Steele is referring to the trauma that can be caused by the circumstances mentioned above. This can also lead to a severe hindrance in our students learning.

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“What really counts, however, is what goes on in a classroom where such a program is in operation. What would be inferred by a visitor who had never read the rhetoric? What philosophy is implied by the specific practical recommendations?” (p. 59)
This quote,  criticizing previous attempts at classroom management systems that claim to put emphasis on student voice, really prompted me to think. In a lot of GTEP so far we have talked so much about student voice, student agency, and how important it is - this quote is an excellent reminder that we need to make sure we do more than just say we prioritize student voice and we need to avoid using that as a justification for a more stifling management system. As Kohn points out, if it is not observable, if your actions in the classroom do not clearly reflect that students actually have a voice, then they probably do not actually have a voice. Related to this point, he mentions that he likes to ask "What would you like [the students] to be - to be like - long after they’ve left you?” (p. 60). It's an important question to ask so that we can reflect on our own practices - are we encouraging students to grow into critical thinkers and independent people? Or are we just teaching them to do as they are told no matter what? In general, creating a safe, open, exciting, and productive classroom environment can involve a lot of reflection and self-evaluation I think, and the quotes I have discussed here are great questions to consider in that process.

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“When children are instead required to accept or memorize a ready-made truth, they do not really “learn” in any meaningful sense of the word… This may be the way to prepare children to take standardized tests (though it doesn’t appear very successful); it is not the way to help them become learners” (page 66). Through my years in chemistry and other science classes, this method of teaching was utilized most often which is a real shame because chemistry can be so exciting. Chemistry has lots of vocabulary and facts that teachers could just ask student to memorize; however, teaching chemistry using hands on, interactive activities will make a lasting impression. Making students passionate and excited about you content is the best way to help them become learners. I really don’t like standardize tests and I can go on forever about how we should eliminate them.

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"From the first day of school, a teacher chooses a stye of leadership (ranging from autocratic to democratic) and sends a message about whose classroom it is (his or everyone's)." (Kohn pg. 65). I chose this quote because I do believe that a teacher needs to know their leadership style and what works best for them or at least try a leadership style and learn from trial and error. I do agree that as educators we do make students "be quiet and obey" but I think this stems from the teacher not having control of the class in the first place. However, if a teacher has a democratic leadership style at the beginning of the school year, this can be a good way to set the tone for the class and this allows the students to understand that yes, the teacher is in charge, but as the the teacher gets to know their students then their leadership style can lighten/change in order to create a learning environment where all students in the classroom feel they can succeed.

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"To create a classroom where students feel safe enough to challenge each other - and us - is to give them an enormous gift." (77).

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"Prolonged engagement of the stress response system and the repeated flood of hormones can disrupt development or even damage the brain and eventually impair cognitive functioning. Some students entering our schools develop perceptions and/or come from environments where vigilance for their own safety is a daily occurrence. They come to school with brains that are wired for survival, regardless of the circumstance. For these children, survival supersedes learning. " (Steele, pg. 813) I think this is very important to understand about our students with behavioral challenges. Most of the time these students have a situation they are dealing with or a trauma they are carrying that puts them into a fight or flight mode of survival. A state of stress not only inhibits the acquisition of knowledge, but the acquisition of relationships. Even still, this resistance to forming a relationship with authority figured can be mitigated through the Compassionate Schools model. I think a lot of teachers respond to negative behavior with a character judgement rather than with compassion. I've seen teachers give their attention and care to the students who are already well adjusted simply because they get along with them more easily, when in reality is is the "challenging" students who need that care and attention the most.

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WRR 1 - How Not to Get Control of the Classroom

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WRR 1 - How Not to Get Control of the Classroom

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"We want them to be critical thinkers, yet we feed them predigested facts and discrete skills— partly because of pressure from various constituencies to pump up standardized test scores. We act as though our goal is shortterm retention of right answers rather than genuine understanding." (Kohn, pg. 61). This is the passage I want to reflect on for this assignment. I think this highlights the fact that our systems and how they're set up often don't match up with our ideas and goals for education. Like Kohn says in this passage, we want them to be critical thinkers but we expect our students to learn all these details and facts that are more a test for memory than problem solving. In this passage the author is discussing an activity they have people do at conferences they present at and it's interesting because it challenges those educators and is a little unsettling because we're not matching our processes with the goals we have in mind for the students. This passage and reading will help me keep the goals in mind when I'm teaching and constructing lessons plans because I want to make sure that the goals I have for my students are reflected in the work that I have them do in my class.

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WRR 1 - How Not to Get Control of the Classroom

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WRR 1 - How Not to Get Control of the Classroom

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It was interesting to reflect upon my preconceived assumptions about effective classroom management styles and whether teachers with highly dictated, monitored and controlled classrooms are unilaterally most effective. Thinking deeply about classroom management that strives to create self-regulated and engaged students, I agree that “the more we “manage” students’ behavior and try to make them do what we say, the more difficult it is for them to become morally sophisticated people who think for themselves and care about others” (Kohn, pg 62). In this way, it is more effective for students to practice having freedom and guided support from a teacher who can help  navigate students towards productive behaviors. This helps students develop self-regulation skills that will more likely transfer to their lives and productivity outside of the classroom. Providing freedom and student-voice in a learning environment helps students develop their moral intelligence as well by offering the opportunity to make mistakes and learning personally from the consequences of their actions. Since a large emphasis in student voice involves community collaboration, students will simultaneously develop academic skills and social skills. From personal experience, I know that being controlled makes kids want to act out in one form or another eventually, whereas being given freedom encourages responsibility and fosters more accountability. Some learners do require more structured environments. I think when addressing behavioural issues with students who require more structure to be productive in class, it is important to negotiate and co-plan how added structure will be beneficial in order for that student to maintain stakes in their behavior and continue developing responsibility and accountability throughout their education to themselves and their community.