Classroom Management

Oliver Furnival.

Throughout this report I have written about techniques that have

worked for me throughout my career leading to me feeling confident
in dealing with issues of poor behaviour and building up a positive
reputation within the schools I have worked in. The first part
concentrates on how you can build up relationships with students,
colleagues and parents outside class times and within the whole
school community, which can lead to a positive effect on behaviour
within the classroom. The second part concentrates on techniques
you can use during lesson times.

Part One. The whole school.

1.1 Get to know the students outside the classroom.
1.2 Be seen around the school
1.3 Communication with parents and other staff.
1.4 Don’t suffer alone.

Part Two. Inside the classroom.

2.1 Never speak over a class.
2.2 Set lesson up beforehand.
2.3 Entering and leaving the classroom.
2.4 Clear instructions.
2.5 Seating plans.
2.6 Give students a choice and a way out.
2.7 Speak to students without an audience and set targets.
2.8 Speak assertively and stick to point.
2.9 Don’t shout in anger.
2.10 Don’t make threats or give multiple warnings. Act quickly.
2.11 Face issues head on.
2.12 Use detentions wisely.
2.13 Share your expectations with the class.
2.14 Show awareness of school disciplinary policy.
2.15 Take control of class.
2.16 Humour.
2.17 Reward good behaviour for all.

I have taught many students and classes who have got little interest
in being in the school or having to sit the GCSE course. At the start
of my career I found I was clashing with a lot of these students as I
was keen, overly perhaps, to be respected and demanded this
through jumping on every little discrepancy shown by the students.
It is common for new teachers to feel and act this way, after the
initial shock of walking into the classroom and realising not all of the
students in the room are as motivated or as excited as you are
about the lesson you’ve planned, let alone when they start to
challenge your authority and refuse to follow instructions or do
much work.
As I progressed through my career I found that instead of shouting
at, or punishing students for every little mistake (perhaps the 4 th or
5th time they have been in trouble for the same incident that day), I
could achieve more respect and better behaviour in my lessons
though working good relationships with students and classes
alongside upholding the school rules—these two work very well
together.

Part One.

1.1 Get to know the students outside the classroom.

In my experience knowing and showing an interest in students has

been absolutely key to the improved behaviour in my classes. The
time you put in with students outside of the classroom is as
important as inside the classroom.
Teaching is much more than the class time you have with the
students. I made it my mission to get to know the poorly behaved
students and take an interest in them. This does not mean you
lower your expectations of them and their behaviour, these should
remain at the highest level throughout your career, but you can
work with students to let them know you are on the journey
together through school, as opposed to against them.

All students have interests and hobbies, some can be quite amazing
when you hear them. I made an effort to learn what the students
were doing in their spare time and the football team, type of music
they were listening to, the reality shows they were watching on TV.
Asking students how their netball, skating or fishing is going or
finding Leyton Orient results to comment on when you see students
in the corridor, or on duty may only take a second but can go a long
way to building up a relationship and improving behaviour from that
student. Similarly, going to a school show and congratulating a
student on their performance the next time you see them is an easy
and very effective way to build up a relationship with a student, as
well as showing them that you see them as an individual.
Knowledge gained about students can come in useful for less formal
lessons at the end of term or form time. I held a weekly fun quiz
every Friday with my form and would purposely base questions
around the student’s interests.
I believe that narratives are essential to good lesson activities and
the use of a narrative that relates to students’ interests can show
the student that you have taken an interest. An example of this is
when I had a couple of difficult students in year 8 but found out they
liked the Simpsons. I used a ‘The Simpsons’ clip showing different
places in Springfield as a way of getting the class to differentiate
between public and private sector services in towns. This was a
small change to my lesson plan but worked well and used the
student’ interests to get the learning point across.
Getting to know students takes time, but putting in the effort to talk
to them and treating students as individuals has gone a long way in
my career to improve behaviour in lessons. Creating a positive
relationship with students quickly spreads throughout the year
group, school and students’ homes.

