鈥淧robably the biggest issue with which I struggle as a teacher is classroom management,鈥� Ilana Garon, an accomplished high school English teacher in New York City, on her blog.
There鈥檚 plenty of evidence to suggest that she鈥檚 not alone. A of teachers and school administrators by Staff Development for Educators, for example, found that 86 percent of respondents cited classroom management as one of the biggest challenges facing new teachers. Similarly, in a , teachers ranked classroom management, along with instructional skills, as a top area of need for professional development.
Perhaps not surprisingly, instructional experts and teacher-coaches see it as major problem area as well, with some lamenting that schools of education tend to focus far more on curriculum issues and developmental psychology than on the mechanics of running a classroom.
But instructional leaders also say that in most cases teachers can develop their classroom-management capacities鈥攁ssuming they鈥檙e willing to re-examine their practices and attend more closely to the details of their interactions with students.
New teachers in particular have a natural tendency to think they can get by in the classroom on the strength of their personality or academic accomplishments, said Doug Lemov, the co-founder of the nonprofit school-management organization Uncommon Schools, in New York City. 鈥淪o a little suffering can be good practice鈥� if it leads them to address possible gaps in their approach, he said.
Common Problems
Educators who don鈥檛 have a solid foundation (or interest) in classroom management, instructional coaches say, tend to make relatively common and easy-to-detect errors. Primary among them is the failure to set clear鈥攁nd developmentally appropriate鈥攅xpectations for students, typically in the form of carefully laid-out procedures and routines for classroom activities.
鈥淲hen there isn鈥檛 a solid routine established by the teacher, kids will misbehave,鈥� said Elena Aguilar, an instructional and leadership coach in the Oakland, Calif., school district. 鈥淸Teachers] see kids being defiant, where I see lack of clarity.鈥�
Teachers often 鈥渄on鈥檛 realize how much they need to break down [their expectations] for students鈥� to give them the 鈥渢echnical skills鈥� they need to follow through on a task, Aguilar added. Procedures may need to be 鈥渟caffolded鈥� or incrementally staged for some students. This is particularly true with younger students but can be a factor even in high school classrooms, she said.
Similarly, Lemov, who is also the author of Teach Like a Champion: 49 Techniques That Put Students on the Path to College, stressed that expectations need to be taught and practiced with students. 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 just assume that kids know what it means to pay attention, for example,鈥� he said. 鈥淵ou need to give really clear instructions, using an economy of language.鈥�
Randall S. Sprick, a lead consultant for Safe and Civil Schools, a staff-development organization, said that teachers should teach expectations 鈥渓ike a good basketball coach. You go over [them] regularly, teaching kids how to follow routines and procedures.鈥�
That kind of emphasis on mechanics may sound impersonal or rigid, but teachers 鈥渘eed structure in order to build relationships with students, especially in large classrooms,鈥� Sprick said.
Some teachers, even very passionate ones, 鈥渇orget they are managers of children and resources, so they aren鈥檛 really oriented to think that way,鈥� according David Ginsburg, an independent school-leadership and instructional coach based in Philadelphia. 鈥淟ove of the content and great lessons aren鈥檛 enough. Teachers need [to do] upfront planning around management and organization.鈥�
Steering, Not Controlling
The behavioral issues stemming from a lack clear of expectations in the classroom often lead to a second major error teachers commonly make in managing their classrooms: becoming overly reactive.
鈥淕etting angry at off-task behavior can trigger further problems,鈥� said Lemov. 鈥淚t gives the power to students by showing them that they can get you off course. It also distracts from the students鈥� self-reflection about the situation.鈥�
In a similar vein, Ginsburg noted that, in attempting to reassert authority, teachers often err in 鈥済oing down the path of creating controlling, adversarial relationships with kids.鈥�
鈥淚f the teacher鈥檚 agenda is about controlling, then it鈥檚 a recipe for disaster鈥攆or further behavioral problems and withdrawal,鈥� said Ginsburg. 鈥淭here needs to be structure and procedures, but it shouldn鈥檛 feel like prison. If that鈥檚 the culture, teachers won鈥檛 get the collaboration they need from students.鈥�
Sprick said that in training teachers in classroom-management skills, his organization stresses the importance of interacting positively with students and 鈥渃orrecting calmly, consistently, and respectfully.鈥� Otherwise, he said, problems and resentments can 鈥渇ester.鈥�
Gaining Awareness
Beyond the general imperatives of setting clear expectations and maintaining composure, instructional leaders and coaches frequently highlight the importance of close observation and finely-tuned awareness to effective classroom management.
