Secrets for Secondary School Teachers (19 page)

Most often, this means a student who

•   Is consistently late to class

•   Repeatedly does not bring in necessary supplies

•   Threatens or disrespects you, publicly or privately

•   Threatens or assaults another student

•   Refuses to follow your instructions

•   Disrupts the class with inappropriate behavior

Depending on the policies of your administration and the norms of your school, any or all of these behaviors will not be tolerated. Especially as a beginning teacher, you must expect (and request) support from other school personnel to help you keep your classes under control and your students’ behavior within reasonable limits. It is simply not realistic for you to expect that you can handle all discipline problems yourself, even if you had the time to do so. At the same time, you must take responsibility by setting clear rules for behavior and implementing them consistently.

C
LASSROOM
M
ANAGEMENT

You have probably already had some preparation in the theory and methods of classroom management. This includes such areas as setting expectations for behavior, controlling the flow of activity, handling discipline problems, and keeping students engaged and motivated to learn. We will review some of these major concepts and urge you to keep them in mind
when
—not if—you encounter challenges with difficult students.

Prevention.
By creating a comfortable environment and establishing rapport with your students, you set the stage for peaceful, cooperative classes. You will also need to establish rules and enforce them consistently. Routines will help your classroom to function smoothly. Welcoming your students to the room each day will give you an opportunity to interact with them as they enter. Plan for a smooth transition from one activity to the next.

Using highly motivational activities for instruction is another prevention tool. When you immediately capture student interest and make the topic relevant, you will gain their attention at the beginning of the period and they will have little time to act out.

You should also note (and perhaps recall from your own experiences as a student) that most kids are not particularly interested in what is offered in school, as they do not find it relevant to their most cherished interests (finding love, acceptance, approval, money, respect). They are forced to learn things that they would never select for themselves. They are subjected to routines and procedures that are, at best boring, and at worst, quite annoying. No wonder some students act out and become difficult to handle. In a sense, they are honestly communicating what they feel, which is boredom, anger, and frustration. Of course, your job is to engage students while helping them stay within appropriate boundaries. Therein lies the conflict.

G
UIDELINES FOR
E
NGAGING
S
TUDENTS

•   Greet students at the door.

•   State the objective. Students need to know what they will be expected to know and be able to do.

•   Relate content to prior knowledge. Make sure students have the prerequisite knowledge and skills in order to meaningfully relate to your lesson.

•   Plan for student involvement. At some point during the period, have students work with a partner or in a small group, to get them more actively engaged in their learning.

•   Address learning styles and multiple intelligences. By integrating different learning styles, you offer a variety of activities to suit all different types of learners.

•   Chunk material into manageable sections. Students will be successful if presented with small amounts of material, or sequences to a skill. This way they will see progress and not feel as overwhelmed.

•   Focus on higher order thinking skills. Move away from facts and details. Plan for challenging engagement.

•   Allow student input in decision making. When students have ownership in how they will process
material, they are more likely to follow through. Give them as much choice and control over their learning as possible.

•   Organize activities that are relevant to real life. Students need connections to their world.

•   Use concrete examples. Again, this will help students to relate to the subject you are presenting. Realia (real objects) and visual aids are extremely valuable.

•   Elaborate on text material, if appropriate, and model reading strategies. Students need help developing their reading skills.

•   Vary strategies. By changing formats of presentation and assessments from time to time, you will keep the students stimulated.

•   Provide for movement. Students get tired sitting at a desk or table all day long (especially kinesthetic learners). They need to move around.

•   Project enthusiasm. Your passion in itself can be motivating.

•   Give prompt feedback. Giving feedback to students on their work—whether it is a response in class, comments on a new skill they’ve learned, or feedback on a homework assignment, an essay/report, or a test—is also highly motivating.

•   Give lots of praise when it is deserved. Students benefit when it is confirmed that they have done well and are making progress, whether they’re learning to type, throw a basketball, speak a new language, or learn a principle of physics.

•   Keep your sense of humor and remember that students want to have fun.

Mild Intervention.
There will be times when students lose interest and begin to daydream or engage in another activity. Minor discipline problems are to be expected. After all, you are working with adolescents. If this behavior does not interrupt the class, such as when a student is simply looking out
the window, there are several ways you can respond. If it is not serious and will probably go away in a minute or two, consider the following options:

•   Ignore undesired behavior. If it isn’t bothering the other students and won’t distract you, wait and see what happens.

•   Use nonverbal communication. Use body language, such as pointing to the task.

•   Stand near the student. Sometimes just moving closer to the student will be enough of an intervention to get the student to refocus attention to the assigned task.

•   Give a verbal response. Gently, speak to the student to gain attention and draw the individual to the task.

•   Use an “I” message. Tell the student how you feel when he or she is not paying attention.

•   Make a direct appeal. Ask the student to refocus on the lesson.

