What does classroom management entail?
Fostering student engagement, securing cooperation so that teaching and learning can occur.
What does being a teacher entail?
Planning, the ability to design student lessons that excite and stimulate interest, having great communication skills, and to be able to work well with both students and parents. However, it REALLY entails Classroom Management.
Classrooms can be complicated workplaces: why?
Faculty/Staff must work well, teachers must come up with activities and make rapid decisions.
Teachers have to be very good at thinking on their feet. Why?
Everything they do is public and everything happens very fast, on-the-spot.
CHAPTER 2 - What do teachers have to do to make their job a tad bit easier?
Organize the classroom, install procedures for student behaviors, and plan instruction to engage students, and enforce these ideas.
What do management strategies include?
Providing students with opportunities to make choices, discussing the rationale behind a rule, giving students more responsibility, encouraging self-regulation, providing feedback that recognizes growth in skills and competencies, de-emphasizing comparisons among students and using activities that promote student collaboration.
What is the first key to a good room arrangement?
1) Use a room arrangement consistent with your instructional goals and activities
What does using room arrangement consistent with your instructional goals and activities?
Your teaching methods should reflect how your classroom should be set up.
What is the second key to a good room arrangement?
2) Keep high-traffic areas free of congestion.
What does keeping high-traffic areas free of congestion entail?
Areas like the pencil sharpener and the wastebasket, supply areas, and student desks, should be clear for continual use.
What is the third key to a good room arrangement?
3) Be sure students are easily seen by the teacher.
Why is it important that students see the teacher?
Monitoring is a huge task. If the teacher cannot see all the students, it will be difficult to see student needs. Clear lines of sight must be maintained between areas of the room so that the students can see the teacher and the teacher can see the students to monitor the students.
What is the fourth key to a good arrangement?
4) Keep frequently used teaching materials and student supplies readily accessible.
Why should we keep these materials readily accessible?
Easy access to these minimizes the time spent getting ready and cleaning up.
What is the fifth key to a good arrangement?
5) Be certain students can easily see instructional presentations and displays.
Why should they be able to see these well?
These help students pay attention and make it easier for them to take notes and things of that sort.
What to keep in mind when working with Bulletin Boards or Walls?
Don't spend a lot of time decorating your room. There are more important things to do to get ready for the beginning of the school year. Don't overdecorate either.
Check out your floor space. Why?
Determine where the chairs should be placed, how many electric outlets there are, how much storage space you have available, etc.
Arrangement of Student Desks are important because it helps determine how the class will be run, how the students will be able to keep their attention on the instructor and how to get into group projects easily. What may also be of concern?
1) Because it is important to keep high-traffic areas clean, don't put desks or other furniture in front of doors, computers, the pencil sharpener, sinks, and so on. 2) Be sure to leave ample room around student desks so that you can easily approach students when you are monitoring seat-work activities. 3) Count the desks or chairs and make sure you have enough. 4) Replace damaged furniture or have it repaired.
Teacher's Desk, Filing Cabinet, Computer, Projector and other Equipment?
These materials need to be protected (especially the teacher's items), and the locations of these need to be placed where it will be best functional.
What are the other items that a teacher needs to plan for in the room?
Computer Workstations, Bookcases, Work Areas (shop), Centers (few students work together on the same topic), Pets, Plants, Aquariums, and Special Items.
What items would need to be stored?
Textbooks, Instructional Materials (dictionaries, encyclopedias), "office supplies," teacher's supplies (pens, papers). student-owned materials (backpacks), other materials (clocks, etc.), equipment (projector, tv, headphones, etc.), seasonal (check to see if these are allowed), and special project materials.
What is floating?
A teacher who has to share classrooms with other teachers. A teacher has to confer with the other teachers about how to keep their classrooms organized.
What are the items one might one want to try to arrange while floating?
Access to the classroom's digital projector or a document camera. Computer. Flashdrive. A regular space on the chalkboard, bulletin board, a shelf, cabinet, number of desks.
CHAPTER 3 - Choosing Rules and Procedures
Why are rules and procedures important? It makes it easier for you to communicate your expectations to students. It makes the classroom smoother.
What are rules and procedures?
Stated expectations regarding behavior.
What is a rule?
Identifies general expectations or standards. These should be positively stated.
What are procedures?
(routines). They are usually directed at accomplishing something rather than at prohibiting some behavior or defining a general standard.
When writing out procedures and guidelines, what must you think about as a teacher?
1) Behaviors that are specifically forbidden 2) Consequences of rule violations. 3) Administrative procedures that must be handled during class time. These procedures include beginning of year tasks, class rosters, etc.
