The term classroom management refers to the procedures, strategies, and instructional techniques teachers use to manage student behavior and learning activities. Effective classroom management creates an environment that is conducive to teaching and learning. Ineffective classroom management often creates chaos. Effective classroom management is the most important -- and the most difficult -- skill a new teacher has to master. Even veteran teachers often find themselves faced with a student -- or an entire class -- who challenges their established management skills and forces them to find new ways of dealing with classroom situations.
Learn More About Classroom Management
Education World has posted numerous articles containing general classroom management tips as well as specific classroom management techniques. Those include:
Teachers, Start Your Engines: Management Tips from the Pit Crew
Who said classroom management has to be boring? The editors at Education World offer 20 successful classroom management strategies to get your year off to a great start and keep your classroom running smoothly throughout the entire year. Included: Twenty tips for taking attendance, motivating students, rewarding good behavior, and more.
Creating a Climate for Learning: Effective Classroom Management Techniques
According to Fred Jones's Positive Classroom Discipline, "The most widespread management technique at home and in the classroom is nag, nag, nag." It's also probably the least effective. How can you avoid making that technique your own and create a "climate for learning" instead? Education World asks the experts -- teachers who've "been there, done that" and found a better way -- for answers.
TONS of Tips! -- Six Great 'Teacher Tips' Sites on the Web
Education World introduces you to a few of the best "teacher tips" sites on the Web. At those sites, you'll find hundreds of practical classroom management tips -- tried and tested solutions from teachers willing to share. So sit back, get ready for a sampling of tips from these sites. (But remember, this sampling is just the "tip" of the iceberg.) Then explore the sites in more depth and find tips to motivate your students, organize your classroom, and much, much more.
Classroom Management: Ten Teacher-Tested Tips
Hallway conferences. Pasta discipline. Buddy rooms. Bell work. Those and other ideas for taming temper tantrums -- and other classroom disruptions -- are the focus of this Education World article. Included: An opportunity for all teachers to share the classroom management techniques that work for them.
Classroom Management: Principals Help Teachers Develop Essential Skills
Almost everyone agrees that strong classroom management skills are essential for successful teaching. Many teacher education programs don't provide courses to help future teachers develop those skills, however. So what does a principal do with a new teacher who has great potential but needs help with classroom management? Education World's "Principal Files" principals have "The Plan."
Do Seating Arrangements and Assignments = Classroom Management?
Now might be a good time to take a long look at your classroom seating arrangement. Advice and opinions about classroom arrangements and seating assignments abound -- and Education World explores the possibilities. Included: Tips from Fred Jones on how to get the most out of classroom arrangements.
Class Meetings: A Democratic Approach to Classroom Management
Patterned after family meetings in her home, teacher Donna Styles established a format for class meetings that enables students to share their thoughts and solve classroom issues on their own. In Styles's model, students take turns acting as a discussion leader, while the teacher promotes a respectful atmosphere and participates as a group member. Included: Tips for holding successful class meetings.
Microphone-Toting Teachers Grab Students' Attention
Teachers at two elementary schools in Baltimore County, Maryland, find that students jump to attention when the teachers use sound systems in their classrooms. The microphones boost their voices over background noises and help prevent "teacher-voice" strain. Included: Tips on using sound systems in classrooms.
I Found My "Teacher Voice" and Transformed My Classroom
Educator Arnold Pulda reflects on how a bout with cancer precipitated his transition from a "drill sergeant" who barked orders at his students to a quieter, gentler Dr. Pulda. Included: An opportunity to share your most effective classroom management strategies.
A "Nuts and Bolts" Approach to Classroom Successes
A former teacher, Dr. Jane Bluestein turned her pages of tips for teachers about classroom management and organization into a book and then a business. She works with educators seeking new ways to improve their teaching and interactions. Included: Tips for improving student behavior and school climate.
Creativity Flourishes in the Structured Classroom
Teachers of special subjects such as music, art and physical education need to give careful consideration to discipline in their classroom. If you're afraid that structure will stifle creativity, you need to reconsider that notion. Structure and limits are important educational tools that give rise to a climate in which creativity can emerge. Find out how structure and creativity can coexist in your classroom in this Classroom Problem Solver from Dr. Ken Shore.
Classroom Management