ISL WEEK 11

Surf internet to get more information onways to develop,monitor

and maintain productive students behaviours.
Creating and Maintaining a Productive Classroom Environment
The way we design our classroom can make our nine months there terrific or
punishing.
Effective Classroom Environment
Classroom management is about creating a classroom environment
conducive to learning & achievement.
Students are consistently engaged in useful learning activities
Students behaviors rarely interfere with achieving instructional
objectives
Effective Classroom Environment
Physical arrangement of room
Climate in which students have a sense of belonging & intrinsic
motivation to learn
Reasonable limits for student behavior
Activities that encourage on-task behavior
Continuous monitoring of students
Modification of strategies as necessary
Arranging the Classroom
Minimize distractions
Interact easily with any student
Survey the entire class at any time
Creating an Effective Classroom Environment
Classroom climate has to do with the psychological environment we
create.
Communication of acceptance, respect & caring about students
as people.
Developing a practical, nonthreatening atmosphere
Appropriate messages about subject matter
Giving students some control over activities
A sense of community among students

Personal/ social needs can be met in class

Need for relatedness comes in 2 forms:
Need for affiliation
Need for approval
Teachers can meet both needs with warmth, attention, recognition for
achievement, interest in students activities.
Effective teachers are warm, caring people who show respect &
acceptance of students.
Businesslike, nonthreatening atmosphere
Goals need to be clear.
Students need to be held accountable for their achievement.
Feedback needs to be tempered with respect for their dignity.
Giving students a sense of control
Giving advance notices of assignments
Regular routines
Some leeway & allowance for students to set deadlines
Choices about how to complete some assignments or spend class time
Creating a sense of community
Sense of community is the idea that we share goals, are respectful of
one another, everyone can contribute.
Competition between groups of students can create community if all
groups have an equal chance of winning & the outcome is determined
by student effort.
Individual competitions skew students attention to performance, not
mastery.
Competition creates an environment where some people must be
losers, which decreases self-efficacy & intrinsic motivation.
Creating a sense of community
Students are more productive when they cooperate rather than
compete.
This also contributes to peer relationships.
It reduces fear of ridicule, embarrassment.
Creating a sense of community
Interactive & collaborative teaching strategies- discussion,
cooperative learning

Ask for student input, ideas & use them

Assign & rotate helper roles to students
Ask students to help answer peer questions
No exclusion policy for activities
An inclusion policy- look for students to include in activities who may
be isolated
Teach social skills to those with deficits
Recognition of those who contribute to class
Note that all students deserve respect & are important
Setting limits
Establish a few rules/ procedures in the beginning of the year. Keep
them simple.
Present rules in an informational way
Practice procedures
Review the rules for improvement as needed
Acknowledge students feelings about class requirements
Establish a few rules/ procedures in the beginning of the year. Keep
them simple.
Present rules in an informational way
Practice procedures
Review the rules for improvement as needed
Acknowledge students feelings about class requirements
Possible class rules
Bring all needed materials to class.
Be in your seat, ready to work when the bell rings.
Respect and be polite to all people.
Respect other peoples property.
Obey all school rules.
Presenting rules as information
You will get your assignments done more quickly if you get right to
work.
Not: Please be quiet & do your own work.
As we practice for our fire drill, it is important that we line up
quickly & quietly so we can hear the instructions.
Not: When the fire alarm sounds, line up quickly & quietly &
wait for instructions.

Class meetings
Take time to review & revise rules & procedures.
Review the weeks successes & students achievements.
Ask for feedback about various activities.
Keeping students on task
Be sure students are always busy & engaged
Choose tasks at an appropriate academic level.
Provide a reasonable amount of structure for activities & assignments.
Make special plans for transition times in the day.
Strategies to keep students engaged
Have specific activities every day
Have materials organized, set up before class
Have activities that assure all students involvement & participation
Keep a brisk pace
Keep student comments on-track & dont allow some students to
monopolize
Spend only short bits of time with individuals, unless other students
are working productively
Have a system for students who finish projects quickly- class journal,
reading a book, drawing, computer program
How much time is actually spent learning?
Strategies to keep tasks at an appropriate level
Students are more likely to stay on-task when assignments are
appropriate for their ability levels.
Begin the year with relatively easy tasks to give students high selfefficacy. Give clear structure.
As students learn procedures, introduce more challenging
assignments.
Introduce new procedures like cooperative learning, with simpler
material so students master the interaction skills.
Plan for transitions
Transitions are times ripe for misbehavior.
Have an introductory assignment for the moment students come into
class.
Rituals also minimize distractions at different times of day, transitions.

