Classroom Management

Amanda M. Ward 5/1/2012

Marist College

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Classroom management success or failure depends on the structure of two important

variables: the classroom environment and the teacher. According to Levin and Nolan, teaching

is defined as, “the use of preplanned behaviors, founded in learning principles and child

development theory, and directed toward both instructional delivery and classroom

management that increases the probability of affecting a positive change in student behavior”

(2010, pg. 6). As such, effective teaching is demonstrated when students are on-task and

undisruptive; in other words, the students are well-managed. As an educator, my educational

philosophy is based around the theory of students as active learners, rather than passive

students, who have an interest in what they are studying. Classroom management principles

are built directly into my philosophy as it is my belief that when students are interested and

engaged in what they are learning, there will not be a cause for unnecessary disruption.

A vast amount of research has been collected on effective classroom management

strategies. However, Simonsen (2008) and associates developed the five core elements that

many researchers have defined as part of effective classroom management strategies

(Simonsen, Fairbanks, Briesch, Myers, & Sugai). While the classroom environment is an important

aspect for classroom management, the attitude of the teacher must also be taken into

consideration. Beaty-O’Ferrall and associates examine the teacher’s role within the

management principles and the affect they also have on creating and maintaining a positive

learning environment for students (Beaty-O'Farrell, Green & Hanna, 2010).

The Hudson City School District has many students with behavioral issues, and as such it

causes instructional time to be difficult. There are many students who are unmotivated and as

such prefer to encourage other students to become off task as well, intruding on learning time

for those who are motivated to learn. Therefore classroom management strategies are

incredibly important for this school, and finding the rights ones to use are the key to a successful

academic classroom.

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Structuring the Classroom Environment Maximize Structure in your Classroom

Structure is the main component of managing a classroom. It is the teacher’s

responsibility to begin instilling structure and routines within the classroom from the first day the

students step inside. These routines need to be predictable so students know exactly what is

expected of them when class time begins (Simonsen, Fairbanks, Briesch, Myers, & Sugai, 2008).

This means any pre-routines the teacher needs to complete (grading papers, gathering

materials, etc) must be done so the students can immediately begin to work. The setup of the

classroom can also make or break order. According to Levin and Nolan (2010), classroom

learning environments “should be flexible enough to accommodate and facilitate the various

learning activities that occur in the classroom” (p. 133). The classroom should be properly

arranged for activities and to counter any behavior issues that may occur due to the seating of

the students.

As my philosophy of education involves students using Vygotsky’s Constructivist

approach to active learning, I decided to structure my classroom in a way that would allow

students to have as much hands-on learning time as possible. Upon my first arrival, the English

classroom in Hudson High School was set up as a traditional classroom setting; desks in rows,

separated from one another, with no room for collaboration. Since ninth graders have a difficult

time settling down at the beginning of class, I thought of different strategies I could use to

eliminate as much of my introductory instructional time to maximize the amount of learning time.

After assessing the classroom, I found that passing out papers, taking out materials, and finding a

place to sit were some of the most time-consuming problems at the beginning of the class.

To begin creating an effective learning environment, I devised a plan to make the

classroom more collaborative friendly. For example, the seats needed to be rearranged from

rows to small groups so collaboration had the potential to take place. However, rather than

randomly grouping students together, my cooperative teacher and I devised a seating chart

that accommodated both potential behavioral problems as well as educational needs. The

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second period tenth grade class was a co-taught class with many of the students classified as

special education. Therefore we strategically mixed these students in with regular education

students to ensure everyone had an opportunity to benefit from their peers. However, we

anticipated any behavioral problems that might occur from clashing personalities and made

sure to sit students properly so they could focus on their task with their group without distractions.

By assigning seats, we eliminated the need for students to find a seat; rather a seat had already

been picked out for them.

At first the students were reluctant to sit with their new groups. Each of the ninth graders

was not seated with their friends, which meant there was a raised uncomfortable level among

the groups. However, the students quickly found that not working with their friends was

beneficial. Once they overcame their uneasiness and began to realize they did not have a

choice, they put their differences aside and used their group mates to their full advantage. This

began to show as evidence in their increased assessment grades of their daily work. Their

responses became more in depth, and many students included responses on their papers from

discussions which included specific responses from individual students. The students were not

perfect of course; they did find ways to turn around and talk with their friends, but for the most

part they worked diligently in their groups to complete their work without complaining.

After creating the seating chart, I decided to eliminate the need for passing out papers

by creating a simple folder system. In every

class, each group was provided a single

folder that included their materials needed

for the day labeled with their names. Before

each class period I would fill the folders with

the materials they would need for the

upcoming class. On the left hand side of the

folder was their task assignment for the day.

