Classroom

Management
Dina M. Bensureiti
Aims of this session
• Defining the elements of classroom
management
• Highlighting good practice in
classroom management
What is
Classroom
Management?
Classroom Management

• Refers to “the ways in which student behaviour, movement

and interaction during a lesson are organized and
controlled by the teacher” Richards (1990, p.10).

• It can also be defined as any and all actions the teacher

takes besides actually teaching the target lesson.
Elements of
Classroom
Management
 Possible Elements of Classroom Management

⊹ Class layout ⊹ Interaction ⊹ Monitoring

⊹ White board patterns ⊹ Time and pace
management ⊹ Using questions ⊹ Managing
⊹ Teacher’s voice to check materials
⊹ Teacher’s language understanding ⊹ Transitions
grading ⊹ Giving ⊹ Beginning and
⊹ Teacher’s movement instructions ending tasks
⊹ Teacher’s use of mime ⊹ Checking ⊹ Rapport and
and gesture instructions environment
⊹ Managing pairs and ⊹ Use of names ⊹ Discipline
groups ⊹ Rules ⊹ Error Correction
⊹ Praise and ⊹ Feedback ⊹ Elicitation
encouragement methods
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Top tips for using the whiteboard What is whiteboard

management?
● Plan it
● Divide it into sections.
● Write down the aims of the class in a corner, so students keep in mind what they are going to learn and
what they are working on.
● Try not to block the board or turn your back on the class and ignore them.
● Involve the students in the boardwork, “How do I spell that?” “What word goes next?” etc
● Write neatly, legibly and quickly, in a straight line.
● Ensure the board is a supportive record of learning.
● Remember to clean it for the next teacher.
● Make sure that your writing is large and clear enough so that the people in the back can read it.
● Avoid writing too much. Write just what is necessary
● Try to use colored markers to highlight to make the board more attractive
and help visual students
●
 Teacher’s voice,
movement, mime and
gesture and language
grading.
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TIPS
- Make sure you can be heard clearly by all the students in the room.
-Make sure you give instructions and teach from a central position, i.e. all
students can see you.
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Rapport and Classroom Environment

Establishing a good rapport
● Memorize your students' names
● Show interest in your students' progress and be polite.
● Respond to what students say as well as whether or not they say it correctly

Keeping class interesting

● Set specific goals in order to allow students to perceive their progress
● Use communicative activities that allow students to express themselves as well as
games and contests to make students learn in a fun way.
● Have student-centered classes instead of teacher-centered ones
● Connecting real world topics to the topics of the class.
Teacher’s Roles
Planner: Planning the lesson and the materials
Manager: Managing interaction; he gives learners opportunity to
interact.
Involver: Encouraging learners and motivate them to participate.
Facilitator: Making learning easier for learners.
Monitor: Going around the class and checking.
Diagnostician: Being able to recognize the cause of learners’ difficulties.
Actor: Acting professionally and show keen interest in the performances of
their kids/learners.

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 Things to DO when giving
instructions
1. Raise your voice slightly to indicate that you’re about to instruct. Make sure you have
everyone’s attention.
2. Be aware of the speed of your speech.
3. Keep language to a minimum. Instructions should be short and simple.
4. Avoid giving more than one instruction at a time.
⊹Explain step by step.
Give instruction
Let students carry it out
Give next instruction
1. Write instructions on the w/b where appropriate.
2. Check all but the simplest instructions. Use simple yes/no questions e.g.
Are you going to work alone? In pairs?
Are you going to write the answers?
Hand up As, Bs
3. Demonstrate instructions. Use the first example of an exercise as a model.
4. Give specific start signals and set time limits.
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Things you DON’T do when giving
instructions
1. Don’t hesitate when asking students to do tasks, be assertive, tell
them what to do.
2. Don’t use abstract language. Keep things in the here and now.
3. Don’t say:
Got it?
Do you understand what you have to do?
4. Don’t talk too much or paraphrase too much.
5. Don’t keep issuing instructions once students have started the task,
nor interrupt to reinstruct unless in an emergency.
6. Don’t give out materials before giving instructions.
7. Don’t ask lower level students to repeat back instructions, “So what
are you going to do?” is more suitable for higher levels.