One student in my form who faced difficulties in a wide range of

issues around school said how she appreciated how I spoke to her
on her level and took time to see things from her point of view
(never underestimate the power of listening to someone who feels
they are never heard), even when I was having to tell her things she
didn’t want to hear. It is important for a student to feel that you are
listening and giving them a chance to have their say. We all like to
feel we have been listened to and this is no different for a student at
school. Listening to this student didn’t result in her getting what she
wanted but allowed her the chance to have her say and put her
point across. Talking to students also allows teachers to see how
school is seen from their point of view and allows you to respond
directly to their experiences, and if this is done honestly it can
strengthen your and the school’s position.

Listening to students when they feel hard done by in your lesson or

another aspect of school life does not mean you have to agree with
them at all times or to give in to their demands, quite the opposite. I
have found that if I spoke to students in a respectful manner and
had reasons to back up what I was saying they would, on the whole
show respect back and accept the situation, even if they hadn’t got
what they wanted. Discussing and explaining your actions or your
reasons for not agreeing with a student’s behaviour are good life
skills for the student and help to build up an understanding between
you. As explained later in this essay there are times and places to
have these discussions with students, I believe they are best done
away from an incident, without other students as an audience.
As teachers we often speak authoritatively to students and a large
part of our job, if we are not careful can see us come across as
dictators. In a lesson on democracy versus autocracy I used to get a
student to count the amount of orders I gave in a lesson—try this
out you’ll be amazed at the results. The first few minutes of a lesson
are full or our orders: “come in, sit down, be quiet, answer your
name on the register, get your homework out,” the list goes on. As a
side note, I feel it is always good to add a please and thank you to
these orders, it creates a better atmosphere in the room, and is
basic manners.
Parents appreciate teachers who are approachable to them and
their child / children and who are willing to talk to students, whether
to explain why behaviour has not been acceptable or to take an
interest in what they are doing in their lives. Referring to the
student’s outside interests goes down well during parent’s evenings
and shows the parent that you are treating their child as a human
being and not just an invisible member of a large school. I had a
student in my form whose parent had been having issues with the
school through a number of different issues, leaving her very
defensive in parents’ evenings. At the start of one meeting I had
with her she was very defensive at first but her manner changed
when I asked her if she was looking forward to going to the Take
That concert that her daughter had told me they were both going to.
Following a couple of quips about how they weren’t my cup of tea
the parent visibly relaxed and this led to the start of a very good
relationship with her, which came in useful when more difficult
subjects had to be addressed with her daughter in the future.
Building up good relationships with students was key to my standing
in the school. A colleague and good friend of mine used to do extra
duties and we would volunteer to do the duty points in the toughest
places in the school—the places where students smoked, the far end
of the field and the places where students used to try to escape to
the local shops at break. As we did these duties we built up good
relationships with the students there, invariably the most difficult
students in the school. We would follow the schools directives but
over time we could do this in a good natured way with the students,
who respected that we had a job to do, this is not to say they were
happy when caught. I believe our willingness to meet these students
head on and getting to know them through the extra duties created
a positive relationship with the students which led to much better
behaviour from them during lessons, spreading to their friends who
were often other notorious students in lessons. It shouldn’t be
underestimated how much students talk about teachers to each
other. The key to our success was how we spoke to the students.
We didn’t need to shout, get angry or talk down to them but rather
spoke to them in an assertive way, while at the same time talking to
them in a way that didn’t belittle them, building up relationships
with them at the same time. Keeping firm, but also fair, and done
through a friendly manner with a human touch, where students see
you are following the school rules but not talking as though you
have got no time for them will earn a respect for you, even if they
still won’t agree with what you say at all times.
It is vital to treat all students in the school as individuals and
remember that they are teenagers and will make mistakes. Learn
what the poorly behaved students’ background is, which can be
done through the form tutor, head of year, head of pastoral care or
colleagues. Building up a picture of the student will help you to see
the bigger picture about their lives and not for the demon you have
built them up to be. Most importantly talk to the student. In my
experience talking to a student in detention rather than making
them sit in silence can have great benefits. Talk through incidents,
explaining your expectations and letting the student have a chance
to have his/her say. It can be beneficial to do this in front of another
member of staff that the student feels comfortable with such as a
form tutor, this helps the student understand that your expectations
for him / her are acceptable and known to another member of staff
close to them who can check up on progress.

