Students are better able to take the needed risks for growth when they feel safe and listened to in their classroom. The more at ease they feel, the greater the potential for success in the future. Consequently, the classroom needs to be a healthy environment for all participants. Developing a community of support is the best way to ensure success.
How Maple Grove Provides a Healthy Environment?
Students need to see themselves as part of the classroom. They need to understand that what they are learning is relevant to their lives and deepen their understanding by interacting with the content being taught. To do this properly, the following components are essential to best optimize a healthy classroom.
Safety
Everyone in the class needs to feel safe. Students need to know that no physical harm will come their way. Emotionally, students need to feel accepted and know that they are accepted for who they are. The classroom should be clean, and students should have access to needed materials. Routines and protocols must be in place so that participants know what to expect in their classroom. All classrooms are under 24×7 CCTV surveillance.
Values Students’ Choices
A key component for students to take charge of their learning is to be involved in decision-making. If students are able to make decisions, then they will feel more invested in their choices. This can range from a variety of decisions depending on the content. A shared ownership help students to be involved and it is in our best efforts to make them feel like an essential part of the classroom resulting in a healthier environment.
If an unhealthy atmosphere exists, student learning becomes more difficult. Without a safe environment, students are too worried about their wellbeing to focus on learning. If people do not feel a part of the room, they will feel further removed from the process, not see themselves represented, and will have a harder time connecting with their learning. Without having input on their studies, students become passive receivers of content, and the lack of knowledge depth will reduce retention and motivation. Simply put, our teachers and staff makes sure that students see themselves and believe they are part of a healthy community to make the most gains.
Ways to Create a Healthy Classroom Environment
Maple Grove focuses on clear strategies to apply to assist in creating and maintaining a healthy atmosphere in a classroom.
Classroom Rules and Expectations
If students know what to expect while in the classroom, the more comfortable and safer they will be. Clearly defined expectations and rules makes it clear for every student how to behave and how the rest of the staff will act. This helps to develop a trusting, predictable environment for all. Involving students in the creation of class expectations allows further buy-in as students see their role in the development of their community. In addition, phrasing the rules as action items sets a tone of what behaviors are encouraged. For example, instead of “Don’t talk when others are speaking”, phrasing it as “listen to one another” tells students what to do, focusing on the proper behavior.
Student Choice
We strongly believe that when students have a say in their learning, they feel more comfortable. Student choice can happen in many ways – from a choice of tool, how to present information (written, visual, oral presentation, art project), or even within the content being studied (i.e. choose any character from history, media, or a book and discuss the impact on the essential learning target). It can also be as simple as pick any eight math problems to do, choose where you want to sit or even stand! In a healthy environment, the teacher shares control with the students. Students respond by making decisions that matter to them, resulting in increased learning.
Flexibility
Procedures and routines help students know what to expect. However, we all know that things are never routine! Embracing those unplanned events promotes flexible thinking and a positive response to change. Whether it is a global pandemic, an unexpected fire alarm, or a teaching point that students struggle to understand, adjusting to the situation allows students to see that it is possible to encounter and deal with change.
At Maple Grove World School, we don’t only set a higher standard for your child’s education and a better future but also prepare them for when they enter in a less guarded environment. When feeling safe, everyone performs better. As a community, developing a healthy classroom environment allows for clear expectations, enhances opportunities for learning, and allows for risk-taking in a safe manner for students. Allowing students to see themselves within their education and the power to have choices for their learning will yield a better outcome for all. We take immense proud in our open thinking and a different way of educating that sets as apart from the rest of the institutions in the neighborhood, resulting in making “Maple Grove the best teaching academy in the district”.
