Teacher Controlled vs. Student Centered Classrooms Prompt 2

This statement, "Teaching with a lot of control is easy. Handing control over to the students, and planning for every possible outcome, adapting instruction where they take it is, is extremely difficult, but worth it." is very true. A teacher can plan how they are going to teach a lesson, they can have goals, and things they want to achieve throughout the lesson. However, they will not know exactly how this lesson will go over until it is actually going on, and the teacher can see how the children are responding. The students are in control of how fast a lesson goes, or how in depth the teacher must go because the teacher is working to convey the information to them. This shows a teacher using the students as a resource, and determining the pace of the classroom. This shows how a classroom grows because a teacher allows the students to learn the material, and build from this. Planning is essential, but it can't be the only method in teaching. A teacher must let the students be in some type of control in order to learn the material. 

In my fieldwork experience, I can see that the teacher is in control of introducing the topics to the class, and beginning the flow of information. A teacher is in charge of starting the learning, and beginning the process of the students understanding. For example, in my class, Mrs. Mullen began by teaching multiplication as repeated addition, and showing how they compare. She started by bringing up something the children know, and relating it to a new concept. She started their minds thinking, and then allowed the students to guide where she focused more of her attention on. The questions of how grouping works or how the repeated addition compares is in the hands of the students. They are responsible by telling Mrs. Mullen what they don't understand, and then she will go into depth based on the student's needs.

Students must be internally motivated to ask questions, and want to learn more about the information presented. They must want to know, and want to ask to be able to ask the questions, and gain the knowledge. Teachers use this internal motivation as a continuation of the lesson because the questions are what fuel the lesson. A math lesson especially flows from questions, therefore, students must be motivated to ask, and to learn in order for the classroom to be managed, and run effectively in a lesson.