Articles for Teachers
The classroom management issues that your face in a secondary school are often very different to what you experience in a primary classroom. But whatever the age range of the students that you teach, the underlying principles of effective classroom management remains the same.
But how does classroom management differ in a secondary school from a primary school. Well, the most obvious difference is that the poor behavior of students in a secondary classroom is often more exaggerated than in a primary classroom. Students often behave poorly whatever their age, it's just that in a secondary classroom that poor behavior is often worse, and so harder to deal with.
1. Always be clear in your expectations
Students at secondary school differ from pupils in a primary school in that they have different lessons with different teachers. Because the students that you teach have different lessons with different teachers, they also become accustomed to different rules and expectations. Make your expectations very clear from the moment that the students enter your classroom and you will reduce your secondary classroom management issues.
2. Communicate frequently with other teachers
Inappropriate behavior in a secondary school is often the result of poor communication between teachers. In order to reduce your secondary school classroom management issues, you must communicate the other teachers within your school. Often, students think that there are no consequences of poor behavior in a large secondary school due to teachers not communicating with each other. If a child behaves poorly in your lesson, you must communicate with other relevant teachers. Doing so will ensure that the student knows that his behavior carries consequences.
3. Always follow up your threats
When working in a large secondary school, classroom management is often made more difficult by the sheer number of students that we teach on a daily basis. This makes it very difficult to keep track of issues such as skipped detentions, and forgotten homework. Despite these hurdles, you must always follow through with the sanctions that were imposed. Failing to do so will almost guarantee and increase in classroom management problems within your classroom.
Whether you teach in a secondary school or a primary school, the principle of effective classroom management remains the same. If you work in a secondary school though, there are ways to improve even further the classroom behavior of the students that you teach. Follow the three top tips above and you will notice and almost immediate improvement in the classroom management issues that you experience in your secondary classroom.
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