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Classroom Management: Strategies that Work

Effective classroom management is the key to getting great results.

Teachers need classroom management tools. Managing a classroom is more than a classroom behavior plan - it is how you run your day-to-day business of teaching and learning.

The most important factor in the ability of a student to learn is the quality of the teacher. This is particularly important for students who show ADHD symptoms.

Teacher quality does not only mean that you know what and how to teach. It means you know how to maximize student potential by creating an environment that is conducive to learning - through classroom management techniques.

Effective teachers know how to use management procedures to produce stellar results.

What Is Classroom Management?

It is the rules and procedures that teachers consistently use on a daily basis in their classrooms.

It is one of the four management factors that are essential to good teaching, as referenced in Classroom Instruction that Works: Research-Based Strategies for Increasing Student Achievement:

1. Classroom Rules and Procedures
2. Discipline
3. Teacher-Student Relationships
4. Mental Set: the readiness of a teacher to bring consistency to his or her own management of the classroom

It stands to reason that the more time a teacher has to spend dealing with discipline, the lower rate of success his/her students will experience.

Of the three roles of the classroom teacher (making choices about instructional strategies, designing classroom curriculum, and employing management strategies and techniques), management is the foundation.

Without it, the other two roles will be ultimately ineffective. Research supports this, and is referenced below.

The Importance of Effective Management in the Classroom

It is important because:

Good teachers know how to use procedures to produce stellar results

Your students will enjoy class more when they know and expect order and routine procedures

You must have excellent management skills to be an effective teacher

Effective teaching and learning will not take place when there exists poor management:

As teacher effectiveness increases, lower-achieving students are the first to benefit
(Sanders, William L.)

The most effective teachers are able to produce 9 months (or more!) of learning than ineffective teachers
(Rowan B., R. Correnti, and R. Miller)

Teacher expertise accounts for more than 90% of student variation in achievement
(National Teaching and America's Future)

You, the teacher, will be able to finally to what you were hired to do: Teach!

So what should you do?

You have a management plan that enables you to implement procedures that students follow every day that will enable them to own their behaviors, make them responsible, and thereby create a positive and productive classroom environment.

Also, you know your students so well that you can recognize if behavior issues are coming from students who are struggling with the curriculum or are possible youth at risk behaviors.

A great management plan incorporates all of the key strategies listed below.

Strategies for Classroom Management

From the first day of school, the first minute, start establishing procedures for your students to follow

Be at the door when students arrive. Your presence signals the students that you are ready to work and learn with them

Use a seating arrangement that is not traditional rows - back rows encourage poor behavior

Model and train desired behaviors for classroom routines - this could take a month or more

Keep the rules short and easy to follow - no grey areas

Be consistent

Be a constant presence around your students (don't sit behind a table all day)

Give the students a predictable schedule, as much as possible

Use best teaching practices that are evidence-based - this helps keep students positive about their learning!

Use redirection and positive reinforcement when appropriate

Involve the home - be sure you have clearly communicated to parents the routines, procedures and expectations for the class

There are times when you will need a specific behavior intervention plan. This is also part of behavior management in the classroom.

^{Sources Cited
National Commission on Teaching and America's Future, p.9
Rowan B., R. Correnti, and R. Miller. (2002). "What Large=Scale Survey Research Tells Us About Teacher Effects on Student Achievement." Teachers College Record, 104, pp. 1525-1567.
Sanders, William L. (1996). "Cumulative and Residual Effects of Teachers on Future Student Academic Achievement." University of Tennessee Value-Added Research and Assessment Center, p. 7.
Wong, Harry K. and R. Wong. (2009). The First Days of School.

Ready to see how an elementary classroom management plan is put in place? Click here!
For more information on classroom management, visit Harry and Rosemary Wong's website. There you will find the more resources for classroom management available.
A personal thank you to the Wongs for allowing me to link to their site on classroom management. Their book, The First Days of School: How to Be an Effective Teacher, is THE handbook on managing an effective classroom.

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