The 4 Priorities For Effective Classroom Management

The first 4 things teachers should consider to achieve effective classroom management are as follows.  

1. Sight, Sound, And Comfort:

If the teacher has any power to control them it will be worth his time to do so.

• The classroom should be neat, clean, and orderly in appearance.
• Blackboards should be erased and organized.
• Chairs should be appropriately arranged.
• The classroom should be as free from external noises as possible.

2. Seating Arrangements:

Students are members of a team and should be able to see one another, to talk to one other. Teachers are advised to consider patterns of a semi-circle, U-shape, or circles in students’ seating.

3. Blackboard Use:

• It gives students added visual inputs along with auditory.
• It allows teachers to illustrate with words and pictures and graphs and charts.

Teachers are advised to keep it neat and orderly erasing it as often as appropriate. A messy, confusing blackboard drives students crazy.

4. Teachers’ Voice And Body Language:

• A teacher needs to be heard clearly by all the students in the room.
• Nonverbal messages are very powerful in communication.

The following points are very important to teachers:

• Let your body posture exhibit your self-confidence.
• Your face should reflect optimism, brightness, and warmth.
• Use facial and hand gestures to enhance the meaning of words and sentences that might be unclear.
• Make frequent eye contact with all students in the class.
• Do not bury yourself in your notes and plans.
• Do not plant your feet firmly in one place for the whole hour.
• Move around the classroom, but not to distraction.
• Dress appropriately and consider the expectations of your students.

Teaching Crowded Classes:

Our classrooms are becoming more and more crowded (55 students in a room) because of the lack of classrooms and the floods of people who are eager to learn. We advised our teachers to:

• Try to make each student feel important by learning names and using them (name tags).
• Get students to do as much interaction work as possible.
• Optimize the use of pair-work and small group work, considering the variation in ability levels.
• Increase using audio-visual aids, tapes, video, pictures, films, and extra materials.
• Use a peer-teaching approach.
• Give students a range of extra-class work.
• Divide the class into small classes and develop student leaders (study groups).
• Set up small learning centres in the class where students can do individualized work.

Learn More About Managing Chaos In Large Classes

I offer a basic guide including practical tips for what you must consider when faced with large classes.

This guide will help you manage the chaos in large classes and teach them more effectively.

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