5100 Section 2: Classroom Management

Things to remember:

*Many do not want to be recognized publicly by ANY adult for doing something well; so public praise is often not effective. *Peer acceptance is most important - most misbehavior is an attempt to get attention from peers. *Most have a strong desire to belong to a peer group ... this is where the issue of gangs in schools can become a focal point for young boys if they are not a part of a more wholesome group: a team, a club, a church group, a choir, drama, art, or some other activity where they feel they are understood. *Adults must be very watchful of students who bully others or are bullied by others. Middle school students will sometimes ostracize those who are different. *Middle school students have a fierce sense of "fairness" with respect to a teacher reprimanding one student and not another for the same offense.

Verbal Cues

-"Jake, you have an assignment to do. Please get to work now" spoken quietly to Jake at her seat -"Jake, tell the class what page we are on please"

Physical Cues

-a chime, bell or timer = signals attention -music playing = when it stops, everyone is in their group -blink lights on/off -clap pattern until all students are attending

Signals

-finger to the lips = quiet please -raised hand = sit down -subtle shake of the head = stop what you're doing

Clutter

A disorganized classroom can lead to other problems, such as poor time management and disorganization, which lead to bad behavior. Encourage your students to be organized and ready to learn by doing the same.

CONSEQUENCES

All rules have consequences. Consequences for failure to follow a rule should be appropriate for the offense and age of the student. Sometimes consequences will follow a series of actions. If appropriate, a student may simply be given a signal to change a behavior. Often all it takes is a "look" from the teacher. The more often the misbehavior is seen, the more serious the consequence becomes. For example, the teacher sees the student's cell phone and she may remind the student of the cell phone rule. If the teacher sees the phone the second time she may quietly pick up the phone and put the phone on her desk. At the end of class she can have a discussion with the student and give the phone back to the student. The third violation may result in the phone being taken to the school office for the remainder of the school day. Be advised that most schools have different rules about student cell phones and electronic devices. Since most secondary students have phones, it has become more of the norm. Some teachers actually have students use their phones to retrieve information during a lesson. Learn the campus rules for cell phones and all electronic devices. The teacher must know all the school policies that pertain to students. It is important that you develop a system, or use the system required by your campus, to document misbehavior issues: document, document, document. It is so very important to maintain accurate records on student behavior and to update them on a regular basis. Consequences should gradually become more severe with each infraction, while affording the child ample time to correct the misbehavior. Most campuses have established some sort of hierarchy of consequences and documentation is required at each step.

BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION AND DISCIPLINE

Behavior Modification simply means changing how someone is acting. In general when educators refer to behavior modification they are more than likely wondering about how to correct or change inappropriate behavior. In order to change unacceptable behavior, it is important to understand what acceptable behavior is and to communicate this to your students.

RULES AND REWARDS

Classroom rules are essential. They tell your students what behavior you expect, or will not tolerate, in the classroom. In Section 3, you will have the opportunity to compare the information in the section to the content about "Rules versus Procedures." Rules and consequences should be established and enforced early and consistently to ensure a well-behaved classroom. There are many commercial programs that are used in districts wanting a consistency throughout all schools within the district. Some of those programs include: Assertive Discipline, A Kids Heart, Love and Logic, and CHAMPS. If your District uses one of these plans, or another one, you will probably be required to attend training in that program either prior to school beginning or within the first semester of your first year. In this section common themes across these and other plans will be explored. At the end of the section on Rules and Consequences websites for the plans mentioned above are provided.

Self-Defeat

Do not accept defeat from your students or yourself. Just as you should model the belief that every student can learn, show your students that you are on a mission to be the teacher that you want to be.

Moving On

Do not simply plow forward when students are distracted or misbehaving. This reinforces distracted behavior. Pause, reset, and reinforce the information at hand before moving forward. This also provides a great opportunity for preventive discipline by seeking a more engaging way to present the needed information.

DEVELOPING YOUR OWN PLAN

FIRST before meeting with students, know the schools policies inside and out to avoid catastrophe down the road. SECOND make a list of general policies. These aren't rules. policies are concepts on which you base your classroom. What are the issues that absolutely must or must not occur in order for you to teach your students Policies are issues that cannot be compromised THIRD make your class rules. if there are certain areas in the class off limits to students, make them known up front. hand out a policies sheet on the first day

TEACHER-RELATED CASUES OF MISBEHAVIOR

In addition to the four student-based causes of misbehavior, blogger Michael Linsin suggests that teachers do certain things that promote bad behavior in learners. Here is a short version of his list:

MOTIVATIONS FOR MISBEHAVIOR

It's difficult to know for certain why certain students misbehave, but as you get to know your students and understand when they seem to struggle with following the class rules, some patterns of behavior will emerge. There are typically four main reasons why teachers misbehave. Understanding possible motivations for student misbehavior can provide you with a better idea of how to respond in a given situation.

