HEATHER EVE

ASU Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College

Management
Plan

Table of Contents
Self Introduction.......................................................................................
Classroom Layout....................................................................................
Procedures..............................................................................................
Discipline Strategies................................................................................

Self Introduction
A brief summary of my educational background and what has
inspired me to become a teacher

he high school that I graduated from (Alhambra High School) was an inner city
public school of more than two thousand students; it was surrounded by a sixfoot tall iron fence and if there wasnt an actual fight or a riot happening each
week, then there were rumors of at least five of them. It was the kind of place
that Hollywood likes to make dramatic, heartwarming movies about. From my
perspective, however, things didnt seem nearly as bad as others made them out to
beI enjoyed coming to school, I stayed extra hours to participate in activities with
my friends, and I rarely felt threatened while on campus. In fact, I spent so much
time there that I realized I had quite a knack for teaching and leading other
teenagers.
My name is Heather Arvizu; at first glance one might not assume that I am a Math
teacher at heart (I am quite positive that my major in Political Science is a red
herring), but I have always been passionate about developing the ability to analyze
and think logicallyboth in myself and in others around me. I firmly believe that,
more than anything else, this ability prepares an individual for the challenges of
what we adults are so fond of calling the real world. The time that I spent
working with my peers in high school inspired this belief, and my experiences as a
leader in the United States Army only served to confirm it. By the time I left the
military, I was more than ready to teach young people how to think rationally.

Although many other individuals who come from a diverse, impoverished neighborhood
similar to the one that I grew up in would be anxious to leave it behind, I am
not. In fact, I feel the opposite: I look forward to returning to my old
community in order to show the young adults there that success is tangible. I
would like to embody a contrast to the crowd of jaded, disenfranchised faculty
in those high schools whose teaching styles and discipline methods are still in
the 1990s. I hope to introduce a unique, direct style of instruction that makes
the material pertinent to the students. Instead of creating false hopes or
overenthusiastic optimism, I will bring them reason, realistic application, and
the opportunity to experience learning that is meaningful. Students who walk
into my classroom expecting to memorize and repeat information will instead
learn to analyze, deduce, and draw their own conclusions.

Classroom Layout
This section provides a visual representation of the ideal
classroom, along with an explanation of why certain
items or furniture should be arranged in that way

FIGURE 2.1 An example of an ideal classroom layout (preferably for use with
mathematics classes)

tudents will be seated in pairs in order to encourage cooperation and collaboration

on in-class assignments. The majority of the desks will face the front of the
classroom (away from the door) directly, and the remainder will be at an angle that
will allow them to see both the projector screen and the supplemental white boards.
Computers will be available for students to use during free time for research or
project development. Textbooks, research material, reading books, and graphing
calculators will be stored on bookcases (graphing calculators will be monitored and

checked in/out to prevent theft). Trash cans are located on both sides of the
classroom door (including one that is near the teachers desk) for students to use
when they enter or exit the room.
The projector screen will face the door directly (the projector will be attached to the
ceiling above the center of the classroom). This will allow the instructor to teach
from the front of the room, with the projector screen (or SMARTboard) behind
him/her and a white board readily available as well. A podium will also be at the
front of the room for any teaching materials. Supplemental white boards will be
located around the room for use as teaching aids. Bulletin boards will be used
around the classroom (primarily above bookcases) to keep students posted on
upcoming events or school policies. A calendar will also be posted with all
assignment deadlines marked. The remaining wall space will be used for hanging
up humorous posters that pertain to the class material or disciplinary procedures.
The teachers desk will be located in the back of the classroom, near the door. A
single computer or laptop will be on the desk, along with a turn-in basket for
assignments. A filing cabinet for student work and information will be located
against the wall behind the teachers desk, and assorted paper trays for student
assignments (labeled) will be located on top of the filing cabinet. This will aid in
preventing the loss of a students work. A stapler, pencil sharpener, and selection of
mechanical pencils (to minimize disruptions due to sharpening pencils) will be
available for students and located on the teachers desk.
The primary goal of this layout is to position each student where they can easily read
and understand all teaching aids. The secondary goal is to ensure that each student
has at least one other student nearby that they can work with in order to enhance or
increase understanding of content. The placement of additional featuressuch as
bookcases, computer tables, and trash cans is based upon the goal of creating the
most floor space; this allows both the students and the instructor to maneuver
throughout the classroom safely.

Procedures
A detailed account of various classroom procedures that I
plan to implement

ost classes (barring certain exceptions) will begin with a brief response to a
writing prompt (either a quote, a reflection, or a question regarding the
weeks lesson). For math classes, I plan to do this as well, as I feel that the
maintenance and development of writing skills is incredibly important.
However, these prompts will be alternated with bellwork that includes 3-5 problems
that either prepare the class for the days lesson, or test them on particular concepts
that they struggled with in prior lessons. The class will discuss the bellwork as a
group, and the students will submit their work immediately afterward, in lieu of roll
call.

