My classroom consists of a multitude of moving parts, and I often act as the Mayor of English 101 Town, assigning small projects and jobs to my many wonderful citizens who then complete these jobs in small groups, or individually. I think of myself as the mayor of this town because I try not to dictate how my students go about their activities, instead, I tend to oversee their work and mark their progress throughout class. As English 101 Town’s Mayor, I provide much of the stability and structure, drawing attention back to the front of the room, leading large group discussions, and acting as the leadsman of our Town Hall meetings. As acting Mayor, I also collect the finished works, and assign new projects which allow these citizens to learn, reflect, and grow as individuals.
As a Mayor I do my best to provide stability and order, but there are some unavoidable problems that every Town must cope with. For example, English 101 Town will encounter a construction site every once and while, all citizens stop and patiently wait for the Mayor to provide more guidance, or for a strong-willed citizen to step up to the plate and face the podium. Another slight issue our great Town sometimes faces are traffic jams, wherein citizens slowly veer off their directed routes, straying away from their focus, and must re-enter their assigned destination. Although these citizens might get stumped on a large group discussion question or veer a bit off topic when discussing class materials, the citizens themselves also provide stability and order to English 101 Town.
English 101 town relies on respect and accountability; we only function as a Town if both the Mayor and citizens do their job. I as the Mayor rely on the citizens to fulfill their duties, assist struggling citizens, and provide feedback. In turn the citizens rely on me for guidance, assignments, and day to day questions/concerns.
The citizens play a much bigger role than the Mayor: the citizens do their assigned work, accomplish their projects, and build connections with each other as they progress. The best Town Hall discussions that this group has occurs when the citizens themselves ask the questions and answer each other, they play a vital role in becoming one cohesive and successful community. Although my role as Mayor is important and essential in English 101 Town, the cooperation and participation of the citizens is what truly makes the town function greatly. Both the citizens and the Mayor rely on one another to succeed, and when this is done correctly, the result is a bustling and lively town filled with happy citizens, a proud Mayor, and a productive yet fun atmosphere.
Lastly, something I look forward to is inviting another Town’s Mayor into my classroom community to observe and critique the works of both myself and my citizens. I’d like to hear feedback about how I can best support my Town’s citizens, how to lead them efficiently, and how to prevent chaos or disaster from sweeping English 101 Town. I as the Town’s Mayor, can only succeed if the citizens are succeeding, we push and pull one another to create an ideal classroom community.