TeacherReads discussion

Q1. In this chapter, Burgess states that in his opinion and experience an engaged student is rarely a behaviour problem. Would you agree? Share an experience.
Q2. "An uptight and stiff teacher leads to an uptight and stiff class". What do you think the word 'stiff' means in this statement?
Q3. Some may say that PIRATE is more about entertainment. Do you think entertaining assists with engagement?
Q4. 'My class has been specially designed for them to be successful'. Do you want students and parents to distinguish your class from others in the school? Do you think some teachers may feel threatened if this occurs?

confession: I'm still waiting for my book to arrive hehe but....

1. I generally find engaged students are less likely to cause disruptions or be behaviourally challenging and when you think about it this makes sense - if they are engaged in something then hopefully that activity will keep their interest. I had a challenging child last year - sadly labelled 'unteachable' by his old school :( we worked really hard on his behaviour - ridiculously so haha - but I found when I could base activities around his passions (motocross mainly) his engagement would improve as well as his behaviour. This really helped develop our relationship too which of course made things easier :)

2. I think a stiff teacher in this context means rigid and inflexible - incapable of embracing change or straying from a safe secure & comfortable path of what they know...but that's just my interpretation

3. I might wait until I've read the book to do this one! :)

4. There is definitely a certain pride that you take in having a classroom that is distinguishable from others - it makes you feel good about what you are doing and that you in some way you are 'leading the way'...however it is quite possible some teachers may feel threatened by that. My two main thoughts on that are...

a) teaching is not a competition - we should be there to support each other and to share our ideas (including classroom layouts/presentation) etc. If you can help out another teacher I think we should :) and if someone compares your classroom to another accept it graciously while finding something to compliment that other class on - definitely don't draw the comparisons yourself unless you want to put everyone offside :)

b) the flip side to that is you should never feel pressured into dumbing down or scaling back your efforts in the classroom just for the benefit of someone else. Your classroom is YOUR classroom haha it's your chance to showcase your incredible talents and passions :) raising the standards of your classroom will encourage others to do so too - instead of having to cater to the lowest common denominator all the time...all in all I say go for it - who cares what other people think (although publicly we can be mindful of their thoughts haha) if you have a vision for your class you have to stick to it no matter what others may say or think :)

My thoughts on this chapter are summarised here http://wp.me/p3DBDk-C
I had quite a strong response to this chapter

As I read TLAP I find myself wondering about entertainment and engagement and whether they are the same thing or different. I have had an experience with a parent who continually told me her child was misbehaving in class because he was not engaged but when she talked about the sorts of things I could do in class to engage him she was talking about him needing to be entertained. When ever the learning got tough for this child and he had to put in effort he would go home and say he was bored and I'd get a terse email from the parent. Hmmm, entertainment? engagement? effort? I have lots of wonderings about this topic.

I agree Carolyn - I don't think engagement & entertainment are the same thing (though not necessarily mutually exclusive either). There are many teachers who engage their students in learning without having to utilise (dare I say) 'over the top' forms of entertainment. That said there is probably something to be said for striking some sort of combination of the two - even if its only 10% entertainment. Everyone is different I guess and what may not have worked for that one student (according to mum anyway) might have worked perfectly well for ten other students :)

I have to admit, this chapter of the book made me feel uncomfortable. Most teachers I know are extroverts. You have to be to get up in front of a class everyday, but you don't have to be to teach well. Not everyone can be a stand on the table, fly around like a plane type of teacher. What you do has to be authentic for you. I am a bit of a performer but you don't have to be. A teacher in my faculty had a sign on his wall. "Education is not entertainment" and for him it wasn't, it did not suit who he was or how he delivered his classes but his students learned, respected him and were in no way more behaviourally challenging than the next class.

Rapport is not about popularity, coolness or how much fun your class is.

I strongly reject the concept that if your lesson is engaging then you will not have behaviour problems. To quote: "Misbehaviour usually indicates boredom, overwhelm or lack of connection to the material being covered." Clearly he hasn't taught Science to a behavioural disorder class. Even with 'regular' classes, I have taught the same lesson with two different classes in the same year and had very different levels of engagement with each group.

And where is his data. This is merely anecdotal. It is the authors perception that his students are having a good time and like him.

This was my gut reaction. But as a drifted off to sleep that night, I tried to consider what he was saying under all the house lights and grease paint.

Day 1: do an activity that allows students to express who they are. Learn their names and get them to learn one another's, set up a safe environment. I prefer 'Be Kind' to 'This is a no-meanness zone'
Day 2: do a group activity - I prefer to use group job cards. We do this a lot in science as all prac work is done as a group
Day 3: explain how you are going to teach them and why.

When I removed the razzle dazzle, this chapter made more sense to me. I do a version of this in my first week anyway. What I do know is I would hate being in this class because this level of razzle dazzle puts me in a state of agitation. Just like this chapter did!

See my post above for the link to my blog about this chapter for some more of my thoughts on this chapter.

Jenny wrote: "My thoughts on this chapter are summarised here http://wp.me/p3DBDk-C
I had quite a strong response to this chapter"

Thank you for posting your thoughts. I really like the way you were able to engage with something, that you initially didn't like, and then still process it to look for learnings. I find the reflective nature of your journalling very encouraging.

Some really interesting discussion. My thought would be that EVERY teacher MUST be entertaining if they are to engage a class... the difference is that every teacher will be entertaining in their own way (entertaining doesn't have to be "over the top theatrical"!).