HIGH EXPECTATIONS FOR BEHAVIOR

Like it or not, you are communicating expectations for your students the very moment you step into the classroom. If you are disorganized and unprepared, your students will model that behavior. If you ignore proper dress code for students or staff, it communicates to students that rules are not important and are meant for "other" students. If you yell or say things that are disrespectful, then students believe that it is okay to be disrespectful. If you are especially hard on or pick on a student, it communicates to the class that it is okay to bully. Believe me when I tell you, students will practice what they see. After all, YOU are the adult in charge. *communicating expectations begins with teacher behavior: how you dress how you act how organized you are how well you plan how much you truly care

Negative Thinking

Like talking over students, modeling negative thinking encourages students to be negative.

Step 5

Parent conference with child present as well as after school detention

Power

Power seeking may look like: -arguing -seeking the last word -questioning your authority -saying "you can't make me" -taunting you or your peers into responding to problem actions *it may cause the teacher or peers to feel provoked or threatened they may feel out of control in other areas of their lives they feel most powerful when they feel they can control their teacher or peers by eliciting an emotional or intimidated response do NOT respond emotionally or allow these students to bully others instead, remain calm, do not get bogged down in long arguments. reiterate the rules, point out the refraction and enforce the classroom rules and consequences as they are written

THREE KINDS OF DISCIPLINE:

Preventive Discipline Supportive Discipline Corrective Discipline

Answering Call-Outs

Require students to raise their hands to get your attention; otherwise, you send the message that students do not have to follow class rules and procedures for getting your attention.

TEACHER-STUDENT RELATIONSHIP

Research has shown that at the middle school and high school level, the quality of the teacher-student relationship is of utmost importance. This has nothing to do with the personality of the teacher or whether he or she is well liked or is perceived by the student as a friend. It does have a lot to do with some specific assertive teacher behaviors that lead to positive student behaviors:

Rushing Around

Rushing around is often indicative of a teacher's lack of planning or time management, and it can cause restlessness and poor attention in students. Fortunately, the solution is simple: Slow down!

How Does An Assertive Teacher Handle Misbehavior

Signals Proximity Physical Cues Verbal Cues

Step 8

Suspension from school

Authoritative Classrooms: high involvement

TEACHER: have high degree of control in their classrooms in that they set and enforce clear, consistent behavioral expectations. they are also highly involved, actively supporting good behavior and redirecting students who do not meet the set expectations they are perceived by students as caring, reasonable and interested in their success STUDENT: have the freedom to ask "why" and make choices about how the class will work. they tend to be social and responsible

Indulgent and Permissive Classrooms

TEACHERS: actively undermine a positive classroom environment by encouraging misbehavior or chaos in the classroom. one who encourages the class clown to the detriment of instructional time or who quickly gives in to student demands for hall passes or free time. (high involvement but low control) Even if behavioral expectations are stated, they are not enforced in the indulgent classroom. they are described as lazy in their management efforts. students may characterize both indulgent and permissive teachers as "cool," but they will not learn much in these classrooms and will not respect teachers who adopt these styles. STUDENTS: will be immature, lacking impulse control and leadership skills

Authoritative Classrooms: low involvement

TEACHERS: want to control almost every aspect of their classrooms but are not always willing to partner with their students to support and encourage positive behavior students have no say in the authoritarian classroom, which provides little freedom for learning or discovery. they are perceived by students as cold, unreasonable or uncaring. rather than actively participating in the creation of a positive classroom atmosphere, teachers may be overly reliant on restrictions and regulations. STUDENTS: because they do not have the chance to take an active role in the classroom, students may have weaker social skills and less initiative. Some will conform to the rules, but others may rebel and act out against a teacher who is not perceived as reasonable or caring.

Talking over Students

This falls under the heading "model expected behavior." Interruptions and rudeness should not be tolerated students or teachers. It sends a message that listening is optional for students.

Irritability

You may know from experience that irritability is contagious. Further, it shows students that they cannot or do not need to control their emotions, which is not the case. Stay calm and positive.

Attention

attention seeking may look like: -pencil tapping -humming or singing -constant talking -blurting out or interrupting they do not mind if they are getting attention for misbehaving, as long as they are getting your attention or the attention of other students they want you to stop the classroom and call more attention to their behavior instead, "starve" the student's impulse to earn attention through negative behavior by ignoring behavior when possible or addressing the matter privately, instead of in front of the class "feed" the students desire to earn attention for positive behavior by publicly praising the student when he does something well

Avoidance of Failure

avoidance of failure may look like: -withdrawing from activities or sleep during class -refusing to turn in required work -refusal to interact with peers *it may cause the teacher or peers to feel hopeless, like the student will never change they have decided that it's better not to try (and risk punishment) than to try and risk failure they need to be reassured that failure is a normal part of learning and also encouraged to participate in progressively more challenging tasks follow classroom consequences plan be careful not to assign a time-out or other kind of "withdrawal" punishments to these students. this is what they want instead, insist on participation and abundantly praise the student's efforts

TYPES OF CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT

can be characterized in terms of two dimensions *involvement and control*

The Key component of Behavior Modification Discipline:

catch and reinforce the good behavior you want as soon as you see it. -actions speak louder than words. Show them what good behavior looks like there are still consequences in place in your classroom and they should be used and followed. But punishment like staying in from recess or standing in a corner, diminishes a child's self-esteem and can cause behavior to worsen.