1.2 Be seen around school.

Having a high profile around school is key to building up your

reputation, leading to better behaviour from students. Seeing
students outside of the classroom environment can help to build up
positive relationships with students you are having issues with.
Running a club, going on school trips, standing in the corridor
between lessons and doing optional break / lunch duties are all good
ways to be able to speak to students and get to know them in a way
that can’t always be done in lesson time.
I used to make a point of standing outside my classroom in the very
busy corridor between every lesson, this was a good way to help to
keep order in the crowded corridor and to be seen by all the
students as being proactive and taking an interest in whole school
behaviour, it shows students that you are willing to get involved in
any misbehaviour. As well as keeping an eye on behaviour, say hello
to students in the corridor. A friendly hello or comment about a
football match, or television show is a good way for them to see you
are human and can help to build up relationships which will lead to
better behaviour in the classroom.
A friend of mine in the drama department asked me to get involved
in a school production early in my career. There were a couple of
students involved who I was having with in my GCSE lessons. I used
the opportunity of acting alongside them to build up a positive
relationship and it worked well—I was able to see them in a different
light and talk to them without the stresses of classroom where a war
of attrition had developed. Working with them in this new
environment allowed both parties to gain a mutual respect.
I made an effort to go on school trips which are an excellent chance
to share experiences with students that you don’t usually have and
which can be the basis of a better understanding between you.
Running trips takes time and effort but it is worth it in the long run. I
went on a number of week residential trips with students which
proved an excellent way to get to know them better and to get
involved in activities with them, it is these trips that students
remember for years and take a lot from and it can mean a lot for
them to see you get involved which, again, leads to better
relationships when back in the classroom.

1.3 Communication with parents and other staff.

There are usually reasons for poor behaviour. These could range
from the content of the lesson to a situation happening outside
school. School are full of people who can support you in finding out
information on a student which can give you a context to what is
happening in the classroom. Speaking to a form tutor, head of key
stage / year, special needs coordinator or head of pastoral care can
help paint a picture and help you to understand any issues. Having
a wider picture of your student rather than just the boy/girl who
shouts out in class.
In my experience the vast majority of students improve their
behaviour substantially when they realise that you are making
connections with other teachers or at home. Most parents are
supportive and can be used to support you. Contacting parents in a
calm and professional matter through a phone call or letter can help
to improve matters. Students will continue with their poor behaviour
if they don’t see any consequences and many see a teacher who
doesn’t contact their parents or other teachers with authority as a
soft target, as the detentions you give will end up having little effect
on their actions. Contacting home through writing a letter or phone
call or speaking to other staff shows the student that you are
proactive and have the authority to affect their home life and
dealings in the whole school—this can work in disempowering the
student who is more than happy to keep the misbehaviour between
you and them. If necessary a meeting between you and the
parents/child and, if need be, a more experienced member of staff
can be worthwhile. In these meetings it is good to set achievable
targets for the student regarding their future behaviour. It is hard
for students to argue about targets that simply require an
improvement in behaviour. It is important not to use these meetings
as a chance to attack the student as this can lead to the student
denying the accusations and the parents feeling they must stick up
for their child. Good form tutors can talk to the students about the
misbehaviour and can work with the Head of Year to make any
whole school actions such as report cards and monitoring.