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These sheets were color coded and had student’s names written on them. On the right hand

side of the folder was homework or class work that the students were allowed to take. Students

were directed to place their homework in the folder and I would collect the folders and grade

the papers, reinserting the papers back in the correct spot. By creating the folder as a

communication system for passing out materials and exchanging homework, I eliminated the

time wasted on completing these tasks to prepare the students. The students quickly learned

the routine of the folder system and it became an effective way to save time for learning.

The folder system showed immediate responses as a classroom management technique.

Students learned the routine of the folders quickly and therefore all of the paper exchange time

was eliminated, creating more learning time. The students knew their work would be in the

folder waiting for them, and all they had to do was to identify their particular role for the day

and complete the assignment. It took a few days of practice for the students to get the routine

down, but once they did it made things much smoother. This gave me more time to spend

working with students who needed additional help, rather than worrying about materials getting

passed out and papers being returned. Everyone knew the expectation for the day and did not

question what needed to be completed.

Post, Teach, Review, Monitor, and Reinforce a Small Number of Positively Stated Expectations As Simonsen (2008) discusses, teachers must communicate a series of expectations that

students can understand and follow. If students do not understand expectations, the chance

off-task behavior or disruption will take place is greatly increased. Simonsen (2008) states that

teachers should “choose a small number of positively stated rules” which explains what teachers

want the students to do, not what they should not be doing. Teachers must then teach their

expectations to the students so students can practice what it is they should be doing. Once

established, the expectations should be posted in a clearly visible spot so that they can be

referred to at any given time. As the students are learning, Simonsen believes teachers should

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monitor the class by walking around the room, scanning with their eyes, or interacting with the

students to reinforce behavior (2008).

During my first few days in the

classroom, I immediately told my students

what I expected of them. I made my few

expectations very clear: students were to

be on time, students needed to complete

the work I assigned them, and they

needed to work with their groups to

complete the assignments with respect for

one another. I introduced their groups as their families, meaning these were the peers who they

would either sink or fail with. From there I posted my expectations on the wall next to the

classroom door so that every student had a clear view of the rules at all times.

One of the most continuous challenges I faced was that the students did not always take

my rules seriously because I was not their real classroom teacher. While I was teaching them,

they still knew the rules that my cooperating teacher had set in place. However, what I found

was that with my cooperating teacher in the classroom the students were very cooperative.

When it came time for me to teach the students on my own, they were far more resistant to do

what I expected. The first week it was as if

we had never met before, but by the second

week they started to come into the mindset

that I was their teacher now and they would

comply by my rules. I even got my tenth

grade students to sit on the floor for a Lord of

the Flies exercise where everyone

participated in the reading. While they were

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very resistant at first, they understood they did not have a choice and did it anyway. This would

have been a more beneficial activity had they given it a chance, but since they did not it did

not work out entirely as planned.

Actively Engage Students in Observable Ways

Simonsen’s third aspect of classroom management is to actively engage students in

observable ways. By this Simonsen suggests that teacher should “provide high rates of

opportunities [for students] to respond, link engagement with outcome objectives, and use a

range of evidence based practices that promote active engagement”, including direct

instruction, class-wide peer tutoring, guided notes, and response cards (2008). The purpose of

this type of management is to include students in whole class learning that is engaging and

active to keep students on task.

One method I found useful for engaging students was fill-in-the-blank notes linked with a

prezi. The prezi captured their attention with the movement on the screen, while the notes gave

them something to do while watching the presentation. While I feel this is not a good method

when used with a power point, I found that the students were more willing to pay attention to

the lecture with the prezi because they never knew how it would move. For example, when

introducing Lord of the Flies I presented the students with notes and a presentation. While the

information was not the most exciting, the students were willing to listen and completed the

notes. Within the presentation I had written discussion questions that they had a chance to

discuss with their groups to break up the presentation. The students responded well to this and

found it beneficial for the lesson because it was not straight copying; rather they had a chance

to talk and voice their opinions on the topic.

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Establish a Continuum of Strategies to Acknowledge Appropriate Behavior

Strategies that Simonsen suggests to continuously acknowledge appropriate behavior

include “specific and contingent praise, group contingencies, behavior contracts, and token

economics” (2008). These strategies are appropriate for classroom management because

when implemented correctly they can be useful to boost student’s self-esteem through praise,

which will give the student incentive to continue conducting that behavior. Then when the

students continue conducting the expected behavior, the teacher will have fewer disruptions to

deal with.