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What can I do BEFORE starting pair, group or
individual work?
⊹ Plan carefully before the lessons; what steps do you want the
students to follow?
⊹ Set a clear goal. Students need to know the purpose of an
activity.
⊹ Set a clear time limit. This will help the learners to plan their
time.
⊹ Give an example and demonstrate how the activity works. This
helps to clarify tasks and instructions and could be easier for
the students to understand than a verbal explanation
⊹ Check that the students understand by asking them to explain
to you (instruction checking).

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What can I do DURING pair, group or
individual work?
⊹ When the activity starts, walk around the class. Look and
listen. This is a good chance for you to see how learners are
learning.
⊹ You might want to make few notes on strengths and
weaknesses of the class, so that you can give them feedback
later.
⊹ Only help if learners seem very confused
⊹ Always have an extra activity for those who finish before
others. This can be something like asking learners to look
quietly at their vocabulary books, or asking them to name
categories of words (fruit , animals, countries etc)
⊹ Stop the activity when most of the learners finish.

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What can I do AFTER pair, group or individual
work?
⊹ You can invite the learners to do the activity or answer
the questions.
⊹ You may want to look at your notes and tell the class
what they did well, what they need to improve: to avoid
embarrassment, it is usually best not to name individuals
who made mistakes.
⊹ After the lesson, you might to make a note of anything
you have learned about your learners’ work, as this may
help your planning in your later lessons.

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MONITORING

⊹
⊹ In order to make sure students are working on the
given task and check their progress and discipline ,
teachers have to get up and walk around the room
providing students with individualized instructions,
vocabulary or further explanation as needed.
⊹

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Praising

⊹ When you see good behavior or good work,

acknowledge it. This can be verbally or a nod, a
smile or a thumbs up. This will reinforce their
behavior .
⊹ Remember to congratulate a student on his
personal progress. He may learn more slowly or
more quickly than others in the class . It is
important to reward both the slow and the fast
learner for real effort and hard work
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Discipline and Dealing with Problem
Behaviour 1
● Problem behavior can take many forms-disruptive talking, inaudible responses, sleeping in
class, tardiness and poor attendance, failure to do homework, cheating on tests and
unwillingness to work. It can also include problematic behavior such as insolence to the
teacher, insulting or bullying other students, refusing to accept sanctions or punishment,
and ridiculing other students, particularly when they make mistakes.

WHY PROBLEMS OCCUR

There are many reasons for problem behavior, such as:
● The family
● Education
● Self-esteem
● Boredom
● External factors
● What the teacher does
Discipline and Dealing with Problem
Behaviour 2
PREVENTING PROBLEM BEHAVIOR
1. Creating rules:These should be created with the learners if possible and should be displayed in the classroom
where all the students can see it.

2. Maintaining interest and enthusiasm: students who are interested and enthusiastic do not generally exhibit
problem behavior.

3. Being professional: students generally respect teachers who show that they know what they're doing. It also
means practicing what we preach.

4. Rapport between teachers and students: a critical aspect in the prevention of problem behavior is the rapport we
have with our students. This can be greatly enhanced by making sure that we listen to what they say with interest
and that we look at them when we talk to them (and use their names). ALL students.
Discipline and Dealing with Problem
Behaviour 3
REACTING TO PROBLEM BEHAVIOR

● Act immediately: it is vital to act immediately when there is a problem since the longer a type of behavior is
left uncorrected, the more difficult it is to deal with . Immediate action sometimes means no more than
stopping talking, pausing, and looking at the student in question. Sometimes, however, it may demand
stronger action.

● Focus on the behavior, not the student: we should take care not to humiliate an uncooperative student. It is
the behavior that matters, not the student's character. We need to treat all the students the same; we must
treat the individual fairly, not overreacting, nor making light of the disruption, particular if we and the class
had agreed it was unacceptable.

