Classroom Management Main Page - EDEL 414 - EDSE 415
Todd Johnson
Classroom Management
Plan
Building a strong, successful and
caring relationship with my students is the backbone of my classroom management
plan. My philosophy is that when there
is mutual respect between me and my students, my class will run most smoothly. My experience has shown me that when the
students respect and like their teacher, they perform the best for them. Therefore, by building this rapport with
them, I prevent management problems and create a more pleasant environment for
me and them.
This is fostered by maintaining a
cooperative working environment between me and my students and among the
students themselves. They are aware of
my expectations of them and are amenable to them. In the same token, they have expectations of
me as a teacher that I must live up to.
They must be fair, and fairly equal.
For example, since I believe organization is key
in the study of mathematics, I expect their notebooks and homework to be highly
organized as well. The message would be
lost if I did not hold myself to the same level of organization. Therefore, lesson plans must be organized,
thought through and pre-planned. The
classroom must have an orderly appearance, and have orderly routines. By establishing this type of environment,
students feel at ease and can feel successful in their maintenance of it.
A feeling of fairness thought by the
students also fosters mutual respect.
This is paramount in the eyes of the students. If they believe another student is receiving
special treatment, or on the other hand, receiving overly harsh consequences, they
begin to doubt the sincerity of the teacher.
Then, respect from them is lost. That
said, there are several ways to promote a feeling of
fairness from the students. One is by
creating a feeling of democracy in the classroom. They want to be a part of the decision making
process of the class. Another is by
ensuring that learning goals and behavior goals are clearly stated and
unwavering. Failing to follow through
with consequences causes murky expectations, clouds fairness and creates
management problems. Assessment must
also be considered fair in the eyes of the students. Some complain of not being “good test-takers”,
others complain of difficulty of focusing for long periods of time. Criteria for assessing student work must be
clearly defined and there must be several different methods of assessment to
consider the needs of different learning styles.
In general, young people want to
learn. They want to perform well for
adults who they respect. They respect
adults who they trust and admire. They also
need to feel respected, liked, important, and successful. They need to feel that the work they are
doing is valuable to them and that they can be successful at it.
When these feelings aren’t being
provided for, behavior and management problems ensue. If students don’t respect the teacher, a myriad
of problems can occur. Students have
keen insight, and by the time they are in high school are highly aware of what
the basic parameters of a classroom should be like. For example, a consistently unprepared
teacher can expect a consistently under performing class. Although this teacher may express a desire of
high expectations, the student’s mentality will be, “why work hard if he
doesn’t either.” The same goes for their
feelings of respect, being liked and feeling important. If these feelings aren’t being provided for,
students will act out in an effort to force the teacher into meeting them, or
to rebel.
Three theorists that we have studied
have given voice and direction to the beliefs I have on classroom
management. The first is Kounin whose ideas on lesson movement I try to mirror. Kounin emphasizes
the strong relationship between effective management and effective
teaching. He believes organization and
planning set the stage for good classroom management. This means teachers must preplan and organize
their lessons in advance. He suggests keeping
the momentum up. That is, maintaining a
pace, have a natural flow to the lesson, and avoid being diverted into
irrelevant incidents and information.
These diversions give opportunity for behavior problems to occur and
confuse the students about what is important.
Another theory of Kounin’s
I buy into is the Ripple Effect. That
is, a teacher’s method of handling misbehavior influences the other students
who observe it. This directly influences
the respect students have for their teacher.
If a student doesn’t agree with the consequences a teacher has given a
student, they will act out, because they find it unfair. If a student finds the teacher ignoring
inappropriate behavior, they will test the boundaries themselves.
Another theory that influences me is
the basic needs outlined by Glasser. He contends that all human beings have
genetic needs for survival, belonging, power, fun and freedom. Students feel a sense of belonging when they
receive attention from others and the teacher, and when they are brought into
the class discussions. They feel a sense
of power when they have some decision making ability in the topics of study, a
feeling of success when learning new material, and when given class
responsibilities. Students have fun when
they are allowed to talk and work with classmates, and are engaged in
interesting lessons. Students feel a
sense of freedom when teachers allow them to make responsible choices on their
own. Finally, the need for survival is
met by ensuring a warm and supportive classroom climate. That is a place where they are free of
judgments and they feel comfortable and safe.
By providing for and ensuring that these needs are met, management
issues are thwarted.