1.4 Don’t suffer alone.

It is important to remember that you are not alone in suffering poor

behaviour, there are teachers going through the same experiences
with the same students, and there are also teachers in your school
who have got excellent techniques in dealing with it and are more
often than not happy to share their experiences.
As Head of Faculty I always advised teachers to share experiences
of poor behaviour with colleagues in our department. Teachers are
sometimes reluctant to talk about issues they are having through
fear of it reflecting badly on their performance or through
embarrassment. Every teacher I have worked with has been
supportive when I have spoken about issues in the classroom.
Different teachers have got their own experiences with students and
their own ways of dealing with them. Over time teachers come up
with strategies that suit them and these can be created and
adapted from speaking and learning from colleagues.
I have heard many pieces of advice from other teachers and put
some into practice. Other pieces of advice I respected as working for
that teacher but decided that they didn’t suit my style of teaching. A
key piece of advice that helped me gain better behaviour was given
to me by a colleague early in my career. As a student teacher I
thought my role was to press my authority at every opportunity with
students, but still found I was having issues with students. An
experienced teacher in my Humanities department pointed out that
I was reacting too quickly and jumping on everything the students
were doing without listening to their explanations. He told me to
step back at times and not take things personally and to let my own
personality come out with the students. This was just what I needed
to hear, and thinking about it was what I wanted to do but was too
scared to try through fear of losing my authority, when what I didn’t
realise was the students were reacting against my over enthusiasm
for perfection. That piece of advice was among the most important
in my career, I took it on board and allowed my own personality to
come through with the students instead of the authoritarian only
teacher. Over time my relationship with the students causing me
problems improved immensely and it was a real turning point in my
standing within the school.
This advice would not have been given unless I had asked, and
spoken to colleagues. Not all advice suits, but this piece was a more
experienced teacher telling me something I, deep down already
knew was right but had not been doing. As Head of Humanities I
made it a big part of my job to support new, and experienced
teachers who were having difficulties with behaviour which can be
done by pairing teachers, speaking to your staff regularly and
making behaviour issues, techniques and success stories a part of
faculty meetings.
Keeping poor behaviour quiet is not a good idea and students will
very soon take advantage of this. Speak to their form tutor, your
head of faculty or the head of year. This can be done as a chat to
learn more about the student or learn ways in which other teachers
have dealt with the behaviour of this student. Other teachers can
step in and punish the student for you but it is still you and that
student the next lesson so it is important that the student see you
as a figure of authority. A student knowing that you are talking to
other staff / parents about them is a good step to let them know
that you won’t suffer in silence and have the ear of people they see
as being able to have an effect on their schooling / life.

Part Two.

2.1 Never speak over a class.

This is an important first rule, one which an old colleague gave me

early on in my career. Insist on silence all the times that you require
it. Never give instructions or hold any activity without being in the
knowledge that students are listening. Hold up the class if students
are talking over you and insist on silence before you carry on. A look
or speaking to a student using their first name will work in most
cases. If it continues after a clear warning the student can be
removed from the class with a clear target for the rest of the lesson
which can be written in their book or diary. Never continue lesson
when students are talking over you as this leaves students not
knowing what to do in the given activity. Make it clear to the class
that you won’t talk over them and you will get the lesson and it is
their choice how and when it will occur.
It is vital to be consistent with this rule and insist upon it in your first
lesson as some students will continue to talk over you if they know
they are not going to be stopped, even if it is low level talking it
disrupts instruction and therefore the learning of the class. Create,
and stand by this rule from the start as it can be difficult to grasp
back control if you have been letting students talk over you.
Students will soon learn your expectations and if you are consistent
in following up with students who are breaking the rule it will soon
become an established rule in your classes.

2.2 Set lessons up beforehand.

Have your lesson set up as far as possible before the class arrives—
resources, starter, the lesson outline on the board or screen. This
will allow you to focus on the students as they arrive and will give
the impression of an organised teacher on top of the class. The
state of the room and resources can have a big impact on how the
lesson, and how the students’ behaviour will unfold. Students in my
previous forms have often commented on the state of the classroom
and implied readiness of the teacher at the start of the lesson.
Be strong as students enter the class. Keep repeating initial
instructions—usually title/aim/date/starter. Walk around the room
and monitor students. An interesting starter—I found ones that
require thinking skills work well—are a good way to start a lesson.
Having the starter on the board / screen allows students who have
settled quickly to start work and stops them being bored which can
lead to disruption. Students arriving early and previous classes can
help you set up the resources in the room.

