Prompt #1
The literature provided her with further insight into the issues of both classroom management and engaging 21st century students in learning. One particular book helped May describe problem behaviors in a clear and concise way.
May was able to clearly state observable behaviors rather than making vague, emotional judgments about students. The PBS conference gave May knowledge about how to deal with low-level misbehaviors that interfere with the learning process. May also learned about positive psychology, or the theory that no human being wants to fail or be difficult to love. Therefore, teachers can learn to appreciate the strategies developed by students to survive difficult situations. May was able to imagine the experiences some of her students may have had that likely influenced their behavioral choices.
May also learned about the idea of collaborating with her difficult-to-teach students by developing research teams. In this scenario, students help their teachers collect data and are an active part of the decision-making process in terms of what could improve the learning environment. May decided to incorporate this strategy into the design of her inquiry.
Prompt #2
May was overwhelmed with the prospect of collecting data on five different class periods. Her team suggested focusing on one class period, rather than five, to make her first foray into research more manageable. May also experienced difficulty in determining which class period should be the focus of her inquiry. Through discussion with her colleagues in which she described each of her class periods, she decided that her fourth period class would be the best period to focus on.
As May completed her research, she discovered that two of her students exhibited problem behaviors not only in her class, but in the classes of her colleagues as well. A great benefit of her research was that it would help her colleagues determine how to best work with these students in their own classrooms.
May shared her idea for implementing a Positive Behavior Support system on a smaller scale in her fourth period class. In discussing the PBS model, her teammates became interested in the concept and Darby, the RtI coach on the team, realized the PBS model closely mirrored the RtI model. May’s team became excited about the implementation of the PBS system in May’s classroom, and hoped they would gain insights that would help them to share the benefits of such a model with the entire school. This is an example of the positive and far-reaching impact that action research can have. It not only helps one teacher or even one team of teachers, but it can potentially impact an entire school building.
As a result of their collaboration and discussions about PBS and RtI, May’s team became the PBS/RtI intervention team. May used their input and guidance to determine key outcomes and developed an action plan that included implementing strategies, monitoring students’ progress, and assessing data. She was then able to determine which of her students fit into the various levels of the tier model.
Collaboration in the action research process is invaluable. Research is difficult and draining, but by collaborating with others, teachers are able to build on the work of each other (Dana & Yendol-Hoppey, 2009). May had some ideas of her own, but her team’s input was of great importance to her research from the beginning. For example, when May was having difficulty determining which classes to focus on for her research, it was her team who helped her decide that her fourth period class would be ideal. Furthermore, May’s collaboration with Darby, the RtI coach, allowed May to successfully incorporate her knowledge of PBS into her classroom. Collaboration provides the opportunity to improve ideas by accepting the advice and input of others.
Prompt #3
I feel that the most meaningful part of May’s data collection plan will be her journal with reflections about Sienna’s response to her role as inquirer’s assistant. The students that May’s research is truly targeting are those who need tier 2 and tier 3 interventions. While it is important to see if the rest of the class can complete their beginning of class routine in a timely manner, it is even more critical to see what kind of progress students such as Sienna make.
The most practical form of data collection will be time-on-task graphs that the students will complete. I like that this idea blends a math concept with self-monitoring, and it is a form of data collection that can easily be integrated into the classroom. It will not take much extra time, yet will provide a great deal of data to inform May of the progress of her students.
It would be difficult to rely on a student to collect data and truly be an assistant to the research process in a typical classroom. In May’s case, with Darby’s help in working with Sienna to teach her what she will be observing, this form of data collection might be possible. In a typical situation, however, this would be impractical because it would require extra time on the part of the teacher. This is yet another example of the importance of collaboration, however. Without the support of her team, and Darby in particular, May’s research would be more difficult and likely not as successful.
One additional form of data collection that might benefit May’s research is student surveys. This idea is similar to that of the student interview, although it might be more practical. May could still ask students what they envision a high-performing classroom to look like, but with a survey, she would receive more responses in less time. Surveys allow students the opportunity to share their thoughts about various topics, including teaching techniques, classroom structure, lessons, and units (Dana & Yendol-Hoppey, 2009). This form of data collection might also allow her to ask more questions than an interview would allow for, and, if done with a website such as Survey Monkey (www.surveymonkey.com), it would be easy to analyze the responses.
Prompt #4
As I read through the responses to May’s request for “Wish List” items, it was very clear that groups of students in her class viewed the class differently and had different priorities. It seemed that the majority of her students wanted structure and for the class to be run smoothly. On the other hand, there were some students who did not provide serious, realistic answers. I developed three categories based on patterns I noticed in the responses: “Students Looking for Structure,” “Students Frustrated by Classmate Behavior,” and “Students with Unrealistic and/or Unrelated Requests.”
“Students Looking for Structure” responded that they wanted a clear routine in their classroom. One student provided this suggestion: “Have our agenda done when the teacher comes into the classroom. We can have out our paper and pencil, be ready to learn, and have our homework out.” Another sample response from this category was “Class would be good if it started on time every day.” The students with these types of responses obviously care about learning and want to get the most out of each class period.
There were many students whose responses indicated their frustration. A response that fit into the category of “Students Frustrated by Classmate Behavior” was “I wish people would stop being loud in this class. It is loud sometimes.” This response made it clear that the noise level was interrupting this student’s learning. I found it interesting that one response named particular students and showed that their behavior was making it difficult for others to learn: “I wish L and T wouldn’t bring in so much of their drama into class so we could get going on time.”
Some responses stood out very clearly from the rest, as they seemed to focus less on the structure of the class itself but more on what would make particular students happy. It also seemed that these responses showed a lack of seriousness about this topic. One response in the “Students with Unrealistic and/or Unrelated Requests” was “To give me an A for no reason and to just be kind to people. Having a little bit of fun and not having all this homework. To be Friday every day!” There were a couple of other responses very similar to this, such as “Saying there is no homework! Saying we don’t have to do nothing to pass!” Students who answered in this way likely do not view learning as a priority.
If I were May, I would be encouraged that many students do want to learn and understand the importance of structure, cooperation, and respect. I would also be frustrated that some students obviously do not consider learning to be important. The positive thing, however, is that these responses would inform my next step by illustrating that many students were seeking structure. Developing a strong classroom routine would be my immediate goal. There will always be students who have a strong desire to learn, while there will be some who are uninterested in school and do not take their jobs as students seriously. By creating a structure and setting high expectations for all students within her classroom, though, May might be able to increase the cooperation of some of her more challenging students. Therefore, my first goal would be to increase the productivity of the class in general, particularly at the beginning of the class period. I would also focus on the students who were getting the class off track and try to implement tier 2 and tier 3 interventions with them. Often, a small number of students can upset the dynamic of an entire class. By working to improve their behavior, May would likely notice a positive change in her entire class.
References
Dana, N., & Yendol-Hoppey, D. (2009). The reflective educator’s guide to classroom research (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
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