Teach English in Huaxin Zhen - Shanghai Shi

Classroom Management For the purpose of this article, Classroom Management is defined as the skill of organizing and managing the class. The evidence is irrefutable. Surveys of graduates of education schools and colleges indicate that the #1 area of concern of new teachers is their feelings of inadequacy in managing classrooms. Despite clinical experiences, student teaching, and other observations in classroom settings, this problem has persisted for decades. (1) So, how does one organize and manage the classroom? True, it sometimes takes years to learn the ins and outs of organization and management. However, there are basics which will aid in this process. (1) Preparation and Organization One cannot stress the importance of this enough. A class outline or course syllabus should be composed after scrutiny of the Needs Analysis and the Placement Test given to the students on the first day. Lessons will be more meaningful and it can serve as a planning guide. All handouts and exercises, transparencies, power point presentations, etc. should be laid out before the class starts. Since students often get off task between activities, smooth transitions are important to maintaining appropriate student behavior. The teacher should always be prepared for the next activity before finishing the previous one. Materials should be ready, and the teacher should know what is coming next. (2) A thumb-nail daily list or outline should be seriously considered. A card is easy to refer to and keeps one on point. Referring to the Lesson Plan also works. Overplan. Become as familiar as possible with your curriculum. Identify as many resources as possible to teach a lesson The more the better is true with instructional planning. You do not want students to have too much idle time. That leads to boredom (1) Adprima, March 23, 2011 (internet) (2) Andres Dewayne Rischer, The Education Digest , Management Strategies Help to Promote Student Achievement, Nov. 2008, Vol.74, Issue 3, page 47. which then leads to student misbehavior. It is a good idea to create folders or a learning station with education activities for students to complete for additional practice.(3) (2) Class Groupings It is important to consider the level of english competency before placing students together in pairs or groups. There is thought that placing a stronger student with a weaker student works well, both in pairs and groups. It is certainly helpful for the weaker student, however, every so often students like to be placed with a student of equal competence. Groups can be mixed. Even personalities can be considered in placement of students in pairs or groups. If all the extroverts are placed in one group, things can get a little lively. Rows are a convenient arrangement for giving directions, however, rows do not tend to make a person feel inclusive.The Engage phase works well in rows or circles as you seek to motivate and reve the motors. The Study phase lends itself to working in pairs and group work as well as doing individual work in rows. The Activate stage works well in groups and pairs or even circles. (3)Class Rapport This is such an intangible subject but unless a teacher has it, the students do not have clear-cut respect for him/her. In my opinion, it starts the first day at the first of class, at the class door. Students should be greeted at the door with a handshake and hello. Then a get to know you exercise should follow. During that handshake and during each class period, eye contact is so important. It conveys that my attention is focused on you and that I respect you. It can also help establish attention by the audience as well as maintain discipline. Do your best to grasp and appreciate each students identity. You may not fully understand many of your students values, but ___________________________ (3)Andres Dewayne Rischer, The Education Digest, Management Strategies Help to Promote Student Achievement,Nov. 2008 ,Vol. 74, Issue 3, page 48. you must accept and respect what they have been taught. Do not allow your personal values to affect their learning and achievement. (4) On that first day, a prompt can be placed on the board, such as: My name is ______and I like_______(sport). The teacher can start this and each student follows. The teacher can interject and ask what sport Mari likes, etc. Then, if need be a warmer can be given before starting first day testing. This is another opportunity for the teacher to establish rapport. The teacher should explain that the testing is being done to help me know how to plan for our lessons. When students realize that you value their input, it goes a long way in the class rapport department. (4)Room Arrangement While good room arrangement is not a guarantee of good behavior, poor planning in this area can create conditions that lead to problems. (5) A well-thought out room arrangement contributes to classroom consistency and, of course, consistency plays a large