The Importance of Comprehensive Classroom Management

The instructor is a manger. The organization he or she manages is a group of scholars from diverse backgrounds and with differing skills and abilities. many atomic number 18 already eager claimers, while others bem office to be awakened to the joys and satisfactions of assumeing. Still others use up finicky problems that must(prenominal) be dealt with effectively in roll for them to learn and in order to maintain an purlieu conducive to learning for the whole group. Its classic, first, to provide scholars with opportunities to learn closely things that interest them and and therefore, to find ship rouseal to store the learning that peaks the students interest.If the instructor can find ways to relate the topic to the students pre move experience, and provide interactive learning activities that the student can actively get in in, then the student bequeath get together motivation. The somatogenetic environment plays a role in learning too. Some students learn better in antithetic lighting (softer or brighter), sitting at a desk or falsehood on the floor, with music on or in perfect silence, in a warmer or cooler place, etc. The teacher can try areas in the room that tinge these different needs and styles of learning.Students who learn better lying d protest, for example, could bring mats to check that can be unrolled for chew over time. A small tent in the recess could provide the dimmer light some students need. A radio or CD player with earphones could be allowed during study time provided it truly abets the student to learn. The magnificence of reasonable rules that all(prenominal)one understands can hardly be over estimated. On the first or second day of educate the teacher could initiate an interactive discussion with the students nigh why rules are needed in the classroom. allow students share a few experiences that happened when there were no rules. Then, ask them to come up with no much than than five rules for class room carriage. They could each write mow a rule or two they study is important on an index card, and the teacher could then let each person read what he/she wrote down. A list could be generated on the board. Or, they could scoop by brainstorming a list of every rule they can think of, then evaluate, eliminate, shoot ( in force(p) the word respect, for example, includes many rules), and whittle them down into iii to five pitching(prenominal) rules.A student with good handwriting or an artistic bent could be chosen to make a large post horse with the rules, or a bulletin board for classroom display where everybody can cope with it. Once the students produce set their classroom rules, they are invested in them. I have tried this with grades 4-7 students, and it worked very well to establish an orderly learning environment. The students took the rules more seriously because they had had a say in setting them. It teaches democracy, too. If the students do not think of someth ing the teacher considers important, the teacher can tot up it to their list and explain why.However, this is unlikely. In my experience, the students rules tend to be very good-actually, the same rules I would have make myself, only they mean more to the students since they have suck up oned them as a group and the rules are in their own voice communication. Lane and Wehby (2005) report that 1% of school age children have been labeled emotionally impress and are receiving special education services because of it. They estimate an additional 2% to 16% of U. S. students who demonstrate anti-social demeanor patterns such as defiance disorders or study disorders.When a student is oppositional or defiant, the teacher must be careful not to respond angrily and get into a confrontation. Teachers should be aware of their own triggers so that they can control their own mien. This will abet them to block a confrontation. It is best to lodge calm and to diffuse the students anger i n the beginning it escalates into a crisis and/or violence. If a student refuses to do a certain task, offering an alternative choice whitethorn help, and it would be a good idea for the teacher always to have alternative tasks ready just in case-alternative activities that are still learning activities.A sense of humor may be a teachers best defense when students are uncooperative. It is better to veto escalation than to deal with a crisis later. bingle way to do this is to reinforce good behavior with praise, a smile, gesture, touch, or a pleasant comment when they display unprompted, socially allot behavior (Albin, 2003). Dont wait until students are degenerate to pay attention to them Teachers should make the effort to pecker and praise good behavior and reward it. penalisation is a negative way of dealing with knotty behavior.It may provide reinforcement for enceinte behavior if the reason the student is misbehaving is because he/she wants attention. If a student misbeh aves because he doesnt want to do his work, and then gets sent extinct in the hall or to the office, then he gets what he wanted, and the bad behavior is reinforced. Rewards for confirmatory behavior, such as time to do an action at law the students loves, a toy or candy, or private time with the teacher (just to talk and visit for a few minutes) makes students happy to learn and to be in school. Punishment often produces resentment, and may make the student hate school.A student who hates school is not an eager learner, so punishment can be anti-productive (Peck & Scarpati (2005). Teachers commonly deal with difficult students by narrowing them-the more intense the students needs are, the more travailsuch as placing a childs desk toward the wall (Duhaney, 2003). However, a needs-based approach is more ordained and effective and suggests repair to greater resources. Perhaps the child needs to learn appropriate ways to handle anger and aggression, more problem-solving skills, or receive feedback for appropriate behaviors.If the child has ail with self-control, instructional strategies could include modeling, role-play, and feedback to help him stay out of fights, solve problems, express anger appropriately, and deal with frustration. Without preventative students with or at risk for behavioral disorders are liable to experience many negative outcomes both(prenominal) in school and outside such as impaired social relationships, academic underachievement, and discipline problems (Lane, Wehby, & Barton-Arwood, 2005). brotherly skills interventions have been used and evaluated for more than 25 years, scarce their efficacy continues to be questioned.Researchers suggest that social skills teaching makes only a modest impact however, well-nigh educators agree