Teachers Strategy in a Class Management - Essay Example

room Management Teaching is considered a relaxed profession but it's not true. A teacher's job is a tough one. Teaching is just a small part of a teacher's job. A major portion of his/her task consists of managing the class. According to Murphy: The task has become more difficult over the past few decades as young people's attitudes to people in authority have changed dramatically. Some of the changes have led to greater self-confidence in students. Others--such as the acceptance of violence to achieve ends, attitudes to substance abuse and an increasing lack of respect for authority--have made classroom management and life in school generally more difficult, and more demanding, on those who are charged with maintaining a positive learning environment. (para.104) Class management requires lots of patience, skills and effort in order to be successful. A teacher might get frustrated and wonder that his occupation is to teach and not spend half the time maintaining silence and managing unwanted behaviors. But no matter how well one can teach his caliber gets tested on the basis of how well he is able to manage the class. If the class is not attentive, then to whom will one teach It's true that teachers are not the only ones to be involved in behavior correction of pupils but they are one of the most important ones. Leaman (2005) has rightly stated, "Those of us who make the choice to work in education, like it or not assume an especially significant role in addressing social decline." (p.1) So if we see the larger picture we find that the profession of a teacher has given a noble opportunity to work for better society through the mundane activity called class management. To begin with, one has to be very assertive. Setting up a boundary of acceptable and unacceptable behavior is essential. It doesn't mean that a teacher should stop enjoying a good relationship with his students. But the students should not be allowed to overlook discipline and sense of respect towards the rules of the class. Remaining in control in the classroom is essential for a teacher. If one is not calm and firm then the students will get the signal that the teacher is not able to handle the pressure and they will always try to get away of it or enjoy the teacher's weakness. When a stern look is sufficient one should avoid yelling. Students won't get afraid instead will make fun at one's back. A teacher can also follow the following guideline to manage class. According to Leaman (2005), "positive encouragement and praise is the easiest and most powerful way to reward an individual: notice your students working quietly/being helpful/listening well/sitting still, as much as you notice them misbehaving. Draw attention to this and make them feel good about themselves." (p. 17-18) The students will undergo a positive change and look forward to the teacher's class to gain opportunity to be praised in front of the entire class. Keeping the pupil in control does not mean pin drop silence always. During any group activity the pupil should be able to participate actively. If it's not the case then the teacher should work upon this aspect too. It has been rightly pointed out in NASUWT website "class control is not an end in itself. It is the creation of a learning environment that is important. In different circumstances the learning environment may be a totally silent classroom or the busy, bustling group activity session."(para.3) During a lecture it is often found that the backbenchers are busy exchanging glances or whispering to each other. This is quiet disturbing for the teacher. So to command maximum attention in the class the teacher should keep on asking questions from time to time. He should ask any one to answer. He should always try to call his students by name. This will add a personal touch to the relationship and the students will be more attentive in the class. The approach of at randomly asking questions will control the occasional whispers here and there. Also this will help in curbing the practice of all the enthusiastic pupil actively participating and those who have a laid back attitude hardly giving any feedback for the teacher to conclude that whether everyone in the class understood what was taught or not. According to Tuckman in Barnes,(1999) " The Greek philosophers knew this well, as Socratic questioning clearly exemplifies. Answering questions is all very well for those pupils who are keen to volunteer, but some children will still be able to coast along unless they are accountable. For all sorts of reasons, some children do not want to volunteer answers. They may be shy, reserved, content to let their friends do the thinking, resentful, threatened or lazy." (p.56) So this way of teaching is best in managing the participation of everyone in the class, as it is embarrassing for the one who has not been able to answer when all eyes were glued to him. Even if one pupil has answered your question when you ask what did you understand, don't assume that all have understood. To check this according to teaching tips.com (para.19) "Ask more than one student to give the answer to the same question Tell me more. Say it in a different way. How would you call it Say it again." These can be some of the ways to ask the same question without making the students feel bored. No matter how stressed out a teacher is he should never over react and always be patient. One should never expect that one-day's lecture on good behavior, attentiveness or cleanliness etc. will permanently rectify all the problems of the class. All pupils are different and the same situation creates different responses in a group. Barnes (1999) pointed, "Not everyone is immediately ready to reframe, however, even if they know how." (p.42) It will take time and there will be improvement with gradually. Class management is a continuous process. It should begin with the first day of the class itself. According to Packard and Race(2000), one should follow the following list, from the very first day. "Don't forget to introduce yourself State clearly what you expect of your pupils Learn your pupils' name as quickly as you can Help pupils to learn each others' names Help pupils to get to know each other Show your pupils where they are heading Make sure your pupils know how they will be assessed Find out what your pupils already know Explain which resources are available for pupils to use React firmly if any of your rules of behavior are transgressed" (p.2-3) This is an excellent way to create good relationships amongst the teacher and his pupils. It would be easier to manage the class too. Every teacher's strategy is to raise achievements or behavior levels in the class. While doing so he should always keep in mind that there is a difference between the students of two genders. Hence students from both the genders need different management styles. It has been found that boys do not perform as well as the girls. They are also less organized and lack neatness while presenting work. According to Dunn and Goodyer (p.216) "Boys from a clinical sample are at higher risk than girls of becoming persistently and severely ill" too. A