Case Study #6

Causes
There are numerous underlying causes present in this case study issue. Firstly,
Mr. Basils instructions are compromised of you statements, not I statements
(Woolfolk et al 2013), therefore he is giving the students an option of how they should
act; he is not explicitly stating what he wants them to do. By saying, Would everyone
please be quiet and listen. Youre going to be doing some exercises and if you dont
listen, you wont know what to do, Mr. Basil is giving the students a yes/no option,
instead of telling them clearly and directly to be quiet and listen. Instead, Mr. Basil
should have said, I want you to be quiet and listen, utilizing I statements and direct
instruction. By doing so, he would have demonstrated effective teaching and optimizing
his instruction time. Mr. Basil exerted a passive response to the students chatting and
instead should have exerted an assertive response to prove to the students that he cares
too much about them and their learning to allow the chatting to persist. In addition to
using you statements as opposed to I statements, Mr. Basil did not wait for the students
to stop chatting and focus/listen back to him, and instead went quickly back into his
explanation. By not waiting long enough, Mr. Basil is demonstrating ineffective teaching
and poor control of the classroom. Instead, he is reinforcing to the students that they can
freely chat with one another and. It is evident that Mr. Basil is an ineffective teacher, as
outlined in Educational Psychology, because ineffective teachers never taught or
practiced rules or procedures (Woolfolk et al 2013) and because students talked to one
another because they had nothing productive to do (Woolfolk et al 2013).
It is also apparent that there is a lack of effective classroom management and

routines because the students chatted during his instruction and explanation not only
once, but twice, and within two minutes of each other. It is easy to assume that the
students chat over Mr. Basil often because of the proximity in time and frequency of
chatting in this case study. It can be strongly implied by the students freedom and
frequency to chat that there has rarely been any reinforcement to classroom chatter during
teacher instruction. If there were consequences to the students chatty behavior after the
first occurrence, then the students would not have begun chatting again during his
instruction for a second time, especially within two minutes. Student chatting for a
second time during Mr. Basils instruction also implies that there is a lack of respect from
the students towards their teacher, and that he has not demonstrated effective classroom
management, leadership, and control over the class. By chatting during Mr. Basils
instruction, the students are obtaining control over the classroom through their behavior
and are avoiding doing their work and learning.
It can be assumed that the classroom is an accepting and calm atmosphere
because the students feel comfortable chatting with one another and engaging in
discussion, however if the aim of classroom management is to maintain a positive,
productive learning environment, (Woolfolk et al 2013) then Mr. Basil has failed to
establish a positive and productive learning environment because his students are not on
task and are chatting instead.
Mr. Basil also gave up control of the class to the students when he stops his
lesson and instruction and tells them they should be quiet. This implies that Mr. Basil
does not work through the bumps of student misbehavior (Roscoe 2012) such as
moving closer to those chatting, or giving the teacher look, and instead stops his lesson

to address the misbehavior, but unfortunately never deals with the behavior directly and
effectively. Mr. Basil does not stop the chatting problem quickly (Woolfolk et al 2013) so
therefore, the students will continue to chat and the issue will get worse as time goes on.
There is evidence of extrinsic motivation when Mr. Basil tells the students that
they should be quiet and listen...if they dont listen they wont know what to do,
however, this extrinsic motivation to be quiet and listen only lasts for two minutes
because the students return back to chatting during his instruction. Mr. Basil does not
instill intrinsic motivation in his students, which is clearly evident by the fact that they
would rather chat with one another than listen to his lesson and actively engage in the
learning. It can also be assumed in this case study that Mr. Basil may not create engaging
and fun lessons for his students that actively engage them in the learning process.
Action Plan
Goal: The students will listen and respect the teacher and one anothers learning
when instruction is taking place.
Following the repeated disruptions of classroom chatter during his instruction, Mr.
Basil begins to reflect on the issues that were present in his class and begins to think
about how he can improve his classroom climate. During this time Mr. Basil realizes that
at the beginning of the year he never established rules and behavior expectations for his
Grade 6 classroom. Perhaps Mr. Basil assumed the students were conditioned to behave
in a particular manner in the classroom and never realized that he would have to instill a
set of rules and expectation. Mr. Basil realized that he needed to work on his classroom
management skills to reestablish his leadership and control over the classroom. While
reflecting, Mr. Basil also began to realize that the students were talking to one another

during instruction because they were not engaged in his lessons, and he decided that he
would try to make his lesson more engaging and interesting for his students. By
reflecting on his lesson, Mr. Basil is exhibiting KSA #15 because he is demonstrating the
importance of career-long learning. Mr. Basil came up with an action plan he would
implement in his classroom to combat this issue:
1.

Discussion with Students

After a period of reflection, Mr. Basil discusses with his Grade 6 class that they
are misbehaving by chatting during his instruction. He addresses the entire
class and ensures that he does not single out any students. Mr. Basil discusses
the prominent issue of the lack of respect the students are showing for one
another and for him and the issue of chatting during teacher instruction. Mr.
Basil is aware of his stance and body language and makes sure to speak clearly
and directly to the students using I statements. By reflecting on his own
teaching abilities and how he can develop his skills to benefit his students, Mr.
Basil is demonstrating KSAs 15 and 16.

