My initial observation of Mrs. Diette’s 8th graders left me with a lot of questions. The seating structure was peculiar. The majority of the class sat on one row of seats facing out, on the right side of the classroom. However, there were four other students who were staggered across the classroom, which left me thinking that there were no exact seating assignments for the students. This in itself was very interesting because I remember from my time in middle school, that not only was there almost always seating assignments, but we always had to sit next to each other.
Other than the seating structure, the rest of the classroom was very organized. The teacher had goals of the week written on the board, and English devices hung up across the room. As well, the teacher clearly emphasized the important of reading, as there were multiple small libraries scattered throughout the room, with the quote “books are a uniquely portable magic” written in large letters above the library.
Despite the well-organized white boards and classroom, the actual 8th graders themselves did not seem nearly as organized. Many of them were not caught up with the current assignments, and doing homework for the rest of their classes, or not doing work at all and playing games on their computers. However, what I did witness was Mrs. Diette’s motivation to get them caught up and help them in anyway possible, even if it was with homework for their history classes. I am very excited for future visits and to be able to witness how the class truly functions and the relationship they have with Mrs. Diette.
Your observations are very insightful…I enjoyed reading them. It sounds like you have a solid classroom to work in!
This classroom seems to be a good environment for learning, but it seems like the teacher does not do a good job managing her classroom in order to maximize the learning potential that they do have. I also don’t like the idea of not having assigned seat, I feel like that would be very stressful and unsettling, which additionally might not be the best situation for learning.
It’s true that a lack of routine can be destablizing; yet, it also seems like the flow of class, rather than the status quo might open up new opportunities. I do think that when cadets continue to sit in the same seat, they fall into habits that do not perpetuate learning growth.
MAJ Hodde
Ben,
I’m curious about whether you’ve had a chance to chat with Ms Diette to see how she utilizes this homeroom time, and what needs you and Kirk might meet as someone to support student motivation, organization and support with reading and writing.
MAJ Hodde
I think that the seating assignment detail is a very important issue, in that I wonder why those four students were by themselves. Was it their choice to sit by themselves? Or did other students not want to associate with these students? This could be an important lesson in classroom socialization. Additionally, it sounds like the classroom was a little hectic. Do you have any suggestions on how to fix this?