THE WHY AND HOW OF CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT
As Compiled by Frank
Classroom management refers to all of the
things that a teacher does to organize students, space, time and materials so that
instruction in content and student learning can take place. In all that you communicate, no matter how
insignificant or innocuous it may seem, it contributes to your status as a
teacher and your ability to manage the classroom.
Ginott states, “that good classroom
management, like surgery, requires precision – no random cuts, no rambling
comments. Above all, a teacher
demonstrates self-discipline and good manners – no tantrums, no insults, no
blistering language. His/Her management
plan is never sadistic. He/She lives by
the law of compassion, even when challenged by children to defy it.”
Research tells us, “The amount of time
students are actively engaged in learning contributes strongly to their
achievement. The amount of time
available for learning is determined by instructional and management skills of
the teacher…” This implies that teachers
must plan and prepare well, be organized, maximize student time on task, keep
students actively engaged, efficiently utilize time, and the list goes on.
In a study reviewing 11,000 pieces of
research that spanned fifty years, three researchers determined that there are
twenty-eight factors that influence student learning and these have been ranked
in order. The most important factor
governing student learning is classroom management.
THE LITANY FOR SUCCESSFUL CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT
- Look at yourself! Be mindful of your self-confidence,
voice, attitude, enthusiasm, personal appearance, manners, values, and
most of all, composure and self-control. Losing composure and shouting does not
enhance classroom management. The
teacher sets the tone and creates the learning environment in the
classroom. Consequently, the
classroom climate takes on the characteristics of the teacher’s
personality and disposition.
- On the first day of school introduce
written rules and procedures and post them. Above all, be generous with appreciative
praise, encouragement, and reward for achievement and positive behavior. Delineate the boundaries for
- Have the students practice, learn, and
be able to explain classroom procedures (grade appropriate). The procedures need to become
routine. Student should be able to
perform the procedures automatically.
- Establish a cue (words, sound, hand
signal, etc.) to which the students are taught to respond to
immediately. Be consistent in using
the cue. Practice it! Use the cue only when you are absolutely
ready to get the students’ attention.
Once you give the cue do not engage in any other activity or have
your attention diverted. Wait! Wait time is a very effective and
important know-how and ability for teachers to possess. Non-verbal communication consistent with
the cue is powerful. Silence can be
- Set and convey high expectations of your
students. However, there must be a
support system in place and materials available to attend to individual
differences to assure achievement.
- When planning, schedule time for
presentation and study, select the best activities to facilitate learning,
and delimit content to be studied.
When students work cooperatively, have them use a “work voice”.
- Communicate goals and objectives. Be clear about requirements and
consequences for unsatisfactory performance. Children tend to be more cooperative and
willing to attack a task if they have a clear understanding of what they
are to do, why they are being asked to do it, and how they are to proceed.
- Regulate the learning activities. First, sequence content so that
knowledge builds on itself by linking new information to students’
existing knowledge. Secondly, pace
the instruction so that students are ready for subsequent learning. Then, monitor students’ success rates. This will assure that students stay
productively engaged regardless of how quickly they learn. Finally, adjust instruction based upon
what the monitoring and or assessment indicates.
- Learn to use non-verbal behavior to
communicate. Provide non-verbal
feedback (smiles, frowns, nods, move closer to students, etc.) for
acceptable and unacceptable behavior.
Eye contact and/or facial expressions communicate pleasure,
concern, interest, mood, etc. Be
certain that your verbal communication is consistent with your non-verbal
- Gesture to accent points. Research tells us, “that of all the
parts of the human body used to communicate information, the hands and
face are the most powerful”.
Scientists are studying the link between the body gestures and the
mind. This issue has given raise to
an international Society for Gesture Studies. Gestures provide another dimension to
instruction by adding visual cues, which may trigger understanding.
- Voice inflections stress points of
interest and importance. Studies on
the effects of voice inflection have shown that variety in pitch and
intensity affects receptivity of the listener. Additionally, where the inflection is
placed affects credibility of the sender.
