Running Head: DOMAIN 2: THE CLASSROOM ENVIRONMENT 1

Domain 2: The Classroom Environment

Anthony Pantalone

Drexel University
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Creating a classroom environment that maximizes a student’s ability to thrive is one of

the most important jobs of a teacher. The environment must be conducive to learning, foster

respect and feeling safe to share ideas and ask questions. The guidelines for creating an effective

classroom environment are laid out in domain 2 of the Danielson Framework for Teaching.

Domain 2 is split into 5 subcategories that cover all aspects of the classroom environment. In this

paper I will discuss each of these subcategories and examples of ways I will implement

strategies to ensure I am proficient in creating an effective classroom environment.

The first subcategory of domain 2 is creating an environment of respect and rapport. In

my opinion, respect starts with how the teacher interacts with the students. It is our responsibility

to be good role models for how to treat one another. This means that teachers must always

address students with the same level of respect that they expect in return. An example that I see

all too often of a display of lack of respect is the teacher yelling at the students. There are times

when we must be stern with our students, but yelling at them does not help in changing behavior

and it can even make it worse. In a study conducted at the University of Pittsburgh, it was found

that “the negative effects of verbal discipline... were comparable to the effects...in other studies

that focused on physical discipline” (University of Pittsburgh, 2013). As teachers we would

never dream of using physical discipline with students, so we should treat yelling the same way.

If, and inevitably when, we must be stern in correcting student behavior, it is much more

effective to have a talk with them and explain why their behavior was inappropriate. As opposed

to yelling, this allows the student to understand the reasons why their behavior was

inappropriate.

The other half of the respect coin is how students interact with one another. Again, it falls

on us to create the environment in which students not only treat each other with respect, but want
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to treat each other with respect. One way I have seen teachers instill this in their students is by

constantly referring to the class as “friends”; like saying “I’m going to call on a friend with a

nice quiet hand”. This subtly tells the students that we are all friends in the classroom. I’ve also

observed teachers out right telling students that everyone in the class is a friend when a student

says that they don’t like who they got partnered with for an activity, for example. Everytime

something like this occurs, it is important for us as teachers to correct that student, reiterating

that everyone is a friend in the classroom.

The second subcategory of domain 2 is establishing a culture for learning. One aspect of

creating a culture for learning is “conveying the educational value of what the children are

learning (Danielson, 2013). A great way of communicating the value of a lesson or concept to

students is by including activities that allow them to see how the concept is relevant not only to

their lives now, but for the rest of their lives. One of the easiest subjects to do this, in my

opinion, is math. Whether its measuring, addition or subtraction, students will use those concepts

for the rest of their lives. Doing activities like measuring various things around the room or

having them add or subtract objects they own or use, like baseball cards or stuffed animals,

connects the concept to them in a personal way.

A small and easy way that I really like for conveying the importance of the students work

is to display the work around the room or out in the hall. By displaying the work, it not only

provides a confidence boost that the student/s did good work, it communicates that the work

wasn’t just throw away “busy work”. If I handed a teacher 2 pieces of work and he/she threw one

away and hung up the other, I would conclude that the one they kept is “worth more” and is more

important. Along with communicating importance, it also encourages student pride in their work,

which is another element of establishing a culture for learning. It will motivate students to
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continue doing great work so more of their work is displayed. As one of my artifacts for this

paper, I have included below a picture of the bulletin board outside of our classroom displaying

the students work for all to see!

In my opinion the most obvious way to establish that your classroom is an environment

for learning is communicated by the classroom itself. In nearly every classroom I’ve been in, the

walls are donned with numerous educational posters and images. Some are relevant to every

classroom, like an alphabet or number line, but most should be relevant to the concepts being

learned in the class. There are also images below of the various posters and tools around my

student teaching classroom that demonstrate this. My favorite is the objectives (goals) board that

clearly states what the objectives for the week are. This communicated the expectations to the

students, which is the next aspect.

Another way to communicate expectations that I’ve observed is that my mentor teacher

simply clearly and concisely explains them to the students. This applies both educationally and

behaviourally, which directly impacts the students' education. For example, by simply saying to

the students “we’re going to walk to our desks, take out our readers notebook and open to page

3” the expectations are clear and it shortens the transition time, allowing more time for learning.

Another important expectation I have observed is simply to try your best. “In classrooms with

robust cultures for learning, all students receive the message that although the work is

challenging, they are capable of achieving it if they are prepared to work hard” (Danielson,

2013). Too often I’ve noticed students are quick to ask for help from the teacher if they don’t

understand something. Most of the time, they only think they don’t understand. After having

them talk me through the question, they are able to recognize what it is asking and complete it. I

will always praise the student and reiterate that they knew it the whole time they just had to take
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a second to think about it. “I can’t do it” is something that I never let my students say without

showing them that they in fact can.

The third aspect of domain 2 is managing classroom procedures. Many of the various

aspects of the danielson framework tie in with one another, and this is no exception. Having a

clear classroom procedure helps control student behavior and provide expectations. One of the

most common examples of showing the daily procedure is by use of a daily calendar. I have the

calendar in my classroom attached below. Everyday during morning meeting, my mentor teacher

takes a few minutes to go over the schedule, priming them for what the day will look like. Along

with the big picture, the various periods of the day, each little procedure throughout the day is set

with clear expectations and directions. These include things like the procedure for transitioning

from the carpet back to their desks, from their desks into line for lunch, back into the classroom

from recess, etc. For each transition, the students are told what to do and how to do it.