role in insuring a smoothly running classroom. (6) I am a firm believer in the importance of an attractive room, arranged neatly. The room should be clean (even if you have to sweep it) and wall art or a bulletin board add so much cheerfulness. A Reading Corner with shelves and a piece of carpet (a remnant from a nearby carpet outlet) adds to the comfort level of the room. Students can sign a card and check out the books for 2 weeks. Then, a table with dictionaries, cassette players and tapes or CD players and CDs can be in a convenient place. The computer(s) can be lined up along the sides or back. The question we have to ask ourselves with regard to Classroom Arrangement is: Does it indicate that thought has gone into classroom management and organization? The classroom can be __________________ (4)Andres Dewayne Rischer, The Education Digest, Management Strategies Help to Promote Student Achievement, Nov. 2008, Vol. 74, Issue 3, Page 48. (5) Adprima, March 23, 2011 (internet) (6) Elaine Horwitz, Foreign Language Annals, Classroom Management, Spring 2005, Vol.38, Issue 1, p. 56. both a showcase of the learning, and a way to re-inforce the concepts being taught. A learning environment should reflect what is being taught. (7) (5) Classroom Discipline This is possibly the most difficult aspect of teaching for many teachers; indeed, experiencing problems in this area causes some to leave teaching altogether. In their book, Froyen and Iverson call classroom discipline, conduct management. That really fits. They believe that by integrating knowledge about human diversity (and individuality at the same time) into a particular instructional philosophy, teachers could manage their classrooms in a better, more effective way. (8) Rules give students concrete direction to ensure that our expectation becomes a reality. To provide adequate instruction, a classroom must have structure, rules, and boundaries. As you establish your classroom environment, a strong sense of discipline must be formed. Establish rules, remain firm in your expectations, and carry them out until the last day of school with consistency. Class management starts on day one and ends on the the last day of school. (9) I either like to post a few, simple rules at the front of a room or comprise classroom rules with the students. They are more apt to follow something they authored. The eye contact mentioned earlier is quite important in maintaining discipline, i.e., a look at the misbehaving student is often all it takes or pausing the class also works. A systematic approach that has been found to work is the Good Behavior Game (GBG) which is a classroom-level approach to behavior management. It is used with elementary and adolescents. Students work toward a reward and are given rewards for asking questions, remembering to raise their hand, etc. Then, no points are assigned when one gets out of their seat, etc. (9) I use a modified version of this with high school age students. I do not tell them it is a game. However, when I catch ____________________ (7 Joy Brunt Veverka, The Education Digest, Make Your Classroom Run Like a Well-Oiled Machine, April, 2011, Vol. 76, Issue 8, p. 59-62. (8) L.A. Froyer and A.M. Iverson, Classroom Management: The Reflective Educator-Leader, 1999, page 50. (9) V.W. Harris and J.A. Sherman, Journal of Applied Science, Use and Analysis of the Good Behavior Game, March 2010, Vol.5, Issue 9, p. 45-51. Them raising their hand, following classroom rules, etc. I place a point beside their name. At the end of the class period, I add those points as bonus points to their daily grade. The class runs smoothly and it does not take long for the students to see how much we accomplish in a respectful class. Barbetta, Norona, and Bicard, in their book, discuss that in an effort to maintain order in the classroom, sometimes teachers can actually make the problems worse. A common mistake made by teachers is to define the problem behavior by how it looks without considering its function. Interventions are more effective when one considers the specific function of the problem behavior. Two students with similar looking misbehavior may require entirely different intervention strategies. Not every approach works for every child. Another common mistake is for the teacher to become frustrated when their approach is not working. It is often better to simply try a new approach. Inconsistency in expectations and consequences is an additional mistake that can lead to dysfunction in the classroom. Teachers must be consistent in their expectations and consequences to help ensure that students understand that rules will be enforced. To avoid this, teacher should communicate expectations to students clearly and be sufficiently committed to the classroom management procedures to enforce them consistently. (10) Another discipline approach, worthy of mention, is Discipline with Dignity. It is one of the most widely practiced behavior management philosophies in the world. The program and book by Dr. Richard Curwin and Dr. Allen Mendler, is utilized in more than 12 different countries. Discipline with Dignity provides an in-depth flexible approach for effective school and classroom management. With a strong focus on developing responsibility, it is a comprehensive, practical program that leads to improved student behavior through responsible thinking, cooperation, mutual respect, and shared decision making.