Grades PK-2

communicating expectations for behavior can be made into a game or a role-play. EX: describe a situation/scenario and have them tell you which rule was modeled. when a student misbehaves, always have them articulate exactly why they are being reprimanded. its also important to communicate behavior expectations and procedures to parents. this can be done with a hand-out to be signed

Corrective Discipline

corrective discipline refers to implementing the established consequences for breaking class rules should be implemented fairly and delivered as soon as possible without humiliating the student call the student to your desk asap and and quietly notify them of the infraction and the consequence of detention. you do not need to publicly reprimand the student and you should not wait longer than necessary to deliver the corrective discipline

An Assertive Teacher Cont.

establishes and models clear expectations for the working environment expects that all students are actively involved in the learning in a productive way and monitors to ensure this is occurring is available to all of her students for additional assistance before, during or after school when the teacher conveys the message that she expects all students to be successful, misbehavior is much less likely to occur She commands respect because she models respect to all of her students- no matter what!

An Assertive Teacher Cont.

has a clear, written purpose for every lesson and task. that purpose is communicated to every student and great care is given to ensure that every student has a clear understanding of the lessons goals provides continuous guidance through monitoring, informal assessing, re-teaching and questioning conveys that the students learning is important and the teacher expects everyone to succeed address behavior issues when they occur with in a variety of ways

The Delivery

how you present yourself on the first day of school is of the utmost importance. the first day is when the tone is set in the classroom. PREPARE! do not wing it on the first day. you must know what you will say when you stand in front of your class for the first time in addition to letting students know that you will have control of the class, is also the time to let them know that you look forward to getting to know them and that you do care for them. it is possible to these "two sides" to both show themselves in the same class period! ***Students will not care about learning until they know you care about them

Step 7

in school suspension

Grades 6-12

involve the students in the rule making to a certain extent post rules and ask what each one means. emphasize the importance of everyone understanding what the rules are and what they mean. for high school discussion is much more informal. they believe that they are "young adults" and they will be treated as such; expect them to behave in a respectful productive way. a typical response could be: "that behavior is not respectful and I don't appreciate it" your voice and demeanor should be calm an matter of fact and should model the respectful behavior you expect

An Assertive Teacher

is in control from the moment she enters the classroom her posture os erect and commanding; there is no doubt she is in charge makes eye contact and talks directly to her students and addresses misbehavior the moment it occurs. believes that she has the right to teach and students have the right to learn in a pleasant, safe environment demand that rules and procedures are followed and that consequences are applied consistently when necessary has a genuine desire to know about her students and will pay extra attention to those who are in high need

Step 3

isolation in the room followed by a conference with the student

Grades 3-5

less rehearsing and more conversation. they know the routines and general expectations. the teacher should introduce her classroom rules then ask for student input about what each rule means to them. this can be done in small groups to allow for a bit of social time and for students to get to know each other have the groups present to the class- have other groups follow without repeating what another group has already said this has them recognize that they are old enough to understand what each rule means post the rules. incorporate the student's ideas. make 2 copies for each child, one that they sign and one for the parent to sign and bring back

Step 6

office referral

Step 4

phone call home with student explaining to parent what they did wrong

Step 2

private teacher conference with the student

behavior modification cont.

regardless of the students argument, reason or response, your response is always the same most of the time, the student will comply with your request if she cannot engage you in an argument or confrontation communication is key in changing behavior regardless of students circumstances, misbehavior must be appropriately dealt with when it occurs

Step 9

removal to an alternative school

Revenge

revenge-seeking may look like: -verbal or physical bullying -overreacting to real or perceived slights *it may cause the teacher or peers to feel hurt or to want to "get even" they are often acting based on hurt feelings or insecurities they may have experienced verbal or physical abuse themselves teachers can break down the revenge-seekers emotional walls by consistently enforcing rules while also offering acceptance of the student as a person address and discipline the behavior as necessary, but show continued kindness to the student

Rewards:

rewards students for appropriate behavior & acknowledge appropriate behavior kind and respectful words from the teacher can send a powerful message EX: "I really appreciate the way..." people have a tendency to respond positively to kind words. don't hesitate to reward, praise and acknowledge good behavior

Rules:

should be few in number and stated in a positive way. Ex: "always walk" rather than "don't run" should be only about 3-5 rules for the classroom and have them posted in a prominent place in your room if a student broke a rule, make sure they can tell you the rule they broke and what they need to do to fix it spend time going over rules and your expectations for maintaining the rules in the classroom at a high school level look at rules as "life choices" and treat them as adults

Preventive Discipline

steps you take to help learners stay engaged and on-task so that they do not begin misbehaving establish and discuss rules & consequences in a way that students understand modeling expected behavior planning interesting lessons so the students do not become idle or distracted

Supportive Discipline

supportive discipline occurs when you see a student on the cusp of misbehaving and you act quickly to keep the behavior from escalating. a popular mode is the "teacher look" give a firm, disapproving facial expression give subtle hints that you have noticed non-academic conversations so they will return to work

Step 1

verbal redirection or warning

Proximity

walk over and stand by the student