英国《卫报》给新手教师课堂管理教授“六招”
2015-10-14 15:02阅读：
Six classroom management
tips for new teachers
Smile, be consistent and add some fun – teacher and blogger Michael
Linsin explains his behaviour management basics
Being consistent and following through with consequences will help
you manage student behaviour.
As a new teacher facing their first
classroom experience, you will have no doubt been bombarded with
information.
It’s hard to know what’s important and what can go to the bottom of
your priority list. Well here’s the straight scoop: everything
takes a back seat to classroom management because if you can’t
effectively control your classroom, nothing will wor
k as it should. You must master this one area first otherwise
teaching can be especially unforgiving.
While there are hundreds of possible strategies at your disposal, a
few are absolutely critical. Stick with the following cornerstone
principles from the first day of school to the last and you’ll have
a successful year of teaching.
Related:
Behaviour management: how strict is too strict?
Smile
The oft-repeated recommendation that you should never smile in the
first two months of the school year is hogwash. A smile sends a
subtle but powerful message to your class that kindness and
politeness are expected. It also calms nervous energy and builds
instant rapport and likability. This is critically important
because when your students like you and are comfortable around you,
they’ll want to please you, listen to you and behave for you. As
you meet your class, look them in the eye, say hello and
smile.
Have clear rules
Classroom rules protect every student’s right to learn and enjoy
school – and your right to teach. They must cover every possible
disruption, interruption and misbehaviour – and there should be no
misunderstanding regarding what constitutes breaking them.
Define each rule explicitly during the first few days at a school.
Modelling is key here; show your students examples of the precise
behaviours that transgress your rules. For example, if you were
teaching children to raise their hand before speaking, sit in a
student’s seat and demonstrate what following the rule does and
doesn’t look like.
Have clear consequences
Consequences hold students to account without having to lecture or
berate them. Maintaining a positive relationship is crucial in
reaching and inspiring your students to mature socially and
academically.
Walk your class through the steps of misbehaving, from initial
warning to parent contact. Model the exact words and body language
you’ll use when you give a warning, send a student for time out, or
inform them that you must call home. This way, there are no
surprises, no arguments and no anger when it goes wrong. This
prompts the offending student to reflect on their misbehaviour,
take responsibility for it and vow to never do it again.
Follow through
Inconsistency is the fastest way to lose control of your class.
When you let misbehaviour go, yell and admonish instead of calmly
enforcing consequences, you essentially tell your students that you
can’t be trusted – this causes disappointment, resentment and
ultimately more misbehaviour. The key to consistency is to
continually remind yourself that your very success depends on it.
The moment they learn that you’re not a person of your word, the
floodgates will open. When you witness a transgression of your
rules, your response should be automatic, even robot-like. Simply
approach the misbehaving student, tell them what rule was broken
and the consequence, and then turn and walk away.
Teach detailed routines
Routines are the lifeblood of a well-run classroom. They save time,
keep students focused on learning and reduce misbehaviour. Anything
and everything you do repeatedly – such as lining up for lunch,
turning in work or circling into groups – should be made into a
routine.
The key is to teach children in a detailed way. Pretend you’re a
student and guide them through the steps you want them to take. For
example, if you’re teaching how to enter the classroom in the
morning, throw on a backpack, start outside your classroom door and
create a memory map for your students to follow. After checking for
understanding, choose a student as a model then practise as a class
until perfected.
Add a dose of fun
It’s easy to get so caught up in teaching your objectives that you
forget the importance of making school fun for students. If there
is a secret to classroom management, this is it. When your students
are happy, engaged and look forward to your class, you have
powerful leverage to curb misbehaviour because your consequences
mean something to them. It is this combination of fun and
accountability that will transform even the most difficult
students. This doesn’t mean you always have to have an interactive
game at the ready or spend extra time planning, just be open to
sharing a laugh with your students. Be yourself and never be afraid
to show your personality. Tell hard-luck stories of your youth,
take attendance in a funny accent, answer a question as an opera
singer. Enjoy your job. Your students will love you for it.
Related:
How to teach... behaviour management
Tried and true
Unfortunately, there is a lot of bad advice bouncing around the
halls and staff lounges of schools. Some of the most commonly
recommended strategies are dishonest and manipulative. Some may
work in the moment, but cause more problems down the line. And some
are just plain harmful to students.
You’ll do well to filter everything you hear through the six
tried-and-true tips above. If it doesn’t build influential
relationships, if it doesn’t entail honesty, consistency and doing
what’s best for students, if it doesn’t help create a learning
environment your students enjoy being part of, then let it go in
one ear and out the other.
Michael Linsin is the bestselling author of three books about
classroom management. His ideas can also be found on his blog,
Smart Classroom
Management.