All assignments will be kept in trays behind my (the teachers) desk. They will be in
stacks of five, for each class hour: Homework To Be Graded, Graded Homework,
Assignments To Be Graded, Graded Assignments, and No Name. Students will be
responsible for submitting their work into the turn-in basket on the teachers desk
before the due dates, and I will sort them into the proper trays. Larger projects will
be collected and returned directly. I will collect late work by hand, on a case-bycase basis. Late work will also be prescribed a penalty via automatic grade
deduction, depending on the assignment and the number of days late.
Grading will be done using a one-to-one scoring system. The points will be divided
roughly as follows:
30% of the points from exams, tests, or cumulative assessments
20% from special projects
20% from assignments completed in class
15% from assignments completed as homework
15% from attendance and participation

Additionally, extra credit points may be made available to students in rare

circumstances (such as for demonstrating comprehension of a difficult topic,
extraordinary presentation skills, or completion of additional homework problem
sets/critical thinking challenges). This scoring system will allow the students to
easily calculate their current grade in the class, as well as what score(s) they will
need to attain on any future assignment(s) in order to achieve their desired grade.
These grades will be sent home to the students parents once every eight weeks (or
once every quarter, whichever is sooner). At the beginning of the year, I will send
home a brief summary of my procedures and expectations; this document will
include a place for parents to leave their home address, e-mail address, or phone
number for contact purposes. If possible, I will also work towards holding parentoriented nights once per semester, where they can meet with me or view their
students progress in my class.

Discipline Strategies
A plan for creating and upholding expectations in my
classroom

he discipline structure of a classroom is what creates and defines the learning

environment throughout the entire school year: even minor behavior problems that
interfere with any students ability to learn can disrupt scheduled lesson plans and
decrease student performance on assessments. The most reliable way to
circumvent these issues is to establish classroom standards on the first day of school,
and uphold them every day thereafter.

My personal discipline strategy is built on two principles: young adults will act like
adults (in other words, they will choose to make mature, rational decisions) when
they are treated like adults, and any consequences should act as remedial
treatment/training for the inappropriate behavior.
The first part of this two-part philosophy is the idea that students (particularly high
school students) should be treated as adultsbefore their behavior proves whether
they deserve to be or not. This is best done by implementing a democratic system
of rule and consequence development, and offering them choices when their
behavior does violate established standards. This is also known as student
empowerment, which parallels a discipline approach developed by Maria
Montessori. Students will have the opportunity to publicly acknowledge which
behaviors are inappropriate in the classroom, and then nominate what forms of
punishment (or consequences) will be the most suitable for each situation. This
democratic process will be overseen by the instructor (me, in this scenario) in order
to ensure that the behaviors chosen are indeed deserving of negative consequences,
and that the consequences nominated by the class match the infractions. In this way,
when any student does violate one of the standards they will be held accountable
both because they were full aware of the rule (they helped choose it) and they aided
in choosing the disciplinary action.

In addition to the democratic process of creating standards, students should also be given a
first warning choice of consequences when they violate standards. An
example of this (in a situation where a student is leaving graffiti on desks) is to
offer the choice between detention where they must clean the desks, or to write a
short essay about the impact of graffiti on a city. Having the ability to choose
between two different consequences allows the student to feel as if they are
taking responsibility for themselves, and that they are not just acting on the
command of teachers. Even in a situation where they have broken a rule, this
feeling of empowerment is significant and can impact the decisions that they
make in the future.
It should be noted that, although the charter of rules and consequences will be drafted
by each class, there are certain rules (or standards) that I will not allow them to
overlook or leave out. They are as follows:

No physical violence
No harassment (gender, race, religion, disability, appearance, or otherwise)
Listen to and respect the instructor or presenter

The second part of my discipline philosophy is one of the most common sense
approaches, although it is rarely applied in schools. Consequences for violations or
infractions should be related to the behavior that was deemed inappropriate in the
first place; this is the most effective method for the student to learn the impact of
their actions. Sitting for an hour in detention, doing nothing, does not teach a
student why they should not talk back to a member of the faculty. Spending a day at
home playing video games is unlikely to teach a student why they should not fight
with another student. These types of behaviors, as well as most (if not all) others
should be followed up with consequences that directly relate to the action. Research
papers are effective methods for teaching about rude or disrespectful behavior. Civil
service assignments are effective methods for teaching students not to steal or
destroy property.
By combining the democratic process of nominating standards and penalties with a
system that matches behaviors to meaningful consequences, all students (including
those who may have a learning disability or physical handicap) will be included.
The policies generated by this plan will apply to every student and occasion, barring
extremely unique circumstances.

The purpose of this design is to inspire both the desire and the ability to think rationally.
Creating standards and penalties forces students to analyze realistic situations in
order to deduce which ones will or will not be appropriate. These skills are
enhanced when they must decide the specific consequence and the severity of its
application. By fulfilling the requirements of a consequence that pertains to the
infraction, they are provided the opportunity to make connections and draw
conclusions about their behavior. The development of these skills will help them
in the classroom, where they will be required to analyze and draw conclusions
while working with course material.