Philosophy of Classroom Management
What does classroom management entail? This question is much more complex then it seems. Of course, when one thinks of managing a class, one might think-DISCIPLINE. Yes, discipline is part of managing a classroom, but management does not end there. Managing a classroom is about being able to manage several aspects of the classroom. I like to think of classroom management as parenting in a lot of ways. A very big part of parenthood and being a family is about respect, feeling a sense of belonging, growing individually, growing as a group or community, and having procedures, consequences, and underlying rules.
The organization to classroom management is key to successful classroom. I believe in investing time at the front end. At the beginning of the year, teachers are often overly concerned with getting into the material for the year. However, this means that time is not well spent on procedures and students do not have the chance to become adequately informed and begin practicing all the ways that the teacher’s classroom is run. In the long run, I suspect it is more important to address prevention before the school year begins to reduce behavior problems throughout the year. I also believe in being persistent and consistent with my classroom.
In order to understand student needs, I look to William Glasser’s five basic needs: survival, love, belonging, power, freedom, and fun. I would like to arrange my classroom in a way that meets each one of my students’ needs in one way or another. In order to do this, my classroom must run in an organized and respectful atmosphere. I need to respect and address diversity because each student is unique in their own backgrounds and learning styles. This means that I must keep my classroom an open and welcoming place, where students feel a sense of security, safety, and belonging. Although time consuming, I feel it is important to have meetings or conferences with each student individually, where we will focus on things that have done well, things they need to work on, and goals that are achievable.
Rules and consequences are a necessity, and I feel as though there should be a few underlying rules in my classroom. Alfie Kohn’s ideas about working with students to solve a problem is something that I connect with. I want my student to discuss classroom rules and help to create them. Of course, I will be directing and/or redirecting the students to the rules which I have in mind. Nevertheless, I feel as though giving my students the potential to voice their opinion on why we have certain rules will have a positive impact on my students.
I also use William Glasser’s seven caring habits, especially when it comes to rewards. As a teacher, I believe in intrinsic motivation. One of the seven deadly habits is “bribing” or “rewarding to control.” On the other hand, I believe in following Glasser’s caring habit of negotiating differences. I would like to use educational intrinsic motivation as much as possible in my classroom.
Overall, my classroom management plan strives to meet students’ needs and to make the learning process run smoothly. I would like for all students to see learning as a worthwhile experience.
