Classroom Management in Schools: Principles and Strategies

This article discusses the importance of effective classroom management principles and strategies for teachers to create an orderly environment for learning and facilitate social and emotional growth. It includes a report on the management principles applied in a school in Western Sydney and an evaluation of their success and shortcomings.

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Classroom Management in Schools
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Classroom Management in Schools
Introduction
Behavior management in schools involves the teachers creating and maintaining the appropriate
behavior of student’s in the classroom environment. The main objective why the implementation
of the management skills of the classroom is important is it enhances the prosocial conduct of
students and also increases their engagement in their academic work in schools (Adeyemo,
2012). The effective classroom management principles work across all the key learning areas and
the grade levels. The effectiveness of the classroom management principles primarily focuses on
the compliance of the rules and the strategies of which the teachers and the students make when
they are sitting on their seats listening attentively and following the guidance given by their
teachers (Whetten, 2011). To facilitate effective student learning, the teachers should take into
account the factors such as having happier facial expressions, encouraging their students, and
respectful, fair treatment of their students (Hayes, Gardere, Abowd & Truong, 2008). The
significance of the proper classroom management principles is that it creates an orderly
environment for learning and facilitates the social and emotional growth. According to the theory
on Teacher Effectiveness Training (TET) by Gordon, (1974), it is important to ensure the
behavior of students is effective is the teacher and student relationship. T.E.T ensures that there
is effective communication between the students and teachers which helps them nurture their
behaviors and enhance effective learning (Behavior Management, n.d.)
Management Context, Focus, and Target
To understand the classroom behavioral management, research had to be undertaken in a school
in Western Sydney. The school that I visited for professional experience was Greystanes public

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school. I was placed in a Year 2 (Stage 1) class and it had twelve boys and twelve girls. Majority
of the students in this class were ELA/D. The students in this class were highly engaged when
involved throughout the lesson, the attention span was quite short for some and others always
were always eager to help the teacher and other peers in certain tasks.
Classroom management was used throughout the whole day and managed well in the classroom.
As there were multiple strategies used manage the class, there were some specific times these
needed to be put into place. The first strategy of table points were mainly used during english
and reading activities when students are working in table groups, the second strategy of point to
someone talking was mainly used during spelling test on Fridays when students should be not
talking, the third strategy of hand up was mainly used during PDHPE lessons and technology
lessons in the computer lab to get students to stop and listen and the last strategy of standing up
if you are talking was used during classroom discussions related to other key learning areas and
also used during news. In the beginning of the practical it was hard finding a classroom
management strategy that worked, but towards the end of the practical I had discovered that if
you use more than one strategy in one day the students actually listened and responded to it quite
well.
Indication of Management Principles Applied
There are many principles, strategies, and skills which I applied in attempts to reach my
management target. The strategies are listed below:
1. Pointing to somebody who is talking
Under this strategy, the management principle used included the establishment of rules,
communicating the expectations required and consequences of the behaviors. According to

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Evertson & Weinstein, (2013), making sure students follow the rules and communications helps
in fostering their behaviors. This strategy involved the students pointing to someone who is
talking in their class either on the floor or the desk when they tried to work in a quiet
environment. I then reminded them of whom they should be talking to and what they should be
doing. According to theory by Skinner, (1954), one of the method of modifying behavior
includes coming up with some good best instructional strategies. The theory proposed some
strategies which were to be used in giving progressive education to students (Behavior
Management, n.d.). This majorly was based on the repetition and the review of instructions
giving an instant feedback. With this technique, instructions were given majority of the times,
when they worked on the tasks individually such as when the students do their writing tasks,
quiet reading or spelling test and gave feedback when they talked (Tomlinson, 2014). If students
followed instructions of being staying quite they were offered praise and a caught you being
good sticker. However, this didn’t work all the times, since, without the proper facial expression
and the appropriate gestures which were an intent, there were to be greater risks of
misunderstanding of the parties involved in the communication. This method worked at some
instance since the learner’s physical attributes were seen throughout the learning session.
2. Hands up (Just one)
The management principle used in this technique involved the application of effective commands
to the students and ensuring that they followed them. According to Lewis & Sugai, (1999),
following instructions given makes students focus in class and follow what they are being told.
This chosen strategy is a non-verbal technique which was used to capture attention to give