Clear plan—may need to change

2.3 Entering and leaving the classroom.

Have high expectations about the start and end of a lesson. A strong
start and ending create a good framework for the lesson and give
students a clear message about how you expect them to act within
the classroom. If possible, line the students up in the corridor before
the lesson starts and get them quiet before they enter. If students
enter in an inappropriate fashion make them leave the room and
enter again. Even though I used to let students come into the
classroom if they were early to the class (to help clear the corridor)
or before school, during break and lunchtime I still got them to line
up outside before the class started as this gave a clear indication
that the activities / atmosphere was there during the pre-lesson
time was over and the lesson was beginning. Stand by the door and
welcome students as they enter, quick comments on a football
result or topic of interest with students as they enter can create a
welcoming atmosphere. Have the classroom set up so students can
start work as soon as they enter (write title, aim and date, starter).
Do the register to silence early in the lesson to ensure there are no
mistakes and to assert order onto the class if necessary. The end of
the lesson is also important concerning behaviour. A good plenary
that involves the whole class is a good final activity and leaving the
classroom can be built into it. I have a variety of ways such as next
correct answer leaves first, or if one boy answers correctly all the
boys can leave—these are fun and work well at secondary level. It is
important during a busy teacher’s day to save as much time as
possible, getting students to collect books / put books in a pile, put
out resources for the next class are good ways of saving yourself
important minutes before the next class comes it. Always make sure
that resources are put back, paper and books are collected in and
chairs and tables are returned to the correct places if they’ve been
moved during a group activity before your class leaves. It can take
one single teacher a lot longer to clean up on their own compared to
the whole class pitching in as I often found out in my early days. It is
a good idea to have the full attention of the class before they are
allowed to leave. I like to end the class with a goodbye and it is nice
to end with some news about something not related to the lesson
(school event, news event), again to show a human side even a
simple “Good luck to those in the school show tonight” is a nice way
to end. Insist on the class leaving quietly, this will be remembered
by the students and soon build into the fabric of the lesson.

2.4 Clear instructions.

Instructions are a vital part of the learning process. It is important to

be strong and clear in your instructions. Poor behaviour, rightly or
wrongly, can come from students being unsure of what is expected
of them or how to do an activity. Showing confidence in your
delivery of what you are asking the students to do will give them the
impression that it is worthwhile.
Instructions should be given with the class in silence and should also
be written, whether on the board, screen or a handout as well as
oral where appropriate. A list of instructions on the board / screen is
a useful reference point if a student is off task and unsure what to
do.
Clear, understandable instructions that the students can refer back
to will help to keep students on task which will lower the amount of
low level misbehaviour which can occur from students not sure of
what to do or having missed vital instructions.

2.5 Seating plans.

Create a seating plan. The plan can be changed at your digression

and as a result of observing the class to see who does / doesn’t
work well with whom. If a student is misbehaving it is a good idea to
move him/her within the classroom. Where possible, have a spare
table. Student’s behaviour can change markedly depending on
where they are in the class. A quiet room at the back of the class
can be effective in taking away a misbehaving student’s audience.
Look carefully at where a student is sitting when misbehaviour / lack
of work occurs. Some students behave poorly when sat at the front
of the class as they enjoy the attention of their classmates, similarly
others misbehave when sat near someone they know they will get a
reaction out of (even if their neighbour is well behaved). If you know
a friendship pair won’t work well together it is important to stand
form and not let students nag you into letting them do so as it can
be a recipe of asking for trouble. If a student is constantly nagging
you to move them make the point that it is your classroom and
students will sit where you tell them to. At the start of the year
when you and a class are new to each other it is a good idea to note
down the seating plan to stop some students from moving
themselves net to their friends, hoping you won’t notice. It is a good
idea to change students seating within a lesson if the activity
requires this as mixing up students can be good for their learning.
Changing the seating arrangements for different activities in lessons
can work well, although putting students into groups needs thought,
some students don’t work well together, and will be made easier as
you get to know the class. It is a good idea to create a seating plan
for the instruction parts of the lesson which the students will relate
to quiet time when they need to be giving you their full attention.