● Take things forward: where a simple look or brief comment is not enough, we need to think carefully about
how we respond. It is always better to be positive rather than negative. It is usually more effective for a
teacher to say “Let's do this,” rather than saying “Don't do that.”

● Reprimand in private: it is appropriate to discuss a student's behavior in private, and how to improve it.

● Keep calm: in many students' eyes teachers who have to shout to assert their authority appear to be losing
control. It is usually more effective to approach the student who is being disruptive and speak quietly to
him/her.

● Ask for help from the school/colleagues.

POSITIVE DISCIPLINE
● If you want to have a well-run class, use rules in order to describe the behavior you
want, instead of listing things they can not do. These are some examples:
Instead of “ No fighting” use “Settle conflicts”,
Instead of “ No –gum chewing use “ Leave your gum at home”.

● Don’t forget to refer to your rules as expectations, let students know this is how you
expect them to behave in your class.

● Use a compliment sandwich (Compliment-reprimand/negative point-Compliment)

● When the student is a child and you have to speak personally to him/her about an
incident of misbehavior, it is better to tell him/her you want to speak with him after
class . When you are on your own with him/her , get down to his level and speak to
him face to face, holding his hand or putting your hand on his shoulder. That way
you communicate with him more easily and the child will be obliged to pay attention,
you are showing your concern and the importance of what you are saying.
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• Learn to be comfortable with
your position of authority.

• Gain the respect of your

students by treating them all
with equal fairness.

• State clearly and explicitly to

your students what your
expectations are regarding their
behavior in class. Set classroom
rules from the first week of the
school-year. Involve the students
in the making of
the rules.
 Learning
Differences
and Motivation
Learning Styles:
Visual/Read &Write
Auditory
Kinesthetic/Tactile
Visual Learners
 Learn through seeing and reading.
 Prefer written directions.
 Often good readers.

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Visual Learners Learn Best with:

• pictures
• illustrations
• photos
• graphs
• diagrams
• maps

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Auditory Learners

• Learn through listening and

talking.
• Remember what they hear
better than what they see.

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Auditory Learners:
• Prefer to listen to instructions
• Often like to talk on the phone
or listen to music
• Learn best if they can hear and
see the assignment

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Kinesthetic/Tactile Learners

• Learn through doing

• Remember hands-on
activities
• Use their hands to build,
create, plant, draw or
decorate

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Kinesthetic/Tactile Learners:

• Learn the assignment best by using physical

activity

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Error Correction
CORRECTION TECHNIQUES
● A teacher should be very sensitive when correcting errors. A positive attitude towards our students’
mistakes will help us to assist our students to refine their learning processes.

Tips:
● “Trying out” the things we are learning and making errors are natural and unavoidable parts of the
learning process.
● Students’ errors are a useful way of showing what they have learned and have not learned. That is why
we have to see errors positively as an indication of what we still need to teach.
● Always correct gently and kindly

● WHEN TO CORRECT?
● It really depends on the kind of activity you are doing and its aim: whether we mainly want students to
produce accurate productions of the lesson or we want them to express themselves freely and develop
creativity.

● WHAT’S THE BEST WAY OF CORRECTING MISTAKES?

There’s no best way of correcting your students’ mistakes. It depends on the kind of students you have and
the activity you are carrying out at the moment correction takes place. It is advisable to try out different ways
and choose the one that best fits you students.
Elicitation
● Elicitation is a term that describes techniques which enable
teachers to get learners to provide information that they
already know by activating their prior experiences and
knowledge gained from previous studies and/or past
experiences, rather than telling them. When learners can
link new knowledge to something they already know, they
are more likely to remember it long term. Elicitation is at the
heart of student-centred learning.
 Lesson
Planning
& Lesson Types
Parts of a lesson plan: Procedure page

+ Timing &
Interactions
Bibliography

Harmer, J. (2003). The practice of English language teaching.

Essex, England: Longman.
Thank you! Have a
great day.
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