Matthew Nichols

Intro to Ed

Nikki Buzzell-Garncia

10/23/17

Journal 2

During my time spent in Mr. Lees classroom at Wilton High School, I have picked up on

how he manages his classroom. Mr. Lee teaches history and economics to 8th and 9th graders. On

the spectrum of the caring classroom and the assertive classroom, his management strategies lean

towards an assertive setting. While he is adamant about rules and consequences, he also makes

positive reinforcement a integral part of his teaching.

Mr. Lee makes it clear to all his students his expectations both verbally and visually.

Alongside the learning objectives for the day, the behavioral expectations are listed on the board.

There have been very few instances of him correcting a student, but in the times that it has

occurred, it is usually a short reprimand to redirect attention to the lesson. In another instance a

few students were being very audible while another student was taking a test, which after the

correction it was no longer an issue. In discussion with the teacher, he says that he likes to be

very firm and strict at the beginning of the year, and ease up as the semester progresses. This

creates a situation where expectations are known, but trust can still be established.

While correction is rarely used, more commonly positive interaction is observed. While

taking a test, students would turn in their work at different paces then others. Mr. Lee would

grade the test that he had collected during this time and audible to the whole class congratulate a
student who performed perfectly on the exam. Another example of this is rather than call out

students who did not turn in their work, he congratulated students who managed to perform as

expected. From what I have observed, he does not have much problem with behavior in his

classroom, for as long as he has been teaching, I believe his strategy works for him.