Domain 2 The Classroom Environment

Valerie Joseph-Darden
February 6, 2017

In my experience as an 8th grade math teacher over the last few months, the
greatest challenges I have faced have been in the area of the Danielson Domain II.
This includes the classroom environment and classroom management. I teach one
Algebra I advanced 8th grade math class and two 8th grade Pre-Algebra math
classes. I began teaching in the middle of October, so I missed that week at the
beginning of the year that teachers use to establish rules and procedures before the
students settle into unwanted habits. I will describe some of the issues I have been
having with my students over the last few months along with plans I have
implemented in my attempts to correct the issues. As I describe these very real
problems I have faced, I will relate them to each of the Danielson Domain II
components:
2.a. Establish a culture of respect and rapport in the classroom.
2.b. Establish a culture of learning
2.c. Managing Classroom Procedures
2.d. Managing Student Behaviors
2.e Organizing the Physical Space

2.a. Establish a culture of respect and rapport in the

classroom.
Problem: Students Say Mean Things to Their Classmates
My students can be very disrespectful to each other on a daily basis. This is
something that goes on outside of the classroom as well. I have been encouraging
them to treat each other with respect. They have concluded that I am a very nice
person. I am modeling kindness to them every day. I do small things to help them
feel good about their day (occasionally bring brownies or cookies) and quietly
approach them when I have heard one say something inappropriate or mean to
another student. Their response is always positive when I point out their
unkindness to each other. I will continue to encourage kindness in our classroom.

Problem: Yelling Gets me Nowhere With Some Defiant

Students

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Some of my students are very defiant and do not like being told what to do or being
yelled at. I discovered early on that if I ask them to stop nicely in a kind voice and
say thank you when they comply, I often face less confrontation.

2.b. Establish a Culture for Learning

Problem: No Time to Give One-on-One Support to all That
Asked for Help
Two of my classes each have over 30 students. In my homeroom, which is the
third class, I have less students (22 students) but 12 of them have IEPs for various
reasons. I found it frustrating in all three classes when students would ask for my
help but I would run out of time and never get an opportunity to help everyone that
needed it. Recently, I created small groups of 3 to 4 students in each class. I
matched advanced students with students who typically need a lot of support. I still
feel spread thin in my classroom, but students now receive support from their peers
which is helping ensure mastery of concepts by more students.

Problem: Bright Students Bored with Review for Tests

I have very bright students in my advanced math class. This can be problematic
because they become bored very easily. Then they start up side conversations with
each other that makes it difficult for other students to pay attention. Many
students consistently received all As on their quizzes and tests. However, several
students are barely passing. When I review for a test, I want everyones attention.
So, I turned reviewing for our test into a Kahoot online math quiz in which students
responded to the math quiz review questions through their cell phones. Every
student in the room was engaged and had fun as the small groups competed to win
the quiz game. If anyone answered a question incorrectly, I reviewed the question
and cleared up any misunderstandings. I used this technique on my second major
test and the average students did much better on the second test than they did on
the first.

2.c. Managing Classroom Procedures &

2.d. Managing Student Behaviors
(These two components of the Danielson Framework are very dependent on
each other.)

Problem: Student Were Unruly Entering the Room. There

was no Structure to their Entrance

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 Students were unruly as they entered my classroom. I see my homeroom after
lunch, and they are extremely worked up and overly active coming up from the
cafeteria in the afternoon. My other two classes were loud and playful as they
entered the room. I now settle down the students in the hallway before entering the
room. I give them something to do (a Do Now problem or have them write an
explanation of a concept) as soon as they enter the room. I explain the day outside
in the hallway before we enter so that they know exactly what to expect. In the
afternoon after lunch, I have my homeroom come into my classroom and engage in
3 minutes of complete silence to settle down. Then we begin our Do Now math
exercise. These changes have made a big difference in the amount of time it takes
to begin delivery of the lesson.

Problem: Students are Unorganized and Unprepared

My students are very unorganized and unprepared when they walk in the door.
Every day multiple students will enter the room without a notebook, paper, and/or
writing utensil. I keep a pack of paper on my desk for those with nothing to write
on. I keep a box of pencils in my drawer for those that need a pencil. In order to
avoid classwork and homework papers getting lost after they have been left behind
(something that happens every day), I have a basket for each class where papers
can go; kind of like a classroom lost & found for papers. Beginning this week,
students will be held accountable for coming prepared and may lose points toward
their class participation grade if they do not have a math notebook.

Problem: Detention Was No Longer a Deterrent to Unwanted

Behaviors
There were a few very disruptive students that regularly received detentions for
their unwanted behaviors. Detention became a social event (even though there is
no talking) that was no longer a deterrent from bad behavior for these students.
The Dean of Students decided to change the way detentions were served. For the
cases in which detention does not seem to be deterring unwanted behaviors, she
assigns the students to a school custodian and they no longer sit in detention. They
must clean the school or else be faced with suspension. This has really helped
deter the behaviors of some students.

Problem: Too much Talking During Lesson Delivery and

Students Unmotivated to Behave During Class
Eighth graders love to talk and socialize. There was a constant buzz of
conversation throughout my room regularly even after I repeatedly told students to
stop talking. Beginning this week, I am connecting their grade to their behavior in a
very direct way. As they enter the classroom every day, they will have 3 points. As
they exhibit unwanted behaviors such as talking during lesson delivery, getting out
of their seats without permission, not completing the Do Now exercise, or not
completing homework, points will be taken away. Their class participation grade
(which is about 40% of their entire grade) will be comprised of a percentage of

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points they have out of the number of total point possible. Their grade will be
significantly affected by their behavior and efforts completing assignments.

2.e. Organizing the Physical Space

I have reorganized my classroom so that desks are arranged in small groups of 3
or 4.

Conclusion
I have had been giving the Danielson Domain II components a great deal of
thought and effort. I still find this domain to be one of the most difficult to master in
my current situation. My students can be unruly and unengaged in their lessons. I
have come a long way in mastering this domain, but I still have plenty of room for
improvement. I hope to continue to grow in this domain as I learn from coursework,
other teachers, and try different strategies that may meet the needs of my
students.