Teach English in DaguAn Zhen - Anqing Shi

Classroom ManagementClassroom management can be difficult in any setting. Throw in a lack of solid communication skills, cultural differences in acceptable behavior and consequences and you?ve got quite a challenge! However, with some practice there are ways to turn a classroom full of youthful energy into productive and fun english classes. It may first be practical to look at reasons as to why students misbehave. Teaching experts have listed some of the following as the top reasons: students are bored; problems at home; they are tired of sitting at their desks; english does not engage them; behavioral problems such as ADD; the students think english is hard and do not think they can learn it so they hide behind an excuse of misbehavior; and the students are not motivated to be good because they are never praised when they are well behaved. While some of it may be outside the realm of the teacher?s control there are some preventative measures a teacher can take. At the beginning of the school year, the teacher should come up with a seating arrangement that works for the class, as well as a behavioral plan and classroom rules for the students. The teacher can ask the students to get involved in this process as well. The students should know exactly what is expected of them and what the consequences will be if they are not following classroom rules. The teacher will need to be extremely careful to apply the rules fairly and consistently. The focus shouldn?t only be on consequences, but also on praise or rewards for those students who are behaving appropriately. One of the top ways for a teacher to prevent classroom disruptions is to create interesting and varied lesson plans. If the students are bored, trouble is likely to ensue. Another measure a teacher needs to take to prevent boredom is to use simple english. If the teacher is consistently using words that the students can?t understand the students will become bored and lose interest Should the students start to get out of control there are different things a teacher can do to either quiet the students or refocus their attention. Some ways to quiet the students are: asking the students to close their eyes, doing a craft or worksheet that requires concentration, and (for younger learners) playing games such as ?The Quiet Game.? Some effective ways to refocus attention are: giving commands, such as clap your hands, stomp your feet, touch your nose; call on a student who is not listening; or make it a game, such as ?The last student to stand up?? and that student will have to do something like answer a question. Despite preventative measures, quieting activities, and activities to refocus attention at some point in every teacher?s career they will have to discipline students. The teacher should be careful not to raise his/her voice as that can further escalate the situation and damage the relationship with the student. Depending upon the culture and the consequences previously decided upon there are many ways a teacher can disciple a student. Some ways that teachers discipline students are: taking away points, giving extra work, writing sentences, taking away game time, or keeping students after class. Some teachers choose to punish the group, rather than one individual student, as a means to encourage self policing. Lastly, if the teacher does not have any progress with the student or feels that the disruptive behavior could be a cause of either family problems or some behavioral disorder the teacher could talk to the school counselor (if available) or another teacher in the school. In conclusion, a teacher should take measures to prevent classroom misbehavior, find effective techniques to quiet and refocus the students? attention, and have clearly defined rules, rewards, and consequences.