鈥淟ittle things have big muscles鈥� in the classroom, said Lemov, explaining that teachers at Uncommon Schools are trained to exhibit 鈥渧isible perception鈥� as a way of cultivating student engagement. Teachers need to 鈥渘otice whether students do what they are asked to do, show that they care, intimate that they are looking, and scan the classroom regularly,鈥� he said.
Close observation and monitoring are likewise central tenets of the Safe and Civil Schools teacher-training program, said Sprick, the author of Coaching Classroom Management. By showing students that they are to paying close attention to students鈥� actions and responses, teachers can foster on-task behavior. 鈥淢ost of us go the speed limit when a police officer is visible, and houses are always cleanest when company is coming,鈥� Sprick explained by analogy.
For instructional coach Ginsburg, the role of observational skills extends to becoming more aware of students鈥� particular needs in the classroom. A student may be acting out, for example, because he or she wants to be called on more often or is avoiding a task or assignment in light of past failures. To uncover such issues (as well as positive developments), Ginsburg stressed the 鈥渋mportance of circulating through the whole class鈥� and acknowledging the work each student is doing. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the ultimate reward for a student鈥攁cknowledgement from an adult.鈥�
Oakland instructional coach Aguilar, who is also the author of The Art of Coaching, said that many teachers need to gain a greater perception of how racial and cultural factors can contribute to classroom problems. Teachers should be conscious of whether they are interacting differently with particular groups, or making assumptions about students鈥� actions based on unfamiliarity or stereotypes. Just becoming aware of such tendencies can lead to positive changes and fewer power struggles in the classroom, she said.
A Different Lens
Since teachers often personalize and blame students for classroom-management problems, instructional coaches say that a key part of helping them resolve such issues is encouraging them to take a different perspective.
鈥淚 help them reframe the situation,鈥� said Aguilar. 鈥淚t鈥檚 important to get it out of the personal experience.鈥� For example, she may try to show a teacher that the problem isn鈥檛 solely that 鈥渟tudents are being obnoxious. [It鈥檚 that] they don鈥檛 have what they need from you.鈥�
鈥淎nything coaches can do to give kids more of a voice in the way they are experiencing the teacher鈥檚 management can help,鈥� she said, adding that conducting a survey of students can be an eye-opening practice for teachers.
Similarly, Ginsburg said that a big part of his work involves 鈥渉elping teachers see connections between what they鈥檙e doing and what kids are doing. It鈥檚 easy to see that a child is acting inappropriately, but we need to be open to the idea that it鈥檚 something we did or didn鈥檛 do that鈥檚 contributing.鈥�
Teachers who are struggling with classroom management often 鈥渄on鈥檛 see the forest for the trees,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey want to address the misbehavior, but that鈥檚 addressing the symptom rather than the source.鈥�
Because it鈥檚 difficult to self-correct classroom-management problems, instructional coaches often advise teachers to video-tape their lessons or have a peer observe their work and provide feedback. 鈥淟ook at your strengths and weaknesses,鈥� advised Sprick. 鈥淎re you lecturing too much, or paying more attention to negative behavior than to positive behavior?鈥�
Lemov said that teachers, even experienced ones, shouldn鈥檛 be ashamed of going back to reconstruct their management plans and practice 鈥渢he little things鈥� to improve student-teacher interactions.
鈥淧eople think it鈥檚 demeaning to the profession to think about the nuts and bolts,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut chemical engineers aren鈥檛 concerned about that, just to give one example. They aren鈥檛 worried about being too micro. In actuality, it shows an anxiety about an endeavor to be apprehensive about going deep into the details, even the most mundane.鈥�
Teaching is 鈥渢oo valuable and powerful鈥� for that kind of thinking, Lemov said.