How many rules are recommended?
About five. It is recommended that these are positive.
Rule 1: Bring all needed materials
Rule 2: Be in your seat and ready to work when the bell rings.
Rule 3: Respect and be polite.
Rule 4: Listen and stay seated when someone is talking.
Rule 5: Respect other people's property.
Rule 6: Obey all school rules.
Student Participation in a Rule Setting -
Teacher needs an initial discussion over the rules along with a rationale. The teacher should encourage students by giving them some positive examples. You can involve students in discussion of rules.
Sometimes, teachers who have more than one class, they might need different rules and procedures.
However, a teacher who is authoritative establishes reasonable rules and procedures, who provides an understandable rationale for them. Enforces them consistently will find the great majority of the students willing to abide by them.
Consequences for Rule Violations -
Planning consequences for bad behavior ahead of time is a good idea because it helps you use them consistently, and you will be more confident. You will better be able to communicate
1) redirect, correct, or remind the student as a first response 2) give a time out or have a conference with the student if the problem persists 3) call home if the first two strategies aren't successful, 4) use a referral to an assistant principal or counselor as a last resort.
Planning Classroom Procedures...
What sort of Comprehension Strategies are there?
1) Checking for Understanding 2) Fostering Cooperative Learning 3) Connecting to Previous Knowledge 4) Improving Organization 5) Promoting Independent Learning 6) Teaching to Learning Style
Checking for Understanding?
1) Discussion 2) Summarizing/Paraphrasing 3) Interactive Read-Alouds 4) Games 5) Page and Paragraph 6) Get the Gist 7) Retelling 8) Clued Retelling 9) Problem of the Week 10) Clink and Clunk
Fostering Cooperative Learning?
1) Group Investigation 2) Learning Together 3) Partner Prediction 4) Circle-Seat Center 5) Silent with Support 6) Skit Performance 7) Reciprocal Teaching 8) Team-Games Tournament (TGT) 9) Writing Word Problems 10) Jigsaw 11) Student Teams-Achievement Division 12) Think-Pair-Share 13) Class-wide Peer Tutoring
Connecting to Previous Knowledge?
1) Activate Prior Knowledge 2) Brainstorming 3) Directed Reading Activity (DRA) 4) Anticipation Guide 5) Nonfiction Trade Books 6) ReQuest 7) Story Content Instruction 8) Prediction Log
Improving Organization?
1) Character Perspective Charting (CPC) 2) Expectation Outline 3) K-W-L 4) ORDER 5) Mapping 6) PLAN
Promoting Independent Learning?
1) DISSECT/Word Identification Strategy 2) Narrow and Enlarge the Text 3) Question-Answer Relationship 4) CONCEPT 5) Read Three Times 6) Text Lookbacks 7) Vocabulary Notebooks 8) Think-Aloud 9) Teaching Vocabulary 10) SQ3R
Teaching to Learning Style?
1) Combined Reading 2) Audiotapes Creative Dramatics 3) Draw a Picture 4) Journal 5) Radio Reading 6) Visual Adjuncts 7) Highlight Text
Planning Classroom Procedures - Cont'd. Beginning of Period Procedures.
1) Attendance Check 2) Students Absent the Previous Day 3) Tardy Students 4) Behavior Expected of all Students 5) Leaving the Room
Attendance Check -
Attendance report during the initial part of every class period. Class enrollment stabilizes and your students seating arrangements are reasonably final. You should call roll for the first few days, and then the rest of the time you should have it memorized.
Students Absent the Previous Day -
Late work policies should be described in your course syllabus and posted on your class web site. Direct returning students to the absentee folder for missed papers. Take off what is needed.
Tardy Students -
Most schools have a policy, so be sure to follow it. Tardiness can become a nagging management problem if you allow it. You could assign detention during lunch or before or after school each time students are tardy without a valid excuse.
Behavior Expected of All Students -
Students should be told what they are expected to do at the beginning of the period, while you are handling the administrative tasks. They should know that they are expected to do certain things before the bell rings, or they will be counted as tardy.
Leaving the Room -
Sometimes students will need to go to the restroom, get water, etc. A hall pass is usually required. Most effective manage discourage trips to the bathroom and water fountains, unless it's an emergency. Sometimes, students will also frequently return to their lockers to retrieve materials during the class period. A lot of teachers do not allow this at all and require the students sit in class without materials or look at another student's text. The student might receive reduced credit for work not brought to class.