The last theorist whose ideas
influence my beliefs on classroom management is Alfie
Kohn. First, he concurs with Kounin that adequate planning minimizes management
problems. He takes this further and
advises that you must plan engaging and interesting lessons. By keeping the students interested, true
learning takes place, and the desire to misbehave will diminish.
While I disagree with the breadth of
his argument on rewards and punishments, I do agree with the principles. He argues that punishments and rewards only
buy short-term behavior change. Instead
of understanding why they should behave, punishments cause the student to
question, “What does he want me to do, and what happens to me if I don’t?”
Instead of knowing the intrinsic value of learning, rewards make the
student ask, “What does he want me to do, and what do I get for doing it?” On this
basis, he suggests grades are an inappropriate motivator, and suggests
overthrowing them all together. While, I
find that suggestion far too extreme, I do agree with his principles. He believes instead of rewards and punishments,
we use discipline as an opportunity to help students develop their character
and make the right choices on their own.
We are to help students think their way through problems and ponder why
their behavior is inappropriate and why they should correct it. This brings more long term behavior change,
creates a democratic environment and fosters a feeling of respect between
students and teacher. To quote Kohn,
“Each time I visit a classroom where the teacher is more interested in creating
a democratic community than maintaining her position of authority, I’m
convinced all over again that moving away from consequences and rewards isn’t
just realistic—it’s the best way to help kids grow into good learners and good
people.”
This idea follows through into the
development of my classroom expectations.
Since I teach high school, my students are more in control of their
behavior than those of my elementary school teacher colleagues. They’ve had years of experience learning what
type of behavior is expected of them, and observing what happens in classrooms
where this ideal is and is not met. I
ask them to consider in which of these two examples they learned more. In which of these two examples did they
understand more. In which of these two
examples did they enjoy more.
Invariably, they agree that in classes where the behavior was
consistently better is the class they prefer.
I implore them to act responsibly on their own. I suggest that success is in their hands, and
I’m here merely to guide them.
My primary expectation of them is that
they always try to better themselves. If
they are below grade level, it is their responsibility to put forth that much
more effort to catch up in mathematics.
If they are above, they must take on the responsibility to enrich themselves and provide help and support to those who
ask. They should create study groups and
take advantage of the many opportunities I provide for tutoring.
I want to cultivate a sense of reality
in them. Many have tough lives and are
ready to give up because of it. I want
them to understand that my life wasn’t and still isn’t easy. If I don’t take care of myself, ultimately
I’m the one who pays. We all have the
strength to uplift ourselves. This too
often gets clouded by the inequities in the world.
My goal is to have a democratic,
nurturing and positive classroom climate.
I will make a conscious effort to make all my interactions with students
be free of sarcasm, belittlement and negativity. I will consciously be very diplomatic and
ensure that the tone of my voice is always positive and reflect my belief that
they can be successful and they must try.
I will freely display my affection for them and my admiration for the
efforts they put forth to impress me.
Students will want their voices and opinions heard, so they will be
given numerous opportunities to do so during class discussions. This will encourage pride in their
learning. My students will be happy,
joyful and feel responsible for the appropriate choices they make
With my guidance and their experience,
together we will determine the classroom policies and rules. After I explain to them the importance of our
time together, they will decide the consequences of an absence. Since I understand of the difficulty in
catching up after an absence, we will allow a reasonable amount of time to make
up assignments. Since our class time is
valuable, we will decide that tests and quizzes must be made up outside of
class in a timely manner. Because we recognize
that hall passes disrupt the flow of our learning, and it is difficult to
determine what an emergency is, we will decide that hall passes will be limited
to 1-2 per month regardless of the reason.
Because tardiness is disruptive and takes away valuable class time, we
will decide that every third one results in time to be made up outside of
class. The same goes for talking out of
line. Because so many of us want to
share our ideas, we need an orderly procedure for doing so, and that will be by
hand raising. As
for consequences, most will be taken care of with a quick nod or word. This will be followed by making up time
during 7th period, then a phone call home for suggestions on a more
appropriate individualized approach.
I have several ideas on how to
instructionally meet the academic needs of my students. First, the need for varied activities is
monumental. Sticking with one method of
instruction, such as the boring class lecture, is not fulfilling their need for
fun, and breeds behavior problems. Each
day will include a review of important recent material. This will ensure that my learning goals
remain clear. Many mathematical
discoveries will be made by the use of manipulatives. One such manipulative is the class set of Algeblocks that I have.
