teaching tips establishing and maintaining

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Cambridge University Press 2010 Photocopiable Establishing and Maintaining Classroom Discipline 1

Teaching TipsEstablishing and Maintaining Classroom Discipline

Tips for achieving a disciplined classroomMost teachers have had the experience of dealing with students who are disruptive

and unruly in class. Establishing and maintaining classroom discipline is a

common teacher challenge, and a topic about which much has been written.

What does a disciplined classroom look like? A disciplined classroom is one in

which: The teacher is in control of the classroom and everything taking place in it;

students accept the teachers authority and are cooperative in doing what is asked

of them; both the teacher and students have a mutual understanding of the goal of

the class sessions and are invested in working toward that common goal.

The following information provides ideas and suggestions for ways in which a

teacher can achieve a classroom where learning can take place unimpeded byconstant discipline problems.

1. Communicate your expectations for student behavior. Tell students how

you expect them to act toward you and toward one another. Establish class rules

if necessary. Allow students to have some input into the rules, as they are more

likely to follow them or accept the consequences when they break them. Once

the rules are in place, be consistent about following them. Tell students what the

consequences will be if they break a rule, and be sure they understand the rules.

Again, be consistent in taking the agreed-upon action each time a rule is broken.

2. Plan your lessons carefully to increase student motivation. The more

interesting and relevant the activities, the more eager students will be to

participate. Have extra activities planned in case you nish your lesson early to

keep students engaged at all times.

3. Give clear instructions when explaining how to do an activity. It is

imperative to give clear instructions so that students understand what they

have to do during an activity. Quite often, what may look like bad or unruly

behavior for example, superuous whispering in students native language

is in fact students asking classmates to explain what they are supposed to be

doing. The following guidelines will help you give clear instructions:

Decide how to deliver the instructions. Will you just explain the activity, or

will you support the instructions with visual aids? Will you ask students to

demonstrate the activity as you explain it? Will you model the activity witha student?

Make sure students are listening before you begin explaining the activity.

Explain the activity more than once, and use more than one medium, if

possible. For example: Explain the activity rst, and then model it with one or

more students.

Be brief and to the point so that students can understand what you

are saying.


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4. Check that students understand your explanation. Once you have

explained the activity, ask a series of simple questions to check students

understanding. For example, ask students:Do you work in pairs or in groups? Is

your partner the student on your right?

5. Establish a method to have students stop what they are doing and focus

their attention on you. It is often challenging to get students attention when

signaling the end of an activity if students are very involved in doing it. In order

to get students to turn their attention to you, it is valuable to have an agreed-upon signal that you will use to indicate the end of an activity. This could be

turning off the lights or ringing a bell. When establishing conventions like these,

make sure that everyone understands them and then use them consistently.

What can you do to resolve discipline problems when they occur? Disciplining

students is a challenge that all teachers face. The following is a list of common

student misbehaviors and suggestions for dealing with them in a nonthreatening,

positive way.

1. Disruptive talking. This is probably the most common type of classroom

misbehavior. One suggestion is simply to ask the student in a friendly, yet

authoritative, way to stop talking. If he or she continues talking, pick up thestudents textbook, carry it to a desk at the back of the room, and gesture to the

student to follow you. Have the student sit there, away from his or her friends,

for a few minutes. The advantage of this is that it does not interrupt the lesson.

If the talking persists, meet with the student one-on-one after class to try to nd

out why he or she is not paying attention.

2. Lateness and absenteeism. Lateness interrupts the ow of the class, as

students entering the class break the concentration of students who are

working. Keep several vacant chairs close to the door so that latecomers can join

the class with a minimum of interruption. In order to minimize lateness and

absenteeism, you could establish a policy at the beginning of the school year

whereby lateness and missed classes affect the students nal grades. This isvery often an effective way to prevent this problem.

3. Not doing homework assignments. It is important to check all homework

since it will help students feel that doing their homework is not a waste of

time. If students consistently fail to do homework, meet with them one-on-

one to try to nd out why. Completion of homework can also be made part of

the nal grade. To encourage students to do homework, have them share their

homework in the next class in a group context (as in the Connect Theme Projects

preparation). Students are more likely to do homework if they feel responsible

to their group. You could also have students display their homework in class, or

give extra points to students who do their homework regularly.

4. Cheating on tests. If possible, place students chairs with enough space

between them to make it impossible for students to look at another students

work without being noticed. Alternately, seat students you have observed

cheating in the past at a distance from the other students. You could also deduct

points from the nal grade of any students who cheat during tests. This should

usually be a last resort. It is always best to talk to students to nd out why they

feel they need to cheat, and then try to nd a solution.


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5. Unwillingness to speak English in class. The reasons for a students

unwillingness to speak English in class are complex. Low self-esteem and an

unwillingness to take risks for fear of sounding stupid or silly are two major

reasons. In these cases it is a good idea to use activities such as information-gap

activities, which demand that all students use English in order to complete the

task successfully.

General rules for dealing with misbehavior Deal with the problem quietly with the individual student after class. When

discussing the behavior with the student, use a calm, rm tone. A private

meeting is particularly important if the classroom behavior has become

persistent.

Do not take the students misbehavior personally. Most of the time, the

misbehavior is coming from a students need to avoid or accomplish something,

not from any negative feelings toward you.

Treat your students with dignity, even when reprimanding them.

When students focus on the business and pleasure of learning English, teaching

can be a joy. The above guidelines should help you and your students get the mostout of valuable class time, and leave you feeling refreshed and happy to have spent

time in the classroom.

teaching tips establishing and maintaining

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