Effective Classroom ManagementBy: Courtney Partridge

Dr. MaytonEP 500

Classroom Management

Methods used to organize classroom activities, instruction,

physical structure, and other features to make effective use of time and to create a happy and

productive learning environment, as well as to minimize behavior

problems and other disruptions.

So what makes an Effective Learning Environment?

Use your time effectively!• Engaged Time is the amount of time

students spend on actively engaged in learning the task at hand.

• Make sure that there is allocated time for LEARNING!– Time Stealers Include:• School Events (such as field trips,

standardized testing, absences)• Late Starts• “Housekeeping” (such as roll call, pencil

sharpening, bathroom breaks)

Preventing Lost Time

• Late starts and Early Finishes:– Start ON TIME! Even if there is no bell, if

your students sense that you are lackadaisical about starting, they will follow suit.

– Have more material planned than you think you will need. This way, if you finish early, learning time is not wasted. Have an activity that students can work on to reinforce that day’s lesson.

Using Engaged Time Wisely

• Make the Lessons Interesting–Make lessons relevant to the lives and

interests of your students. • Some students are much more likely to engage

in seeing how many bad guys Spiderman can capture, than if you were to introduce it as addition.

• Include chances for hands on participation.• Keep all students engaged. Student’s attention

will begin to drift if too much time is taken during group learning for one on one instruction.

Preventing Interruptions

• Interruptions come in many forms:– Announcements– Administrative needs– Restroom Breaks– Disruptive Behavior

Tips to Avoid Interruptions:

• Place a sign on the door indicating that class time is “in session”

• Have a drop box for things that need to be signed or taken care of at a convenient time.

• Have a symbol or marker to show student’s when it is not appropriate for them to interrupt. Such as during small group/individual reading instruction.

• Incorporate housekeeping tasks into your routine. Have kids sign themselves in, have designated bathroom times.

• Allow for some student self regulation. Such as; have a paper collector, a clean up crew, or a lunch and snack helper.

• Line students up by table rather then one by one.

Keep it Moving!

• Maintaining Momentum– Don’t be your own worst enemy!• Don’t allow yourself to be distracted from

them task at hand.– Little eyes are watching you, they do what you

DO more often than what you SAY.

– Once a student is engaged in a task, let them finish it.

– Allow students ample time to answer questions.

– Allow plenty of time to complete assignments.

Rules for Managing Transitions

1. Give a clear signal for when you want students to transition• A bell works well for moving from

station to station.• Hand signals and/or catchphrases work

well for getting student’s attention or for quieting them down.

2. Make sure everyone knows the game plan.• Before transitioning, make sure students

know EXACTLY what is expected of them. 3. Move as a group.• Calling students one by one can take too

long, giving students a chance to get distracted, and lose motivation and motivation.

Keeping Students on Task

• Some things to keep in mind during class time:– Enforce student accountability.

Sporadically have students show their work.

– Group Alerting are questioning strategies that encourage all students to pay attention during lectures and discussion.• Creating suspense before calling on a

student in order to alert all student’s attention.• Calling students in random order to keep

students on their toes.

What Can We Do?

• Teacher’s “withitness”– How aware and responsive are you to

student behavior?– Teachers need “eyes in the back of their

head” – Not responding to undesirable behavior

by one or two can quickly snowball into a loss of classroom control.

• Overlapping– The teacher’s ability to respond to

behavior problems without interrupting a classroom lesson.

Overlap Much??

Start the Year Out Right

• Have a clear plan for familiarizing students with the classroom rules and take time at the start of the year going over it until students know what to do.

• Work with the whole class. Wait until the class is occupied to address individual issues.

• Teach students specific classroom procedures like lining up, lunch and snack time procedures, and how to respond to any signals such as bells, light flickers, or catch phrases.

Setting Class Rules

Keep the main classroom rules basic and allow class discussion and let

students have some input:1. Be courteous to others.

2. Respect other’s property.3. Be on Task.

• Includes: listening when others are talking, working on seatwork, staying in your seat.

1. Raise hands to be recognized.• Prevents calling out or getting up without permission.

Managing Misbehavior

• Correct misbehavior with the simplest form of intervention necessary. – Prevention– Non verbal cues

• Gesture, expression, change in proximity, or touch

– Praising correct behavior• Recognizing what someone is doing right, while also getting the

attention of those not following suit.

– Verbal reminders• Given immediately after misbehavior. Keep it in a positive nature.

– Repeated reminders• Usually a nonverbal cue.

– Consequences • Avoid empty threats. Must be willing and able to follow through.• When a students finishes carrying out a consequence, let it be done

with.

References

• Slavin, R. E. (2012). Educational psychology theory and practice. (10 ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.

• (n.d.). Retrieved from http://allthingslearning.wordpress.com/tag/classroom-management/ April 22, 2012