Like many others have noted, I also like to avoid confrontation. However, classrooms are filled with different personalities; therefore, an issue of power will eventually arise at some point. It is important to note that we can take a proactive stance by not only building relationships with students, but by also empowering them. I could not agree more with Lisa. I truly believe that we – as teachers – can empower our students through creating a classroom environment filled with cooperative learning. I believe that students are empowered through cooperative learning activities because they become more active in their learning and it is their responsibility to choose how much of a role in the group activity they will contribute. In addition, students become empowered through participation in these activities because they are also helping the other members of their group or the members of the whole class learn. In addition to cooperative learning, I think it is important to give students choices. Bennett and Smilanich talk a lot about giving students behavioural choices (eg. “Please put the book in your desk or on mine. What is your decision?” or “You can work quietly together or you can both choose to have your seating arrangement changed until this assignment is complete” p. 230); although, I think it is just as important to provide students with choices in their academic work. For example, if students are asked to do some writing, I think it is best if teachers provide a universal topic (eg. Personal stories – memoirs) and then let the students individually choose their specific topics. In a Kindergarten classroom, choices can be as simple as choosing which coloured paper the student wants to use as the background colour for an art project.
I appreciate the fact that Bennett and Smilanich (on page 263) have provided us with the following sequence to diffuse power situations. Now, it is only a matter of being able to keep this sequence in mind when a power struggle arises.
1) Stop teaching and pause
2) Square off
3) Make eye contact
4) Take one or more deep breaths
5) Deal with any allies
6) Do or say something that shifts the locus of control
7) Pause and allow the student to save face
8) Bring closure to the interaction with an appropriate statement such as “Thank you” or “I appreciate it.”
2 comments:
For diffusing power in a power struggle, Bennett and Smilanich introduce some great strategies that might help teachers in classrooms situations as mentioned by Katrina. I previously shared with my group during my reading facilitation, a situation that actually came up in one of my classes and surprisingly these strategies were used accordingly. It was very surprising to me because at the moment, it seemed like the professor had recently read the book. I think that it is really important for educators to hold their composure even though at times it may be extremely difficult, in this case the professor did but everyone could sense the immense self-control and frustration that she was experiencing at the moment. I can surely agree that with the use of these strategies and the professor holding it all together, it prevented the situation from escalating and turning into a worse mess than it already was!
I really like the idea of introducing notebook writing by Boomer to promote empowerment. I think this can be fairly effective as students can use their pieces of writing about memories and experiences as a stepping-stone; this can lead students to inquire and critically think deeper about issues of political, economic, environmental, or even social injustices that are ongoing in the world that they live in.
Bomer*
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