- Reinforce appropriate behavior, praise
appropriate behavior and name it. (“Thank you for doing…”) Ginott warns that all praise may not be
beneficial. He makes the
distinction between evaluative praise and appreciative praise. In his view judgmental or evaluative
praise most times is harmful to students.
The inverse power of praise is being studied in New York schools and their findings support
Ginott’s premise. Productive praise
describes a child’s efforts and accomplishments and our feelings about
them. The fundamental rule in
praising is: describe without evaluating, report – don’t judge. Guide the child toward evaluating his or
her own behavior.
- When students recite have them speak
loud enough for all in the classroom to hear. Call upon a student most distant from
the speaker to check if he or she was able to hear. This approach will help keep students
- Use proximity control. Moving close to the student causes a
change in his or her behavior. Room
arrangements can maximize the teacher’s ability to effectively move toward
- The best reward is the satisfaction of
a job well done. Students can be
shown the way to buy into this mindset.
For example, to extend rewards when a student answers a question
and others in the classroom knew the answer they hand signal. The teacher’s nod or facial expression
provides acknowledgement and reward.
This, too, keeps students engaged.
- Work to master the artful management
of non-confrontation. Approach
trying situations with calmness, finesses, self-assurance and
composure. These same behaviors
will serve well during times of emergency.
Avoid approaching tense situations in the heat of anger.
- Do not take unacceptable behavior as
an affront. Use the power of wisdom
to affect events.
How one manages the classroom is the
primary determinant of how well your students learn. Conversely, when students are successful and
actively engaged in their work, they tend to be well behaved. Therefore, keep students involved in their
work, have students understand what is expected of them, maximize time on task,
prevent confusion or disruption, and run a work simulated but relaxed and
pleasant classroom. Remember that in the
adult world the workplace is one that is not always quiet, on the contrary,
people continually interact, ask questions, brainstorm, seek help and so on.
In accepting the premise that all that the
teacher does in the classroom contributes to quality instruction and
management, instruction and classroom management should not be viewed as
separate entities. When teachers apply
their knowledge, training, communication mastery, skills and values and caring,
they coalesce and the student cooperatively become an active part of the
Frank Riessman’s Blueprint
for the Disadvantaged tells of the disadvantage in the troubled schools of
the 1960’s and of their deplorable conditions.
Through his studies of these inner city schools, amidst the chaos, he
and his colleagues occasionally came upon classrooms within which there was
order and instruction taking place with students on task. Being impressed with what they had observed, his
group reasoned that if they could carbon copy how those teachers taught,
likewise others could be trained. The
obstacle in that thinking was that all of the teachers observed were so
dissimilar. The labels he gave them
illustrate those differences. He
characterized them as the coach, boomer, actor, professor, etc. Also, he vividly described their teaching
and his associates did agree that there was a common quality that all of those
teachers observed possessed and communicated, though not verbally. That was, in some way all of the teachers
conveyed to the students that it made a difference to them that they, the
At first glimpse it
seems elementary – all that needs to be done to teach and manage a classroom
well is for the teacher to tell students, “It makes a difference to me that you
learn.” Be sure, this is an over
simplification and students are too perceptive to buy into that. It very well may be that therein, the
insights of students, lies the key to good teaching. Consistent with Riessman’s findings, it is
incumbent upon teachers to demonstrate through attitude, knowledge, dedication,
skill, commitment, values, and everything else they do, that they care.
Harry K & Rosemary T Wong (1998) The
First Days of School Harry K Wong Publications, CA p.84
2) Haim G. Ginott, Teacher and Child
(New York NY: The Macmillan Company), 1972 p.149
3) US Department of Education, “What Works” p.34
4) Wong p.82
5) BJ Enz, SJ Cook, BJ Weber, Professional
Partnership in the Student Teaching Experience Kendall Hunt Publishing
Co, Iowa p.61
7) Ginott p.125
8) PO Bronson, How Not to Talk to Your
Kids New York Magazine (Feb. 19, 2007)
9) Frank Riessman, 1968 Blueprint for
the Disadvantaged, B’nai Brith, NY NY