In order to be an effective teacher, one must take into account the needs of 30 different students at

a time, while meeting the expectations of administrators and board members, as well as community
members and parents. Meeting the needs and demands of all of these clients, while making learning
enjoyable, and ensuring that students are in fact learning, is the real definition of being a teacher. In order
to make this happen, a teacher must consider how students learn, what methods are best for instruction,
and how to effectively implement these practices into everyday instruction.
How Students Learn
First and foremost, it is necessary to acknowledge my belief that all students are capable of
learning. While they may not learn in the same ways, they are all capable of gaining knowledge. In order
to ensure learning takes place student needs must be met. This is best done by creating a positive
classroom and learning environment. To create this type of environment, a teacher needs to have strong
classroom management with open lines of communication, and an environment in which students are
active and involved in their learning. Additionally, it needs to be understood that there needs to be an
effort on both the part of the student, and the teacher, for a classroom to run effectively.
Classroom management, it is my belief, is the most significant aspect to effective teaching. If a
classroom is not managed properly, then how a teacher wants to teach or assess students will not matter.
When it comes to me managing a classroom, I am a firm believer in a structured and organized classroom
setting, guided by open communication. In order for a classroom to be structured, boundaries need to be
established for students so that they understand which actions will be and will not be tolerated. While I
imagine an environment that is structured, it does not mean only discipline or punishment when not doing
what is expected. Managing the classroom will consist of creating a fine line between discipline and
love that (will) lead to good learning and creative teaching (Kohn, 2002). Establishing this balance will
allow students to understand what is and what is not permitted, while ensuring that they feel free to learn
comfortably. The combination of rules and communication lead to the structured and organized
classroom I envision.
Creating this positive environment will also be completed by ensuring that communication is
ongoing between the teacher and students. To create this mood, the environment needs to be one in which
all voices can speak and be heard (including our own) (Brookfield, 1995, p 44-45). All students, as
well as instructors need to feel that their opinions matter and that they can contribute to the classroom
learning. When this is exercised properly, teachers are aware of what is going on in their students lives
and how they learn. This ultimately leads to the teachers ability to adjust instruction to best meet the
needs of students at any given time.
Establishing a positive classroom allows for learning to be conducted in a student centered
environment. Working in a student centered classroom requires students to work in cooperative learning
groups. By working in groups, students should come to see each other as resources who can help with
learning difficulties (Brookfield, 1995, p 64). By establishing this type of setting, students will see how

they are able to learn from, and teach one another, rather than simply being given information.
Furthermore, using cooperative groups allows for inquiry based practices to be implemented into
classroom use. By including inquiry, students are able to communicate frequently, which allows for
students to have some control over what they are learning. Giving students this freedom encourages them
to think with each other in a critical and independent way which leads to their being able to draw their
own conclusions and answer their own questions.
In addition to providing students with the opportunity to learn from one another, cooperative
learning groups also provide students with the opportunity to use social skills. Students at any age are
always eager to talk with and work with another person; therefore, by using groups, and structured
communities for student learning, students are kept more engaged and generally having more fun because
they are communicating with peers, not being lectured by a teacher.
Beyond using groups to ensure that students are engaged and in control of their learning,
cooperative groups also provide the opportunity for students to be more involved in and have a hands on
experience with their learning. I strongly believe that students are more apt to take something away from
a lesson when they have been given the opportunity to do something, and really be involved with a text or
assignment, rather than simply being told about what happened in a novel, or how a chemical reaction
occurred. Allowing students to try things and figure things out on their own permits them to have
ownership over their learning, and provide a memory to associate the learning with.
Instruction, Reflection, and Data
When it comes to the best ways for instruction to be handled, I tend to believe that a teachers
role is to guide instruction, not dictate it. My goal would be for me to act as a facilitator, rather than a
lecturer. By this, I mean that I would deliver instructions to students, and offer guidance when necessary,
but my goal would be to provide students the opportunity to draw conclusions on their own. This would
be done by placing students in a variety of learning scenarios so they have the opportunity to think in
multiple contexts. To do this, I would use strategies, such as think-pair-share, write-pair-share, numbered
heads together, JIGSAW or guided reading activities, so that I can guide students, but they are allowed to
think independently first and foremost.
Using these different strategies allows for differentiation in instruction, and again offers a way to
ensure that students are engaged. Furthermore, no one is likely to be able to spend most of their time
learning only in the way they like, so giving students some experience in a range of styles is really in their
own best long-term interests (Brookfield, 1995, p. 60). Changing the environment that students learn in
is another key to having strong instruction. Students may work in groups one day, then with a partner,
then as a whole class, or they may work independently before going to groups. Providing this type of
change in instruction allows the learner to be outside of their comfort zone at times, but also provides
them with the comfort and environment where they can discuss their learning before addressing a large

