EDT 2131/3131/5131

Lecture 9
Classroom Management
Learning Outcome/s
(Performing Indicators)
At the end of this unit students can: 1.
Explain the purpose of the Behaviour
Management Policy.
2. Give examples of how rules and routines can
support effective learning.
3. Identify effective rewards and sanctions.
4. Develop some strategies for dealing with
behaviour problems.
Introduction
• Effective classroom management-important part of teaching &
learning.
• Unless students are ready to learn in your class, you will not be able
to teach effectively & students will not be able to achieve the LOs. •
The school, teacher & students themselves are all responsible for
creating an atmosphere for effective learning.
• There are many different ways in which the learning environment
can be improved, from the arrangement of the classroom, the use
of display, effective rules & routines, the behaviour of the teacher &
the behaviour of students.
• This unit will concentrate on behaviour management through rules
& routines, rewards & sanctions & some strategies for managing
student behaviour in the classroom.
Behaviour Management Policy
• NDoE (2009) issued a new Behaviour Management
Policy ‘Improving students behaviour & welfare’. • IHD
& human rights principles are the foundations of the
policy. The policy aims to guide schools at all levels to;
1. Promote & improve positive student behaviour
through the collaborative efforts of all stakeholders. 2.
Help all stakeholders to understand & exercise their
rights & responsibilities in managing student
behaviour.
3. Help schools create a fair, caring & safe learning
environment for students & teachers.
The policy is based on 9 guiding
principles:
1. Right to education
2. Right to respect, equality and fairness
3. Right to a safe learning environment
4. Right to good quality education
5. Right to fair and consistent rules
6. Right to a school behaviour management policy
7. Right to access counselling and referral services
8. Best practice and cooperation
9. Personal responsibility
• This is explained fully in Behaviour Management:
a guide for schools (NDoE, 2009).
• The emphasis is on the reinforcement of positive
behaviour rather than the more traditional
punishment of bad behaviour.
• A school and its teachers can create an
environment that encourages positive behaviour
 & minimises the risk of poor behaviour.
• Schools/classrooms need to be places where
both students & teachers feel safe & respected.
This can be achieved in many ways;
• teachers who are good role models.
• students who know the school rules & classroom
routines & understand their purpose will be less
likely to break them.
• interesting lessons will keep students motivated
& on task & reduce inattention & bad behaviour. •
well kept school grounds & classrooms will help
students feel a sense of pride in their school. •
clean & tidy classrooms with displays of student
work will help students feel a sense of pride in
their achievement.
Rules & Routines
• Students like clear guidance about what is
acceptable and what is expected of them. •
Rules and routines provide a framework for
behaviour in the same way that a structured
set of instructions provides a framework for
learning in a lesson.
 Rules
• All schools will have a set of rules that students
are expected to follow and that teachers are
expected to enforce.
• The rules are to help you and your students. •
There will be sanctions or punishments if those
rules are broken.
• The rules should be clearly displayed in
classrooms.
• The teacher should check that the students
understand the rules and the reasons for them.
 Routines
• Routines are daily procedures/activities/duty rosters
that you agree with your students.
• They take time to establish, but once they become a
habit for you and your students, they will minimise
many of the problems that teachers face.
• Routines minimise the amount of time the teacher has
to spend giving instructions and maximises the time for
learning.
• Routines stop students becoming bored at the
beginning of a lesson while administrative tasks are
being done.
• Good routines become a habit for both teacher and
students.
Some useful routines;
• expecting students to be lined up quietly when you
arrive for indoor/outdoor assemblies.
• expecting students to get their books and materials out
at the beginning of the lesson without being told •
waiting for students to be silent before you start talking •
having monitors who give out and collect books and
materials
• signals for getting attention eg hand signal or a clap
• expecting students to put their hand up to answer a
question
• arranging a roster for groups of students to be
responsible for different activities.
Role Model
• Role model & good qualities are important for you.
• As a manager of student behaviour, ‘You will model
good behaviour for your students’.
• The personal qualities of an effective teacher reflect
the positive ways in which the teacher can act as a role
model by:
❖being interested in students, being enthusiastic , being
committed , being fair and consistent, being friendly
 both in and out of class, maintaining a ‘professional
distance’, having a sense of humour, being punctual,
being reliable, being responsible, being well organised,
being flexible , being creative & imaginative, being well
groomed, being caring.
Rewards & Sanctions
Positive reinforcement of good behaviour
• Students like to be praised, both as a class and as individuals. •
Reinforcement of good behaviour is an effective way of establishing a
positive atmosphere in your classroom.
