MAEDU IGNOU MES 044 Institutional management unit 1

UNIT 1 CLASSROOM
MANAGEMENT
1.1 INTRODUCTION
The success
of school/college systems to a great extent depends on the quality of the learning
environment within and even outside the classroom. The learning environment within
the classrooms is largely determined by the manner in which the classroom is organized
and the techniques through which the classroom processes are conducted.

1.3 CONCEPT OF CLASSROOM
• All of us are aware of the" fact that learning can occur
at home, in religious places, on the road, and almost
anywhere. This kind of learning is informal in nature.
• If you were asked to describe what is meant by a
classroom, certainly you would be able to do so. You
will say that a group of learners assemble in a room of
an institution to learn. They are guided by a qualified
person called a teacher who arranges a learning
environment to lead the pupils to what they wish to
learn. Technically, a structured learning.

• However, this does not mean that every
classroom has a fixed defined structure in which
the teacher stands before a group of learners and
teaches them by explaining concepts, facts, etc.,
to them. For instance; consider a classroom
where learners are studying about nature
depicted in poems. The teacher divides the
learners into four teams. Each team is given a
poem to be discussed by the team members to
identify and describe about nature as contained
in the poems. This is also a classroom which is
structured in a different way.

1.4 NEED FOR CLASSROOM
MANAGEMENT
• classroom is a complex situation in which a
number of factors are operating and all these
contribute or even sometimes hinder the
achievement of specified goals. To name a few
factors, the infrastructure available, the
planning of the lesson, the entry behavior of
the learners, their motivation, external and
internal disruptions, the teacher's capacity to
facilitate learning etc.

It is important to note that every teacher needs to equip himself/herself with
skills to
arrange classroom processes. A teacher who is extremely knowledgeable
about
the subject matter but does not have the skills of managing the classroom, in
all
probability will not be able to effect learning among students. It is due to this
necessity,
educationists have conducted research on a number of variables constituting
classroom management.

1.5 CONCEPT OF CLASSROOM
MANAGEMENT
• Systematic organisation and manipulation of
various factors in a classroom context in such a
manner that learners get the opportunity to learn
and progress towards the attainment of learning
objectives is referred to as classroom
management.
• classroom management implies the provision of
procedures and facilities in the classroom which
will generate an environment in which instruction
and learning can take place.

1.6 SCHOOLS OF THOUGHT ON CLASSROOM
MANAGEMENT
• 1.6.1 Authoritarian School
• The advocates of this school believe that
classroom management is largely a responsibility
of the teacher. They should maintain order in the
institution and classroom with the help of well
constructed rules. Being more experienced than
learners and knowledgeable persons they have a
right to determine how the classroom and its
activities will be organized and managed.
However, it is likely to stifle the originality,
creativity, etc. of the learners.

1.6.2 Permissive School
• This school of thought stands in direct opposition to
the preceding one. Here, individual freedom and
choice are given importance.
• To develop the reading, organizational and narrative
abilities of the learners, the teacher directs them to
select any historical! political personality and research
into the life of the person and write a report which
shall be presented before the class and discussed.
Here, the learner has the freedom of choice to take
decision and plan his/her work and be responsible for
preparation of the report.

1.6.3 Behavior Modification School
• Advocates of this school are behaviorists who believe
in controlling behavior and managing classrooms
through a system of rewards and punishments. If a
learner displays desired behaviors he/she is given a
positive feedback and if the learner displays
undesirable behavior, he is given negative feedback.
• In classroom management, the teacher focuses on
encouraging desirable behavior and stamping out
undesirable behavior using reinforcers, both positive
and negative. However, this type of classroom
management may convert the entire classroom
transactions into a mechanistic exercise.

1.6.4 Interpersonal Relationships
School
• This school of thought gives importance to
positive relationships between teacher and
student and among students themselves. It is
believed that healthy classroom climate will
be generated with negotiation and
suggestions as mechanisms of classroom
management and learning will automatically
take place.

1.6.5 Scientific School
• This school of thought is of the view that
teaching is an activity which can be studied
and analysed. Based on empirical studies, a
body of data, theories, etc. have been
generated on the basis of which practice
ofteaching can be conducted.

1.6.6 Folklore School
• According to this school, if the new teacher
can assimilate the received wisdom of the
profession, the' tips' for teachers and' tricks of
the trade' , then he/she will be suitably
equipped to deal with most contingencies.

1.6.7 Limit Setting Approaches School
• The advocates of this school of thought
believe that a teacher can work out a set of
Rules indicating clearly defined limits of
acceptable behavior. Classroom management
is done in accordance with these limits.

1.6.8 Cognitive Behaviorism School
• Classroom Management under this school of
thought is a problem solving situation.
Particular circumstances which arise in the
classroom are treated as cognitive problems.

1.6.9 Humanistic School
• Under this school of thought the teacher is
viewed not as a director or authoritarian
person of the class. On the other hand, he/she
is a facilitator who maintains a democratic
atmosphere in the class.

1.6.10 Discipline Oriented School
• The advocates of this school generally adhere
to the view that discipline is a key factor in
classroom management. Glaser(1969), Kounin
(1979), Dreikur (1968),Charles (2002) Ginott
(1982) and such other researchers have listed
out aspects of effective discipline and
behavior which are conducive to classroom
management.

1.7 COMPONENTS OF CLASSROOM
MANAGEMENT
• It is very important for every teacher to learn
classroom management because in fact, to a
large extent, it determines the value or image
of the teacher in the school system. Poor
classroom management affects both pupils
and teachers alike.