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instructions while being on the floor or in the computer room. With this technique, students were
asked to look around to see what others were doing. According to the social learning theory by
Albert, (1997), people often learn from each other through observation, modelling, or imitation.
The theory is based on the behaviorist and cognitive learning that incorporates attention, of the
memory, and also motivation (Behavior Management, n.d.). This non-verbal type of
communication is often used to ensure that students are listening and not wasting their activity
time by the teaching just repeating simple instructions (Pas, Cash, O'Brennan, Debnam, &
Bradshaw, 2015). The hands up technique is an essential nonverbal cue which is used monitor
the body language. This strategy is often used in the observation of the body language when the
hands are in the pockets while standing, look for some signals, for instance, another student
putting their hands in their pockets or their hands on the head (DuFour & Marzano, 2011). This
strategy worked well since it allowed for working in a larger space and helped to ensure the
students followed what other students were doing according to the instructions they were given.
If students followed the non-verbal strategy they would receive simple praise of “thank you for
listening” and table points. Whereas if students did not follow the non-verbal instruction there
named would be called, if they are still not listening then will be asked to sit out of the activity
for 1-2 minutes. Additionally, it allowed for easy presentation of skills and the information
presented was easily portrayed through non-verbal communication by silent means. However,
this type of communication did not work at some point since it made it difficult for some people
to interpret the gesture of ‘hands up’ and required a lot of repetitions for one to understand it
fully.

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3. Stand up if you are talking
This strategy involved the management principle of giving out simple, and clear rules and
expectations which were to be followed failure to which consequences were to follow.
According to Emmer & Stough, (2001), ensuring students follow simple guidelines given helps
in knowing their respective behaviors and rectify them. The strategy was used when they were
talking to other peers or not listening at all. If the student gets picked for talking, the student will
stand and look out for another person talking. If the person is selected twice, their name goes on
the board. Their name is on the board all day and it will only be rubbed off if well behaved. The
students were to be engaged in this management and know what could happen when they broke
some rules in practice. They were to follow to be silent or else they were to incur a negative
expense of standing up. According to Oliver, Wehby, & Reschly, (2011), this helps in the
management of student’s behavior and help them know the different traits of different students.
With this type of strategy, the students were empowered with self-discipline and regulated
themselves regarding skills and participation (Oliver, Wehby & Reschly, 2011). This strategy
worked well when students were on the floor or at their desks when no talking was needed. On
the other hand, it didn’t work well towards the end of my placement because the kids thought it
was a game. I always had to remind them that it isn't. It worked well at the beginning as it was
something new I had implemented. When the students started to think it was a game, so I took
table points off as they hated losing points.
4. Table points
This strategy integrated the management principle of giving out effective classroom teaching
which required the students to critically analyze the instructions and the teacher to give feedback

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about their behavior in special way. This principle always enables students be competent and
know where their weaknesses are and rectify them (Brophy, 1983). This strategy was
implemented by my supervising teacher and myself as the students loved competitions and loved
team-based activities. Using then table points system was the favorite and the most effective. In
the whiteboard, I assigned the tally marks throughout the whole day. This motivates a group to
continue working harder and do what they intended to do throughout the whole day (Reinke,
Lewis-Palmer & Merrell, 2008). The students were quite competitive. With different
contributions from the group, responsible thinking and analysis of table points gave out better
results. According to the Responsible Thinking Process (RTP) theory by Edward, (1994), the
educators should help the students develop sense of responsibility for their individual lives and
respect the ideas aired out by everyone (Behavior Management, n.d.). Table points motivated the
students to work together and achieved their goal of winning. At the end of the week, the
winning table would receive a small prize. This strategy also worked well and made them settle
quickly like returning to the floor after doing an activity at their tables and sending to recess or
lunch.
Report of Management
The application of the principles which were specified above was undertaken throughout the 3
weeks of the professional experience. The indication of how the principles were applied was as
below;