Use of Materials and Equipment -
1) Equipment and materials for Students 2) Teacher Materials and Equipment
Equipment and Materials for Students -
If students need to sharpen their pencils during seat work, a common procedure is to allow only one student at a time.
Teacher Materials and Equipment -
You should make it clear to student that they are not to take things from your desk or use your supplies without permission. State the expectations clearly.
Ending the Period - Two areas of concern:
1) getting students and the room ready for the end of the period 2) dismissing class
Getting reading for the room ready for the end of the period:
Accomplish these objectives, leave sufficient time at the end of the period to pull together loose ends from the lesson end for what work with their own materials. Remind students of particular items needed for the next day. Be conscientious about giving students sufficient times before the bell rings; they have a limited amount of time to get to their next class, and it is not fair to them or to their next class.
Concern in the ending the class is the signal for dismissal?
Many teachers prefer to dismiss the students themselves rather than allow the end of period bell to be the students' signal. This allows the teacher to hold the students in their seats if the room is not yet properly cleaned up or if an announcement remains to be given.
Student attention during Presentations -
Students are typically expected to listen attentively to the presenter and to other students. Teachers also expect that students should neither engage in social conversation with each other during such activities nor read unrelated materials or work on other assignments.
Student Participation -
Do not limit class participation to volunteers. There are exceptions to the no call out rule. When teachers want to provide a choral response, and also non-verbal signal. Students can be told it is not necessary that they raise their hands because it can slow down response time.
Procedures for Seat Work -
1) Talk Among Students 2) Obtaining Help 3) Out-Of-Seat Procedures 4) When Seat Work Has Been Completed
1) Talk Among Students -
Some effective managers allow no student talk at all during during seat-work activities. You will have to decide what your procedure will be. Will it be "no talking" or will it be quiet talking.
2) Obtaining Help -
When students are working at their seats and need help, you should have them raise their hands. You may then go to them or have them come to you at one at a time. This procedure will avoid the formation of long lines of chatty students at one desk/
3) Out-of-Seat Procedures -
To eliminate unnecessary wandering around the room during seat work, you can indicate when students are allowed to leave their seats.
4) When Seat Work Has Been Completed -
This circumstance is frequently handled either by having students complete an additional, enrichment assignment for extra credit or by allowing such students to use the remaining time for free reading or to work on assignments from other classes.
Procedures for Student Group Work -
1) Use of Materials and Supplies 2) Assignment of Students to Groups 3) Student Goals and Participation 4) Cooperative Learning
1) Use of Materials and Supplies -
Small-group activities - to avoid traffic games, you must plan distribution stations carefully and use more than one if necessary. When possible save time by placing some or all needed materials on students' desks or worktables before class starts. Check equipment beforehand.
2) Assignment of Students to Groups -
1) students who do not work well together should not be placed in the same work group. 2) A group composed mainly of poorly motivated students is not likely to accomplish much.
3) Students Goals and Participation -
Students should be told what they are supposed to accomplish in their small group work and taught about how to go about the task. It is a good idea to assign specific roles and to discuss with students ahead of time the different roles they will take in the group work.
4) Cooperative Learning -
Learning teams or cooperative learning groups. Typical practices are for teams to be formed heterogeneously and to work on academic tasks requiring interdependent action.
Miscellaneous Procedures -
1) Signals 2) Public Address Announcements 3) Special Equipment and Materials 4) Fire and Disaster Drills 5) Split Lunch Period
CHAPTER 4 - Managing Student Work -
...
What is your goal as a teacher?
Facilitate student learning. Your system for managing student work should lead you and your students to examine their learning and the learning process in which they are engaged.
Your grading system and record keeping?
1) The first thing you should do before deciding on a grading system is to determine whether your department, school, or district has any policies that you must follow. 2) The most accurate assessment of performance will generally be based on frequent evaluation of all aspects of student work, not on a few test scores or a major project grade. If your grading system contains unusual features, the recommendations in the preceding paragraph will be especially important.
Feedback and Monitoring Procedures -
1) Managing Student Work in Progress 2) Long-Range Monitoring
What following procedures should be kept in mind?
1) Students can be allowed to check some of their own assignments. You can reduce the temptation to be dishonest by requiring that a different color pen (or pencil) be used for checking. When students do check and correct their own work, you must monitor them closely at least occasionally collect and spot-check the papers yourself. 2) Describe and model to students how you want the checking done; for example, mark or circle incorrect answers, put "graded by" and the name in a specified place on the paper, put the number missed or correct the grade at the top of the first page, and so on. Cont.
