Shaundalyn Elliott's Diary
The First 180 Days
Shaundalyn Elliott, a recent college graduate, always dreamed of being a corporate lawyer. Her deep feelings of responsibility to the minority students in her hometown led her instead to a teaching position at her alma mater, an urban middle school in Montgomery, Alabama. Each week during this school year -- Shaundalyn's first year in the classroom -- she will share with Education World readers her thoughts and feelings about her first 180 days!
Shaundalyn's Diary: Motivation and Punishment!
Week 20
This week marked a turning point in my teaching career.
On Monday, the students took their first book report test of the year. Because the test was teacher-created, rather than standardized, I allowed them to use their library books to complete it. I expected some feedback from the students about the test itself; but I didn't get any. Instead, as the week progressed, I was interrogated by various students about the results of the test.
The kids wanted to know what grades they had received. This showed me that some of my students were truly concerned about their grades -- and it helped me identify the students who are most determined to succeed. Knowing that helped me put my teaching into perspective. It also helped me determine what tactics I might use to motivate my less-concerned students to be as academically driven as the others.
I put my plan into practice on Tuesday as we began a new semester of grammar. The first lesson, "The Sentence and its Parts," contains a diagnostic test that measures students' current level of understanding. I decided to use that test to my advantage by turning it into a competitive game, giving the kids three minutes to complete ten multiple-choice questions.
I hoped that timing the test would serve a dual purpose: prepare them for the upcoming S.A.T.'s (Stanford Achievement Tests) and help develop a spirit of competition in all the students. To my amazement, most of the students finished in two minutes, rather than the three minutes allotted. Timing the test had a positive effect on class participation and time management. I was so pleased to see such a great outcome!
On Wednesday, I took a personal day and did not go in to work. When I returned on Thursday, I received wonderful compliments regarding my students' behavior. I was so pleased that I rewarded them by postponing their spelling test to the following week.
By the end of the week, I was eagerly anticipating the weekend, primarily because I had become quite frustrated with a certain aspect of my school's discipline policy. When a student receives an office referral for the first time, he or she is normally placed in ISS (in-school suspension, or retract).
The ISS form of discipline puts a strain on the teacher more than on the students. Teachers are required to provide assignments for the suspended students and keep them abreast of current lessons. In my opinion, if students are being punished for unacceptable behavior, they should not be allowed to keep up with the rest of the class while they are out of class! That seems like a reward rather than a punishment. Who is being punished -- the student or the teacher?
Lately this has been one of my primary concerns. I would be very interested in knowing whether this form of discipline exists at other schools and whether other educators are as frustrated with it as I am. I would also like some suggestions for dealing with this type of frustration as a first-year teacher!
(See the main article: The First 180 Days: First-Year Teacher Diaries for a link to the Education World message boards and an opportunity to respond to Shaundalyn!)
Click here to return to the article.
Shaundalyn Elliot
Education World®
Copyright © 2000 Education World
01/31/2001
| 