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1. Table points
The management principle of effective teaching used in this strategy can be applied by the
teacher to know inappropriate behavior of his students and guide them to achieve maximum
performance (Brophy, 1983). This strategy was used in the first week to give out instructions on
how to manage the process to get maximum points. This strategy was applied with every group
getting assigned tally marks throughout the whole week. The students then were able to see
where their table was and compared them to other groups most of the time. Those having
maximum points were rewarded accordingly.
2. Point to somebody who is talking
Management principle of communication and setting up rules in this case can be applied by
teachers to make their students be aware of their behavioral expectations and consequences that
may follow (Evertson & Weinstein, 2013).. This strategy was applied in the second and final
week during a spelling test or while on the floor giving out instructions. The strategy was applied
when the students pointed to those who talked in the class when in a quiet environment.
3. Hands up (Non-verbal)
Management principle of giving out commands and ensuring students followed them used in this
strategy may be applied in cases where students are required to focus and follow the tasks given
to them in an effective manner (Lewis & Sugai, 1999). This strategy was applied during a
PDHPE lesson and a technology lesson in the computer room in the second week. This non-

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verbal type of communication ensured the attention of the students were captured and helped to
understand if the students were wasting any activity time.
4. Stand up if you are talking
The management principle giving out clear and simple rules to students in this case can be used
to encourage appropriate behaviors in class and make students be aware of the consequences if
they get involved in the mistakes (Emmer & Stough, 2001). This strategy was applied during
classroom discussions, during news at their desk working or listening to the teacher on the floor.
This strategy comprised of keeping watch on the interactive whiteboard and also listening to
others. The strategy was used to listen to any discussions made by the students and instructed
them to stand when they talked.
Evaluation
The success and shortcomings of the management principles carried out in the whole process
generally involved how the students reacted to the strategies carried out during professional
experience. The success mainly comprised of the willingness of the students to be able to
perform the tasks effectively without any problem. Some of the tactics such as table points and
standing up when you talk had some few shortcomings which were problematic to some
participants. However, other techniques that are hands up and pointing to somebody were okay
since the participants indulged in them fully and got the results.
I would thus recommend that the shortcomings stated in the techniques be dealt with to be a
success. To overcome this situation, the teachers should be effective in the creation of an
effective environment where the students can be nurtured and enhance the overall learning
capabilities of students. The teachers should also teach and rehearse the rule with the students,

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anticipate on the needs of the students, process the plan for orientation of the students to the
different techniques of learning and offer them clear instructions on what should be done and in
what manner (Maag, 2016). The teachers should also use minimum rules number to ensure that
there is a safer and productive interaction with students in the classroom setup. Some of the
management skills in the classrooms have been found to be essential to ensure everything gets
done. The classroom management skills appear not to be noticed when present.
Conclusion
The management principles in schools, therefore, provide for the foundations that are
needed to have high expectations for the behavior of students. Effective managers should have
high expectation on how the students should conduct themselves in the classroom setting and
should be better managers of the behaviors of students. They also should establish the
relationships with their students and also have high cooperation levels and dominance and give
the students sense of guidance and purpose which are necessary for an ideal relationship (Crone,
Hawken & Horner, 2010). The effective teachers should give expectations to their students
reinforce their desired behaviors with non-verbal and verbal cues (Hayes, Gardere, Abowd &
Truong, 2008). The effective teachers should also hold their students accountable and use the
strategies of intervention to help the students to learn their desired characters. The research study
carried on the abilities of the ineffective and effective teachers have shown that the ineffective
teachers always have many events which are disruptive in an hour as compared to their effective
counterparts. The teachers should thus through consistent discipline reinforce their expectations
of the students can come up with a classroom which is focused on the instructions given to them.

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