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Practical experience

Published on 4 February 2008 in Classroom management, News and Other Sites. 0 Comments

In October of 2007 over on D-Ed Reckoning, Ken deRosa had a series of posts that were based on an interview with a semi-anonymous teacher about her methods of managing classrooms of students who have substantial problems, including some who have been identified as having disabilities. This teacher resorted to a token economy to get things going.

For example, one year I was assigned to a new school and an extremely difficult group of fifth and sixth graders, all with both learning and behavior problems, and most seriously delayed academically. Some had intimidating discipline records; at least one was probably clinically psychotic. They were oppositional, violent (towards each other), screamed and yelled and threw things, or were passive-aggressive, and generally did nothing of what you assigned them to do. I was desperate — every day I went home feeling like I was escaping a war zone — and so I set up a classroom economy, a variant of what the behaviorists call “token reinforcement.” I printed up bills for $1,$5,$10 etc., as in “real” money, set up bank accounts, wage and price schedules, the works. Everything students might want to do cost something, whether it was visiting the restroom between recesses, computer time or using art materials. In turn, they could earn money in a variety of ways.

I encourage folks to read the entries, including the comments. The full suite of content is very informative. The posts are entitled How to Effectively Manage a Classroom, How to Effectively Manage a Classroom II, How to Effectively Manage a Classroom III, and (no surprise) How to Effectively Manage a Classroom IV.

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Baseline practices

Published on 16 January 2008 in Classroom management, Other Sites, Teaching b mod and Understanding. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

Over on Snail-Snail, snail_snail has a couple of posts that illustrate fundamentals for behavior management. The recommendations, in the form of a list one should ask oneself, provide the basic background that should be in place before one attempts to employ more formal behavior modification procedures.

Under the titles “Onaway Elementary/Day N,” snail_snail raises questions such as “Are the teacher’s directions usually clear?” and “Is the teacher consistent? Are the rules in force for all students? every day?” Most of the items on the list of questions should serve as reminders about basic teaching practices.
Continue reading ‘Baseline practices’

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Mr. Belshaw’s tips

Published on 10 January 2008 in Classroom management, Other Sites and Understanding. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

Some time ago, blogger Doug Belshaw had a post providing guidance about managing behavior that I just discovered. In the post Mr. Belshaw gives tips about classroom management that are worth repeating. Although there are 10 items in his list, I’ll just illustrate them using a couple here:
Continue reading ‘Mr. Belshaw’s tips’

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Illustration of managing well

Published on 15 December 2007 in Classroom management, Other Sites and Teaching b mod. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

I came across an entry in a middle school teacher’s blog that provides a good illustration of how to manage a classroom learning environment. Ellen Berg, who has taught mostly English and communication arts (but, also shop and pre-calculus) at Turner Middle in a racially isolated part of St. Louis (MO, US) where most of her students receive free or reduced-price meals, tells the story of how she revised her classroom management system.

Similarly, last Monday was a new beginning for my students and me in our classroom. After hearing Harry Wong at the NMSA convention, I knew that I had neglected spending enough time setting up the routines and procedures in my classroom. As a result, I was frequently short-tempered and impatient with my students, and they responded accordingly. This was especially true with my “difficult” after-lunch class. Behaviors were becoming increasingly negative with every consequence I threw at them. It wasn’t working.

The problems that I identified in my classroom were:

1. The level of noise during group work.
2. My difficulty getting the whole class’s attention during group work.
3. Social behaviors when they sat at desk tables instead of straight rows.
4. Students out of their seats at inappropriate times.
5. Lack of focus during mini-lessons.
6. Demonstrating readiness to get on task.

These problems are common ones for teachers everywhere. Some accept it as a natural result of teaching middle school children. I, however, refused to believe that these problems couldn’t be solved.

Ms. Berg goes on to explain her solutions. Mostly, they are simple, commonsense procedures, but they fit quite well with my perspective on classroom management. Read the post to see how Ms. Berg skillfully identified specific goals, demonstrated and explained to her students how to behave appropriately, provided extensive practice for them, and calmly reinforced the students’ adherence to the classroom procedures.

I plan to use her post as an illustration in my teacher education course on classroom management. It has authenticity and clarity that I think make it compelling.

Link to Ms. Berg’s entry.

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