Another component of domain 2 that I have had the chance to be an active part in is the

management of instructional groups. During ELA, my mentor teacher meets with the students in

the class who are below level in reading to try and get them on level. For the past week or so, I

have met with the students who are above level for enrichment. The rest of the class work

independently at various stations. Having an understanding of the various reading levels in the

class allows my mentor teacher and I to recognize who needs extra help to get on level. It also

helps us recognize who is above level and needs enrichment. I feel like these are the children

who are often forgotten as some teachers may focus more on the students that are behind. Not

challenging students, especially those that are ahead, can lead to boredom in the classroom. This,

in turn, can lead to disastrous results in terms of student achievement. An article for Harvard Ed.

Magazine references a study that found that boredom in the classroom leads to lower test scores.
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It also mentions that half of all high school dropouts cite boredom as their primary reason for

dropping out (Jason, 2017).

The last component of domain 2 that I will discuss is management of materials and

supplies. This is extremely important as not being prepared with the proper materials needed for

a lesson will take time away from that lesson, meaning students spend less time actually

learning. This is why preparation and thinking ahead is so critical. A typical day in my mentor

teachers classroom consists of anywhere from 5-7 periods depending on how many specials the

students have on a given day. Furthermore, each lesson may contain various stations or activities.

I have observed that my mentor teacher is always making time to prepare herself for the next

lesson ahead of time. The easiest time to do this is during a prep period when the students are at

specials. However, that is rarely enough time. I’ve noticed that during parts of her lesson when

students are working together or working on their own, while helping the students who need it,

she is also working to set up the next lesson. I’ve learned that even though some days may feel

more chaotic and busy than others, there is always time to prepare yourself for the coming

lessons.

The fourth aspect of domain 2 is managing student behavior. Again, this ties in with

many other aspects of domain 2. I find that the most effective means of managing student

behavior is by setting expectations for every single activity they will be doing and keeping them

accountable for their behavior. Every classroom I’ve observed and worked in uses strategies for

managing and encouraging or discouraging behavior. Most of these classes use a color chart

where students start on green, but are told to move to yellow if they are displaying inappropriate

behavior, and then to red if it continues. While effective, I find that the use of positive

reinforcement as opposed to negative reinforcement works better in promoting behavior. In the

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school district I am student teaching in, they use hole punch cards. When the teacher observes a

student displaying positive behavior, they are rewarded with a hole punch. When they get 10

hole punches, they can choose a prize or save up multiple cards for a bigger prize. This

encourages students to display positive behaviors at all times because they know that they can

get a hole punch at any time.

I mentioned above the importance of treating our students with respect and that comes

into play most importantly in how we respond to our students when they display negative

behavior. As I mentioned, and Danielson tells us, “accomplished teachers try to understand why

students are conducting themselves in such a manner... and respond in a way that respects the

dignity of the student. Responding in this way is the best way to ensure the students not only

understand why their behavior was wrong, but are less likely to repeat the behavior again.

The last component of domain 2 is organizing physical space. An important part of this

component is creating a pleasant and inviting atmosphere. Physically, for an elementary

classroom, this means having colorful and bright posters and bulletin boards around the room

that reflect what the class is learning. One of the most important aspects of physical space, in my

opinion, is where the students sit in relation to each other. Every class includes students that are

close friends with some of the other students. Usually, that means that when they sit close to

each other, they are most likely to talk to each other and become distracted. Because of this, we

must think about where we seat out students. My mentor teacher just last week put me in charge

of rearranging the students desks and deciding where they will sit. Keeping in mind the 3-4 pairs

of students who are really close, I arranged the room in the way that I thought would be least

conducive to students talking and distracting one another. This will promote learning.
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Another aspect of physical space is providing students access to resources to enhance

learning. In my mentor teachers classroom, she provides numerous resources. For independent

reading, the students have access to a yoga ball, reading mats and fun chairs to sit on while

reading. This adds a level of fun while also encouraging the students to focus on their reading as

they know that it is a privilege and if they aren’t focusing the teacher will give the ball, chair or

mat to another student who is focusing on their reading. For various math and ELA stations, the

materials are readily available for the students to get on their own if thy need them, whether

during stations or not. Lastly, There are 3 group tables in three corners of the room. We use these

for small group work. It provides enough space from the other groups so groups don’t distract

one another. It also makes transitioning easy as each group is told what table to go next.

While reviewing domain 2 to prepare for this paper, there is one important practice that I

find maximizes the classroom environment. As it applies to all of the aspects of domain 2, I

decided to discuss it separately. It is the importance of explicitly discussing everything I’ve

talked about with your students at the very beginning of the year. No two teachers manage their

classroom in the same way. Teachers use different callbacks to get their students attention,

procedures for transitioning, classroom rules, etc. By taking time at the beginning of the year to

go over how the classroom will be run for the whole year, students have a baseline understanding

of the expectations that are placed on them.

Managing a classroom in an effective manner is one of the most important aspects of

being a teacher. You could have the most thorough understanding of content and pedagogy and

be able to explain concepts in a way that every student can understand, but that means nothing if

the students behaviors are unmanaged. If students are distracted and not paying attention, they

simply will not be able to learn. Managing a classroom, on its face, may seem like it’s all about
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managing student behavior, but as we see in domain 2, there is so much more to it. Everything

from classroom procedures, transitions, materials and supplies, to setting expectations has a

major impact on maximizing student achievement.

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Work Cited
Domain 2: The Classroom Environment 12

Danielson, C. (2013). The Framework for Teaching Evaluation Instrument 2013 Edition.

Jason, Z. (2017). Bored Out of Their Minds. Retrieved from

https://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/ed/17/01/bored-out-their-minds

Yelling Doesn't Help, May Harm Adolescents, Pitt-Led Study Finds. (2013, September 4).

Retrieved from http://www.news.pitt.edu/news/yelling-doesn-t-help-may-harm-

adolescents-pitt-led-study-finds