3) If a student feels that his or her paper was marked incorrectly by another student, a simple system is to have the student write a note to that effect on a designated part of the paper. You can then verify the work when you examine the papers. 4) We do not recommend the practice of recording grades by having students call them out. If you do not wish to collect an assignment after checking, a simple procedure is to have students leave the work on their desks so that you can record grades as you move from student to student. This can be done during a later seat-work or classwork activity to avoid leaving students in dead time while you record their grades.
Monitoring Student Work in Progress - Pay careful attention to student work. Seat work activities need a guided beginning. Check all are working first before going back to your work.
Long-Range Monitoring -
Monitoring completion rates and performances levels on assignments. The first time a student fails to turn in an assignment, talk to them about it. If assignments are consistently neglected, notices may have to be sent out to parents. Parents can also access their children's grades via teachers' online grading records as well as check attendance in their child's classes and assignments due dates and requirements.
Communicating Assignments and Work Requirements:
1) Instruction for Assignments 2) Standard for Form, Neatness, and Due Dates 3) Procedures for Absent Students
1) Instruction for Assignments -
In addition to making an oral explanation of the assignment requirements, you should post the assignment and important instructions. Use the routine of requiring that students copy the assignment into a notebook or onto an assignment sheet. The grading criteria and requirements for each assignment should be clear and explained to students. Information for developing criteria for assignments, projects, reports, and so on can be found on rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php.
2) Standards for Form, Neatness, and Due Dates -
Procedures need to be set up for this as well, including deciding whether or not you will deduct points or reduce the grade on the assignment.
2) Procedures for Absent Students -
1) Post the daily and long-term assignments on the class Web site and scan essential handouts. Doing so regularly will give absent students easy access to them and may even allow them to complete some of the makeup work prior to returning to school. Using the class Web site, students who don't have home access to the Internet can obtain their makeup assignments on a classroom computer once they return to school. You can also keep an assignment folder or calendar in the classroom for previously absent students to refer to. Cont.
2) Decide how much time will be allowed for making work. 3) Set up a place where students can turn in makeup work and where they can pick it up after it has been checked. The "Graded" basket will also provide a place where students can pick up any graded work work that was distributed while they were absent.
4) Establish a regular time, such as 30 minutes before or after school, when you will available to assist students with makeup work. Also, you can use student volunteers who will be available at particular times of the class period (usually during seat work) or out of class to help students with makeup work. 5) Determine how students who have missed work will make it up. Assist groups in planning for the inclusion of absent members and in helping those members catch up when they return.
Getting off to a Good Start CHAPTER 5 -
...
Perspectives on the Beginning of the Year -
1) Resolve student uncertainties 2) Help students be successful by planning uncomplicated lessons 3) Keep a whole-class focus - that your instruction and directions will be made to the entire class at the same time and that students will work on the same task assignments 4) Be available, visible, and in charge
Teacher Authority -
Refers to the teacher's right to set standards for student behavior and performance and to the likelihood that students will follow the teacher's lead in their decisions and behaviors.
Traditional authority -
students are expected to behave because the teacher is the adult in charge, much as children are expected to obey their parents.
Bureaucratic authority -
Legitimacy from the teacher's ability to use grades to reward effort and performance and to use prescribed consequences for desirable and inappropriate behavior.
Professional authority -
based on a teacher knowledge and skills; thus students may accept a teacher's decisions about curriculum and academic tasks because of the teacher's expertise in the subject matter.
Charismatic authority -
they are expressive and outgoing, or they engage students with their interactive style and good communication skills.
Authoritative vs. Authoritarian -
Authoritarian teachers don't provide reasons for rules, they try to control students through threats and punishment. They use consequences arbitrarily. Authoritative teachers, on the other hand, explain the basis for their actions and decisions, give students more independence as they demonstrate maturity and the willingness to behave responsibly, and administer consequences fairly and proportionately.
Planning for a Good Beginning -
1) Procedures for Obtaining Books and Checking Them Out 2) Required Paperwork 3) Class Rosters 4) Seating Assignments 5) First-Week Bell Schedule 6) Tardiness During the First Days of Classes 7) Administrative Tasks 8) Rules 9) Course Requirements 10) A Beginning of Class Routine 11) Alternative Activities
1) Procedures for Obtaining Books and Checking them out to Students
Learn the school procedures - many teachers check out textbooks by the second or third day of classes and do so during a content activity. Record books check ins and check outs (circulation; you worked as a [x] librarian)
2) Required Paperwork -
Use file folders and desk drawer compartments to keep these materials organized. These may be for every class.
3) Class Roster -
Class Rosters need to be organized by period. Some teachers have students write their own names, parents' names, telephone numbers, and other useful information on their cards.
