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Unit 5 discusses classroom management. This is the skill of organizing the class, individual students within that class and what takes place within the class. Some considerations include: the use of eyes, voice and gestures, grouping students for class activities, using the students’ names, classroom arrangement, and discipline.
As a teacher, managing students can sometimes be achieved by the simple use of your eyes, your voice, and your gestures. The use of your eyes can hold attention, show something is correct, and provide encouragement. The use of your voice must be controlled and deliberate, slowly speaking while clearly enunciating words for student comprehension. Just as important, is using language at the level you are teaching. No matter how slowly you speak, students will be lost if the vocabulary is too advanced for the class. The use of gestures can reduce teacher talk time, convey meaning, add visual interest, and change the pace of the class.
Grouping students for class activities can be categorized into three groups: whole class, individuals, pair work. Whole class group is good for classroom control, allows for whole group interaction, and gives a sense of belonging. However, it can reduce student talk time, can feel off-putting for shy students, and make it difficult to manage activities. Individuals group allows students to become more self-reliant, and allows the teacher to respond to individuals without disturbing the class. This group provides little chance for student-to-student interaction and creates more pressure on the students to produce their own answers. Pair work group massively increases student talk time and creates a much safer environment. However, on occasion students who are paired do not get along.
Classroom arrangement can be done in one of three ways: orderly rows, circles or horseshoes, and separate tables. Orderly rows provide students a clear view of the teacher and give the teacher the ability to move freely throughout the classroom. This however feels very formal and can make it difficult to arrange whole class activities. Circles or horseshoes make it very easy to set up pair work and the teacher appears less dominant. Separate tables are good for lectures and make it easy to give individual attention. Although, it makes it difficult to maintain eye contact and is not conducive for student-to-student interaction.
Discipline within the classroom can be challenging at times, but some preventative measures on your part can help. Try to always be seen by students as fair, punctual, and well prepared. Do not make threats without carrying them out. Show students the same level of respect you expect of them. If you give out homework, collect it, grade it, and promptly return it. Preventative measures may at times help you steer clear of student discipline, but other times it just becomes unavoidable. If that time comes, try following these rules: make sure to act immediately, before the problem gets worse; use nonverbal techniques first; keep calm and never shout or lose your temper; keep within the school discipline code; and try to use humor when possible.
This unit provided the understanding that using students’ names is very powerful. It can help to organize the class, provide student acknowledgment, and indicate who should respond. The “golden nugget” for me was to place the student’s name at the end of a question. This causes all students to be thinking of the answer incase I were to call on them.
