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Classroom Management Plan
My Educational philosophy
My educational philosophy is to create a positive classroom environment in
which each student has the best possibility of learning. This will in the first
instance, involve developing a preventive classroom management plan in
which the ‘learning context[s] out-compete[s] [..] inappropriate behavior’
(Arthur, Gordon & Butterfield 2003, p.1). Classroom management is therefore
‘proactive’ rather than ‘reactive’ (Arthur, Gordon & Butterfield 2003, p.1). This
will be created through engaging lessons informed by constructivism in which
students play an active role in their learning and by using a range of humane
teaching approaches including group work and cooperative learning. There
may however, be times when students display inappropriate behavior. This is
when intervention will be called upon. The plan for this will be set out in a
democratic environment drawing on aspects of behaviorism, particularly
Canter’s assertive discipline. An integral part of the classroom culture is the
student-teacher relationship. I aim to quickly establish a positive one in which
there is mutual respect; both will have a voice but neither will take ownership.
A further aspect important to any classroom situation is inclusion and
cohesion. This is becoming increasingly significant in the Australian context as
an increasing number of refugee children add diversity to the classroom and
indigenous students continue to find a voice in mainstream schooling. My aim
is to create a classroom culture in which all students feel equal and show
mutual respect.
Classroom Culture
I aim to build a classroom culture which is positive, democratic, respectful and
inclusive. In order to achieve a positive atmosphere, I will work on building a
positive teacher-student relationship as well as a positive student– student
one. While I discuss the former below, the latter is discussed under the
heading: an inclusive classroom.
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Building a positive teacher–student relationship
As Grossman (2004, p. 25) highlights, building a positive teacher–student
relationship is an important part of the management process. I will work on
this from day one by learning the students’ names quickly and addressing
them accordingly. This is also a part of my proactive management approach
as I have learnt in my ESL classes that once I address the students by their
name, they not only engage more with the material, but also behave
appropriately. This is because I have shown that I am taking a genuine
interest in them; they are no longer just a student but a person with individual
needs. Should inappropriate behavior arise however, I am also in a better
position to deal with it quickly by knowing the student’s name. This positive
relationship will be maintained by meeting and greeting the students each day
as they enter the classroom.
Expectations
Academic achievement
Students will be told that they are expected to achieve their potential and that
this will be possible as long as we work together in providing a positive
environment in which learning is possible. This is particularly important for
indigenous students who have a record of underachievement and are
continuing to find their place in the mainstream classroom.
Behavior
In spite of my proactive approach to classroom management there may be
times when students act inappropriately. This is when I will use my
intervention based on Canter’s assertive discipline. Because assertive
discipline is a behavioral modification system, it is therefore rooted in
behaviourism. Unlike Skinner’s operant conditioning model however, mine is
democratic in that the rules will be made for the students by the students,
under my guidance. As Canter (1992, p. 54) points out, by including students
in the decision making process of the rules it ‘will give them ownership in the
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classroom discipline plan’. The students will work collaboratively during the
first lesson to design the rules according to the following procedure:
1. As Canter (1992, p. 54 ) suggests, students may choose rules that are too
harsh or inappropriate, so in order to set the correct tone, I will brainstorm
suitable rules with the class and write one on the board before students
break off into groups to brainstorm together. Students are to choose the
two best rules from their group and write them on the board.
2. As a group, we will then decide which rules are the most appropriate. I will
naturally have an idea of what I think is suitable and students will be
guided into a variant of these. Examples of appropriate rules:
• ‘Always respect others
• Avoid anti social behavior
• Don’t interrupt or yell out
• Follow instructions
• Gain permission before using others equipment’ (Barlett et al. 2009, p.
474)
3. Students will then brainstorm the rationale behind the choice of rules: Why
do we want/need this? As Snowman et al. (Bartlett et al. 2009, p. 478)
argue ‘you can make regulations seem desirable rather than restrictive if
you discuss why they are needed’.
Once the rules are agreed to, students will be informed that this is the
expected behavior. Collaboratively, students will work on a poster for the class
featuring the rules.
When student behavior is in accordance with the rules, they will receive
‘positive recognition’ both as a group and individually (Canter & Canter 1992,
p. 57). If the class has been working well, positive recognition may be in the
form of positive feedback such as ‘this is great work everyone’. If a greater
reward is necessary, they may finish their work earlier to play an educational
yet interesting game or get to choose an excursion. Individual effort may again
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simply be rewarded by positive feedback or a note home informing his/her
carer/s of their effort. As Canter (1992, p. 58) argues, positive recognition is
valuable as ‘students are more likely to continue their appropriate behavior in
order to receive the recognition they need’. This will play an important role in
preventive management as students will be less likely to act up therefore
making further intervention unnecessary.