Since I allow my students to do most of their learning on their own with my background

guidance, I make it a habit to praise my students when they are working hard and producing

quality work. Whether it is verbally or a written comment on their papers, I always provide

encouraging comments to students who are really trying their best. However, I use praise

appropriately. A particular strategy I use is to compliment a student first; this way when I need to

make a suggestion about something they should change or do differently the student does not

perceive my comment as aggressive or threatening.

When I first entered the classroom, I found that the students hardly received positive

feedback for their efforts. Many of the students called themselves stupid on a regular basis and

had very low self-efficacy when it came to their academics. From day one I started

encouraging the students to realize they are not stupid and began to work on their self-efficacy

with them. In one of my eighth grade classes, I had one particular student who called himself

stupid as a way for attention. Upon further observation, I noticed he really believed it. In the first

five weeks of teaching in this class, I told this student every day that he was smart and to stop

belittling himself. When I corrected his papers, I wrote positive comments that encouraged the

progress he had made. Within the final few weeks, I noticed this student stopped shouting out

that he was stupid as often, and began to work harder on his assignments than before. His

progress even showed on one writing assignment where he made great gains from previous

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assignments. Whether this continues after I leave or not, I know that this students has begun to

believe in himself and it has had a positive influence on him as a person.

Establish a Continuum of Strategies to Acknowledge Inappropriate Behavior According to Simonsen, establishing a continuum of strategies to acknowledge

inappropriate behavior can be done by “error corrections, differential reinforcement, planned

ignoring, response cost, and time out from reinforcement” (2008). Simonsen’s ideas coincide

with Redl and Wineman’s (1952) idea of the hierarchy of remedial intervention skills. Included in

this tier are planned ignoring, signal interference, proximity interference, and touch interference.

“When they are used randomly, effective management of minor disruptions is not fully achieved.

However, when they are consciously employed in a predetermined logical sequence, they

serve to curb milder forms of off-task behavior” (Redl & Wineman, 1952, p. 166). By

acknowledging that the student has not followed expectations but doing so in a non-

threatening manner will encourage a student to get back on task and follow expectations once

again.

When acknowledging inappropriate behavior, I try to use Redl and Wineman’s theory

because I have found it to be effective. For example, if I am doing Cold Call with the students,

the students are instructed not to call out answers. If they do call out, they are ignored

completely. While this is just one example, there are other times when I use the other forms as

well. For example, I have one particular student who was separated from his group but

continues to be disruptive. I often have to make eye contact as a first warning, then introduce

proximity interference by sitting at his table with him. This is usually sufficient enough to get him

back on task without having to go to touch proximity.

Since I have not had a lot of time with my students, these methods have not been

demonstrated to their full capacity. However, when I consistently used these methods on the

same one or two students each day, I could see the progress the student’s were making in their

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behavior management. Had I had more time with the students, perhaps I could have

influenced more students with better behavior.

Structuring the Teacher

Once the environment has been established, it is then the teacher’s responsibility to

continue the strong learning atmosphere of the classroom. To do this, Ellen Beaty-O’Ferrall, Alan

Green and Fred Hanna (2010) suggest doing so by building individual relationships with students.

According to Marzano (2003) “research indicates that teachers’ actions in their classrooms have

twice as much impact on student achievement as assessment policies, community involvement,

or staff collegiality” (p. 4). From this perspective Beaty-O’Ferrall, et. al, suggest that teachers use

the following unconventional methods to reach students on a more personal level: empathy,

admiring negative attitudes, leaving the ego at the door, and multicultural connections

between students of different cultures and the teacher (2010, p. 4). Using these methods,

teachers show the students that they understand who the students are without criticizing them.

Teachers highlight student’s negative skills to show that they have developed a skill and should

use it in a positive fashion.

If there is one thing I take pride in, it is using unorthodox methods to get to know my

students. While techniques such as sarcasm can be frowned upon, I find that when it is used

properly the students react positively to it because it shows my students that I am not a threat;

rather, I am just a person who likes to have fun but also wants the students to learn.

One of my favorite methods to use is humor. I feel if I can get students laughing, I can

get them to remember anything. This was the case with my tenth grade class that I taught Lord

of the Flies to. Since Lord of the Flies is a difficult book in terms of imagery and allegories, I knew I

had to find a method to get the students to understand the material. As it turns out Jack, the

antagonist has red hair, just as I do. While trying to teach the students about symbols, Jack’s hair

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became a symbol for his character. However, to ensure the students really understood the

meaning, I created a presentation based on South Park’s topic of “Gingers Don’t Have Souls.”