2.6 Give students a choice and a way out.

When students are misbehaving give them a choice, allowing them

to take responsibility over their actions. Choices such as “You can
choose to either learn quietly or choose to lose your break time” or
“You can carry on making a noise and be moved or you can settle
down and start work allowing me to trust you to sit where you are”
are hard for students to argue against and puts the onus on them to
make the right decisions.
Make the choices clear, it is a good idea to write them in the
student’s book or their homework diary, which can then be referred
to at the end of the lesson. Clearly explain that they can chose to
learn or they are choosing to get in to trouble.
When dealing with students who do not accept your instructions or
that they have done anything wrong, give them a way out, which
can be done through choices, and don’t back them into a corner in
front of the class, forcing them to lose face in front of their peers as
this could lead to small situation being blown out of perspective.
Allowing students a way out so they save face and you still get the
behaviour you require is an important strategy that will help to
avoid stand offs and gain a mutual respect. It is important that you
still get what you want out of the situation but do it in a way that
doesn’t allow the student to argue back or create a situation where
neither of you will back down. It is not a good idea to get into yes /
no arguments as some students will happily continue with these
which can lead to a war of attrition leading to things being said that
blow the original situation up into a secondary argument. A good
strategy I learnt was speaking to students outside the class, as
discussed later in this essay. Instead of shouting “get out” to the
student which may get him to argue back saying they hadn’t done
anything it is better to say “I would like to discuss / hear your side of
the story outside please as we can have a calmer conversation
outside”. A key technique in is giving them the chance to make the
correct decision to your satisfaction which doesn’t make them feel
they have lost face.

2.7 Speak to students without an audience and set

achievable targets.

Don’t get into an argument with the student in front of the class.
Clearly state your case and targets when a student has misbehaved.
If they question you or argue with you, remove them from the class
and speak to them outside. Student’s attitude when taken always
from the stage of the classroom can change very quickly and they
are much more willing to listen and comply with your targets when
it is a one on one situation. When you send a student out of class,
talk to them quickly. It is an effective ideas to set them targets for
the rest of the lesson, which can be written in their book / diary. It is
important to refer back to them at the end of the lesson with the
student. This puts the onus on the student to make the choice to
behave / work well and gives them the power to affect the action
you will take at the end of the lesson.

2.8 Speak assertively and stick to your point.

Never let students sway you off your point and manipulate the
conversation into an “I didn’t do it” / “Yes, you did” argument. If, for
example you have seen a student throw a textbook, don’t ask “Why
did you throw the book?” as a common response will be “I didn’t”. It
is better to say “You will not throw textbooks in the class room” or
“Textbooks will not be thrown in the classroom”. It is a good idea to
give students a choice “You can either treat property with respect
and we will not have a problem or if you choose to throw another
textbook, you will have to see me at break / replace it / I will call
your parents”. These are logical statements and hard for the
student to argue against.
It is a good idea to use your knowledge of the school rules (and refer
to the poster of them on the classroom wall) when speaking to the
student and to make it clear why their behaviour is not acceptable.
It is hard for students to argue against a school rule on the wall, or a
class one they have been part of creating if you phrase your point
correctly such as “As you can see on the school rules poster all
property must be treated with respect.”
If the student does argue, calmly repeat yourself and don’t let them
draw you into secondary arguments such as “You didn’t say
anything when X threw one”. It is important to calmly but firmly tell
them and repeat if necessary why their behaviour is not acceptable
and the choice you are giving them.
Questioning a student as to why they did the action is best saved
when both parties have calmed down, such as in a detention or after
the class when the student has had time to reflect on his/her action
and is usually more willing to speak when some times has passed.

2.9 Don’t shout in anger.

Don’t react to everything in an angry manner such as shouting.

