Post 5 - Constructing a Learning Environment

Constructing a learning environment intimidates me mostly because I don't feel that I have any original ideas or a strong opinion on the subject. My immediate thought on the matter is constructing the classroom in roughly a circular seating arrangement. This facilitates reading aloud in the classroom and gives every student visual access to the faces of all his or her peers. This seating arrangement also allows me to address the entire class from the center of the circle or to walk the perimeter to view (spy on?) the students' work or behavior. Having a close-by neighbor also promotes collaboration or partner discussion throughout the writing process.

  As far as the behavior issues in the case study (high school), I would have to reevaluate the benefit of sitting in such a way. I think I would start by talking to the three of them together, perhaps pulling them into the hallway and asking them what was up and why they are behaving in such a way. If this didn't work, I would probably have a one on one discussion with each of them and clearly state my expectations of each of them and lay out some clear boundaries and consequences for violation of any of those boundaries. I would break the seating into smaller groups if this didn't work, separating them to see if their misbehavior stemmed from their proximity to one another. If separation didn't work, I would group them together and place them near my desk to closely monitor their behavior and intervene promptly before they could disrupt the class too badly. If isolation near my desk yielded no improvement, I would resort to meetings with the principal or calls home. Surely seniors in high school would shape up prior to this point, though.