Common Classroom Management Problems
All teachers, regardless of ability and classroom-management skill, will experience behavior problems. Students are children and will mess up from time to time. Even good kids make bad behavior choices. Common classroom-management problems include swearing, hitting, teasing, calling out and using the bathroom privileges too often. Correcting poor behavior choices early and often will redirect students and teach them appropriate behaviors.
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Swearing
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As students learn new swear words, they use them inappropriately in the classroom. Swear words for younger children are new toys for experimentation. Students in lower grades need to be made aware that this language is not acceptable, especially in a formal situations such as the classroom. Older students have integrated the language into their vernacular and use it, often, without thinking. Older students must be made aware of the language they are using. Teachers can have a student rephrase his language to teach him better ways to express himself, and then to apologize for the inappropriate word choice.
Hitting
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In kindergarten, children are taught to keep their hands, feet and other body parts to themselves. Children, acting on impulse, often forget this simple lesson and will resort to hitting. Because a teacher is responsible for the safety of all students in the classroom, a teacher must correct this behavior immediately. Teaching a child to use his words or placing the child in time-out for minor infractions is an appropriate response. For children that hit often, the teacher needs to send the child to the office and call for a parent conference.
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Teasing
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Teachers should not tolerate teasing in class. Teasing is the start of bullying. Teachers should never ignore this issue. The "Two Put Ups" method works well for stopping teasing. When a student "puts down" another student, the victim must be brought back up. The student who teased has to give the victim of the teasing two compliments. Another effective method is for the offending student to write a letter of apology to the victim. Creating an environment of zero tolerance for teasing is important to keep all students safe physically and emotionally.
Calling Out in Class
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Students typically are asked to raise their hands before speaking out. Being formally called on to respond teaches students to respect others while they are speaking. Some students have impulse-control problems, though. They lack the self-control to not blurt out answers, questions or comments. Ignoring the inappropriate behavior and praising a student when she raises her hand helps to correct this problem. Gentle reminders to raise their hands before asking questions also brings the correct behavior to the forefront of students' minds.
Bathroom Breaks
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When a teacher allows students to use the restroom whenever they wish, students will begin to abuse the privilege. Students will ask to go to the bathroom to avoid learning and to get up and move around. Some students will also spend too long at the restroom when they go, each and every day. To break students of this habit, limit bathroom breaks until the lesson has ended. Many teachers do not allow students to leave in the first or the last 10 minutes of class. Allowing students to only leave one at a time will also help the teacher monitor bathroom usage. Teachers must use good judgment in this area. If a child is in obvious need of the facilities, by all means allow him to leave.
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References
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