2.

Create Classroom Rules and Expectations

Mr. Basil spends the next period of class explicitly stating his expectations of
student behavior and creates a list of classroom rules with the students.
Together, they will create their own classroom rules and expectations. Rules
should be positive and observable (Woolfolk et all 2013). When students are
involved in creating their own classroom rules and expectations, the students
learn what it means to be part of a socially responsible community (Woolfolk
et al 2013). Creating classroom rules with the students exemplifies KSA 9-

there are many approaches to teaching and learning because he includes all of
his students in the process and employs various learning and teaching
strategies. By including the students in a class discussion on their behavior and
in creating the classroom rules, Mr. Basil is also demonstrating KSAs 7, 8,
because he is including the students, respecting their opinions and maintaining
their dignity, and because they are working together to maintain a safe and
positive learning environment. In addition, it is important that Mr. Basils
newly formed class rules exemplify participating structures, which are the
rules defining who can talk; what they can talk about; and when, to whom, and
how long they can talk for consequences must be decided upon as rules and
procedures are being created (Woolfolk et al 2013) in the case of this specific
case study.
3.

Clarification
In the following days and weeks after creating classroom rules and
expectations, Mr. Basil will continuously remind students of the rules and
consistently refer back to them. To assist in clarifying the classroom rules and
expectations, he will post the rules around the classroom for clarity and
reference.

4.

Implement and deal with behaviors when they appear (consequences):

Due to the previous lack of classroom rules and structure, the students may
forget and/or rebel against the new classroom rules. Therefore, they will need
extra clarification and guidance from Mr. Basil during this transitional period.
The implementation of these new rules will be less disruptive if the students

feel physically, socially, culturally, and psychologically secure in the classroom

environment. The implementation of these new rules should increase the
students comfortability and reaffirm their security by creating expectations and
routines for the students to follow, also demonstrating KSA 7. It is important
that Mr. Basil deals with all chatting misbehavior when they arise. Mr. Basil
will work through the bumps of dealing with student misbehavior such as
moving closer to the student(s) that is/are talking, give the teacher look
(Roscoe 2012), or even directly tell the student to quiet and listen. Mr. Basils
consequences may include contacting parents if the chatting issue persists to
inform them of their childs misbehavior. On the other hand, Mr. Basil can also
provide rewards and positive reinforcements to the students for listening well
and being quiet during instruction.
5.

Maintain
Mr. Basil will continue to implement and reinforce the classroom rules and
expectations when behaviors appear. He will be consistent with reinforcement
and reminding the students of their rules and expectations. Continually and
consistently repeating the rules will help the students to understand what is
expected of them and will also create a more secure learning environment
(KSA 7 and 8). With clearly set out expectations and rules, both the students
and the teacher will maintain a mutual respect for one another and will not be
blindsided by unexpected punishments. Mr. Basil will keep working on the
implementation of these rules and modify them when needed as he learns more
about the different learners in the classroom in an effort to communicate his

classroom vision (KSA 9 and 16).

Reflection
As stated above in step 4, some students may rebel against new classroom rules
and expectations, therefore it is important that Mr. Basil continuously refers back to the
rules and follows through with his consequences. On the other hand, some students may
respond very positively to the new classroom climate and structure because they had been
craving a structure in their learning environment that was previously nonexistent. By
implementing this action plan and the 5 steps stated above, the learning climate of the
classroom will flourish from an ineffective and distracting atmosphere to an effective
classroom and positive learning environment that has the students working. It is
important to note that the students are aware of the rules and expectations, but only Mr.
Basil is aware of the consequences and reinforcements to the rules.
Most importantly, if classroom rules and expectations were created in the first
week of school, then this case study problem would have been prevented in the first place
and would have most likely never occurred. Woolfolk et al state that, the ideal way to
manage problems, of course, is to prevent them in the first place (2013). As stated in
Educational Psychology and in the Causes above, effective teachers focus on
establishing rules, procedures, and expectations on the first day of class and continued
to spend quite a bit of time teaching rules and procedures throughout the first weeks of
the school year. As Mr. Basil works through the rules and procedures through the first
couple of weeks after addressing the issue and creating rules and expectations, his
students will begin to chat less and work more because there is effective classroom

management in place and because the students know what he is expected of their
behavior.

Information sourced from:

Roscoe, K., (2012). An Introduction to Curriculum & Instruction. Victoria, Canada:
Metropolitan Publisher
Woolfolk, A., Winne, P., & Perry, N. (2010). Educational Psychology (5th ed.). Toronto,
Ontario: Pearson Canada
Woolfolk, A., Winne, P., & Perry, N. (2013). Educational Psychology (6th ed.). Toronto,
Ontario: Pearson Canada.