Education is an art, not a science. Art must start with high expectations and adaptability for students to learn. Standards, expectations, and positive classroom management play integral parts in this educational journey and can impact students greatly. High standards need to come from the teacher and the students, each pushing each other beyond expectations. Both have a responsibility to push each other to achieve, which leading to success.
Preparation from both can take many forms:
Creating an engaging curriculum that offers a variety of opportunities for practice and success which could include direct learning, cooperative groups, project-based learning, team teaching, cross-curricular units, portfolio, and self-reflection. Both will increase their knowledge base and will help with not become stagnant. Both should be seeking aid and thoughts from mentors, professors, and people in the community. Committee hours for assistance each other, parent communication, and extracurricular activities involving the whole class or part of it as needed.
Researching, then choosing a classroom model that fits teaching style and age appropriateness.
Student and professor need to read and search topics for discussions before getting into a class. Each should try to find details that will surprise, surpass, context to prior knowledge to make a subject more interesting to the class. Each topic is discussed should be connected to other topics, both within the class, other classes, and the real world. Challenge each other, leads to all involved reach new heights in their learning. Team learning includes admitting and taking responsibility for mistakes, which creates a safe atmosphere to take risks. We all are capable of going beyond each paradigm to find success. It a dysfunction to our students, when the class exceptions are less because of busy schedules, family life, special needs, hard circumstances, or anything for the outside of academia. Teaching to the individual with everyone challenging that specific student helps to pushes expectations and gains self-esteem as well as academic progress for all.
A positive classroom makes it safe and free from barriers to learning. Professors need to model taking risks, so students can see professors working on projects as well. Classroom examples and everyone doing projects from students to professor alike. Everyone should be comfortable taking risks within this safe environment.
Education is inevitably a well-thought mental process. This journey is so important to learning and planning is essential. Creating progressive curriculum, and a safe, positive classroom allow the dream of learning to take places all around. "Success is a journey, not a destination." (Sweetland, 2001).
