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Ron Clark Reflection

Taylor Hoey
EDU 402
September 21, 2016
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When reading Ron Clark’s The End of Molasses Classes, I had never felt so inspired and

excited to study education. Each passage left me invigorated and thrilled to be a teacher. I knew

from this feeling that I am going to enter the right profession for me. After finishing the book, I

was absolutely dying to visit the Ron Clark Academy. Even though I do not think the movie, The

Ron Clark Story, did Ron Clark justice from what I had read and videos I had watched, I was

anxious to compare him to the way the movie portrayed him. Once we finally arrived, it was

almost surreal. Something that we had been hearing and learning about for weeks was actually

right in front of me. It was almost like a dream, and it was true what I’ve heard: it is very much

like “Disneyland for teachers.” I left that establishment with a new perspective and philosophy of

how I want my own classroom to look and act like.

Seeing Ron Clark’s philosophy in action has made me realize some points that I agree

and disagree with. One aspect that I immediately noticed was the sense of urgency and high

expectations. I one-hundred percent agree with Ron Clark that it is vital to have these two factors

inside the classroom. I believe that it is true that students can most definitely step up to the

challenge and are capable of rising to the occasion. It not only makes them better students, but

also prepares them for the rigor of the real world. However, while I think that the levels of

urgency and expectations are at achievable and appropriate levels for most of the teachers at

RCA, I personally believe that Ron Clark’s levels are astronomically high. Although it might

work for his school and the age groups he teaches, I disagree with his over the top expectations

and fast pace. I am aware that Ron Clark sees results from his methods, but I do not believe that

it would work for any younger students. I believe that it is acceptable for students to want to

backtrack and go over a problem or topic that is being discussed. Students should be comfortable

to ask questions and interrupt the flow of learning to ask these questions. Most times, other
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children have the same question and it is the teacher’s job to make sure all students comprehend

the subject.

Another aspect of RCA that I completely agree with is the relationship between the

students and teachers. From reading the book and watching the movie I could see that it was

something that Ron Clark felt deeply about. At the Ron Clark Academy it is evident that there is

respect and love within the building and is what keeps the happiness and fun alive. This

relationship is also how tough love is supported and able to work. A teacher cannot be extremely

critical upon a student without first building up that trust and love. I think it is such an important

role in the community of the school and all teachers should strive to build this kind of

relationship. Even though I have always believed this, visiting RCA made it absolutely concrete

for me. It is something that I must do when I become a teacher.

As for my own future classroom, of course I would like to implement that sense of

urgency and passion into my classroom. But one thing that really caught my attention came from

Ms. Haskins’ workshop. Ms. Haskin’s is the language arts instructor and told us her formula that

she uses to teach the children how to write an effective paragraph. Ms. Haskins called it GIECC,

which is an acronym that stands for General focus, Idea (where, when, what…), Evidence,

Commentary (putting it into laymen’s terms), and the Clinch or connection to the next paragraph.

This is the format that she teaches her students instead of the usual “main idea, supporting facts,

conclusion” that typical teachers use. She told us that the basic formula would get her “trash”

and that she came up with this new acronym to get a more rounded and in-depth paragraph from

her students. She then explained each step of her grading process, her grading scale, and even

walked through an example of how to write using the format with the audience. The only

downside of this format is it is a higher level thinking design, and therefore should probably be
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taught for fifth graders or possibly fourth graders. I think for any grade lower it would be too

advanced and the students have not yet had enough experience writing to truly grasp this

concept. I thought this was a valuable experience during my visit at RCA because it was

tangible, something that is easily understood, and can be implemented right away.

Something that I know for sure after learning all about Ron Clark is that my placement

teacher would have greatly benefited from visiting RCA. There are two things that I wish my

placement teacher, Mrs. Taylor, would implement and that I think would be effective in her

classroom. The first is the sense of urgency that educators at RCA have. Mrs. Taylor is very slow

paced and lets the kids take their time doing things such as get materials out or go to the

bathroom. The kids know this and so they do not find the need to hurry. Because of this, it makes

her schedule run slower and thus she falls behind on assignments and lessons that need to be

covered. If Mrs. Taylor had any kind of sense of urgency, she could cut down on wasted time

and would not fall behind as much.

The second thing that would benefit Mrs. Taylor’s class is movement. Mrs. Taylor goes

from one subject to the next with barely any breaks and she expects them to sit still and be quiet

for most of the day. The children become bored and restless and it usually results in behavior

problems. I am certain that if Mrs. Taylor allowed them some kind of movement like RCA

teachers do, or even just a GoNoodle video, it would immensely enhance her teaching

environment, she would get more out of the day, and it would cut down on misbehavior. These

are two of the biggest problems that I see in Mrs. Taylor’s class as well as two of the most

emphasized points of the Ron Clark Academy.

The entire experience of the Ron Clark Academy was a priceless and treasured learning

experience. Out of the whole day, there was one moment that really hit home with me. During
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Kim Bearden’s workshop she told us many things, from the way she teaches to tales from her life

story, but there was one point that made me pause and think. The statement that Kim Bearden

said was to not let the kids be a burden on you. Instead, let them uplift you as you are uplifting

them. This struck a chord with me. It is one of my fears that I will get burned out or let the stress

of teaching get to me and therefore not enjoy the children or my job. I decided to give this

mindset a try when I went into my field experience the next Monday. I had been having a rough

several days and found myself not wanting to get out of bed or to go to field experience. On the

drive over to the school, I remembered Kim’s words and decided to go into school that day with

an open mind and let the kids uplift me. It truly worked and I felt better than I had in days. I now

want to make this my mission when I go into the rest of my field experiences and labs as a

student at Wesleyan, and also when I become a teacher. I believe that these are words that will

stick with me for a long time and I will reflect back on them when I am in need.

Overall, my time at the Ron Clark Academy was invaluable, inspiring, and memorable

beyond words. I feel that reading the book and watching the movie could only take me so far as

to how I felt about his way of teaching, but visiting solidified everything for me. I am extremely

grateful for the opportunity to visit, for it has allowed me to truly witness their philosophies and

ways of teaching, and thus has shaped my own philosophy of classroom management and

teaching style.