Environmental Design of Classroom Management.

The 21st century learning emphasise on the dynamic usage of materials and the
classrooms design to be used inside and outside of the class where students become the
main developer or together with the teacher in teaching and learning process. It differs with
the concept of 20th century learning where the teacher is the only main developer or plays
the most roles in teaching and learning session. In 21st century learning, the class activities
are more toward the outcomes of the learning and application of the input learnt into another
context. The 21st century classroom design is related to the conducive learning environment
where the students are able to indulge themselves well in a learning session and are able to
focus more toward the teaching process being conducted. This kind of environment is able
to triggers students learning interest in order for them to learn more. An environment which
could motivate students refers to a situation or a culture which enable the students to have
their own purpose within themselves upon achieving the learning outcomes. So, it is within
the responsibility of a teacher to create a conducive learning environment for the students to
learn and also in overcoming the learners behaviour. Upon creating this, it will involve the
teachers teaching approach, the forms of communication, the ability of the teacher in
controlling the students and the activities being conducted and also the personality of the
teacher itself. Within this kind of environment, student should realise their responsibility
towards their own learning.

The Physical Environment.

Upon designing a culture friendly environmental classroom management which is

align with the 21st century classroom, physical environment is crucial to be included as one
of the elements in constructing it. A well-managed physical environment in a classroom is a
part of effective learning. The management of physical environment includes the
arrangement of the chairs and the table. A good ventilation for air flow and sufficient lighting
should also be considered upon designing a culture friendly class. Even the organization of
the whiteboard and would contributes to the effectiveness of a teaching session. Other than
that, classroom management also includes the positive behaviour towards the school. A
teacher should reflect a good behaviour in front of the student as they tend to follow and act
according to the things they observed. Upon playing the role as an effective classroom
manager, the teacher should understand the difficulty in maintaining a good physical
environment by identifying the factors being hindering and at the same time identify the
contributing factors that could improve the environment in a particular classroom. Aligned
with the requirement of the 21st century learning classroom, the good arrangement of the
table and chairs plays important role in contributing to the collaborative learning. The most
suitable arrangement to promote teamwork and communication is where the table and chairs
are put into groups. A group of 3 to 5 students will be seated in group where they will be
given some group works and interact with each other upon completing the task. Through
frequent group task, students will then learn to cooperate with each other and accepting
others point of view in a discussion that may occur. However, the teacher should bear in
mind regarding the space owned by the student in the class. A small class should have
smaller group members as students will find themselves least comfortable when they are
packed into too many group members in a small class.

The Psychosocial Environment.

The term psychosocial refers to the close connection between psychosocial aspects
of our experiences (e.g. our thoughts, emotions, and behavior) and our wider social
experience (e.g. our relationships, tradition and culture). Learners and teachers are
psychologically affected by the surrounding social conditions that may disrupt or enhance
the quality and effectiveness of learning. In other words, it is how that particular individual
feels regarding his or her environment. To ensure a culture friendly environmental classroom
can be created, it is essential to make sure that the individuals which are the students are
comfortable to experience the learning process. The terms comfortable here means that the
students are not in a depressed state where they are too afraid with their teacher or being
timid due to the oppression of peers through bullying as one of the example. During our
schooling years, we may had encounter a kind of teacher is being too vowel causing the
students being too afraid to even ask a single question. This could be one of the difficulties
upon creating good psychosocial environment. The teachers could play their roles by
improvising and manipulating their teaching approaches. Instead of becoming a furious and
strict teacher in order to ensure the students follow every instruction and do their homework,
the teachers could become more open and become friendly to the students. By doing so,
students will become more comfortable to share their feelings and have the confidence to
ask questions whenever they have to. Students will listen and follow orders not because they
are afraid of the teachers, but they respect them. In accordance with the 21st classroom
learning in creating students that respect each other, a good psychosocial environment
could reduce the misleading behaviour such as oppressing among peers and bullies from
occurring in class and threatening the safety of the students. The mutual respect between
teacher and students can be gained through this. The students respect the teacher while the
teacher appreciate the students point of view on certain things.
The Rules in a Classroom.

Young learners in the primary school require structures and clear working procedures
in order for them to function well in a classroom. According to Mok Soon Sang (2009), rules
focus on the expectation or standard of behaviour, specifically and generally. The rules and
regulation function as the medium to control misbehaviour occur among students. When the
teacher is able to form a rule which suits the aspect of psycho-social of the students learning
in the class, the teaching and learning process can occur within the control of the teacher
and without any disturbance. This will then leads to effective knowledge absorption for the
students. On the other hand, the 21st learning classroom emphasise on the discipline of the
student. So, by putting the rules as one of the element in creating a culture friendly
environmental classroom management, it can be seen align with the requirement of the 21st
classroom learning. Discipline is one of the crucial aspects related to the management of the
classroom. Managing and creating discipline inside the classroom is one of the main factors
upon achieving the success in teaching and learning process. However, implementing class
discipline is the biggest challenge faced by the teacher. The various behaviour of the
students give teachers a hard time upon ensuring classroom discipline to be implemented.
Teacher who is new to the education field tend to have the hesitation and worriedness in
handling the discipline problems that occur among the students. The success and the failure
of handling it depend on the teachers ability in controlling the class. Lindgren (1976)
explains that discipline means a form of punishment or a controlling medium to be obeyed by
the students. Some example of the typically used rules and regulation being implemented
are the students need to respect their peers, completing the tasks given by the teacher and
they are prohibited to eat or drink during the teacher is teaching. If the students are found
disobeying the rules stated, they can be labelled as students with discipline problems. Based
on the Kounins model of management, the basic to the effectiveness of class management
depend on the observation of the teacher toward the classroom.

Closure

Forms of education which fulfilled the needs of 21st learning had been designed rapidly,
recently. This is all done upon creating a student who is capable of facing the challenge of
the new globalisation era. The students must not solely excel in education but at the same
time able to apply the knowledge they learn from on context to be used to another different
context. However, upon creating advance learners, the process of becoming a balance
individual must not be neglected. The students still need to be able to interact and socialized
well in class, respecting each other and possess other good values in order for them to
become a well-developed human being. It is the responsibility of the teachers to provide
them with a suitable learning environment where they are able to share their differences in
cultures, background and way of life without being discriminated. The Ministry of Education
itself should supply the schools with sufficient facilities upon implementing a culture friendly
classroom in a 21st learning.