How Can Classroom Management Skills Be Measured?

Determine if your teachers are using appropriate classroom management techniques.

Harry Wong, author of the "The First Days of School: How to be an Effective Teacher," says that for a teacher to be effective, she must also be a good classroom manager. Become familiar with his and other classroom management ideas and strategies to determine whether your staff and colleagues are using appropriate classroom management techniques.

Identification

Wong claims that classroom management refers to anything a teacher does to organize students, space, time and materials to encourage and facilitate student learning. Using classroom management techniques helps to foster student involvement in the classroom activities and establish a productive learning environment.

Features

To effectively measure a teacher's classroom management skills, look at her classroom procedures. Wong claims that a teacher who manages her classroom effectively will have students who know what's coming next and what is expected of them at any given time. Check for clear student expectations, high level of student involvement with work, little wasted time, easy transitions, pleasant climate and a predictable environment.

An effective classroom manager will have a specific set of daily procedures that she uses with her students. Classroom procedures also help students handle transition times when they might otherwise begin to get rowdy or distracted. When assessing a teacher, ask her students to explain what a typical day looks like in their class to see if uniform procedures are encouraged.

Benefits

Measuring classroom management skills has benefits. When a teacher knows she's likely to be scored or assessed on her ability to effectively interact and work with students, she's more likely to learn technique that works for her situation.

Misconceptions

Don't confuse effective classroom management with an authoritative or dominating teaching style. Effective classroom managers rarely, if at all, need to raise their voice or lose control. Also, in an ineffective classroom, you'll notice that the teacher does most of the work. Effective teachers make sure that the students are also working hard. An ineffective classroom manager has fuzzy student expectations and no real clear objective. She makes up rules as she goes. Also, the ineffective classroom manager tells students repeatedly what to do, but because there are no real set procedures, she continually has to repeat herself, and students often end up confused.

Expert Insight

Wong claims that effective teachers manage their classrooms, while ineffective teachers discipline theirs. In addition to organization, Wong says that the key to having this effective, well-managed classroom is consistency. Classroom procedures and practices should be routine, predictable and consistent.

References

• The First Days of School; Harry K. Wong; 2005