Developing Professionally
Part 1 Summary
Classroom management is multifaceted. A critical component of classroom management is arranging the environment to keep instruction flowing smoothly and keeping student misbehavior at a minimum. The demands of the twenty-first century make it necessary for students to assume more re- sponsibility for running the classroom and for managing their own behavior.
There is a difference between discipline and punishment. Discipline is guiding the students’ total development in a way that will minimize the chances for misbehavior to occur. Punishment is the imposing of a penalty for misbehavior.
Proactive measures can help avoid classroom misbehavior. Kounin offered four proactive categories to minimize classroom disruptions from occurring.
These are:
1. withitness 2. group focus 3. overlapping
4. movement management
Teachers can also prevent problems by setting up a positive classroom atmo- sphere. This may be accomplished by having student participation in estab- lishing rules and procedures, demonstrating sensitivity to students’ feelings, identifying and capitalizing on students’ strengths, and involving students in meaningful activities.
Teachers could also display a sense of humor, be constructive role models, admit mistakes, convey a positive level of expectation, offer students choices, be friendly but businesslike, and be firm yet fair. A learning environment that offers physical and emotional safety is permeated with teacher enthusiasm, pro- vides opportunities for success, and offers student-suggested sponge activities makes it less likely that students will misbehave. Student misbehavior can also be prevented by eliminating teacher-caused problems. These include sarcasm, carrying a grudge, favoritism, making a big deal out of minor issues, being au- thoritarian as opposed to authoritative, ignoring students’ strengths, assigning busy work, and implementing rules and procedures inconsistently.
Once disruptions occur, there are reactive measures that teachers can take.
It is important that these measures are educative and keep the flow of instruc- tion. Among these measures are: using silence, gestures, and peers to correct misbehavior; emphasizing the positive; expressing your feelings; asking a stu- dent to write or state the misbehavior; moving to the area near the disruption;
accentuating the positive; and applying logical consequences.
Punishment can be contrived or naturally occurring (result as a logical consequence). Whenever possible, teachers should use logical consequences in correcting misbehavior.
Students’ academic and emotional needs should be the first consideration in setting up the classroom. Physical features of the room and safety factors must also be taken into account.
The first days of school set a tone for the rest of the year. Begin by estab- lishing rules and procedures with input from the class. These rules and proce- dures should be few, brief, and stated in positive terms and should cover ways to enter and exit the room, distribute and return materials, make up work, keep the room neat, and participate appropriately in classroom instruction.
At the time rules and procedures are established, both positive and nega- tive consequences for following them should also be determined. Then rules and procedures should be formally taught and practiced and implemented consistently.
Effective classroom management skills as well as all other teaching skills can be obtained by understanding the theory behind them, having the skills dem- onstrated, practicing the skills with feedback, and transferring them to the class- room. As with all other skills, teaching skills take time and practice to develop.
Coaching rubrics are guided observation instruments that assist teachers in acquiring, developing, and evaluating, teaching skills.
The coaching rubric in table 6.4 was developed by teachers after studying the first five chapters in this book. Use this coaching rubric to analyze and improve your classroom management skills.
TABLE 6.4
Coaching Rubric for Classroom Management (T)
Proactive Phase: Effective Classroom Management Practices to Prevent Problems Criteria (Descriptors) Performance Indicators (Examples)
The teacher . . .
implemented an engaging instructional system with a variety of approaches and assessments conveyed and implemented expectation that all
would support each other to succeed established with input from students (when age
appropriate) no more than eight brief, clear rules stated in positive terms
secured student input regarding consequences for both following and not following rules
established with input from students (when age appropriate) procedures to make the class run smoothly.
practiced rules/procedures with class implemented rules/procedures consistently called each student by name
evidenced awareness of what each student was doing all the time
managed transitions from one activity to another smoothly
demonstrated respect for each student worked unpopular students into groups and
lessons
interacted with students in a friendly but businesslike manner
used “You” messages to reinforce positive work and behavior
reflected to identify any teacher-caused student misbehavior problems
established with class input improved procedures/
routines/classroom setup, etc. as a result of analyzing less efficient past practices
Reactive Phase: Effective Classroom Management Practices to Handle Problems Once They Have Occurred
Criteria (Descriptors) Performance Indicators (Examples) The teacher . . .
remained calm waited for attention
involved the class first in solving the problem, when appropriate
used nonverbal signals
moved immediately to area of disruption used any misbehaving student’s name in context used behavioral narration
removed any interfering physical object(s) casually without breaking the flow of instruction
reassigned seating to misbehaving student(s) recognized behavior opposite the misbehavior used “I” messages
applied naturally occurring (logical) consequences addressed misbehaving student(s) personally and
privately
requested that a misbehaving student state or write the misbehavior
(continued)
TABLE 6.4 (coninued)
Ineffective Classroom Management Practices (Those to Be Eliminated) Criteria (Descriptors) Performance Imdicators (Examples) The teacher . . .
used authoritarian methods to control the class spoke over students’ voices
exhibited favoritism
demonstrated resentment toward student(s) made a sarcastic or other inappropriate remark(s) assigned busy work
implemented rules and routines inconsistently