These are a collection of different colored squares, rectangles and
cubes used to represent the abstract ideas developed in Algebra and
Geometry. They can be used to help
students visualize what happens when real numbers are added and subtracted. It also reinforces the golden rule of
algebra, “What you do to one side of an equal sign, you must do to the
other.” Multiplying and factoring
polynomials can also be visualized with these.
The mathematical opportunities are endless, and they are fun to
use. This keeps my students engaged. Their textbooks also provide many discovery
activities that are engaging and fun.
They will be required to work individually at times, and in groups. They will have guided practice. And, yes, they will have some lectured
note-taking. These varied activities
will also minimize acting out. I believe
Kohn when he suggests many management problems are the result of boring,
thoughtless lessons. Self-betterment
will be encouraged by mandatory tutoring during 7th period for
students earning a “D” or “F”.
While I will provide for varied
activities, I will also maintain a fairly routine daily structure to prevent
acting out. This will provide them with
comfort, stability and structure. They
will begin class by reading the agenda from the overhead, and answering the
warm-up problems in their notebook then discussing them with the class. From there we will go over the homework that
is due. Next, a lesson, group work, work
with manipulatives or a combination of the three will
develop the new topic of the day. That
will be followed with guided individual practice. Finally, if time permits, they will be
allowed to begin their assignments.
Another way to prevent acting out will
be handled by the rigor of the material.
Often, students act out because they just don’t understand the
material. They also act out if the
material is too easy and they are bored with it. I will make sure what we study is generally a
little beyond what my students already know.
That way, they won’t tune out because it’s too difficult and they won’t act
out because they are bored.
My assessment of student learning
promotes these goals. First, to ensure
feelings of success, homework assignments will always be evaluated on the basis
of effort. That is, full credit will be
awarded for completion, and evidence of trying is displayed. If they are completely off the mark, they are
expected to come in for individual or group tutoring to improve their grades. To ensure an “authentic” assessment, there
will be many opportunities to exhibit knowledge. They will be assessed with individual
tests. They will also be assessed with
group tests. Projects are a better
assessment of student learning for some topics.
Finally, participation in group work and class discussions will be
thoughtfully evaluated. To further
ensure success, rubrics for assessment will be posted, so students know clearly
what their expectations are. Also,
grades will be posted following every major assessment, and categorized, so
students know where they are and know what areas need improvement.
As mentioned, varying activities is
one way I will try to meet the diverse needs of my students. That includes the use of realia
and kinesthetic learning to make the class more entertaining, and potentially
help English Language Learners. Another
way to meet the diverse needs of my students lies in the way I group them. Groups are of varying skill levels, so
tutoring can occur, and also grouped by primary language, so those with
stronger English skills can help the others.
I try to be sensitive to my multicultural classroom. I want everyone to feel welcome. Many of the posters I have on the walls
exhibit this. I have a series of posters
that recognize the accomplishments different cultures have had to the
advancement of mathematics. Periodically,
I allow my students to give a report on these contributions. These varying activities are meant to break
up the monotony and provide something for each learning style, yet maintain a
structured routine.
According to Alfie
Kohn, rewards provide short-term motivation.
He suggests this is a bad thing.
I disagree. While long-term goals
are better, sometimes you just need something to get through the day. To provide for this, candy is an amazing
tool. I keep a little stash, that I call
brain food. I usually give it to them
during a test, or after getting through a tough week. I compare it to encouragement, which I give
frequently, too. I tell them how good
they are doing, and they are encouraged to work harder. I reward them with candy, and they know I
like them, and they want to continue working harder.
A major way I motivate in the long-run
is, again, by keeping grades posted. By
revising and posting their grades after every major assessment (i.e. every 2
weeks), and assessing them in several categories, they are able to see where
they are most successful, which encourages them to do even better in that area,
and where they need the most work. They
are able to see their improvements every two weeks, and that keeps motivating them
to improve. It also gives them
opportunities to make improvements well in advance of the marking periods.
As Kohn suggests, teaching students
the “why” is a pillar of long-term motivation.
Teaching them why they need to behave appropriately will develop their
morals and character in the long run.