(11) _____________________ (10)Barbetta, Norona, and Bicard, Classroom Behavior Management: A Dozen Common Mistakes and What to do Instead, Preventing School Failures, 2005, p. 24-25. (11)Allen Mendler and Richard Curwin, Discipline with Dignity for Challenging Youth, 2007, p.11. The last discipline approach I will discuss is Discipline Without Stress which is a K-12 discipline and learning approach developed by Dr. Marvin Marshall, described in his 2001 book, Discipline Without Stress, Punishments or Rewards. The approach is designed to educate K-12 about the value of internal motivation. The intention is to prompt and develop within youth a desire to become responsible and self-disciplined and to put forth effort to learn. The most significant characteristic of Discipline Without Stress is that it is totally noncoercive, but not permissive. (8) I cannot leave the topic of classroom discipline without discussing the importance of teacher presence and voice. Dont sit ! To me, nothing radiates more of a dont care attitude than to park in a chair. While one usually stands in front of the class during Engage, during Study walking around the room, monitoring is so important. It helps you determine if there are problems and makes you readily available to answer questions. The Activate stage is the closest to sitting down that might occur. Sometimes it is fun to sit with one group for a while and then switch to another and sit. The second factor of voice is so important in classroom discipline. The voice should be reasonably loud enough to be heard and go up and down to stress points, etc. Above all, a voice should reflect calmness. A calm teacher produces a calm class. An energetic voice motivates students to perform ! It is possible to reflect calmness and energy at the same time. Finding that balance will make a huge difference in the classroom attitude, behavior, and performance. In looking at the five topics I have discussed, I must say that I think that being prepared and organized takes top billing. If we enter the classroom prepared and organized, then pretty much everything else falls into place. Students can sense when the teacher is attempting to fly by the cuff. It is an invitation to chaos. Class groupings, class rapport, and room arrangement also contribute to Classroom Management in a big way. We want our students to feel comfortable and non-threatened in our classrooms and those three done right will bring that about. The most articles and books I found on classroom management were on classroom discipline. Obviously, it is a big concern, especially to the rookie. It can and does take years to achieve effective classroom discipline. I remember my first year with trauma. What a learning curve ! The second year is always so much better. One trick I use is how I start a class. I stand in front of the students, without saying a word, until they quieten themselves. To me, the less words, the better. It works and it lets them know I have expectations for them. I expect them to self-discipline and for me not to spend classroom time always calling down students. High expectations produce high performance. Bibliography (1) Adprima, March 23, 2011 (internet) (2) Andres Dewayne Rischer, The Education Digest, Management Strategies Help to Promote Student Achievement, Nov. 2008, Vol. 74, Issue 3, page 47. (3) Andres Dewayne Rischer, The Education Digest, Management Strategies Help to Promote Student Achievement, Nov. 2008, Vol.74, Issue 3, page 49. (4) Andres Dewayne Rischer, The Education Digest, Management Strategies Help to Promote Student Achievement, Nov. 2008, Vol. 74, Issue 3, page 50. (5) Adprima, March 23, 2011 (internet) (6) Elaine Horwitz, Foreign Language Annals, Classroom Management, Spring 2005, Vol.38, Issue 1, p. 56. (7) Joy Brunt Veverks, The Education Digest, Make Your Classroom Run Like a Well-Oiled Machine, April 2011, Vol. 76, Issue 8, p. 59-62. (8) L.A. Froyer and A.M. Iverson, Classroom Management: The Reflective Educator-Leader, 1999, page 50-51. (9) V.W. Harris and J.A. Sherman, Journal of Applied Science, Use and Analysis of the Good Behavior Game, March 2010, Vol.5, Issue 9, p. 45-46. (10) Barbetta, Norona, and Bicard, Classroom Behavior Management: A Dozen Common Mistakes and What to do Instead, Preventing School Failures, 2005, p. 24-25. (11) Allen Mendler and Richard Curwin, Discipline with Dignity for Challenging Youth, 2007, p. 11. ______________________ (1) Marvin Marshall, Discipline Without Stress, Punishments or Rewards, 2001, p. 83.