group, or being put in a position where they have to think independently in front of the class for the first
time.
Finally, in order for instruction to be as good as it could be, I would be sure to have reflection
play a major role in both teacher and student learning. To do this, I would be sure to have students reflect
upon how well they worked at various points throughout a unit so that they are able to see what they are
learning, and where they may need improvement. Reflection is something that allows students to get to a
deeper level of thinking. Dewey acknowledged that, while we cannot learn or be taught to think, we do
have to learn how to think well, especially how to acquire the general habits of reflecting (as referenced
in Ferrell, 2012, p. 10). This is what makes reflection so important. Reflection allows us to think better,
and more deeply about what we are learning, and why we are interpreting what we are learning the way
that we are. By pushing students to this level of learning, they are able to reflect on what is important,
what students dont understand, what they enjoyed, or what they need to ask about or examine further.
This act allows the teacher to learn about his or her practices, but also allows the student to explore what
and how they are learning.
To take this a step further, taking the feedback provided by students is what would allow
instruction to be adjusted to better meet student needs. Using student reflections is what beings a domino
effect of reflection in a classroom. The teacher is able to reflect individually on what the students have
said, but then take the reflections of the students and look to other professionals for influence and advice.
These reflective practices will allow a teacher to have evidence that will guide future instruction, while
validating or allowing learning to come from past instruction. As Ferrell stated, Evidence-based
reflective practices enable teachers to articulate to themselves (and others) what they do, how they do it,
why they do it, and what the impact of ones teaching is on student learning (Farrell, 2012, p. 14). Using
this evidence is what permits a teacher to deliver instruction in the best way possible to ensure student
learning. Furthermore, it provides evidence that will support why instruction is delivered in the way that
it is.
Additionally, in an ideal setting, reflection should be taken even outside of the classroom for even
further insight into learning. Reflection, according to Rodgers, is something that needs to happen in
community, in interaction with others (Rodgers, 2002, p 845). Taking reflection outside of the classroom
provides fresh insight, as well as the opportunity to learn from peers and therefore best influence
classroom practices. Furthermore, taking reflection outside of the classroom, and out of the hands, or
mind of an individual, allows more than one person to learn from the experience. This experience moves
reflection from an individual learning opportunity, to a professional learning experience. For as I stated
above in terms of students learning best with their peers, teachers learn more in the same manner.

In addition to using student reflection and my own reflection to create evidence for guiding future
instruction I would also use traditional assessment forms as well. While standardized tests are not always
the best way to test students, they are mandated by the state and therefore needs to be included as a part of
instruction. Using these standard methods of testing provides another way to see how well students are
learning. The use of these traditional assessment forms, allows me, as well as the students, parents, and
administrators to see the growth and development of every student individually. These forms allow
numbers to be formulated, which for me, act as proof of learning. Additionally, these numbers can be
broken down and used for further analysis to determine if there are weak points in past instruction and
whether re-teaching needs to be done.
Conclusion
All of these actions are my hopes of creating students that can leave my classroom with a greater
sense of pride in them as they have better reasoning skills, better communication skills, and the ability to
learn from one another. Students do not have to go on to be English Majors in college, but if they can
take the skills they learn in my classes to better understand the information they are presented with, then I
will have done my job. Not only do I hope they are able to understand the English language as it applies
to literary texts, but also as it applies to their everyday lives. After all, thinking critically is something
everyone should be able to do, even if it is for nothing more than being able to make an informed
decision.

Works Cited
Brookfield, S. (1995). Becoming critically reflective: A process of learning and change. Becoming a
critically reflective teacher (pp. 28-48). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Brookfield, S. (1995). Learning to know ourselves: The value of autobiography. Becoming a critically
reflective teacher (pp. 49-70). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Farrell, T. S. C. (2012). Reflecting on reflective practice: (Re)visiting Dewey and Schn. TESOL Journal,
3(1), 7-16
Kohl, H. (2002). Topsy-turvies: Teacher talk and student talk. In L. Delpit & J. K. Dowdy (Eds.), The skin
that we speak (pp. 145-161). New York, NY: The New Press
Rodgers, C. (2002. Defining reflection: Antoher look at John Dewey and reflective thinking. Teachers
College record, 104(4), 842-866.