Below is a paper have been working on for grad school. It skims the surface of some goals my school has for how to better implement our curriculum and increase student achievement: classroom learning environment. How can we shape a supportive school culture?
Somehow, within every classroom, curriculum is transformed from a one-dimensional document into a pathway towards the acquisition of state and county standards. There are many factors which impact this pathway, including “physical, cultural, temporal, economic, organizational, political-legal, and personal … that can make or break a curriculum” (Posner, 2004, p. 191). These “frame factors” play a vital role in decisions regarding how resources are managed and utilized during curriculum implementation. These decisions can either foster or impede student growth.
During development, a curriculum must acknowledge all frame factors in order to be successful. One frame factor, which greatly impacts student-centered learning, is that of culture. Posner states that “a curriculum depends on two different sets of cultural factors, the culture within the school and the culture of the community in which the school exists” (Posner, 2004, p. 200). Positive, child centered interactions among staff, students, and parents can construct a strong school culture. While this is vital, so too is the culture formed within each classroom; the classroom learning environment. At the root of an effective classroom learning environment one will observe the student cognition paradigm. Waxman and Huang (1997) state that this idea “maintains that how students perceive and react to their learning tasks and classroom instruction may be more important in terms of influencing student outcomes than the observed quality of teaching behaviors” (p.14).
The effects of classroom learning environment can be noted in research performed by Waxman and Huang, documented in an article entitled, Classroom Instruction and Learning Environment Differences between Effective and Ineffective Urban Elementary Schools for African American Students. This study focused on student outcomes, related to classroom learning environments. Waxman and Huang noticed that, “despite being located in economically poor neighborhoods and communities, some schools do exceptionally well,” and that is it important to “know why these schools succeed while similar schools from equally stressful environments do not” (p. 8). Systematic classroom observation within a set of eight urban elementary schools, randomly picked from a south central metropolitan region in the United States, lead this study’s data collection. In addition to this, student surveys “that examined their motivation and perceptions of their learning environment,” were completed by 914 students (p. 21). Waxman and Huang set out to understand how the frame factor of classroom learning environment, directly effects the implementation of curriculum and as a result, student achievement.
How a student perceives the support he or she is receiving, or not, plays a large role in the classroom learning environment. In addition to this factor, Pickett and Fraser (2010), within their article entitled, Creating and Assessing Positive Classroom Learning Environments, note other ideals that construct a classroom learning environment. These ideals include:
Student Cohesiveness: Extent to which students know, help, and are supportive of one another.
Teacher Support: Extent, to which the teacher helps, befriends, trusts, and is interested in students.
Involvement: Extent to which students have attentive interest, participate in discussions, do additional work, and enjoy the class.
Investigation: Emphasis on the skills and process of inquiry and their use in problem solving and investigation.
Task Orientation: Extent to which it is important to complete activities planned and to stay focused on the subject matter.
Cooperation: Extent to which students cooperate rather than compete with one another on learning tasks.
Equity: Extent to which students are treated equally by the teacher. (p. 322)
Waxman and Huang note one final ideal of a classroom learning environment which played a major role in the outcome of their study. This ideal is that of rule clarity; the extent to which rules are clearly stated in their class and the students are aware of the consequences of breaking the rules.
When one contemplates a traditional style of teaching, he or she may agree with Posner that this environment entails “teacher-centered instruction employing lecture and recitation methods in whole-group settings” (Posner, 2004, p. 202). This structure of classroom learning environment was found by Waxman and Huang to denote ineffective implementation of the curriculum. “One of the most important findings in this study,” is related to the “amount and types of interactions that were found in the classrooms,” between students and teachers (p.30). In ineffective schools, it was found that students interacted with teachers less than 33% of the time, and spent a majority of instruction in a generally passive manner (i.e. watching or listening). In stark contrast, students in effective schools interacted with teachers 60% of the time and were observed working more in individualized settings. Students within effective schools, as concluded from student surveys, perceived their classroom as a positive learning environment and also noted higher motivation than students in ineffective schools.
The way in which a teacher establishes his or her classroom learning environment can pave way to active acquisition of the curriculum through planned learning experiences. By fostering student-centered talk and support, the implementations of curriculum truly becomes three-dimensional as students question and gather information in an active state. In contrast to this, a teacher-centered learning environment, in which students passively listen and recite information, does little to promote learning outcomes. This frame factor greatly influences how curriculum is implemented in classrooms across the country. A classroom with clear learning expectations, rules, support, and cooperative communication can mold the implementation of a curriculum into an active, fun, and engaging experience.
References
Pickett, L., & Fraser, B. (2010). Creating and assessing positive classroom learning environments. Childhood Education, 86(5), 3-14.
Posner, G. (2004). Analyzing the curriculum. New York: McGraw Hill.
Waxman, H., & Huang, S. (1997). Classroom instruction and learning environment differences between effective and ineffective urban elementary schools for african american students. Urban Education, 32, 7-44.
Shift Happens. 