Elements of classroom management.
Although often overlooked, the first element of classroom management is intentional design. Use the positioning of your desks, displays, storage, and equipment to create a warm and welcoming room. Make sure you have removed all unnecessary and distracting items from your classroom. This is also a good time to check your room for safety hazards.
Rules
Develop rules that foster respect, caring, and community in your classroom. Make your expectations for behavior clear at the beginning of the year by reviewing these rules with students. Continue to reinforce your rules throughout the course, and post them in a visible location.
Discipline
Classroom rules must have concrete consequences. Students will test the limitations of each teacher from the very first day of school. Be firm, fair and consistent. Begin by warning a student and having them confirm their knowledge of the classroom rules. Follow-up continued disruption by issuing demerits, detention, or other official reprimands. Never, hit, harass, embarrass or yell at students-this is counterproductive and unprofessional.
Scheduling
Keep your class in order by staying on time and on task. Do classwork during class time, leaving plenty of room for in-class assignments. Cramming work and instruction too close to other activities can lead to disruptive behavior and poor comprehension. There should be space before and after every room change, lunch, and recess for students to settle down. Having a regular daily schedule helps you and your kids prepare for upcoming tasks. Be firm but fair with due dates. Always leave room for extenuating circumstances. Never leave room for procrastination.
Organization
Stay organized inside and out. Keep your student files, assignments, lesson plans and administrative paperwork in order. It sets a good example for your students and keeps you from wasting instructional time looking for materials. Share this system with your students. Post the classroom calendar, homework schedule, and assignments on the board. Allow students to see how you take notes. It helps them distinguish irrelevant information from essential details. Encourage self-directed learning by providing students with their own agenda (notebook). You may require students to have their notebooks checked at home or during class.
Instructional Technique
Although you may not have flexibility over the content of your curriculum, teachers are able to convey information as they see fit. Tailoring your instructional technique to the grade level, subject area, and students is very important. A hands-on demonstration of electricity will keep 8th graders engaged, but may prove chaotic in a 3rd-grade classroom. Vary the style and intensity of your lessons. Follow-up lecture-style sessions with relaxed group activities. Consult your colleagues for ideas for new lessons. Learn about each of your student's learning style. (What is their learning curve? How do they learn best? Do they work well in groups?) These observations are crucial when fitting your teaching style to your student's needs.
Communication
Communication is the most important aspect of classroom management. It is essential to have clear and consistent lines of communication with your administration, colleagues, students, and parents. Without it, you will lose the respect of peers, the attention of students, and the cooperation of parents. Be responsive to the concerns of others. Be flexible and willing to accommodate reasonable requests.
MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT
In a well-managed classroom, students are disciplined, obey the rules, and are generally organized. But after going over some of the readings on classroom management, I found out that classroom management is more than having a well-behaved group of learners. Discipline in the classroom plays a role but it is only one component of a well-managed classroom. According to Garrett (2014) classroom management is, in fact, a process of five key areas:
physical design of the classroom
, rules and routines,
relationships,
engaging and motivating instruction,
and discipline.
I also used to think that when a teacher gets to the point where she is able to thoroughly engage her students during instruction (which means she is in control and has applied discipline), then she has a well-managed class. A teacher in control of the class must definitely produce a well-managed class. A common misconception indeed for as Garrett (2014) has mentioned, classroom management is a process consisting of five key areas.
Most teachers think that when they have everything under control, where students are well behaved, disciplined, actively participating in class and doing their work, then they’ve done good classroom management. A classroom like this is, after all, a picture of a well-managed class. But this view is obviously incomplete basing on the key areas pointed out by Garrett (2014) and she notes that the notion that classroom management is largely about discipline is “a misconception held by teachers that can actually interfere with effective teaching.”
An incomplete and incorrect view of classroom management can actually impede effective teaching. Teachers’ misconceptions about classroom management affects how she will teach, handle incidents in the class, and how she will impose discipline on the students. It will even affect how she will physically organize and design the classroom. It is important than that teachers know what real classroom management is. It is not confined to keeping the class under their control and having a disciplined class. It is actually a process involving the elements noted by Garrett (2014), which aims to create an environment for academic learning and social-emotional learning.
Out of the five key areas that Garrett (2014) has enumerated, one strategy I have used in class that has the biggest impact is relationships. Since I started teaching I’ve always focused on building relationships with my students. I believe that this is key in keeping a well-managed classroom. If I establish a good relationship with them where they feel important and valued it opens the door for trust and respect. When I do this I am in fact creating an environment for social-emotional learning. It’s easier to manage a class if you have a connection with the students. It’s easier to make them follow the rules and routines in the class and to engage them in class without needing to employ discipline most of the time.
I invest time on the students inside and outside the classroom. I take time to get to know them and get them to be comfortable enough with me so that they open up. (It also helps that my subject is about character education). I have found this strategy to be effective over the years. If I create an environment where they feel valued and important, it is easier for me to create an environment for academic learning. I plan to continue using this strategy and adapt with the changes along the way. I understand that the set of learners we get are different each year and it’s important to apply what will work for each class and not to apply a one-size-fits-all strategy in classroom management.
Teaching Strategies
1.Cooperative Learning: The Jigsaw
Cooperative learning gives students the opportunity to work with others and see different points of view. Research shows that students learn more effectively when working together rather than apart, and it is also known to improve self-confidence in students. The jigsaw technique is especially effective because each student is responsible for one another’s learning, and students find out really quick that each group member has something equally important to contribute to the group in order to make the task a successful one. Students are exposed to and use many skills throughout this strategy: Communication, problem-solving skills, cognition, and critical thinking -- all of which are essential for a successful academic career.
2.Inquiry-Based Instruction
Inquiry-based learning implies involving students in the learning process so they will have a deeper understanding of what they are learning. We are born with the instinct to inquire -- as babies, we use our senses to make connections to our surroundings. Inquiry-based learning strategies are used to engage students to learn by asking questions, investigating, exploring, and reporting what they see. This process leads students to a deeper understanding of the content that they are learning, which helps them be able to apply these concepts they are learning in new situations. In order for our students to be able to be successful in the 21stcentury, they need to be able to answer complex questions and develop solutions for these problems. The Inquiry-based learning strategy is a great tool to do just that.
Differentiated instruction strategies allow teachers to engage each student by accommodating to their specific learning style. According to Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligence Theory, every person has a different mind, and therefore each person learns and understands information differently. Differentiating instruction offers a way to meet all students’ needs. One helpful strategy to differentiate instruction is learning stations. Learning stations can easily be designed to enable students with diverse learning needs. Teachers can set up each station where students will be able to complete the same task, but at the level and style that is specifically designed for them.
4.Graphic Organizers
Graphic organizers are a simple and effective tool to help students brainstorm and organize their thoughts and ideas in a visual presentation. Simply put, they help students organize information so it is easier for them to comprehend. Graphic organizers can be used for any lesson; to structure writing, brainstorming, planning, problem-solving, or decision-making. The most popular organizers are the Venn diagram, concept map, KWL chart, and T Chart.
5. Utilizing Technology in the Classroom
Integrating technology into the classroom is a great way to empower students to stay connected in this technological era. Technology-rich lessons have been found to keep students motivated and engaged longer. Some examples of utilizing technology in the classroom is to create web-based lessons or a Webquest, multimedia presentations such as a video, animation, or some type of graphic, utilizing a tablet or an iPad, taking your class on a virtual field trip, participating in an online research project, or even creating a class website. Any of these technology integration strategies will have a positive impact on student learning.