4) Seating Assignments -
Plan to assign seats during the first week of classes. There is little point in assigning seats first day, but you neeed to do it in the first week. Computer-based grade book should allow you to create seating charts from class rosters. Sometimes, in the upper grades, students don't have to have seating assigned.
First-Week Bell Schedule -
Find out how much time is available for each period during the first week. Some class periods may be shortened to accommodate extra-long advisory or homeroom periods. If so, find out which periods are affected and how much time will be available for each class.
Tardiness during the first days of classes -
Don't attempt to enforce it during the first day, but during the third, it might be a good idea to do so. Enforce it afterwards.
Administrative Tasks -
Know the special administrative tasks.
Rules -
Discuss your expectations for behavior with your students.
Course Requirements -
You will need to discuss course requirements with your students during the first week. Syllabus might be helpful.
A Beginning of Class Routine -
Decide what standard routine you will start each period - transition into your classroom in an orderly manner. Whatever your opening routine, it is reasonable to expect students to complete it without talking and to remain seated and quiet until you are ready to begin instruction.
Alternative Activities -
Minutes may be available for occasions when extra minutes are available, and students have nothing to do.
Communicating with Parents or Guardians -
Things to mention in letters to parents: 1) Any special materials or supplies students need to bring to your class 2) Your conference times and how parents may contact you 3) Bring overview of curriculum you will teach during the semester or year 4) Special events for families 5) Information about homework and special assignments 6) Information for classroom volunteers 7) Class rules and major procedures, especially those relating to assignments 8) An invitation to parents to contact you regarding special issues or problems concerning their child
What should you consider putting in the letter to parents as well?
1) Encourage classroom visits 2) Engage in brief conversations and exchanges on occasions such as a school programs and events 3) Make encourage phone calls 4) Post curriculum and activity updates for parents on your class-linked Web site 5) Reply promptly and courteously to email and other notes and messages from parents
Activities during the First Day of Classes -
1) Before Class Begins 2) Administrative Tasks 3) Introductions 4) Discussion of Class Rules 5) Presentation of Course Requirements 6) An Initial Content Activity 7) Ending the Period
Planning and Conducting Instruction CHAPTER 6 -
What is an activity? It describes organized behavior that the teacher and students engage in for a common purpose.
What should objectives do in daily lessons?
Decide what activities to do and what important considerations will be kept in mind.
1) What skills or concepts must be learned to reach the objectives 2) What tasks and activities will help students will help students the most? What are the road maps.
Types of Activities - 1) Opening the Period 2) Checking Classwork or Homework 3) Recitation 4) Content Development 5) Discussion 6) Seat Work 7) Small-Group Work 8) Test Administration 8) Student Presentations and Demonstrations 9) Closing
1) Opening the Period - Activity?
Students check their own work. Activity is appropriate only when a judgment as to the correctness of the work can be made easily (will help you record and progress).
2) Recitation - Activity?
Question-and-answer sequence in which the teacher asks questions, usually of a factual nature, and accepts or corrects students responses. When using recitation to check student understanding, it is important to distribute questions to all students.
3) Content Development - Activity?
Teacher presents new information elaborates or extends a concept or principle, conducts a demonstration, shows how to perform a skill, or describes how to solve a problem.
4) Discussion - Activity?
Discussions are conducted as teacher-led, whole-class activities. The purpose of using discussion is to encourage students to evaluate events, topics, or results; to clarify the basis for their judgments; and to become aware of other points of view. Plan questions carefully.
5) Seat Work -
Students engage in assignments that build on previously presented material. Often, the portion of the seat-work assignment not completed in class becomes a homework assignment, unless the material or resources are provided.
6) Small Group Work -
Achieves many objectives. Promotes greater comprehension and facilitates retention of important content, pairs of students can explain concepts.
What is reciprocal teaching?
Students take turns as small-group leaders during discussions of text material in order to practice summarizing, questioning, clarifying and predicting.
What is project based learning?
Students work collaboratively to develop solutions to "ill-structured" problems, that is, problems having multiple possible solutions or unknown aspects, or that require judgment and evaluation.
7) Test Administration -
Administering tests or quizzes (assessments) is a common activity in middle and high school classrooms.
8) Student Presentations and Demonstrations -
In this activity students give a report, demonstrate a procedure or a skill, or summarize work done on a short-or long-term project. They go better when students are allowed.
9) Closing -
The goal of this procedural activity is to bring the period to an end in an orderly manner, with students ready to pass to the next class, leaving your room in good condition for the next period.
