Classroom Management

1. Classroom Management How to effectively manage your classroom What aspects of classroom management should a teacher know so as they are able to effectively manage their classroom in the year 2010 and beyond.

2. Principles of classroom management *Create a community of caring and trust *Develop learner responsibility *Maximise time and opportunity for learning (Eggen, P., & Kauchak, D. (2010)

3. Making a good classroom environment Students work better and are easier to manage when they are in an environment that feels safe and secure to them.(Eggen, P., & Kauchak, D. (2010)An effective teacher is able to provide this environment by using the following procedures *A high level of organisation *Fair and caring attitude towards all students *Clear and precise instructions * Effective time management

4. Responding effectively to misbehaviour An effective teacher should be able to: * Maintain the flow of instruction while intervening in cases of misbehaviour (Eggen, P., & Kauchak, D. (2010) *Apply the principles for intervening successfully *Use cognitive interventions when possible, revert to behavioural interventions when necessary *Move along the intervention continuum only as far as necessary *Have withitness- knowing who did what and responding to the appropriate person

5. How to be organised An effective teacher needs to show superior organisational skills to be able to keep their classroom running as smooth as possible. Some ways of doing this include: • Set times for each activity • Set daily/weekly routine. “A teacher who manages his/her classroom well, organizes and structures his/her classroom with procedures…procedures that teach their students responsibility and responsible behavior”(Wong, Harry & Rosemary, 2005) • Have marking completed before children arrive • Have activities set up for in between time • Have a set of rules clearly visible for all students • Have lesson plans organised and ready to go before class time • Have the classroom set up to enable all students to see the materials being used for that day

6. Parental involvement Effective teachers should have parents as involved in their child’s education as possible and will rely on communication between the parents and themselves in order to teach the child effectively. • Getting the parents involved from the beginning is important to ensure they are aware of how the classroom runs and what is expected of them and their children • A newsletter sent home at regular intervals ensures the parents are kept well informed • Phone calls made to parents when necessary to discuss child’s progress • Allow parents the opportunity to participate in some classroom activities with their child

7. Getting to know the students It is important for a teacher to know who their students are and what their interests are. This can help the teacher to avoid management problems. • This allows the students to feel closer and more connected with their teacher. • Knowing the students helps the teacher to know who is likely to be disruptive • Knowing the students helps the teacher to know why a student may act out, whether it be family reasons, illness.

8. Getting to know the teacher • Allowing the students get to know you makes them want to do the right thing for you • If you let the students get to know a bit about yourself, they are more likely to open up and let you know about them (Laurie Sheldrake ) • Effective teachers share personal information about themselves throughout the first morning and include presentations based on visual displays that include pictures of themselves, important people in their lives, and their interests, many of those coincided with the students (Elizabeth Bondy)

9. Maintaining motivation in the classroom • Motivation is a process whereby goal-directed activity is instigated and sustained. (Eggen, P., & Kauchak, D. (2010) • Students need to be intrinsically motivated rather than extrinsically. This means children need to have an interest in what they are learning. “Because we do not want our children to be motivated solely by a desire to please the teacher, what we need to address is how to make the content of the curriculum fit into the concerns of the child” (http://www.engines4ed.org/hyperbook/nodes/NODE-62-pg.html) • The student needs to understand what they are being taught • The classroom needs to be a safe, secure and happy environment to promote learning

10. Uncaring, • Unhelpful • teacher • Not understanding learning • Boredom, • lack of anything • to do • Peer pressure Common causes of acting out • Unstructured classroom Home problems • Illness • Unfriendly environment • Being picked • on by other • students • Wants attention

11. Preventing management problems • Strictly followed procedures and routines - With procedures firmly in place, you’ll have time to devote to the art of teaching and become the effective teacher your students need and deserve. (Wong, Harry & Rosemary. Effective Teaching. ) • Clear set of rules- Rule must make sense to students if they are to follow them (Eggen, P., & Kauchak, D. (2010) • Clear and consistent consequences • Students must all understand the procedures expected of them • Students must all understand the rules • Discipline is a very positive word.  People who are disciplined stick to their diet, their exercise program, and their piano rehearsal.  Successful students have good, disciplined study habits.(Wong, Harry & Rosemary. Effective Teaching. )

12. It is important to know when to intervene • before a situation gets out of hand. Intervening • Try to use a cognitive intervention before resorting to a behavioural intervention • Knowing who plays • each role in the • situation is • important when • intervening • Maintain the flow of instruction while intervening in cases of misbehaviour (Eggen, P., & Kauchak, D. (2010) Provide positive reinforcement to promote good behaviour, employ planned ignoring to avoid reinforcing bad behaviour (Mauro,T .about.com)

13. Behavioural interventions • Some students are unable or unwilling to accept responsibility for their behaviour (Eggen, P., & Kauchak, D. (2010) Because of this a behavioural intervention may be necessary • Involves having consequences for misbehaviour • Must be consistent for all students • Involves reinforcement and punishment

14. the teachers actions/body language must match up with the message they are saying Verbal-non verbal congruence I-messages Cognitive interventions Types of interventions (Eggen, P., & Kauchak, D. (2010) Logical consequences • A nonaccusatory message that addresses a behaviour. This may be an action or a word used that will be associated with the behaviour • An outcome that the students can relate to the behaviour. By linking the two, the students can see what can happen as a result of their actions.

15. References Bibliography • Eggen, P., & Kauchak, D. (2010). Educational Psychology - Windows on Classrooms (Eighth Edition). Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education. • Laurie Sheldrake quoting Elizabeth Bondy http://lms.curtin.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2fwebapps%2fblackboard%2fexecute%2flauncher%3ftype%3dCourse%26id%3d_17423_1%26url%3d • Wong, Harry & Rosemary. Effective Teaching. “Classroom Management Is Not Discipline.” October 2005. http://teachers.net/wong/OCT05/ • http://www.engines4ed.org/hyperbook/nodes/NODE-62-pg.html • Terry Mauro http://specialchildren.about.com/od/behavioranddiscipline/g/BIP.htm