Naturally, some students will at times choose to ignore the classroom rules.
This is when escalating consequences will be acted upon, which will be
something [..] students do not like, but [..] [will] never be physically or
psychologically harmful (Canter & Canter 1992, p. 80). The students
will be made aware of these and be implemented in following sequence:
1. Using a non verbal cue, my finger to the mouth, I will make the student
aware that they are behaving inappropriately. This will give the student the
opportunity to correct his/her behavior without drawing the class’ attention to
him/her and therefore not interrupt lesson flow.
2. If behavior persists, the student will be warned verbally to stop the behavior
and reminded that ‘they’ are choosing to ignore the class rules thus making
the student take ownership of his/her behavior.
3. If the behavior continues, I will again ask the student to stop, then saying
‘we need to talk about this after class’. This is when I will get the opportunity to
inquire if there is something wrong.
4. If the student chooses to ignore this, I will then say ‘we need to talk to
someone else about this’ and I will ask the student to stay behind after class
to meet with the coordinator.
5. If the behavior still persists, I will remove the student from the class
immediately and talk to her/him outside to try to find out what is wrong.
Depending on the severity and how the student responds to me, I may then
even escort the student to the principal.
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Students will be told that it is their choice to behave in accordance with the
rules or to break them which will make them take ownership of their behavior.
As Malmgren et al. (2005, p. 36) recount, ‘an effective behavior management
program is [one] fueled by informed student choices’. Students are aware of
teacher expectations and what will occur when they choose to meet those
expectations and, conversely, what will occur when they choose not to adhere
to the established classroom rules.
N.B: As alluded to in points 3 and 5, bad behavior is often symptomatic of
problems the student may be having and which I hope to pick up on during my
meet and greet sessions with students thus avoiding inappropriate behaviour
and subsequent escalating intervention.
An inclusive classroom
I also aim to develop an inclusive classroom culture in which there is not only
mutual respect between me and the students but between students also. I
hope to achieve this by including units of work on the varying cultures in the
group so students develop a genuine understanding of the cultures rather
than stereotypical ones (Grossman 2004, p. 40). I will also invite students to
talk regularly about their culture in classroom. This is especially important for
my English as an Additional Language (EAL) and indigenous students. In
addition, I will include group work and cooperative learning tasks in which
students work collaboratively towards a collective accomplishment. Apart from
the obvious social benefits, I believe a more cohesive group is one in which
inappropriate behavior is less likely to occur.
Engaging students in learning activities:
I found the following points on how to engage learners very useful:
• ‘Provide visual aids to explain abstract concepts
• Use in class activities to reinforce newly presented material
• Help students create a link between new material and something already
learned
• Treat students with respect
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• Be enthusiastic’ (Pointloma, n.d.)
As a pre-service teacher, I also need to be aware that students bring their
individual learning styles into the classroom therefore I will to employ a range
of strategies and activities in order to engage students. These include visual
aids such as mind maps for visual learners, group work for concrete learners
and discovery learning for intuitive learners.
Although at times it will be necessary to have teacher-centred activities, I am
also aware that the most engaging ones for students are often those which
are student-centred. These include activities informed by constructivism in
which students actively construct their own knowledge often through group
work. This is empowering for students as they begin to take ownership of their
learning through teacher guided activities. In addition, I will engage students in
cooperative learning where they work together to achieve a collective result.
Clear, concise task instructions also help students to engage quickly with an
activity which I have improved in since I have been teaching ESL.
A further aspect in preventive management is to have a clear, calm and
orderly presence. This is crucial at the beginning of lessons in order to settle
the students for the lesson.
Dealing with conflict
A cohesive classroom in combination with my preventive management should
work towards preventing conflict however; there will be times when hostility
arises. Each school will undoubtedly have its own policy which I will seek out
upon arrival at a school. One successful program recounted by Barlett et al.
(2009, p. 501) is, ‘The Resolving Conflict Creatively Program’ (RCCP) in
which students are taught ‘non violent conflict resolution’. Trained student
mentors act when there is conflict by suggesting that the students involved
move to a quieter place where they can talk. The mediators then establish
certain ground rules such as allowing each student a chance to talk without
being interrupted. A resolution is then agreed to. I would adopt the same
procedure calling on the wellbeing/welfare person if I feel the situation is
serious or the problem could not be resolved.
