Running head: MY MANAGEMENT PHILOSOPHY 1

My Management Philosophy

Courtney Dickinson

Ed W. Clark High School

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Abstract

Learning about the different theorists and their theories, I was required to think about my own beliefs on

education, something I hadnt done before. This was a new challenge, especially since Im not completely

sure what I believe yet. I agreed with many of the theorists, but the ones I studied, Fritz Redl and William

Wattenberg were probably the two that made the biggest impact on my beliefs and the way I look at

teaching and at education as a whole. I believe that, and I know that these beliefs will change quite a bit

between now and college, and even after getting to actually teach, I know that some of these might change.
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My Management Philosophy

In class, we have studied many educational theorists and their theories. Some of them were newer

and more recent, while others were older. Despite the time differences, they all seemed to have relevant

theories that still could be and are used in classrooms today.

Using some of the ideas from these theorists, I have developed my own management philosophy for

how I plan to teach. I have 5 major themes for my management theory, and they are, teaching style,

discipline, rules or punishments, interaction with students and parents, beliefs of student behavior and

learning, and applications of these ideas.

Teaching Style

I believe that students learn best by hands on activities, and by doing things, rather than just being

shown ideas (Yoo 2015). I want my students to have the time and ability to experience things and learn

through those experiences, rather than just showing it to them.

I also believe that positive reinforcements helps students control themselves (Wenzinger 2015). I

believe that it is better to give students rewards and positive reinforcement, rather than harsh punishments.

And I know from experience that students respond very well to the rewards and positive reinforcement.

I also think that situational assistance by 1. Making sure students know classroom routines, 2.

Allowing misbehaving students to be alone or providing a time-out, 3. Removing seductive objects

(games, pictures, comic books, etc.) that draw attention away from the educational task, planning ahead to

eliminate temptations and overstimulation, 5. Helping a student overcome a hurdle or frustrating roadblock

(Gudjonis 2015). I think that situational assistance is one method that would really work in the classroom

and would be useful.

I believe that some of the goals for the teacher is to prepare students for the future, limit violence,

protect learning opportunities, show students how to love learning, and communicate effectively
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(Berardinelli 2015). I think that these are very important, and that showing students to love learning is one

of the most important things teachers do.

Discipline, Rules, and Punishments

There are many different ways that a teacher can handle discipline. One method I liked was inner

discipline, which stated that students are not punished physically or by destructive language (Mitchell

2015). I think that this is important for some pretty obvious reasons.

Another discipline technique I would use would be to have clear expectations, giving them a say in

these rules (Berardinelli 2015), and using appropriate consequences (Whalen 2015), while also making

sure to handle anger appropriately, giving students a face-saving exit (Spencer 2015). And then on the

opposite end of those consequences, making sure to provide positive reinforcements and reward the good

behavior (Camacho 2015).

I also really believe in the idea of self-discipline (Gudjonis 2015) and that a teacher should be sure to

assist with this, instead of taking up too much power. The teacher should provide non-verbal cues, or talk to

the student away from the attention of the class.

Interaction with Students and Parents

I believe that active listening (Voris 2015) between parents, teachers, and students is very important,

and allows the students to feel involved and like the teacher really cares about them. I also believe that it is

important to connect as a teacher with the parents, students and peers (Feil 2015).

I really agree with the idea that students should be involved in decision making and should be

involved with something on a daily basis. This encourages the connection with students and helps the

students to be invested in what they are doing in the classroom and enjoy it more.

Beliefs of student behavior and learning

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I agree that children are worth the time teaching responsible behavior (Mitchell 2015). I think that it

is very important that any teacher believes that their student is worth teaching, if they dont then there really

isnt any point in being a teacher in the first place. I also know that to learn one must pay attention (Rodas

2015). Meaning that in order for a student to learn anything, they must first pay attention to you, so the

teacher must be capable of keeping attention.

I know that all behavior has a purpose (Mitchell 2015) and that as a teacher, you cannot change it,

and you can only influence the behavior or a change in behavior (Feil 2015). I think that this is an important

thing to remember as a teacher and because I know that this would take a lot of patience to stay calm in

this kind of situation.

I also believe that students want to choose the appropriate behavior, but sometimes need assistance.

And when given expectations and follow-through, they will choose the correct behavior (Leon 2015). This is

a very important one to remember when you have a particularly difficult student who doesnt seem to be

even capable of doing the right thing. But when you remember this, it will help.

Applications

And to apply all of these different ideas and methods, I think it is important to be aware of the entire

classroom and make smooth transitions between activities (Bennion 2015). When a teacher is aware of

everyone in the room, it makes the room a safer place, and the students do notice if a teacher is aware of

them and it is important for the students self-esteem. Smooth Transitions are also important because

without them the teacher can lose the class attention very quickly and this can lead to other major

discipline issues.

The way that a teacher speaks to the class is also important. They must not yell, use sarcasm, be

rude, bribe, or be physically forceful (Feil 2015). Instead, the teacher should use clear communications and
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I-messages, not you-messages (Spencer 2015), or speaking about yourself rather than the person you are

talking to.

It is also important for a teacher to recognize the behaviors of students in groups (fall guys,

instigators, and leaders) (Gudjonis 2015). Once the teacher can recognize these group behaviors, they

should interact with the students appropriately, playing one of many possible roles.

Conclusion

Using some of the ideas from the theorists we learned about in class, I developed my own

management philosophy for how I plan to teach when I become a teacher. I have 5 major themes for my

management theory, and they are, teaching style, discipline, rules or punishments, interaction with students

and parents, beliefs of student behavior and learning, and applications of these ideas. Even though I know

my philosophy will change between now and when I am actually teaching, this is what I plan to take into the

classroom as a teacher.
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References

Bennion, K. (2015). Lecture: Jacob Kounin, Preventive Discipline.

Berardinelli, J. (2015). Lecture: Richard Curwin and Allen Mendler, Discipline with Dignity.

Camacho, T. (2015). Lecture: B.F. Skinner, Behavior Modification and Operant Conditioning.

Feil, M. (2015). Lecture: Linda Albert, Cooperative Discipline.

Gudjonis, M. (2015). Lecture: Fritz Redl and William Wattenberg.

Leon, M. (2015). Lecture: Lee and Marlene Canter, Assertive Discipline.

Mitchell, D. (2015). Lecture: Barbara Coloroso, Inner discipline.

Mitchell, T. (2015). Lecture: Rudolf Dreikurs, Social Discipline.

Rodas, A. (2015). Lecture: Albert Bandura, Social Learning.

Solorzano, B. (2015). Lecture: Fredric Jones, Positive, Discipline.

Spencer, H. (2015). Lecture: Haim Ginott, Congruent Communication.

Szirbik, E. (2015). Lecture: H. Jerome Freiberg, Consistency Management and cooperative discipline.

Voris, K. (2015). Lecture: Thomas Gordon, Active Listening.

Wenzinger, L. (2015). Lecture: Alfie Kohn, Beyond Discipline.

Whalen, H. (2015). Lecture: William Glassner, Choice Theory.

Yoo, P. (2015). Lecture: John Dewey, Progressive Education.