It’s tough running a school classroom

I must admit the report released by the Idaho State Board of Education a few weeks ago seemed to connect with me in a way I didn’t see coming. It involved the results of evaluations regarding teachers across the state that worked to maintain their classrooms in ways that helped their students focus on their studies, especially those who struggle with their ability to learn.

The ability to effectively run a classroom was something I gained a front row seat to watch as I pursued my degree in elementary education several years ago. I returned to college at the urging of my teacher friends in the local area, each of whom felt I had what it took to earn my certification to run my own classroom.

The feedback those teachers shared with me came after I spent a couple of years teaching classes in which I shared my knowledge of astronomy and other facets of aerospace science with hundreds of children and teens in the local area. It was my way of taking what I started learning when I was just eight years old and sharing that extensive knowledge with those showing an active interest in this field of science.

Years earlier, I served as a teacher of sorts during my time as an Air Force supervisor at the bases I was stationed. During my career, I took what I had learned about photojournalism and used these resources to help the airmen in my office strengthen their writing and photography skills they used to create the military newspapers we published every week.

In time, an opportunity presented itself for me to return to college and pursue my studies to become an actual school teacher thanks to the funding I received through the Post 9/11 G.I. Bill. The one thing I learned during my college days was the simple fact that not every lesson in a teacher’s classroom goes exactly as planned.

Among those moments involved a lesson I taught in which I discovered the answer sheet included some wrong answers to the math problems we reviewed. Unsure what to do, I realized the best way to tackle that obstacle was to tell the students I needed to correct that error and continued the lesson later that day.

Simply put, I quickly learned teachers need to remember to remain a lot more flexible and make needed adjustments to the lessons they teach.

Another aspect of teaching most people may not realize involves the myriad of requirements these students need to meet to earn the grades posted on their report cards. In this state, those remain listed in the Idaho Content Standards, which highlights the minimum threshold these students need to meet or exceed.

Those standards provide the proof teachers need to determine whether the students in their classroom are ready to move on to more challenging lessons or if they need to take time to review certain areas where they tend to struggle.

Another facet of teaching involves my time in a college class that highlighted “exceptionalities in the classroom.” This refer to the fact each student is unique because they think and act differently due to the physical and mental limitations some of them deal with each day.

This requires teachers to use different resources to provide needed help for these students.

Another issue many of today’s teachers deal with involves students whose classroom behavior often gets in the way of leading an effective lesson. Years ago, those students often got taken out in the hallway and introduced to “the board of education.”

Typically seen hanging above the chalkboard at most classrooms back then, that wooden paddle represented the last resort teachers used to get their students to behave.

However, the need to discipline students in this fashion changed as research data showed more effective ways to deal with these types of inappropriate, disruptive student behavior. That led to new and more effective ways for teachers to run their classrooms in which each student felt welcome and free to be themselves.

Among these steps included the introduction of the Framework for Teaching resource developed by Charlotte Danielson. That system focuses on four domains that serve as the foundation of being an effective classroom teacher.

In addition to providing proper instruction methods in the lessons they introduce to their students, teachers today focus on proper planning and preparation of these lessons along with maintaining a positive classroom environment that inspires learning. In addition, effective teachers uphold the professional responsibilities they accepted when they were hired at the school where they work.

It’s these responsibilities that lead an overwhelming majority of teachers in Mountain Home, Glenns Ferry and the Bruneau-Grand View school districts to receive positive evaluations the principals at their school conduct in their classrooms on a regular basis. The feedback these school officials provide to their teachers provides these educators with an unbiased look at what they can do to improve how they guide their students throughout the lessons taught each day.

Granted, not every teacher out there automatically receives the proficiency score they hoped to earn. There are some of them, especially those starting off their first year as a teacher, that need the time to develop the routine they need to run their classroom every single day.

It’s not something that happens automatically. As I learned myself, it can take months or sometimes years to develop those effective classroom management skills that become something more instinctive in nature.

– Brian S. Orban