For many years, I have attended professional development focused on classroom management. Some of these PDs were school mandated, while others I sought out on my own. Almost all of the PDs centered around the management of student behavior in the classroom. Over the last few years, I’ve noticed a rise in teachers and administrators on various social media platforms, YouTube, blogs, etc. sharing their thoughts, feelings, and observations on what seems to be an increase in disruptive, defiant, and dangerous student behavior. Some teachers have quit the profession entirely. Some, like myself, have needed to step away from the traditional classroom for bit to recover and reset. While I am not the person to judge whether or not student behaviors have gotten worse, I can share what I’ve learned from all those countless PDs and my experiences with a variety of students.
Everywhere you look as a teacher, there are teacherprenuers trying to sell you on the “perfect” behavior management system they’ve invented, districts start throwing around new buzzwords, and even teacher supply stores carry all kinds of tools teachers can use to make behavior management visible in the classroom. How is any teacher supposed to choose how to manage student behavior? After buying so many products and attending so many PDs, the short answer is to just pick one and try it. There is no perfect system. Most of them all work just fine. The bottom line is that you have to make the system work for you and the kind of teacher you are. If you are new to classroom teaching, finding the system that works for you could take some trial and error. Veteran teachers usually figure out what mix of methods work for them. The key isn’t the system, it is the teacher remembering to be clear with their expectations, consistent with their consequences, and compassionate with these little humans who might be learning how to behave a certain way for the first time.
Being clear with your expectations is essential to making sure that everyone understands what needs to happen in your classroom on a daily basis for things to run smoothly. Students need to know your boundaries and what happens when a boundary is crossed. This clear knowledge helps students to feel safe and confident. Don’t we all feel confident going into a project when our objectives and expectations are clear? Clarity leaves out guesswork and opens the brain up to completing more challenging tasks. Think of it as walking into your kitchen and knowing where everything is. It’s so much easier to focus on cooking when you don’t need to spend time looking for your ingredients or utensils.
Once clear expectations and boundaries are known, the next step is to be consistent with the consequences that follow and unmet expectation or a boundary that has been crossed. Consistency is another form of clarity to your students. When students know what your response will be, there is a greater likelihood of them being more thoughtful and purposeful with their words and actions. Be fair, but firm. This is a form of love, care, and respect that students will come to appreciate.
Finally, remember that your students are still learning. Mistakes will happen. Emotions will run high sometimes. The student’s world outside of the classroom will affect what happens with that student inside the classroom. Everyone deserves grace. Everyone deserves compassion and understanding. This doesn’t mean that the student won’t receive a consequence for poor behavior, but it does show that we are all human — even the teacher. Kindness, empathy, and compassion are essential to every classroom.
Managing student behavior is only one part of classroom management. While we mostly focus on the students, there are plenty of non-student centered parts of the classroom that need to be managed with the same clarity, consistency, and compassion. I hope to tackle some of those topics next month. I hope you will join me then.