Students will soon learn what buttons to press to get a reaction.
Most situations can be dealt with quickly by an assertive comment
or a quick word or look. Getting angry can allow the student to start
a having a secondary argument along the lines of “You were rude to
me” (which takes away the attention from their initial piece of poor
behaviour).
More often than not, shouting doesn’t work. It can work for the
students who are usual well behaved and have usually committed a
low level piece of misbehaviour such as speaking over you. It can
also work for the students who are always well behaved, but these
are not the ones giving you long term problems. I have found
through my experience that shouting at repeat offenders doesn’t
have much effect—if it did then surely they would be behaving
themselves in the first place. There are times when shouting can
have the desired effect, but this must be used sparingly otherwise it
just becomes a normal part of the lesson and loses its desired
effect. A quick blast at a class can create quiet but usually only for a
short period of time.
Shouting can lead to students shouting back, and lead to a situation
where no one wants to lose face—the teacher wants to keep his/her
authority over the class and the student doesn’t want to lose face in
front of his/her peers. Shouting can leave you red faced with
nowhere to go and to say things you might regret. It is mistake to
think that shouting will get what you want, some students are
shouted at throughout the school day by a number of teachers yet it
has little effect on their behaviour and might even make their
behaviour worse as it can be seen as threatening and unfair from
their point of view. Using your voice well and speaking in a loud,
assertive voice when you are in control is far more effective than
shouting. It is important to keep control of your voice or you can end
up looking stupid and a spectacle in front of the whole class, this
can lead to students trying to get a reaction out of you. I am lucky
to have a naturally loud voice and found that raising and lowering
my voice level, without shouting, was a powerful tool and the
students learnt to respond to it. A quick burst of loudness at the
start of a sentence such as telling the class that it is time to come
together for feedback can gain the students’ attention and your
voice can lower in the same sentence as the class quietens. A clear
loud voice without the aggression or anger of a shout is a good way
to get the class / student’s attention without making yourself lose
your composure. A key tool to getting good behaviour is to show
confidence in front of the students and using your voice in an
assertive manner can go a long way to showing this. An assertive
voice is key to allowing the students to know that you are in charge
of what goes on in the classroom. There is a big difference between
assertive with your voice and shouting. Being assertive allows you
to keep control of yourself and the class without you becoming an
exhibition (Which students may enjoy watching). A Deputy Head
teacher in my school once commented to me on how I used to shout
a lot in my early days, when I was fighting for control over classes,
and explained that I came across as an angry teacher and how she
had seen an improvement in how I came across when I learnt to use
my voice in an assertive manner. I took a lot from that conversation
and reflected on how I must have come across to a class of
teenagers in my early days as a teacher. Reflection, as we teach
students, it a vital part of learning, and this should be no different
for a teacher too.

2.10 Don’t make threats or give multiple warnings. Act

quickly.

Never give idle threats and warnings. Follow them through at all
times. Students quickly realise when a teacher doesn’t follow on
their warnings and will take advantage of the situation. When you
do finally follow up they will point out that you previously let
another student get away with the same offence and this can lead
to secondary problems and give students the chance to take the
attention away from their original misbehaviour. Follow up on
warnings straight away as this will send out a clear message to the
class. If you don’t follow up on your threats it is unfair on the
students who want to learn and are having their learning time
disrupted by misbehaviour in the classroom. It is important to
remember that all students have a right to learn and it is the
teacher’s responsibility to ensure this, which means that any
misbehaviour must be dealt with quickly. If it isn’t students will keep
on misbehaving. In my experience behaviour improves when
students are clear what the boundaries are, it doesn’t help anyone if
you keep moving the boundaries because you don’t want to
challenge poor behaviour. Don’t be scared to face an issue head on,
it will show students that you mean business and will gain their
respect and the respect of the students who are not misbehaving as
they will see that you have got their best interests too. If you deal
with the first problem in an assertive manner it will set a good
precedent. Ignoring misbehaviour, hoping it will go away rarely
works and will make it harder for you to assert your authority on the
class in the long run.

2.11 Face issues head on.

Face up to the issues the students present to you. Ignoring the

problem won’t, on the whole, make it go away. Students may not
seem to like it, but will respect teachers who follow incidents up.
Tacking issues head on will allow you to gain the respect of the class
in the long run. As a new teacher I had a very challenging year 11
class and made sure I followed up all the issues with the students.
This was very time consuming and lead to a lot of meetings and
paperwork, which on top of a very busy teaching schedule can be
very tiring, but is worth it in the long run. I met one of the students
from this class a few years later. He told me that the class always
respected me as I didn’t let them get away with anything and stood
my ground. I was surprised to hear this as it certainly didn’t feel like
it at the time! I worked very hard at building relationships with the
students in that class during detentions. My relationship with the
student in question got a lot better after he saw me at a football
match, supporting a different team to him. The following Monday he
came to talk to me about the match and how impressed he was to
see me in his club’s away end! This went a good way to improving
his behaviour in class as it got him to see me in a new light, not just
the teacher who was always keeping him behind after class.

