Classroom Management

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TESL 0160
Transitioning to the Classroom

 In the final unit of this course we focused on classroom management, which included reading a chapter from our text, Teaching by Principles: An Interactive Approach to Language Pedagogy by Brown and Lee. Two sections of the chapter on Classroom Management really stood out for me because I think that they are the basis for all classrooms, not only English language classes. In addition, they are inclusive to students of all cultures and learning styles. At the beginning of the chapter the authors shared a list of General Guidelines for Classroom Management, which were adapted from those described by Marzano and Marzano. I had been somewhat familiar with these guidelines as I had read about them in the study of inclusive education for public schools. I believe that these eight guidelines are key to creating a positive classroom environment. The guidelines are:
  • Establish clear teacher and student roles
  • Articulate unambiguous objectives and goals
  • Be flexible
  • Allow students some choice in activities and exercises
  • Take a personal interest in students
  • Be fair to all students
  • Exhibit enthusiasm and a positive attitude yourself
  • Challenge students of both higher and lower levels of ability
I think I have mentioned or fully described each of these guidelines in one way or another in other posts both in this course and in previous courses. I believe that these are best practices that all teachers should employ in their classrooms. Doing so will result in the prevention of many classroom management incidents and will lead to increased student engagement and learning. 
The final section of the chapter, Creating a Positive Classroom Climate brought up several ideas that are directly related to Marzano and Marzano's guidelines and include Establishing Rapport, Balancing Praise and Criticism and Generating Energy. I think that establishing rapport is closely related to taking a personal interest in students, being fair to all students and having a positive attitude - all of these components combine to develop a strong relationship with students. Balancing praise and criticism is related to challenging students as well as being fair to all students, while being flexible. Finally, I think that generating energy can come from a combination of all of the guidelines. Having these guidelines in place in a classroom will lead to a great deal of positivity and will be conducive to increased learning. As a result, there will be very few classroom management issues to deal with.
Brown, H. D., Lee, H. (2015). Teaching by principles: An interactive approach to language pedagogy. White Plains, NY: Pearson.
Marzano, R., & Marzano, J. (2003). The key to classroom management. Educational Leadership, 61, 6-13.

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