~Educators understand and apply knowledge of student growth and development~
I thoroughly enjoyed learning more and more about classroom management as well as the need of my students at various stages in high school. I believe one of the most interesting things I experienced in teaching grades 8-12 throughout the course of all three of my practicums, was drastically different levels of social, emotional, physical, and academic growth and development between each age. High school can be an extremely trying and awkward time for many teens, and it is only amplified by being constantly surrounded by other students in a competitive environment.
In my grade 9 Social Studies class I came across a difficult student to deal with based on his designation, IEP, and relationship with other students in the class. In general, grade 9 is a very tough and diverse time emotionally and academically, with many students at significantly different stages in their growth and development. This student had a “gifted” designation but also an IEP (mild learning disability). While this student was not as developed academically (reading and writing) as other students, he was emotionally and physically more developed than most of the students, making him very popular. The combination of his designation, IEP, and social status made him and extremely difficult student to deal with as he would try to leverage either his designation or IEP in order to get out of doing work, in an attempt to re-do work/tests, and/or in an attempt to receive adaptations or modifications that his IEP did not call for. In the past, if the teacher did not adhere to his wishes, he would then band the students together in the class to do drastic things like sign petitions against the teacher or spread rumours about the teacher. His actions had come quite manipulative and malicious, and were becoming quite problematic and disruptive to the rest of the class. When I entered the class I immediately noticed the influence he has on the rest of his classmates. With the previous information in mind, I set out to plan a unit that was inclusive and diverse for all learning styles so that not only he, but the rest of the class would have lots of options to match their learning style. I created a unit that allowed students to express their learning in ways that played to their strengths (interactive notebook and interactive timeline) so that everyone in the class felt that their needs were being met (including the student with a designation and IEP). I also made sure to familiarize myself with this students’ IEP in case he had any questions about the work being assigned to him. After familiarizing myself with this students’ IEP, I also made sure to make criteria and instructions extremely clear. Both of these strategies came in handy later on in the quarter as this student did have many questions and a bit of push back about what was required from him. Because I was very confident about my expectations as well as his, I was able to clearly explain to him the purpose and outcome of each assignment in a way that did not allow him to argue against. Being certain of expectations, criteria, and the WHY was perhaps the best strategy because when purpose and meaning became clear to this student he no longer felt the need to push back, or maybe simply felt that his argument was no longer valid.
This experience definitely tested my knowledge of student growth and development. Dealing with emotional groups of teenagers can be a trying and testing thing to do, but acknowledging the developmental stage of life they are in can make all the difference. Remembering what it is like to feel insecure, unsure, and awkward in a time where everything is constantly changing can become not only an important practice in empathy, but can lend insight to difficult situations.