Does Enforcing Strict

Classroom Rules
Impact Student
Learning?

oes strictly enforcing

classroom rules make a
difference? Mrs. Amy Curtis
Wallace believes that rules
have a huge impact on classroom
management. She has two rules that
she follows in order to keep her
classroom under control. The most
important rules in Mrs. Wallaces
She graduated from Francis
classroom are no talking and
Marion University of Florence, South
respecting everyone around you,
including the teacher and your peers. Carolina with her Bachelors Degree
in Elementary Education and then
Her rules are posted in the front of
went on to get her Masters Degree
the classroom to constantly remind
her students of these
Mrs. Wallace and her daughter, Rayleigh, waiting to run
rules.
barrels at a rodeo in Hemmingway, SC.
Mrs. Amy Curtis
Wallace is the younger
through an accredited online
of two children and a 1994 graduate
institution. This has allowed her to
of Chesterfield High School of
teach and take classes to help with
Chesterfield, South Carolina. She
the many finances of having a family.
married her high school sweetheart,
Mrs. Wallace had a childhood dream
Ray, and they now have a five-yearof becoming an elementary teacher.
old daughter, Rayleigh. In her spare
time, Mrs. Wallace and her family are She used to pretend she was a
teacher and her dolls were her
very involved in barrel racing. The
three of them usually compete every students. When she graduated from
college, the only job opening in
weekend all over North and South
Chesterfield County School District
Carolina.
was an interpreter position.
While working as an interpreter
for the school system, her passion for

wanting to become a teacher just

grew more and more. She really
enjoyed working with the children in
the classroom and could not wait to
have a classroom of her own one-day.
Mrs. Wallace says, The idea of being
an influence in developing and
shaping the lives of many children is
one of the most rewarding feelings I
have ever felt. She also mentioned
that the retirement policy, insurance,
and convenient hours sealed the deal
for her and made her push forward
with the decision. Mrs. Wallace is
now a second grade teacher at Ruby
Elementary School.
Ruby Elementary is a small
rural school located in Ruby, South
Carolina. There is an average of 300
students from grades Pre-K up to fifth
grade. It consists of a close-knit
family of teachers and staff who work
together to complete the task at
hand, which is preparing students for
their future and further education.
Mrs. Wallace is a vital part this
amazing team.
When asked if college prepared
her for the real world teaching, she
giggled and said, no way. Mrs.
Wallace says, no amount of
classroom experience could prepare
you for some of the situations you
will be faced with in your own
classroom. Also, college does not
prepare you for the ever-lasting
changes that are made to the
curriculum standards year after
year. She says, you will never
understand what it is like to be in a
classroom of twenty plus second
graders all alone. You do not have
the guidance of a cooperating
teacher when you make mistakes,
and as human beings, we will always
make some sort of mistakes. Of

course, when these mistakes are

made, all of the children sitting in
front of you realize your mistake and
make fun, as if they do not make
mistakes of their own.
Mrs. Wallace strives to
differentiate her teaching styles and
reach every child that is sitting in
front of her on a daily basis. She
utilizes group activities so that the
children get to work together
preparing them to get along with one
another and the teamwork that is
going to be a major part of their
futures. Also, Mrs. Wallace believes
that it is very important to know
about your students. Knowing their
home situation is very important, as
well as, knowing how a student is
going to respond to certain stimuli.
She tries to keep this in mind while
teaching, which somewhat puts her
on a personal level with each and
every student.

Mrs. Wallace and a former student, Marah

According to her fellow

teachers and her principal, Mrs.
Wallace is great at what she does and
she is well liked by everyone. She
tries to maintain a healthy
relationship with the parents of the
children she is teaching so that they
will have knowledge of where their
child stands and she wants to work as
a team with the parents to help
further their childs education. Mrs.
Wallace says that teaching cannot be
done solely at school. There needs
to be reinforcement from parents and
other family members to help the
students retain the information that is
taught at school.
From all the information that I
have gathered, Mrs. Wallace is a
great teacher and everyone around
her would agree. Her principal, Mrs.
Beth Suggs, commented and said
that she stands behind each and
every one of her teachers and does
all that she can to help them
maintain a healthy relationship with
their students and parents. Mrs.
Suggs says that Mrs. Wallace
maintains a healthy relationship with
her. The two of them communicate
on a daily basis about the progress of
her students and any problems she
faces in her classroom. They
communicate by phone, email, and
most importantly, face to face
interaction. Mrs. Suggs also said,
Mrs. Wallace has outstanding test
scores and very few complaints, if
any, from the parents of her students
and the people of the community.
During my observation in the
classroom, I was able to help several
individual students with some areas

they were struggling in. One student

needed help with reading and the
other was struggling with her math. I
sat down and did a worksheet with
the child who was struggling with
math and by the end of the sheet,
she understood a little better. Her
main problem was needing a
concrete model to help her add. The
child who struggled in reading just
needed someone to help her settle
down and focus. She needed a quiet
area to sit down and read her book
aloud to someone who could
recognize and correct her mistakes.
We read through the book twice and
she was able to take an accelerated
reader test on it and pass, earning
points toward her goal. I definitely
enjoyed observing instruction time
and helping those children with their
struggles.
The document that I analyzed
was a rule poster that is hanging up
at the front of Mrs. Wallaces
classroom. It has five important
classroom rules that give her
classroom structure and boundaries
for the children to follow.
The most important rules
according to Mrs. Wallace are no
talking and respecting everyone
around you. These two rules go hand
in hand. Being quiet and mindful of
their teacher and peers is the most
respect a student can give. Even the
quietest whispers can distract some
students from the material being
presented to them. By enforcing
these two rules, Mrs. Wallaces
teaching is more effective and her
students are more likely to fully
comprehend what they are learning.
She says that as long as you cut out
the talking and show your authority
from day one, you usually do not

have a problem with discipline in the

classroom. Also, she likes for the
children to be cooperative when they
are trying to learn.
By having the rules poster
hanging up in the front of the
classroom, the students are always
able to see it. This gives them an
opportunity to think about the
consequences of their actions before
they break the rules. Most second
grade students are afraid of getting
in trouble and want to please their
teacher, as well as their parents
making them mindful of everything
that is expected of them.
After interviewing and
observing Mrs. Wallace in the
classroom, I have gained experience
and knowledge of day-to-day
classroom procedures. Also, when I
have a classroom of my own, I can
look back and remember this
experience and incorporate it into my
own practices. Mrs. Wallace was a

joy to
work
with
and
very
willing
to
share
her

experiences to help me succeed.

The Wallace Family: Ray, Amy, and Rayleigh

Bailey RhynesChesterfield, SC