that not doing anything is worse. The ability to adapt and modify instruction is crucial to effectively educating these children. Before beginning an intervention, it would be wise to gather infor mation about the student, such as why, where and when he uses the particular behavior. diagnose what social, affective, cultural, or contextual elements might be at work, and analyze the information. List the detail behaviors and describe where when and with whom the behavior is likely to occur.What consequences are usually administered? Keep anecdotical records so you can look for patterns and what triggers the behavior. Then human body out what strategies might be effective to avoid the behavior for example, teach self-talk to students who are impulsive and make the classroom environment to help hyperactive students. film making a contract with the student. Develop individualized schedules for students who have difficulty making good use of their time. Consider implementing a token economy in which the teacher systematically awards or withdraws tokens or points for appropriate or inappropriate behavior.The student can redeem the tokens for something he wants such as privileg es, desired activities, or food. Conflict resolution is a way to help students express their fingerings and communicate better with others. We tend to see impinge as negative because of the disruption it causes in the classroom however, conflict is neither good nor bad but simply a fact of life. accord to Vollmer, Drook and Harned (1999) Learning through social conflict is important to all human vexment (p. 122).As children develop cognitive reasoning skills, they begin to see that others have perspectives, needs, and desires too. Early training with role plays and simulations will help them develop the social skills they need to maintain relationships. Students can be taught a process for resolution of conflict. One way is to use a large opthalmic of a traffic light which shows the steps to conflict resolution and includes the words Cool down and screen background Rules (RED), Tell your side and Listen (YELLOW), and Brainstorm and Ideas (GREEN). A turn arrow at the bottom has the words Choose solution, and do it and Shake hands.Teachers report that students take more responsibility and often initiate conflict-resolution strategies on their own after learning and practicing this system (Vollmer, Drook & Harned, 1999, p. 124). The teacher should provide a quiet place in the room where students can work things out when they have a conflict. Once they have mastered a structured routine for conflict anxiety, it will be unnecessary for the teacher to get involved. classroom management is a challenge that requires the teacher to put his or her heart into it. An ancient Chinese proverb states that a student only learns from a teacher who loves home.In other words, a child needs to feel accepted and that the teacher cares about him or her. on the whole children have basic needsphysical needs, sentry duty needs, and social needsthat must be met before they can feel free to learn and develop to their true potential. If their needs are met and a positive learnin g environment is created, they will learn and be eager to participate. Therefore, the teachers goal should be, not to fill their heads with specific information, but to make learning possible in a calm, structured, safe, and flexible environment and help them gain the skills to go after knowledge.The Importance of Comprehensive Classroom ManagementThe teacher is a manger. The organization he or she manages is a group of students from diverse backgrounds and with differing skills and abilities. Some are already eager learners, while others have to be awakened to the joys and satisfactions of learning. Still others have special problems that must be dealt with effectively in order for them to learn and in order to maintain an environment conducive to learning for the whole group. Its important, first, to provide students with opportunities to learn about things that interest them and then, to find ways to introduce the learning that peaks the students interest.If the teacher can find ways to relate the topic to the students present experience, and provide interactive learning activities that the student can actively participate in, then the student will gain motivation. The physical environment plays a role in learning too. Some students learn better in different lighting (softer or brighter), sitting at a desk or lying on the floor, with music on or in perfect silence, in a warmer or cooler place, etc. The teacher can establish areas in the room that meet these different needs and styles of learning.Students who learn better lying down, for example, could bring mats to school that can be unrolled for study time. A small tent in the corner could provide the dimmer light some students need. A radio or CD player with earphones could be allowed during study time provided it truly helps the student to learn. The importance of reasonable rules that everyone understands can hardly be overestimated. On the first or second day of school the teacher could initiate an int eractive discussion with the students about why rules are needed in the classroom.Let students share a few experiences that happened when there were no rules. Then, ask them to come up with no more than five rules for classroom behavior. They could each write down a rule or two they think is important on an index card, and the teacher could then let each person read what he/she wrote down. A list could be generated on the board. Or, they could start by brainstorming a list of every rule they can think of, then evaluate, eliminate, combine (just the word respect, for example, includes many rules), and whittle them down into three to five good rules.A student with good handwriting or an artistic bent could be chosen to make a large poster with the rules, or a bulletin board for classroom display where everybody can see it. Once the students have set their classroom rules, they are invested in them. I have tried this with grades 4-7 students, and it worked very well to establish an ord erly learning environment. The students took the rules more seriously because they had had a say in setting them. It teaches democracy, too. If the students do not think of something the teacher considers important, the teacher can add it to their list and explain why.However, this is unlikely. In my experience, the students rules tend to be very good-actually, the same rules I would have made myself, only they mean more to the students since they have real them as a group and the rules are in their own words. Lane and Wehby (2005) report that 1% of school age children have been