What is the teacher

1
What is the teachers role in helping students
set priorities in order to be more successful in
academics?
2
Initial Study

• English Class of 21 Freshman Students
• Crawfordsville High School
• August 2004 May 2005

3
Pulled-Apart Gingerbread Person Student Demands
and Responsibilities

• August 2004
• School work 19
• Family 19
• Peers 16
• Jobs and Chores 15
• Sports 11
• Entertainment 11

• May 2005
• Peers 23
• School work 15
• Family 13
• Jobs and Chores 7
• Sports 7
• Entertainment 6

4
Implications of Gingerbread Person

• Will students perceptions of their demands
• change as they move through high school?
• Will it be helpful to extend this research by
• following up with these students through
• high school?
• Do teachers sense a relationship between
• students demands and responsibilities and
• their performance on school work?

5
Student Questionnaire March 2005

• Students Perceptions of High School
• How do events and responsibilities outside school
  affect your work in your classes?
• How have your teachers helped you adjust to high
  school?
• How has this school been different for you
  compared to your eighth grade year?
• How can teachers help you become more organized
  and focused on your school work?
• What do you expect to do to become more
  successful in school?

6
How can teachers help you become more organized
and focused? March 2005

• Give less homework 3
• Make sure students understand what is being
  taught 2
• Make sure students have the right papers 2
• Make sure students have all their materials 2
• Make lessons more fun 2
• Give more class time for homework 2
• Provide time after school to help 2
• Teachers cant help its up to the student 2
• Teachers already take work too seriously

7
Implications of March Questionnaire

• Do teachers believe that they are
• responsible for helping students become
• more focused and organized?
• What strategies do teachers use to help
• students become more focused and
• organized?

8
Possible Next Steps

• Adapt and use March Questionnaire with teachers
• Ask for volunteers (same students, other CHS
• teachers, and others?) to continue the study with
  me,
• emphasizing that the goal is to help students
  succeed
• Examine student responses to What do you expect
• to do to become more successful in school?
• Create new activities to follow up with students
  and to
• help them with setting priorities
• Use information from teacher questionnaire to
  decide
• future direction and application of study

9
2005-06 Focus

• Revised Question
• What am I doing to help students with
  organization?
• Are these strategies working?

10
Revisit Question from March 2005

• How can teachers help you become more organized
  and focused?
• Some Reasonable Student Suggestions
• Make sure students have the right papers
• Make sure students have all their materials
• Provide time after school to help
• Have folders in each classroom to keep student
  work

11
Revised Question

• What strategies do I use now to help students
  become more focused and organized?
• Are these strategies helpful?

12
Classroom Management Strategies

• Start class with overview of days work
• End class with reminders of assignments
• Wire basket for turning in papers
• Boxes for turning in projects
• Student folders for returned work
• Class crates with returned work
• Extra copies of assignments on bulletin board
• Desks arranged in groups
• Weekly calendar on white board inside door
• Calendar on bulletin board
• White boards on easels for special notices

13
Technology-Related Strategies

• Laptop computer 24/7
• Printer in classroom
• Shared folder for PowerPoint presentations
• Calendar in Angel
• Assignments available on Angel
• Hand in work through Angel
• Give PowerPoint presentations through Angel
• E-mail teacher through Angel

14
Other Strategies

• Reading Records
• Reading Bingo Sheets
• Guidelines for assignments
• Rubric for assignment when assignment first given
• Teacher available before school
• Teacher available after school

15
Organization Questionnaire

• See handout

16
Results of College Prep Seniors Questionnaires

• Most Helpful
• End-of-class reminders
• Printer in classroom
• Guidelines for assignments
• Rubric for assignment when given
• Wire basket for turn-in
• E-mail teacher through Angel
• Weekly white board calendar
• Assignments on Angel
• 24/7 Laptops

• Least Helpful
• Reading Bingo Sheet
• Student folders for returned work
• Boxes for turning in projects
• Start class with overview
• Reading Records

17
Results of Non-College Bound Senior Questionnaires

• Most Helpful
• End class with reminders
• Wire basket for turn in
• Extra copies on bulletin board
• Printer in class
• Weekly white board calendar
• Calendar on bulletin board
• Rubric when assignment given
• White board with special notices
• Guidelines for assignments

• Least Helpful
• 24/7 laptops
• Shared network folders for PowerPoint
  presentations
• Arrangement of desks in groups
• PowerPoint presentations through Angel
• Class crates with returned work
• Hand in work through Angel
• Reading Bingo Sheet

18
Results of Honors Sophomores Questionnaires

• Most Helpful
• White board with weekly calendar
• End-of-class reminders
• Printer in class
• Wire basket for turn in
• Guidelines for assignments
• Assignments on Angel
• Boxes for project turn-in
• E-mail teacher through Angel

• Least Helpful
• 24/7 laptops
• Student folders for returned work
• Class crates for returned work
• Start class with overview

19
Most Helpful Classroom Management Strategies

• End-of Class Reminders 3/3
• Wire Basket for Turn In 3/3
• Weekly Whiteboard Calendar 3/3

20
Most Helpful Other Strategies

• Guidelines for Assignments 3/3
• Rubric When Assignment Given 2/3

21
Most Helpful Technology-Related Strategies

• Printer in Classroom 3/3
• Assignments on Angel 2/3
• E-mail Teacher Through Angel 2/3

22
Interesting Results

• The college prep seniors found the 24/7 laptops
  to be one of the most helpful organization
  strategies, while the honors sophomores and the
  non-college bound seniors found the 24/7 laptops
  to be one of the least helpful organization
  strategies.
• Starting class with an overview is considered one
  of the least helpful organization strategies for
  honors sophomores and non-college bound seniors,
  while good pedagogy seems to means giving an
  overview to be helpful.
• The returned paper system of student folders and
  class crates is considered one of the least
  helpful organization strategies by all three
  groups, but one of the most helpful for me.

23
Inferences

• The college prep seniors are anticipating using
  laptop computers in college soon and recognize
  their worth for organization.
• My use of the beginning-of-class overview has
  been ineffective as far as helping students
  organize themselves and their work.
• Students did not understand the paper return
  system and its purpose in helping them be better
  organized.

24
2006-07 Action Plan

• Encourage 24/7 laptop program to continue with
  college prep seniors.
• Encourage continuation of Angel to help students
  be better organized and maintain better contact
  with teachers
• Improve my use of the beginning-of-class
  overview, perhaps in conjunction with whiteboard
  on easel
• Improve my explanation of the folder/crate system
  
• Encourage students to access their folders more
  frequently
• Continue white board weekly calendar
• Continue wire basket turn-in system
• Continue guidelines and accompanying rubrics with
  assignments

25
Evolution of My CBRSpring 2004

• Developed question What is the teachers role in
  helping students set priorities in order to be
  more successful in academics?
• Learned that I would be teaching a freshman
  English class in addition to my usual assignments
  of college prep seniors and honors sophomores
• Decided to focus on freshmen only for CBR

26
Evolution of My CBR2004-2005

• Developed an art/writing project to illicit
  student responses related to the CBR (Gingerbread
  figure)
• Began concentrating on setting priorities in all
  aspects of their daily lives and helping them
  become better organized
• Helped students to identify their
  responsibilities, priorities, and effects of
  various influenced on their school work
• Recognized that the question was to broad
• Recognized that I could not do a follow-up on
  those specific students
• Changed to what the classroom teacher can do to
  help students become better organized, perhaps
  only in regard to technology

27
Evolution of My CBR2005-06

• Decided to set student organization as a high
  priority in all classes
• Decided not to focus just on technology-related
  strategies