Teaching them why it is important for them to learn brings them success
in the long run. Finally, a sense of
fairness, openness, and respect with each other and with the teacher is a
long-term motivator.
I use all these long and short-term
motivators with my students. I
constantly encourage, while restating the importance of what we are
learning. I give students ample
opportunities to feel successful, and thus want to recreate that feeling. I give rewards, such as candy, or 3 minutes
of free time. I keep grades current and
easy to read, so they are motivated to continue improving. I keep a democratic classroom, where students
want to share their thoughts and opinions.
I would characterize this approach as that of a caring mentor or
guide. My position is to motivate my
students to develop their skills and character in order to be successful
adults.
A typical day in my class would begin
at about
The bell rings, it’s
7:56. Students have last night’s
homework on their desks. They are
quietly reading today’s agenda, which has listed the assignment due, the
standards we are addressing today, today’s lesson which will be a “group
discovery”, tonight’s homework assignment and finally 3 warm-up problems
similar to one’s that will be on Friday’s exam.
They begin working on the warm-up.
Some are rushing to finish, so as to be chosen to show their work on the
board, others are helping out someone near them.
I am quietly walking around and
checking their assignments. I make sure
to say hello to everyone as I pass, and make a notation on my clipboard/roll
sheet on the completeness of their assignment.
I also make quick corrections when I see errors. For the most part, everyone is on task. Some finish the warm-up as I complete my
“rounds”, and volunteer to show their answers on the board.
Brian walks in late and quickly finds
his seat. He silently mouths, “I’m
sorry.” Since this is his third tardy
this week, he knows he has to make up 20 minutes after school today. I decide to wait for a more appropriate time
to remind him of that. The students
finish explaining the answers they have written on the board. I remind them of the key concepts that they
should have understood from the assignment, and what they should be looking out
for on Friday’s test. Then I ask if
there are any questions from the homework.
I ask for volunteers to help me solve those, again reminding of
important things to be aware of.
I then tell the class they are going to do
an activity to discover how to find the surface area of prisms and
pyramids. While asking Brian to pass out
the scissors, I remind him of the time he owes me after class. He says he’ll be there. He has been having trouble with the material
anyway, and would like some extra help.
Two other’s pass out worksheets with the “mat plan” of pyramids and prisms on them (a mat plan is
what a box looks like when you cut down an edge and open it up.) I tell them I want each of them to cut out the
objects, fold them into pyramids and prisms, find the surface area of
each. Then together in their groups,
come up with a general formula for each.
After 10 minutes on this, I see high
success in finding the surface area of the specific objects, but notice
difficulty in the generalizations. So I
bring the class together for a moment to ask for suggestions on how to do
this. Still some trouble, so I ask, “How
could we generalize the length of the base.”
Someone says, with a variable. So
I suggest some variables for each length.
After another 5 minutes, groups are raising their hands because they
have found the solution.
I ask them to line their desks up
again, and use these two formulas to find the area of a prism and a pyramid I
have drawn. Someone volunteers to
collect the scissors and another walks around with the trash can to collect the
scraps of paper. They silently work on
this. I then challenge them to find the
surface area of the cylinder and cone I just drew. Someone excitedly waves their hand, “This is
just like the other formulas, except the area of the base is the circle
formula!” “Eureka! He’s done it,” I exclaim.
I give them their homework assignment,
and remind them once again the exam will be on Friday. I tell them again how proud I am to see them
working so hard. Since there is only
about 3 minutes left, and they have performed so well, I allow them this as
free time. While some talk quietly to
their neighbors, I see quite a few eagerly beginning their assignments, because
they finally understand math, and specifically why these formulas work.
The bell rings, the students push in
their chairs and collect their belongings.
“Bye, Mr. Johnson.” “See you
tomorrow, Mr. Johnson.” A student comes
up to tell me that they will be absent on Friday, and hopes to take the test on
Thursday, at lunch. I say, I’ll see you
then.
What I’ve tried to convey is the image
of a class full of self-sufficient, responsible individuals. I am there merely guiding and moving the
lesson along, they are doing all the work.
I want to see a lot of sharing and collaboration, but also times when
they are working individually to make new ideas more concrete. When minor behavior problems occur, I will
either squelch them by proximity or defer them until a more convenient time in
the period. Major behavior problems are
rare. Those discussions occur during 7th
period tutoring. Without the audience of
their peers, an agreeable solution is always found together.