This document provides guidance on effective classroom management strategies for dealing with disruptive student behavior. It emphasizes implementing clear routines, procedures, and expectations from day one. Key recommendations include being proactive, engaging students, avoiding direct confrontation, and developing signals to redirect off-task behavior. Well-managed classrooms have students actively involved through minimal wasted time and disruptions, leading to greater student success. The sources cited provide additional classroom management resources and strategies.
1. Managing Your Classroom Brought to you by The First Years of Teaching Support Program UNCW Watson School of Education
2. The Scenario One or more students consistently talk in your class. They are disrupting your lesson and other students who are trying to work. What do you do? What is your behavior management plan? What procedures do you have in place for dealing with this low intensity, yet high frequency behavior?
3. Managing Your Classroom Effective teachers manage their classrooms, while ineffective teachers discipline their classrooms. ~Harry Wong Classrooms are systems; in order to have a well managed classroom you must think of it as such. ~Ruby Payne Classroom management is the business of getting kids to do what you want them to do. If the teacher is good at it, a lot gets done and kids enjoy coming to class. ~Fredric H. Jones
4. Key Factors Implement your classroom management plan beginning the first day of school Have routines and procedures posted on Day One, and be prepared to teach procedures Be clear about student expectations Be consistent in your procedures Move through transitions briskly to avoid wasted time Be proactive and engage students in the lesson Create a sense of community where students feel safe, respected, trusted and empowered
5. In A Well Managed Classroom… Students are engaged in their work and know what is expected of them. This does not necessarily mean that they are in their seats and quiet, but actively involved in the lesson and work-oriented. There is little wasted time, confusion or disruptions Student success and achievement at the end of the school year are directly related to the degree to which the teacher established good control of classroom procedures the very first week of school. ~Harry Wong
6. Management Strategies Avoid direct confrontation in front of the rest of the class Stand by the student’s desk without letting him/her interrupt your instruction User humor when appropriate to diffuse a situation, but never sarcasm Over-plan… busy students are less likely to disrupt Develop your “teacher stare” Research tells us that actions communicate more clearly than words. Many minor class disruptions can be eliminated by using the examples listed above.
7. Sources Wong, Harry and Rosemary: 2009. The First Days of School: How to Be an Effective Teacher. Harry Wong Publications. Payne, Ruby: 2006. Discipline Strategies for the Classroom: Working with Students. AHA Press. Henley, Martin: 2010. Classroom Management: A Proactive Approach. Pearson. Jones, Fredric : 2007. Tools for Teaching: Discipline, Instruction, Motivation. Fredric H. Jones & Associates, Inc.