During this episode, Cartman gives a presentation to his class stating why people with red

hair make others feel uncomfortable. While this is a racist skit, I was able to incorporate it into a

presentation entitled “Gingers Do Have Souls.” Using South Park, which is a show they all know,

as well as red haired people from history and the symbolic meaning of the color red, I was able

to teach the students about the significance of Jack’s character using a humorous presentation

that attracted their attention.

Throughout the remainder of my experience my students have called me a soulless

ginger in fun, which I roll off my shoulder (leave the ego at the door) because I know in the long

run the presentation taught the students to remember Lord of the Flies. They proved their

knowledge in writing assignments and class

discussions where the students were able to

discuss their responses and defend it with

concrete information. Also, when I

challenged the students to complete

Reader’s Theater, they were able to act out

their parts quite well because they

understood their characters on deeper levels.

While this is not an entirely orthodox method, using these methods has given my students

the opportunity to see me as a person, not as an unreachable authority figure. I showed them

that I can relate to them which began to win them over and made my classroom management

easier. It was risky to use such a presentation, but in the long run I justify my actions because it

was beneficial for the unit and for my student’s education.

Overall I feel my classroom management skills are on their way to becoming stronger. I

feel if I had more time with my students I would have perfected them further. However, even

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with the limited time I had, I felt I did my best and learned quite a lot. But it was not just about

me learning, it was about the students as well. I had found ways to manage class time

effectively so that my students had more time for learning. I was able to see my students grow in

their skills because of the additional time they had with hands on learning. And, as such, it gave

me confidence to be an effective classroom manager.

I felt I did not get the entire experience of being a classroom manager, however,

because of the fact I was viewed as a substitute teacher once my cooperating teacher was no

longer in the room. Therefore my skills were undermined until the students began to accept me

once more as their teacher. Just as I was getting ready to leave the students were accepting

me and my authority began to increase once more. However, until I reached that point it was

rather difficult. This gave me insight to what it will be like to establish classroom management in

my future classroom and the things I will need to do to gain the respect of my students. Overall

this was an important experience for me and my students in which we all learned quite a bit

from.

Standards Standard eight states, “The candidate uses an understanding of individual and group

motivation and behavior to create a learning environment that encourages positive social

interaction, active engagement in learning, and self-motivation.” This means that as an

educator, I know that in order for my students to get the most out of their education, they must

have a learning environment that is suitable to their needs and can encourage them to strive

harder in their education while also gaining confidence in themselves.

The first aspect of standard eight states, “The candidate knows motivation theories and

behavior management strategies and techniques.” As an educator I recognize my ability in this

with the seating chart I created where I strategized to sit students away from personal

distractions for themselves and instead placed them with students who would be most

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beneficial to their learning. Also, to motivate students to learn I use prezi’s as a way to engage

them and get them interested in the topics we are discussing.

The second aspect of standard eight states, “the candidate manages time, space,

transitions, and activities effectively.” I proved my ability to do this through the folder system. By

implementing this system I cut out the time spent on handing out papers and materials and

provided the students with additional time for activities and hands-on learning. I also set up the

classroom so that access to everything was easy and there was enough space to move around

without interrupting other’s learning. Finally, I made sure to set up the classroom into

collaborative groups before students entered the classroom so that they knew what they would

be doing for that particular day.

The final aspect of standard eight states, “The candidate engages students in decision

making.” Within their literature circles, I provided students the opportunity to make decisions

regarding information from the text and at times what roles they wanted to perform. The

students had a lot of democracy within their groups which provided them with the opportunity

to become leaders at their leisure.

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References

Beaty-O'Farrell, M., Green, A., & Hanna, F. (2010). Classroom management strategies for

difficult students: promoting change through relationships. Middle School Journal, 4-11. Levin, J., & Nolan, J. (2010). Principles of classroom management: A profesional decision-

making model. (6 ed.). Boston, Massachussetts: Pearson. Marzano, R.J. (2003). What works in schools. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and

Curriculum Development. Redl, F. & Wineman, D. (1952). Controls from Within: Techniques for the Treatment of The

Aggressive Child. New York: The Free Press. Simonsen, B., Fairbanks, S., Briesch, A., Myers, D., & Sugai, G. (2008). Evidence-based

practices in classroom management: Considerations for research to practice. Education and Treatment of Children, 31, 351-380.

Studans, L. (2003). Developing learning communities in the first years of school. Primary Teaching Association, 2-9.

Wolk, S. (2003). Hearts and minds. Educational Leadership, 61(1), 14-18.