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Unit 5 dealt with the topic of Classroom management. Firstly it covered various skills to use in the classroom of better management of the students. Things such as eye contact, gesturing, voice using, students names are important to take notice of. Good eye contact in the classroom is essential to establish a good rapport with students. Good use of gesture can be effective to convey the meaning of the language, manage the class, add visual interest, increase the pace of the lesson and to reduce the need for verbal explanation. If your voice doesn’t have the correct clarity, range, variety or prediction, you will have a difficult time in making your instructions understood. The greater the variation of the tone the greater the effectiveness. The teacher should use a student’s name for things such as to organize an activity, acknowledge the students, indicate who is to answer or respond and get the attention of the student. Secondly, the grouping of students was discussed and the different pros and cons to expect. A whole-class grouping creates a sense of belonging among the group but reduces the opportunity for students to speak. Students working on their own allows teachers to respond to individual differences in the pace of learning but restricts possibilities for students to students interaction and group belonging. Pairwork gives students a safe environment to try out ideas before sharing with the group but it can be rather noisy. Group work encourages students to cooperate and negotiate in English but can take longer to organize and get started. Thirdly classroom arrangements were tackled. The position and organization of students depend greatly on things such as space availability, type of furniture, the age of students, nationality and student personality. Orderly rows give the teacher a clear view of all the students and all the students can see her, it makes lecturing easy. Circles allow the teacher to be in a less dominating position, the classroom in effect becomes far more intimate. Separate tables make it easy for the teacher to work at one table while other groups continue their work but can create discipline problems. Students are often sensitive to the position of the teacher in the classroom and whether you are sitting or standing; it can tell them what kind of activity it is, what the teacher’s role will be and what the students are expected to do. There is a position for the teacher during each stage of a lesson that should be feared in mind; when practicing language presentation the teacher will probably want the attention of the whole class so standing is the best option etc. Fourthly things such as writing on the board, giving individual attention, teacher talking time and giving instructions were analyzed. When writing on the board the teachers back will be turned away from the students but there are ways to reduce this for example; use an overhead projector, prepare cards with vocabulary or invite the students to write on the board for you. The thing to bear in mind when giving individual attention include; making sure you know the students' names, do not teach exclusively to the weak and strong students and remember to include all students equally in any activity. In the classroom the teacher will speak more when presenting, providing language input, giving instructions and establishing rapport. The teacher should be able to provide the student with a source of natural, correct English that is specifically geared to the students’ ability. The disadvantage with teacher talk time is that it reduces the amount of time available for students to speak and actively participate in class. Teacher talk time canoe avoided by rather using gestures or over-elaborating. To make instructions effective attract the students' attention and make sure everyone is listening and not working. Fifthly the topic ‘discipline’ was dealt with. It is important the teacher strikes the correct balance between exercising control and encouraging a relaxed, friendly atmosphere conducive to learning. There are various reasons for problem behavior some of them include; family problems, low self-esteem, boredom or peer pressure. There are also various ways to prevent these behavior; be punctual, be well prepared, do not let personal feelings influence your treatment of students etc. There are ways the teacher can respond to problem behavior for example; act immediately, change the classroom dynamic, keep calm, keep the problem student behind after class and reprimand in private. Lastly, examples for practical ways to establish rapport and class spirit were given. Some include; change pairs frequently, get students to help each other, don’t supply everything yourself, have the right manner, ask for comments and opinions from students etc.
