TEDX1899X - Build School Communities: Brain Smart Classroom Management

Course Description

Build Schools Communities for Educators is intended to bring about effective transformative actions, resulting in kindred class-homes where students and teachers in the school family will bond and work with acceptance, respect, and shared purpose to benefit all members. Students will develop strategies, rituals, and design and environmental skills to create safe havens of learning. For many of our students, our classrooms may be the only safe, nurturing refuge in their otherwise turbulent lives. In traditional “sage on the stage” models of classroom discipline and management, top-down authoritarian systems are grounded on punitive consequences. Teachers make rules and enforce them, often without any discussion with students. This approach results in disequilibrium in the classroom, with some students receiving praise and tangible rewards while others suffer the consequences of noncompliance. Most educators are familiar by this time with Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences, but the concept is limited to academics. “Guide by your side” behavior management must be differentiated in the same way that instruction and learning experiences are differentiated. Academically, students have diverse learning styles and preferences that must be addressed if they are to reach their full potential. Why would we expect students to be any less diverse socially, developmentally, and psychologically than they are academically? One size does not fit all; but together, all sizes reveal a good synergy fit of differing gifts greater than the sum of their parts. Some of our students have physiological or psychological disabilities that affect their behavior, such as ADHD, fetal alcohol syndrome, and autism. Other students’ behaviors may be affected by environmental factors: divorce; incarcerated parents; foster care; physical, sexual, or emotional abuse; domestic violence; drug or alcohol abuse; poverty; gang influence; poor nutrition; transience; homelessness; negligence; etc. One set of rules, rewards, and consequences cannot be expected to work with the diverse groups of students we have in our classrooms today.

View Build School Communities: Brain Smart Classroom Management Online Syllabus for additional information.

Key Benefits

• 100% online self-paced course.
• No prior experience required.
• No textbooks and other materials required for purchase.

Learning Modules Include

• Chapter 1: Traditional School Relationships Versus Kindred School Relationships
• Chapter 2: Models of Social Learning & Differentiating for Diverse Needs
• Chapter 3: Classroom Management Systems
• Chapter 4: Designing the Classroom & Strengthening Family Bonds

Course Learning Outcomes

• Articulate the differences between traditional school relationships versus kindred school relationships
• Discuss Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Model and how it relates to classroom development
• Describe Senge’s Theory of Learning Organizations and how it relates to classroom synergy
• List and describe Gardner’s A-Typical Intelligence Types and how these affect behavior and learning
• List and discuss Reverman’s Synergy Types and how these affect behavior and learning
• Review brain-based behavior models and their effect on learning and social behavior
• Understand and articulate how bullies are created and how bullies can be retrained
• Understand the effects of trauma on students and develop strategies to help students heal, develop resilience and coping strategies, and build positive relationships using social emotional learning (SEL)
• Understand culturally responsive pedagogy and develop skills to integrate it into curriculum and school environment
• Compare and contrast Fred Jones’ Positive Discipline model with other classroom management systems
• Review and discuss how to create a nurturing, safe classroom
• Analyze literature and lessons that reinforce positive relationship building with students
• Study and discuss songs and activities that reinforce positive relationship building with students
• Review and list cooperative games that reinforce positive relationship building with students
• Understand and describe how to develop empathy in students
• Understand and describe how to help students self-regulate emotions, behavior, and social interactions
• Understand Restorative Justice and develop skills to implement restorative practices at the classroom or school level

Requirements to Enroll

No application is needed to enroll. All learners are eligible to enroll in the course. There are no admission requirements. It is recommended that learners have a high school diploma or GED, and have basic computer and internet knowledge.

Semester Open-Enrollment Schedule:

• Spring = January - April
• Summer = May - August
• Fall = September - December

*Please note that students are only allowed to register max 5 TEDX courses per semester period*

Estimated Time to Completion

This course can be completed in approximately 30 hours of asynchronous work.

Access Time

Learners will have access to their course learning modules for up to 365 days from the date of enrollment.

CEUs and PDUs

• CEUs 3.0 National University Continuing Education Units

Certificate of Completion

Learners will be awarded a National University Workforce and Community Education, Professional and Continuing Education Certificate of Completion after satisfying the course requirements below:

1. Complete all four information sections showing a competent understanding of the material presented in each section.
2. Complete all four section examinations, showing a competent understanding of the material presented.  You must obtain an overall score of 70% or higher, with no individual exam score below 50%, to pass this course.  *Please note: Minimum exam score requirements may vary by college or university; therefore, you should refer to your course addendum to determine what your minimum exam score requirements are.
3. Complete a review of any section on which your examination score was below 50%.
4. Retake any examination, after completing an information review, to increase that examination score to a minimum of 50%, making sure to also be achieving an overall exam score of a minimum 70% (maximum of three attempts). *Please note: Minimum exam score requirements may vary by college or university; therefore, you should refer to your course addendum to determine what your minimum exam score requirements are.
5. Complete a course evaluation form at the end of the course.

Refund Policy

We at National University want all of our students to have a positive and rewarding learning experience. In the event that a student is not completely satisfied with a course, we offer a refund policy to ensure satisfaction.

To be eligible for a refund, the student must submit a written request, including a valid reason, within 9 calendar days of registering for the course. Additionally, the student must not have attempted more than 25% of the course.

To request a refund, email PACE@nu.edu and include your full name, student ID, and course name. Your reason for requesting a refund will be carefully reviewed, and we reserve the right to refuse a refund if we determine the request to be invalid.

If you meet the eligibility criteria and are approved for a refund, we will issue a refund to your original method of payment within 60 days of the refund approval.