• This needs to be applied to the whole class and to individuals. •
Some examples : verbal praise ‘well done class; you have worked
really hard today; congratulations George; your test mark is a great
improvement on last term; that’s a really good idea Donna, let’s share
it with the rest of the class’
• smiling at students and being friendly towards them •
recognition of improved behaviour by giving a ‘treat’ or extra
privilege
• recognition in assembly
• positive comments about behaviour on a school report
Dealing with unacceptable behaviour
• Every school, every day of the year will have
some problems that a teacher has to handle. •
Some are minor & others are more serious. •
As a new teacher, you will have to make
decisions about;
❖acceptable & unacceptable behaviour
❖how to stop low level disruption
❖how to deal with minor incidents
❖how to deal with more serious problems.
Assertive Discipline
• Acceptable & unacceptable behaviour is determined by
rules & routines.
• Low level disruption happens in many lessons & there are
many useful strategies you can adopt to minimise it. •
Examples of low level disruption include lateness, chatting,
not having books ready, fiddling with objects, phone, reading
 or not paying attention when the teacher is talking, moving
out of their seat, eating or chewing.
• These examples can all be dealt with firmly using assertive
discipline without disrupting your lesson.
• The assertive teacher will have clear expectations & use the
school rules.
• S/he will use confident body language, a clear voice & clear
instructions for dealing with behaviour problems. • Low level
disruption can often be dealt with using eye contact & a
non-verbal signal, without having to reprimand a student.
• A consistent approach & frequent reminders will gradually
reduce the frequency of problem behaviours.
• If you move around the classroom when you are talking
rather than stay at the front, you will have better control of
 the behaviour in your class.
• These actions deal with the individual students who are
causing a disruption; they do not involve the rest of the
class.
• Do not blame the whole class for the poor behaviour of a
few individuals.
Sanctions
• Dealing with minor & major incidents will
usually involve using sanctions.
• These should be included in the School
Behaviour Management Policy.
• The principles of the national Behaviour
Management Policy are based on rights &
responsibilities.
• If students do not act responsibly & break
established rules, action needs to be taken.
Minor Incidents
• These occur both in & out of the classroom & as a
teacher you have a responsibility to deal with
incidents that you observe around the school.
• Minor incidents can usually be dealt with by the
 teacher, but as a new teacher it is helpful to
discuss the incident & course of action with a
more experienced staff.
• Minor incidents might include low level bullying,
chewing, smoking & rudeness.
• If the behaviour is repeated always ask for help.
Major Incidents
• These include drinking alcohol, making
homebrew, smoking marijuana, serious
bullying, fighting, damage to property, cult,
possession of pornography, sexual
 harassment.
• Major incidents must always be reported to a
more senior member of staff.
The purpose of sanction is to;
1. correct and improve a behaviour 2.
preserve good order and safety in the
classroom and the school
3. put right a wrong
4. educate other students
Effective sanctions include;
• putting right a wrong, for example, cleaning off
graffiti
• an apology, either verbally or in writing •
one-to-one counselling with a teacher or a
counsellor
• removal from a class for a specified period after
repeated poor behaviour, and having to make up
the work
• a report sheet to monitor behaviour in class
• a detention to make up work missed • loss
of privileges for a specified period • removal
from a non-essential trip
 Very serious incidents include;
• a letter to parents
• a conference with parents
• suspension from classes for repeated offences
• expulsion for very serious repeated offences
or criminal offences
Sanctions not recommended •
There are some sanctions that may have been
used in the past that are not recommended;
corporal punishment,
• hard physical work,
• preventing students from taking tests/exams,
• suspension or exclusion without a full
investigation and using other sanctions first,
fines and paying compensation.
Conclusion
• Schools will have a Behaviour Management Policy in line
with the national policy that will help you with effective
classroom management.
• Use the school rules and make sure that your students
 understand them.
• Establish your own rules & routines with your students &
apply them consistently & fairly.
• Use assertive discipline to sanction indiscipline behaviour.
• Use positive reinforcement of good behaviour through
praise & rewards as your first course of action. • Be a good
role model for positive behaviour. • Apply sanctions in
accordance with the school policy. • Discuss classroom
management and how to deal with behaviour problems
with more experienced colleagues.
Tutorial Activity
1. List possible classroom management issues
that may happen in your subject/class. 2. For
each issue, suggest what strategy might be
most appropriate to deal with it.

Karwage, J.
Course Coordinator