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An example of a classroom activity that illustrates my approach
The following activity will be part of my German class under the dimension of
intercultural knowledge and language awareness. In line with my preventive
management strategy, in which the ‘learning context[s] out-compete[s]
inappropriate behavior’, I draw on constructivism and cooperative learning in
order to fully engage students (Arthur, Gordon & Butterfield 2003, p.1). These
activities include brainstorming and discovery learning. I also include multi
media.
The aim of the activity is to develop students’ intercultural competency in the
German context. In particular, students will deepen their understanding of the
varying levels of informality and formality in German depending on context
and social distance.
The session begins with a class brainstorming of the term ‘culture’. This
constructivist pedagogy will immediately engage students as they bring their
own learning to the task and generate new knowledge.
I predict students will offer the term language as a part of culture. I then ask
them to think about how culture is built into language. I ask them to think
about address terms in Australian English such as ‘mate’ versus ‘Mr’. This is
done in small groups using cooperative learning whereby the group works
collaboratively on a collective end. The individual groups then report their
comments.
I predict that students will make a connection between address usage and
level of informality/formality, i.e. in Australian culture mate is mainly used
between friends and informally while honorifics are used formally.
I then issue a worksheet featuring two German dialogues: one between two
friends and the other between an adolescent and an adult shop assistant with
a gap exercise in which students are to fill in the missing words while watching
the video.
Following the video students compare their answers in their small groups. The
task is for them to look at the address terms used by the people and to work
out what is happening. Why are the two friends and the adult addressing the
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young person using du while the adolescent uses Sie to address the adult
shop assistant?
I expect students to suggest du usage as an intimate term or an age marker
while Sie is used formally or as a marker of respect.
For several reasons, I expect the students to be fully engaged in the above
activity, so that inappropriate behavior does not surface. Firstly, I use a variety
of mediums including multi media to engage the students. Secondly, I use
inquiry based constructivist pedagogy in which students solve a problem and
discover something new by drawing on their existing knowledge. I aim to
maintain the appropriate behavior while students are working in groups by
providing positive feedback such as: ‘you are all working well – well done’ or
‘great suggestions everyone’. Should inappropriate behavior surface however,
I will enact my intervention.
My responsibilities as a teacher are varied and include facilitator of learning,
role model, assessor, as well as a person who is mindful of student wellbeing.
More specific to classroom management are: responsible for managing
students, responsible for providing a safe environment, ‘seeing that students
work together in a confined space for long periods and ensuring that they
learn’ (Brown 2004, p. 266)
Resources
As a pre-service teacher, I will seek out my student mentor to whom I will
enquire about a school classroom management policy. I will then compare it
with mine. If there is a mismatch, I will seek the advice of the mentor and
implement the one advised. My mentor is also the person I will seek out
should I have classroom management problems. I will also quickly establish
who the coordinator is in case my mentor teacher is not available when
needed. The other resource I will use is the wellbeing/welfare person in case I
have behavior problems with particular students.
As a qualified teacher, I will seek out the classroom management policy in
place and familiarize myself with it upon arrival at the school. I will compare it
with mine outlined above and amend if necessary. I will then make a time to
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meet with the coordinator and the principal to seek their approval and support
and to make them aware of their involvement in my assertive discipline
intervention. I will also introduce myself to the wellbeing/welfare person and
get their opinion of my management plan.
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References
Arthur, M, Gordon, C & Butterfield, N 2003, ‘Towards an ecological model of
classroom management’, in Classroom Management: Creating positive
learning environments, 2
nd
ed, Thomson, South Melbourne, pp. 1-12.
Barlett, B, Bryer, F, Dobozy, E, Scevak, J & Snowman, J 2009, Psychology
Applied to Teaching, John Wiley & Sons, Milton, Qld.
Brown, F 2004, ‘Urban Teachers’ professed classroom management
strategies: Reflections of Culturally Responsive Teaching’, Urban Education,
vol. 39, no. 3, pp. 266-289.
Canter, L & Canter, M 1992, Lee Canter’s Assertive Discipline: Positive
behavior Management for today’s classroom, Lee Canter & Associates, Santa
Monica.
Grossman, H 2004, ‘Motivating students to want to behave appropriately’, in
Classroom behavior management for diverse and inclusive schools, 3rd ed,
Rowman & Little Publishers, Lanham, Md, Oxford, pp.11-75.
Malmgren, K, Trezek, B & Paul, P 2005, ‘Models of Classroom Management
as Applied to the Secondary Classroom’, The Clearing House, vol. 79, no.1,
pp. 36-39.
Pointloma n.d., Eight Ways to engage Students, viewed 25 March 2012,
<http://www.pointloma.edu/experience/academics/centers-institutes/center-
teaching-learning/teaching-tips/8-ways-engage-students>