 These plans can include group reviews, writing assignments, new

assignments.
Monitoring what students are doing
With-it-ness is teacher alertness to the extent that teachers seem to
have eyes in the back of their heads. They let students know they are
aware of their covert activity.
Scanning the classroom, making eye contact with students.
Working with one person while keeping awareness of group behavior.
Modifying strategies
Consider how you can change to effect changes in classroom
behavior.
How can I change strategies to capture students interest?
Are materials so difficult that students are frustrated? So easy
they are bored?
What are the students primary motivations?
How can I link students goals with academic goals?
Dealing with Misbehaviors
Misbehavior is any action that can disrupt classroom learning or
activities.
Minor- talking out of turn, writing notes to a friend, turning in
assignments late.
Major interferes with others learning- screaming, hitting,
refusing to participate, threatening the well-being of others.
What can teachers do to respond to misbehaviors?
Ignoring the behavior
Cueing the student
Discussing the problem privately with student
Promoting self-regulation
Using behaviorist approaches
Conferring with parents
When is it best to ignore a behavior?
When the behavior is rare & not often repeated
When the behavior is unlikely to spread
During unusual circumstances- last day

 When the behavior is typical for an age group

When the behaviors result is aversive
When the behavior doesnt affect learning
When is it best to cue a behavior?
When a misbehavior is interfering with learning & must be
discouraged
Do it unobtrusively, with a signal to recall the rule or to note
awareness
Body language- frowning, eye contact
Ringing a bell or flicking the light
Physical proximity to student
Discussing a problem privately with a student
It should be private:
In order to call little attention to problem by others
To reduce embarrassment
To take as little time away from entire class as possible.
To discern reasons for misbehavior & generate solutions if they
are legitimate.
To clarify students own maladaptive interpretations hostile
attributional biases
Minimize the potential for a power struggle
Listen empathically to the student & accept her feelings & opinions.
Summarize what you believe the student has told you & get
clarification.
Describe the effects of the problem behavior, including your own
feelings.
Give the student some choice in resolution.
Self-regulation
Self-monitoring- a reality check about severity of the problem
Self-instructions- reminding themselves of appropriate actions
Self-evaluation- checklist or other means to evaluate progress &
reinforce themselves rather than teacher being source
Self-imposed contingencies
Using behaviorist approaches

 You may first have to determine the function or purpose of the

repeated behavior
Identify reinforcers for the on-task behavior
Make the reinforcers contingent on performing specific behaviors.
You could give student so many passes at first for the undesirable
behavior, reducing them regularly.
Using behaviorist approaches
Teacher must be explicit about the response-consequence contingency.
Contingency contracts make this clear.
Consistent follow-through every time.
Conferring with Parents
When there is a pattern of misbehavior, parents should be alerted.
This may be informational, so that you know the parent knows the
problem.
It may require a conference, not just a phone call.
Diversity comes into play
Create a supportive climate
Responsive to all students needs, structured & dependable
Define & respond to misbehaviors
Cooperation on tests must be defined as not appropriate,
tardiness must be addressed
Accommodate students with special needs
The more orderly a class is, the better children can adapt &
conform. State the expectation clearly.
Working with Other Teachers
Communicate & collaborate regularly with one another.
Hold common goals about what students should learn & be held
responsible for
Identify obstacles to learning, develop strategies
Promote equality & multicultural sensitivity
Sense of School Community
The message that we are working together to help students become
informed, successful, & productive citizens.
They should help one another as well.

 It results in more positive attitudes toward school, greater motivation,

more prosocial behavior, greater interaction among diverse students.
Collective self-efficacy
As teachers work together they gain greater self-efficacy, believing
they can have a positive impact on students learning.
Team spirit also offers a support structure for new teachers, especially
as they work with at-risk students.
Teachers gain greater confidence in themselves & their students.
Working with parents
The better we can partner with our students primary caretakers, the
more we promote learning and achievement.
Communicating with parents
The better we know our students, the more effectively we can
motivate & assist them.
Parent-teacher conferences
Written communication
Telephone conferences- when the matter is immediate
Parent discussion groups
Parent-teacher conference
Schedule a time that works for the parent.
Prepare for the conference with notes & examples of student work.
Create a nonjudgmental atmosphere- Oreo
Express yourself honestly. Avoid jargon.
End conference on a positive note- review student strengths, progress
made.
Follow through on any determinations.
Parental involvement
Parent involvement relates to student attendance, higher achievement,
more positive attitudes toward school.
Parents respond to invitations showing their help/ attendance is
desired. Make the invitations personal.
Parents from some ethnic groups may be shy about attending.
Encouraging reluctant parents
Lack of involvement does not necessarily mean lack of interest.

 Make an effort to establish trust & comfort.

Encourage parents to ask questions.
Invite other important family members.
Give suggestions of learning activities that could be done at home.
Encouraging reluctant parents
Ask parents to share their own skills.
Find people who can translate for those who speak little English.
Use home visits if necessary.
Help parents make contacts with resources & services: social services,
literacy classes, home services, etc.
Reinforce the parents as well as students when students do well in
class.
Discussing Problem Behaviors with Parents
Teachers are more effective when they set a positive tone. Describe
the good things the child is doing.
Dont place blame; acknowledge that parenting is rarely easy. Use
various formats for communicating.
Show your desire for parental support.
Ask for information & listen carefully.
Acknowledge the strengths of the familys background.
Agree on a strategy.
Understand the limits of a parents influence.