teacher should keep in mind these natural differences to be able to successfully manage students who are biologically apart. In a co educational background it is very difficult to set different assessment standards for both the genders but as far as possible the teacher should make an effort to pay more attention to the weaker group so that there is a balance in the output. However if the teacher pays more attention to one group the other group might think he is favoring that group. On the other hand if the teacher tries to point out the shortcomings of one group in front of the entire class then that group may feel offended. Any of the two feelings would affect the congenial atmosphere of the class and it will become difficult for the teacher to manage such a class where there is a feeling of groupism and a feeling of resentment towards the teacher's behavior. So the best thing is to discuss common problems in the class and the more personals one during one to one conversations. Two conflicting or talkative children should be made to sit apart. One solution, though it looks very basic can be tried. It will definitely help in improving the situation when a section of the class lacks attentiveness, cooperation or discipline. The sitting arrangement in most classrooms is such that students either sit in rows or groups. The rows in the back are far away from the teacher and the discipline problem erupts there. The students get bored too. In group sitting arrangement, the students are so near to each other that they get distracted. So it's best to rearrange the sitting positions. The chairs and desks should be arranged in a three-sided box position - l_l - This way the teacher can move around freely in the class and interact with each and every student. The problem of discipline and inattentiveness will be solved, as each student would be in the first row. Even after this if the teacher is not able to get rid of the problems then for proper class management he should work on his own teaching ways and set targets for himself. In the words of Jelly, Fuller and Byers(2000), he should focus on the following aspects: "work on the skills needed in order to record, monitor, and evaluate targets; consideration of the communication skills needed in order to elicit responses from pupils and involve them in establishing their own targets." (p.32) A few minor things that teachers overlook, can lead to major problems in class management. Teachers are human beings and it is very normal to get attached to a pupil and not be able to relate to the other one. Whatever the case may be he should always make an effort to not make it evident. Another thing is that the teacher should always speak clearly and his voice should have a sufficient volume. Too slow volume takes away the interest of the pupil whereas too loud volume is very irritating. The pace of speaking also plays an important role in the teacher's profession. The teacher should learn from the unwanted situations that have occurred in class. He should analyze these incidents and take preventive measures to stop the occurrence of any such incident in future. A continuous lecture hardly interests anybody. The teacher may want to finish the course fast, also teaching the same thing each year may compel him to go fast. But he should understand that unlike him the students are going through the lesson for the first time. So it will take time for them to grasp all that is being taught. Besides, to maintain the interest level of the class the teacher should club lectures and activities together. Goh and Taib observed, "When participating in lessons involving a receptive skill such as listening, students can easily become passive and disengaged from the active process of learning. This often not only leads to boredom and frustration on their part but also denies them opportunities to discover how they might take control of their listening development." (p.230) Therefore using half the time to lecture and half the time to do some practical work based on the lecture will make the students look forward to the teacher's class. Easily identifiable examples will also play the trick. Class management would not remain a tough task then. The teacher should be very particular about class attendance. He should question the students about their reason for absence. This way the students will know that the teacher is keeping track of their attendance and become more punctual. The teacher should have that sixth sense to be able judge whether the student is giving the correct reasons or just misleading him. Prolonged absence should be dealt with strictness as well as concern. Nowadays "chronic fatigue in young people can be disabling and is the main illness-related reason for prolonged absence from school." (Dowsett and Colby in Fowler et.al, p.247) The teacher should be considerate in such situations and help the suffering student as much as possible. On behalf of that student he should request the entire class to help him out after school hours. This will build a sense of respect in all the students for the teacher and they will trouble him less in class. After trying very hard to manage the class well and teaching in the best possible way, the teacher might wonder that, are all his efforts reaping positive results In such a situation it is difficult to come to a conclusion without getting feedback from one's students. It affects the ego of a teacher to ask the students about his own performance and very few teachers would like to resort to this measure but this is the most effective way of judging one's capabilities. Accept both negative and positive feedback in the same stride. If a student has given a very silly feedback, there is no need to get disheartened. Only the useful ones should be used for self-assessment. The teacher should thank the students for their feedbacks whether negative or positive and make them feel that their comments matter. Reflect on the comments and try to incorporate changes if required. All this will definitely make the teacher successful in class management. Word count: 2286 'References' Barnes, R. (1999). Positive Teaching positive Learning. London : Routledge Jelly, M., Fuller, A., Byers, R. (2000). Involving Pupils In Practice : Promoting Partnerships with Pupils with Special Educational Needs. London : David Fulton Publishers. Leaman, L. (2005). Managing Very Challenging Behaviour. London : Continuum. Packard, N., Race, P. (Ed.). (2000). 2000 Tips for Teachers. London : Kogan Page Limited. Dunn, V., Goodyer, I.M. (2006). The British Journal Of Psychiatry. Vol. 188. Leeds: Royal College Of Psychiatrists. Fowler, T.A. et.al. (2006). The British Journal Of Psychiatry. Vol. 189. Leeds: Royal College Of Psychiatrists. Goh, C., Taib, Y. (2006). ELT Journal. Vol. 60/3. London : Oxford Univerity Press. Murphy, T. (1995). Teachers Helping Teachers. Retrieved Dec. 3, 2006 from http:// www.pacificnet.net/mandel/ClassroomManagement.html. NASUWT. (2006). Retrieved Dec. 3, 2006 from http:// www.nasuwt.org.uk/ Templates/internal.aspNodel ID=67311. Teaching Tips. (2006). Retrieved Dec. 3, 2006 from http://www.teachingtips.com/ Articles/Xclassmamagement1.html Read More