First and foremost we want to ensure our classrooms are a safe and caring environment for our students. We have the amazing opportunity to work with kids as they are growing into the adults they will one day become. Remember that each of our students want to feel important as the amazing individual they are now.

Student Management Background Information

You may have heard of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs but have you taken a look at it?

Students come to school at different spots on the hierarchy. Some students are full and well rested and have lots of friends and are ready to learn while other students might not have had breakfast or they might not have gotten a good night sleep and are maybe hesitant to trust the educators in the building. These students may not be at the 'ready to learn' level of the hierarchy. We meet every student where they are at and help them to achieve success each day.

Basic classroom management starts with relationships. Get to know the students you are working with and show a genuine interest in what is important to them.

The BCTF has compiled a wonderful list of helpful information for building a successful classroom environment.

"Guidelines for effective classroom management"

Three basics to remember:

Monitor student behaviour

Use an “active eye.” See what is going on. Don’t become preoccupied with someone or something and ignore the rest of the class. In terms of discipline and effective teaching, one teacher on [their] feet is worth two in the seat.

Be consistent

Have the same expectations of all students for appropriate behaviour. Your students should know that you will enforce rules consistently and apply an appropriate consequence. Your goal is to be fair, but that might mean not applying the identical consequence to all students. If one student frequently fails to return homework, you may apply a different consequence than you would to the student who forgets her/his homework for the first time. Knowing that you’ll be fair, but not equal, your students should understand that being equal is not always fair. To be consistent, be certain that the consequences you apply are reasonable and appropriate.

Ensure that you have had a thorough classroom discussion on this so that students understand “the fair, but not equal” concept.

Promptly manage inappropriate behaviour

For effective classroom management know that misbehaviour must be handled immediately or there is risk of a snowballing effect. To provide maximum time for learning and to reduce minor behaviour problems, you can employ strategies that deal with behaviour in the least amount of time, with the least disruption and the least negative feeling.

Strategies

Proximity

While teaching, move about the room, pausing near potential “trouble spots.” Remaining behind your desk or seated in the front of the class encourages misbehavior in the less visible areas of the room.

Pause

Continuous teacher talk may give students a noise screen for their own conversations. An occasional pause—just a few seconds of silence—brings an off-task student back in focus.

Asking for a response

Hearing one’s name can be an attention-getter, even if one is not paying attention. Working an off-task student’s name into a question can often bring the student back into the lesson. Remembering the student’s dignity, say the student’s name first in order to allow her/him to hear the question to be answered. The purpose is to get the student back into the lesson, not to embarrass her/him.

Active participation

Sometimes having the student respond to a question or become involved in an activity can eliminate the undesired behaviour. Asking for a show of hands, having students perform a physical activity, or having each student write a quick answer to a question can make all students accountable for an immediate response.

Avoid lengthy teacher talk

Plan your lesson with a sequence of instruction, practice, and sharing.

Praise desirable behaviour quietly

Thank a student quietly, and thank the class for getting their books out so quickly. This will often cue a student to her/his attention.

Cueing

Change direction; for example, a group of chatting students may be quieted by announcing an impromptu quiz on the subject at hand.

Humour

When all else fails, you might have to stop instruction to remind the class of appropriate behaviour. Keep it light."

BCTF -New Teachers' Handbook/Classroom Management

Classroom Management Strategy Videos

Cult of Pedagogy has created some helpful video tutorials on a few classroom management strategies. Finding the combination of strategies that work for you and the class you are in can take some practice but having a few in your back pocket ahead of time makes it much easier to utilize on the spot.

Check out some of their videos here.

Behaviour Management - School Discipline

Maintaining a positive and safe learning environment is a necessary part of teaching. To do so there are many options and techniques but the most important one is to build relationships which may take time when working as a TOC. However there may be times when behaviour takes away from the learning environment. In these situations you may consider the following options:

1. Talk to the student.

   • Avoid talking to the student in front of the class.

   • Take the student aside to determine what obstacles the student is facing/avoiding.

   • Work with the student to develop a plan for success.

2. Consult a teaching neighbour for support.

   • This is a great option if you are able to call the classroom for support or can ask an EA to do so.

   • Sometimes just consulting the teacher will help determine the best form of action, which might be having the student work in the neighbouring classroom for a period of time

3. Call the office.

   • If all else fails or if you feel you need immediate support, call the office and request an administrators assistance. Either an administrator will come to you or ask you to send the student(s) to the office.

Whatever the situation and outcome, it is important to leave detailed notes for the teacher to review upon their return.