“Thinking this way about classroom disruptions can involve a shift in a teacher’s whole approach towards students — away from thinking of them as problems to be controlled, and toward thinking of them as partners in achieving some common goals.” (Cushman, pg. 44)

Student teaching this semester has been heavy on classroom management and this article by Cushman really hit home. Each day my classroom is evidence that there is a power struggle going on between students and teachers. Students are insecure and irked because they feel that teachers are in control of power and that teachers are not to be trusted. More often than not students sabotage their own learning as well as that of the rest of the class by engaging in some kind of behavior that “restores” their power. Prior to this semester, I was rather unaware that this struggle was as real as it is at my school.

Cushman’s idea of conceptualizing students as partners to achieve a common goal has positives and negatives based on how I have seen it played out in my school. I like the idea of thinking of students as partners; it empowers them as young adults behind the wheel of their own education. However, my students are between 11-13 years old and many lack the critical thinking skills to balance the conflicting messages they receive from peers and peer pressure with knowing how act responsibly. Many times behavior is erratic and conflicting in and of itself and the idea of attempting to reason with erratic and irrational behavior is comparable to a landmine exploding during the delivery of a lesson.

I appreciated how the author highlighted the need to draw a link between problematic behavior and not achieving the goals of a class. Rather than simply calling out problematic behavior and assigning a punishment, quickly explain how the behavior “detracts from the goals of the class.” Doing so shows students that a teacher means business and is holding the class accountable to a previously agreed upon classroom norm rather than arbitrarily yelling at students.