Class Management

Class Management involves

 options
 decisions
 actions
What is class management?
 Moment-by-moment decisions and actions
concerning the organization of the
classroom
 Skills of managing a successful class relate
to teacher’s
 attitude
 intentions
 personality
 organizational skills
 relationship with learners
The management of learners’ learning is
clearly linked to teachers’ ability to set
an appropriate tone and gain learner
respect and cooperation in class.

The creation and maintenance of a

positive classroom climate is essential
in producing optimum learning.
(Williams & Burden 2001:199)
The ideal classroom climate…
‘There is no tension in the air; students are at
ease; there are no sharp -let alone hostile-
comments made to ridicule each other. There
are no put-downs or sarcasm. Instead, there is
mutual trust and respect. No need for anyone
to feel anxious or insecure’ (Dörnyei 2002:41)
 Prevention is always better than
the discipline cure…
 Let students ‘know where they stand’ from the very
beginning: establish a code of conduct.

 Produce a chart conducted by the learners in groups

saying what they expect from the teacher, what the
teacher expects from them and what they expect from
themselves this school year. Ask all learners to sign it.
Put it on the class wall. Refer to it when necessary!
 Components of CM
 Length and stages of the lesson
 Teacher’s instructions
 Seating arrangements
 Student groupings
 Discipline-Problem behavior
 Teacher’s physical presence
 Teacher’s use of voice and gestures
 Use of equipment
 Starting and finishing the lesson
Length and stages of the lesson
Practise what you preach!

Always plan your lessons -decide on tasks,

duration and stage they should be applied
Have a couple of extra tasks up your sleeve…
Think of a light filler that could provide relief
after a period of intense effort
Have something pleasant to round off the lesson
with a smile…
 Teacher’s instructions

 Give clear and specific instructions before

learners start working on a task- it will save
time and energy
 Help them with examples

…it will save you time and energy and control

noise level…
Seating Arrangements (1/2)
 Seating arrangements (2/2)

Where students sit can determine

 Their attitude to each other

 Their attitude to you
 Your attitude to them
 How they interact
 Types of activity they can perform
Avoid rigid seating arrangements.
By changing them…

 you change the focus

 students can interact with different people
 you add some variety
 you allow a range of different activities
 you solve discipline problems
 Frequently asked questions

• should the teacher determine who sits next to

whom?
• should you often change the seating
arrangement?
 Organizing pairs and groups

 Friendship
 Streaming
 Chance
 Changing groups
Student groupings
 Lockstep
 Pair work
 Group work
 Individual study
Lockstep

All the students work as a group with the

teacher ( they are ‘locked’ into some activity )
and the teacher acts as controller and
assessor
 Advantages

 Sense of belonging among group members

 Suitable for activities where the teacher acts
as a controller (eg gives explanations or
instructions)
 Allows teacher to ‘gauge the mood’ of the class

Harmer J., (2003), The Practice of English Language

Teaching
 Disadvantages

 Favors the group, not the individual

 Not helpful for more shy students
 Students are not encouraged to take
responsibility of their own learning

Harmer J., (2003), The Practice of English Language

Teaching
 Pair work

Students can practise language or carry out

activities in twos or threes
 Advantages

 Increases the amount of speaking time any

one students gets
 Allows students to work and interact
independently
 Allows teachers time to work with one or
two pairs
 ‘two heads are better than one’

Harmer J., (2003), The Practice of English Language

Teaching
 Disadvantages

 Very noisy
 Students can often veer away from the point
of an exercise (use of L1?)
 Partner choice may be problematic

Harmer J., (2003), The Practice of English Language

Teaching
 Group work

Students can be put in larger groups but groups

of around five provoke greater involvement
and participation

Harmer J., (2003), The Practice of English Language

Teaching
 Advantages

 Dramatically increases students’ talking time

 Encourages broader skills of communication
and participation
 Promotes learner autonomy

Harmer J., (2003), The Practice of English Language

Teaching
 Disadvantages

 Likely to be noisy
 Not all students enjoy it
 Individuals may fall into group roles that
become fossilised
 Time consuming to organise

Harmer J., (2003), The Practice of English Language

Teaching
 Individual study

 It can range from students doing exercises on

their own in class to situations where the
teacher spends time working with individual
students
 Advantages

 Vital step in the development of student

autonomy
 Allows teachers to respond to individual
student differences (pace of learning, learning
style, preferences)
 Less stressful
 No noise

Harmer J., (2003), The Practice of English Language

Teaching
 Disadvantages

 The class does not develop a sense of belonging

 When combined with assignment of different
tasks, it involves more materials preparation

Harmer J., (2003), The Practice of English Language

Teaching
Teacher’s Physical Presence
 body
 voice
 gestures
body

proximity
appropriacy
movement
contact (personally, contextually,
culturally determined)
voice
· audibility
· speed
· variety
· pitch
· stress & intonation
gestures
Why?
convey meaning
manage the class
What should we avoid regarding the use of
gestures?
 Openings

 establish and communicate rules

 general principles
 arrange the room
 provide an introductory activity
 learn all students’ names and use them
 tell them about the class
 be flexible!
Marking stages of a lesson
 Starting & finishing the lesson
 Starting the lesson: punctuality
 be there before them
 set up equipment
 put things on board
 try out the cd player/ youtube, etc.
 check seating arrangements
 start on time
at the beginning….

Dealing with late arrivals

 exclude them?
 stop the class and explain?
 allow them to creep in and sit down quietly?
What if there are new arrivals?
 stop the class and introduce them to the rest
of the group

 don’t expect too much in terms of the language

work they can produce
How can you make the starting point
of a lesson clear?
 tap chalk or pen on the desk
 clap your hands
 close the door
 saying ‘right, ok’
 scanning the whole class
 Finishing the lesson

 always finish before the bell rings

 summarize and conclude
 use fillers if there is time
 don’t assign homework at the end of the class
 make announcements at the end of the class
 always use farewells before leaving the class
 Dealing with Problem Behavior
Don’t ignore it when it happens!
 Act immediately
 Focus on the behavior-not the pupil
 Take things forward (Let’s do this! instead of
Don’t do this!)
 Reprimand in private
 Keep calm
 Discuss with colleagues/institution
Thank you!