TESL 100 - Unit 7 reflection pt.2 - Classroom environment

During Unit 7, the authors discuss the importance of the classroom environment and its impact on both the teacher and the learner (Brown & Lee, 2015, p.291).  I am purposely making a post to discuss this topic because I find it is a very important aspect of teaching and learning. The book discusses the importance of comfort, lack of external distractions, organization, temperature, and lack of internal distractions to the success of a learning environment and learning experience.  In my own classroom, I attempt to organize the room in a way that everyone can see the black/whiteboard and see whoever is instructing the class at that time. Through a combination of trying to keep the room at a good temperature (which can be difficult in old or poorly insulated buildings), keeping the external distractions of the rest of the school out, and preventing stuff like chairs squeaking and tables wobbling has helped to keep my students’ attention.  Not all of the positive learning environment is based on non-human factors though. I attempt to create positive relationships with my students and attempt to provide a large amount of positive feedback for every piece of negative feedback I give in the hopes of creating a relationship that will encourage the students to work hard and learn to the best of their abilities. This positive relationship also creates trust between us that will convince students to attempt to learn something new even if they don’t see the usefulness of the material immediately. Even the smallest change or problem in the classroom environment can impact the learner and experience. For example, I have students that cannot work if their desk is the slightest bit lopsided. They will be distracted from that and miss important information or work that needs to be done. The same thing goes for if a student does not feel like they are working in a positive environment, they will not be motivated to work or be stressed by reactions and assessments.

Many schools are starting to use a flexible classroom. I find it is an interesting concept for a classroom, though I am wondering how it would work with adults. Here is a quick resource video about a flexible classroom:

Albemarle County Public Schools. (2015, August 3). Flexible Classrooms: Providing the learning environment that kids need [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cscJcRKYxA

Brown, D. & Lee H. (2015). Teaching by Principles: An interactive approach to language pedagogy. White Plains, NY: Pearson Education, Inc.