• However, it is possible to enumerate a few
guidelines which can be followed in the
classroom to ensure that the learners are
involved in certain teacher prescribed
activities which are planned to lead to their
growth and development in approved ways.
These guidelines can be categorized into two;
one, guidelines pertaining to pre-active
phase,i.e. the designing of the lesson and two,
guidelines related to the interactive phase of
implementing and maintaining them.

1.7.1 Pre-active phase
• This is the phase in which the teacher plans and
designs learning activities before entering the
curriculum. It is an important phase because if the
planning has been done well, there will not be any
disruptions in the class at all.
• First, decision will have to be taken with respect to the
content to be taught.
• Second, decisions on which learning materials/
activities are to be used.
• Third, isthe question of whether the content is within
the framework of the syllabus,time table etc.

• Fourth, how is the class to be organized for
these activities? Will there be groups? If yes,
how many/ or is it preferable to have
individual activities? Should there be
alternative activities for learners with varying
abilities? Will these activities create
unnecessary noise, disturbance in the class?
• Fifth, if the lesson is not proceeding as per the
plan due to eventualities, what are the back-
ups which will ultimately facilitate learning?
After all, teacher- pupil time on transactions in
the curriculum need to be productive.

1.7.2 Interactive Phase
• In this phase, the teacher actually puts into action
what he/she has planned at the pre-active phase.
He/She comes into contact with students in the
classroom to transact the planned activities.
Some kind of a preparation is needed in the
classroom for this purpose. To ensure success of
the interactive phase, the teacher has to work
out the classroom norms. The norms will greatly
influence the interactive phase, in that, these will
give directions to both teachers and learners on
the process of implementing the learning.

Thus we may conclude by saying that the time spent on establishment of clear
cut
norms for classrooms is worthwhile. It leads to well managed classrooms
particularly
at primary and secondary stages. Learners are engaged in tasks which might
even
require them to move freely about the room obtaining materials, consulting the
teacher
or shifting from one activity to another.

1.8 OTHER DETERMINANTS OF CLASSROOM
MANAGEMENT
• 1.8.1 Punctuality
• 1.8.2 Seating arrangement in starting the lesson
• 1.8.3, Outside Disturbances
• 1.8.4 Student Talk
• 1.8.5 Filling Time
• 1.8.6 .Closing Time
• 1.8.7 Teacher Confidence
• 1.8.8 Class Size
• 1.8.9. Curriculum
• 1.8.10 'Age of the Learner
• 1.8.11 Caste/ Community
• 1.8.12 Ability

1.9 INDICES OF EFFECTIVE CLASSROOM
MANAGEMENT
• We may say that the teachers who are most
admired as classroom managers are those
whose classes run smoothly without the
teacher being continuously involved in giving
directions to them. In such a class, the
students are actively engaged in academic
activities. Even if the teacher leaves the room
or hands it over to a substitute, the learners
continue to engage with their tasks.

Some of the main attributes of the effective managers were as
follows.
Withitness: This means that the teacher has to be aware of what is happening in all
parts of the classroom, at all times. For this he should scan the classroom even
when working with small groups or with individuals.
Overlapping: It means that the teacher does more than one thing at a time. While '
the lesson is going on for the whole class, he does not interrupt the class or stop the
flow of the lesson when he observes the need for setting right something in the class
which needs correction.
Momentum: It means that the teacher plans the sequence of activities so that one
activity follows the other thus keeping the learners in constant attention.
Challenging assignments: During the class work, the teacher assigns the learner
tasks which are pitched at the right level of difficulty and have variety. The task is
new and difficult enough as to provide a challenge.

1.10 DISCIPLINE AND THE MANAGEMENT OF
MISBEHAVIOR IN CLASSROOMS
• It is believed that if the learning tasks are absorbing, challenging and
learner centered, pupils will be absorbed in their work and disruptions will
not arise. However, quite a few writers on the subject have extensively
discussed methods of handling students' misbehavior in the classroom.
They have admitted that there can be reasons why pupils misbehave.
Student misbehavior may occur due to causes outside the classroom
situation and sometimes it may be caused by factors in the classroom
situation. The views of some researchers on the issue are presented here
for your perusal.
• Saunders (1979) is of the opinion that disruptive behavior arises from
social causes.
• Gnagey (1981) points out that ignorance of the rules of classroom
behavior is also another important reason.
• Anxiety regarding various aspects of life like examinations, job, career may
also manifest as misbehavior in classrooms. Lastly, even the leadership
style of the teacher can incite disciplinary problems.

Another interesting model of dealing with student misbehavior in the context of
classroom management has been suggested by Arends (1998) called the LEAST
model. The steps of this model are:
*Leave it alone: If the behavior is not going to become troublesome, leave it alone.
* End the action indirectly: This can be done by distracting the student from his
misbehavior by giving him something else to do.
*Attend more fully: Get to know the students, has he got problems at home, is he
being bullied, is he facing learning difficulties? This will help the teacher decide
what
to do.
* Spell out directions: What should be done? What should not be done and what
would happen if directions are not followed.
*Track the behavior by maintaining records. If the behavior does not recur, he can
be rewarded, ifit recurs, he may have to be punished.

MAEDU IGNOU MES 044 Institutional management unit 1

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MAEDU IGNOU MES 044 Institutional management unit 1