•   Remind student of rule(s) and expectations for the class.

•   Try using humor to deal with the situation. Speak in a way that students will enjoy, and it may bring the distracted individual back to the task at hand.

If you find several students are disengaged, take this opportunity to evaluate what is going on in the classroom. Is there a message being sent to you? Is the activity paced too slowly? Too quickly? Are students confused? Is it too easy? Too difficult? Have you misjudged their attention spans? Maybe they are indicating that a change is needed. Treat such incidents as useful feedback in which the students are telling you that what you are doing is not working and it is time to try something else.

Major Interventions.
When discipline becomes an issue, you will have to become more active and direct in your responses. You will need to quickly communicate with the student. Also, you may need to involve other people outside the classroom. Possible actions include the following:

•   Request that the student put away whatever object currently has gained attention.

•   Remove stimulus. Take the object away or call for security to take care of the situation.

•   Encourage involvement. Ask the student to do something that would be attractive or intriguing to him or her. Give the student responsibility for something in the classroom.

•   Give logical consequence. Remind the student of what action will follow if the behavior continues.

•   Withdraw privilege. Let the student know there will be a change in the future, if compliance with the class rules does not take place.

•   Change seat. Have the student sit in another location.

•   Write a note to the student. In private, communicate your response to the unwanted/undesired behavior. You may be able to do this during class, if you are discreet.

•   Contact parent or guardian. Call home and discuss the behavior.

•   Give a detention. Have student stay after school.

•   Send the student to the dean’s office. As a last resort, direct the student to leave the class and report to the administrator responsible for discipline.

S
TUDENTS
W
ITH
A
TTENTION
D
EFICITS

Among those difficult students most often mentioned by beginning and experienced teachers alike are those who have trouble staying focused. Students who have trouble concentrating, whether formally or informally diagnosed with attention deficit disorders such as ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), can be challenging for both the teacher and the other students in the room. I (Ellen) remember one student in particular who always seemed to be the center of my attention—talking to other students, shouting
out answers to questions, even walking around the room. The students in the class had difficulty with his constant interruptions as well, sometimes even expressing their frustrations aloud.

The following suggestions have been effective for handling students with attention deficits:

•   Seat student near you. Your physical presence will help the student to focus on what is required.

•   Provide for opportunities to change tasks.

•   Prioritize “misbehaviors.” Address the ones that you would most like to change first.

•   Give reminders as students begin an unacceptable behavior. For example, speak to the individual who begins to get out of the assigned seat.

•   Help students to self-monitor their behavior.

•   Decrease distractions. You may need to put away artifacts and objects that you have collected and put on display. Even bulletin boards need to be assessed for their “busy-ness.”

•   Respond to repetitive questions with one-line answers. Acknowledge the student as briefly as possible and move on.

•   Remind students that accuracy is as important as speed. Encourage students to spend extra time to make sure answers or responses are correct.

•   Comment when desirable traits are displayed. Make sure the student gets positive feedback during the period.

•   Give handshakes. Physical contact can be helpful.

•   Be calm and clear. Remain composed.

•   Assign classroom responsibilities. Provide for movement in the room.

•   Confer with others. Work in collaboration with other teachers to develop a management plan to effectively work with attention deficit kids.

A
VOID
D
IRECT
C
ONFRONTATION

Whether with disengaged students, or those who are acting out dramatically, it should be considered a last resort to send the person out of the room. There are consequences to taking formal disciplinary action. For one thing, it brings attention to the fact that there was a problem you couldn’t handle yourself. Although you are allowed a certain latitude in this regard, you don’t want to resort to sending kids out of your classroom very frequently, or it may look like you haven’t established control over your classes.

In general, whenever a student appears noncompliant, uncooperative, or defiant, whatever you do, you don’t want to escalate matters by making a public show of authority or force—unless it is absolutely necessary. It is far better to censure privately. Speak in a low, calm voice. Give directions firmly but avoid threats.

Consider not touching students when there is a discipline problem. Some children will react violently—not only will they shake off the gesture, but they may attempt to strike back.

Remember: Everyone else in the room is watching closely to see how you handle yourself. There is a show going on, and you are the main attraction. You are being tested. Your response is crucial.

Remain cool, poised, and in control of yourself. Do not become defensive. Likewise, try not to put the student in a position in which he or she loses face in front of peers. This is a tough challenge but can be accomplished if you have established a reasonable discipline policy in the first place.

I
MPLEMENTING A
D
ISCIPLINE
P
OLICY

Most schools have a formal discipline procedure that you are mandated to follow. In a way, this takes the heat off you because your job is simply to enforce the rules established by the administration. You will be required to give a student warnings and perhaps contact the parent(s) or guardian(s), or
document an attempt to do so, before a referral can be made to remove a student who is difficult in the classroom.