A well-managed classroom is an important condition for increasing student learning (Hattie, 2009) and a challenging task for teacher planning. Advanced planning for managing anticipated problem behavior increases the likelihood of “responding” verses “reacting” to student misbehavior.

 

Research
A well-managed classroom is an important condition for increasing student learning (Hattie, 2009) and a challenging task for teacher planning (Allday, 2011). Effective and efficient classroom management includes proactive strategies that prevent problem behavior as well as well-planned responses to problem behavior (Colvin, 2010; Simonsen, Fairbanks, Briesch, Myers, & Sugai, 2008). Advanced planning for managing anticipated problem behavior increases the likelihood of “responding” verses “reacting” to student misbehavior (Allday, 2011). Reactive responses, such as reprimands, may provide a temporary reduction in student misbehavior for some students (Allday, 2011). However, using reprimands as a first response to misbehavior may develop into a negative pattern of teacher and student interaction or lead to an escalation of more challenging misbehavior (Allday, 2011; Colvin, 2010). While there will be times when a reprimand is appropriate, planning for effective responses will increase our ability to utilize other methods to manage student behavior (Allday, 2011) and maintain a positive learning environment.

 

Application and Professional Learning Resources
Spending  time  to  create  a  classroom  management  plan  that  includes  both  proactive  strategies  to  prevent misbehavior and effective responses to address misbehavior will save valuable instructional minutes throughout the school year. Below are resources for use by individual classroom teachers, co-teachers, grade level/core/department teams, or an entire school staff for professional learning and classroom management planning.

•       At the link below, access the article, Responsive management:  Practical strategies for avoiding overreaction to minor misbehaver (Allday, 2011) for six strategies to use when responding to problem behavior. Allday (2011) provides both descriptions and practical suggestions for each of the six strategies. http://isc.sagepub.com/content/46/5/292.full.pdf+html

 

References

Allday, R.A. (2011). Responsive management: Practical strategies for avoiding overreaction to minor misbehavior. Intervention in School and Clinic, 46(5), 292-298.

Colvin, G. (2010). Defusing disruptive behavior in the classroom. Thousand Oaks, CA:  Corwin. Hattie, J. (2009). Visible learning. New York, NY:  Routledge Taylor & Francis Group.

Simonsen, B., Fairbanks, S., Briesch, A., Myers, D., & Sugai, G. (2008). Evidence‐based practices in classroom management:  Considerations for research to practice. Education and Treatment of Children, 31(3), 351-380.