labeled emotionally disturbed and are receiving special education services because of it. They estimate an additional 2% to 16% of U. S. students who demonstrate anti-social behavior patterns such as defiance disorders or conduct disorders.When a student is oppositional or defiant, the teacher must be careful not to respond angrily and get into a confrontation. Teachers should be aware of their own triggers so that they can control their own behavior. This will help them to avoid a confrontation. It is best to remain calm and to diffuse the students anger before it escalates into a crisis and/or violence. If a student refuses to do a certain task, offering an alternative choice may help, and it would be a good idea for the teacher always to have alternative tasks ready just in case-alternative activities that are still learning activities.A sense of humor may be a teachers best defense when students are uncooperative. It is better to prevent escalation than to deal with a crisis later. One way to do this is to reinforce good behavior with praise, a smile, gesture, touch, or a pleasant comment when they display unprompted, socially appropriate behavior (Albin, 2003). Dont wait until students are disruptive to pay attention to them Teachers should make the effort to notice and praise good behavior and reward it. Punishment is a negative way of dealing with problematic behavior.It may pr ovide reinforcement for bad behavior if the reason the student is misbehaving is because he/she wants attention. If a student misbehaves because he doesnt want to do his work, and then gets sent out in the hall or to the office, then he gets what he wanted, and the bad behavior is reinforced. Rewards for positive behavior, such as time to do an activity the students loves, a toy or candy, or one-on-one time with the teacher (just to talk and visit for a few minutes) makes students happy to learn and to be in school. Punishment often produces resentment, and may make the student hate school.A student who hates school is not an eager learner, so punishment can be anti-productive (Peck & Scarpati (2005). Teachers commonly deal with difficult students by restricting them-the more intense the students needs are, the more restrictionsuch as placing a childs desk toward the wall (Duhaney, 2003). However, a needs-based approach is more positive and effective and suggests recourse to greater resources. Perhaps the child needs to learn appropriate ways to handle anger and aggression, more problem-solving skills, or receive feedback for appropriate behaviors.If the child has trouble with self-control, instructional strategies could include modeling, role-play, and feedback to help him stay out of fights, solve problems, express anger appropriately, and deal with frustration. Without intervention students with or at risk for behavioral disorders are liable to experience many negative outcomes both in school and outside such as impaired social relationships, academic underachievement, and discipline problems (Lane, Wehby, & Barton-Arwood, 2005). Social skills interventions have been used and evaluated for more than 25 years, but their efficacy continues to be questioned.Researchers suggest that social skills training makes only a modest impact however, most educators agree that not doing anything is worse. The ability to adapt and modify instruction is crucial to effective ly educating these children. Before starting an intervention, it would be wise to gather information about the student, such as why, where and when he uses the particular behavior. Identify what social, affective, cultural, or contextual elements might be at work, and analyze the information. List the specific behaviors and describe where when and with whom the behavior is likely to occur.What consequences are usually administered? Keep anecdotal records so you can look for patterns and what triggers the behavior. Then figure out what strategies might be effective to avoid the behavior for example, teach self-talk to students who are impulsive and organize the classroom environment to help hyperactive students. Consider making a contract with the student. Develop personal schedules for students who have difficulty making good use of their time. Consider implementing a token economy in which the teacher systematically awards or withdraws tokens or points for appropriate or inappropri ate behavior.The student can redeem the tokens for something he wants such as privileges, desired activities, or food. Conflict resolution is a way to help students express their feelings and communicate better with others. We tend to see conflict as negative because of the disruption it causes in the classroom however, conflict is neither good nor bad but simply a fact of life. According to Vollmer, Drook and Harned (1999) Learning through social conflict is important to all human development (p. 122).As children develop cognitive reasoning skills, they begin to see that others have perspectives, needs, and desires too. Early training with role plays and simulations will help them develop the social skills they need to maintain relationships. Students can be taught a process for resolution of conflict. One way is to use a large visual of a traffic light which shows the steps to conflict resolution and includes the words Cool down and Ground Rules (RED), Tell your side and Listen (Y ELLOW), and Brainstorm and Ideas (GREEN). A turn arrow at the bottom has the words Choose solution, and do it and Shake hands.Teachers report that students take more responsibility and often initiate conflict-resolution strategies on their own after learning and practicing this system (Vollmer, Drook & Harned, 1999, p. 124). The teacher should provide a quiet place in the room where students can work things out when they have a conflict. Once they have mastered a structured routine for conflict management, it will be unnecessary for the teacher to get involved. Classroom management is a challenge that requires the teacher to put his or her heart into it. An ancient Chinese proverb states that a student only learns from a teacher who loves home.In other words, a child needs to feel accepted and that the teacher cares about him or her. All children have basic needsphysical needs, safety needs, and social needsthat must be met before they can feel free to learn and develop to their tru e potential. If their needs are met and a positive learning environment is created, they will learn and be eager to participate. Therefore, the teachers goal should be, not to fill their heads with specific information, but to make learning possible in a calm, structured, safe, and flexible environment and help them gain the skills to go after knowledge.