2.12 Use detentions wisely.

Use detentions as a chance to speak to the student about their
behaviour and set out your future expectations. Where possible
don’t use them to make the student sit in silence or to rant at them.
Detentions can be used to speak through what happened to
students and explain to them where they went wrong and how they
need to improve next time. Speak to students about the reasons for
their misbehaviour, it may take time for the students to feel they
can trust you and open up to talk about their behaviour but this
trust will be built up if the student can see that you are talking to
them fairly and are willing to listen to what they have got to say.
Explaining your expectations can help, as when they are said to a
student when tempers have calmed down they often seem more
logical and harder to argue against, this also gives students a
chance to reflect on what they have done wrong.
Detentions can be used as a time to build bridges and get to know a
little bit more about the students, such as their interests in and out
of school. If a student is in detention for not giving in their
homework due to doing a club it is a good ideas to find out a bit
more about the club. Asking students how their football, netball, art
is going is a good way to build up relationships and can lead to the
student seeing you as working with them and not simply ‘the
enemy’.
Detentions for lack of homework can also be used to go through the
homework with the student and offer them report. Similarly, if you
think a student is struggling with the work in your lessons the
detention can be used to go over anything they are unsure of, this
lets the student know you are interested in their performance and
care about their progress.

2.13 Share your expectations with the class.

Share your and the school’s expectations with class early in the
term, preferably in the first lesson, this allows students to know that
you understand the rules and are aware of the school’s expectations
of them. You could elicit and explain the effect negative behaviour
has on their learning, and just as importantly, the learning of others.
It is a good idea to create rules with each class. Getting students to
create their own class / form rules gives students a voice and a
sense of empowerment. 5-10 of the best rules (and their reasons)
can be voted on and put onto a poster. Each student can sign the
‘class constitution’ and it can be referred to if students break any of
the rules.
2.14 Show awareness of school’s discipline policy.

Follow your school’s discipline policy. It is important for students to

know that you are aware of the rules and that all staff are using
them throughout the school. Consistency stops students from being
able to play one teach off against another such as claiming that
other teachers allow them to get away with the misbehaviour they
are showing in your classroom.

2.15 Take control of the class.

Make it clear from the start that you are in charge and that any
activity happening is because you have allowed it to. It is important
early on to show that you are able to get their attention after an
interactive activity. Bringing the noise level down after a noisy
activity is a key skill, this can be done through carefully choosing
when each type of activity will happen in the lesson. Allow for the
fact that you may have to change the order of / edit your lesson
activities while you training the class in becoming quiet after an
activity has finished. When students are aware that you are in
charge you can allow more interesting and group based activities.

2.16 Humour

Using humour when appropriate can work well. This can help to
defuse situations and sometimes when students can see that you
don’t automatically lose your temper and are able to give a witty
comment to let them know where you want the situation to go to
they will respect your more and will get tired of looking for a
reaction that isn’t coming. Be careful with humour and know your
students well, as well as them knowing you well, before using it.
Using the wrong humour can leave students either feeling
embarrassed, humiliated, backed into a corner or may create a
situation where they respond with a comment that goes over the
line and may need punishment, leaving the student arguing that
they were just going along with the joke. Humour has a big part of
my relationship with students and I have used it to put an end to
bad behaviour and to stop students speaking out of turn. Using
humour must be natural and built in to the way you teach. You can’t
share a joke in response to a student’s action one day and then
reprimand another for the same action at another time if you are in
a different mood, this shows inconsistency and the students will be
very quick to pick up on this. It is also worth remembering that there
must be a line that is understood by you and the students, this line
can’t be taught to the students in a lesson and must be built up over
time. Using humour with students has come in very useful in my
career and if used properly is a good way of letting students know,
through a comment, how you feel about their behaviour but must be
built from a position of mutual respect and a good understanding of
how the class will react.

2.17 Reward good behaviour for all.

Reward good behaviour. Putting a list of names under a happy face

on the board instead of just names of poorly behaved students can
have a powerful influence on the class. Don’t just award positive
behaviour to students who have been misbehaving as a way of
placating them, use it for all.
Secondary school students still want recognition for good behaviour
and achievements, even if they claim to be too cool to recognise it!
Parents appreciate positive recognition too, many have commented
to me about how much they valued positive letters, phone calls or
comments in homework diaries.
Recognition can range from the school’s merit system, class
applause, name in a hat for an end of term prize, letter home, note
to their form tutor / head of year or a simple “well done” to a
student, which can make them feel appreciated and may be
something they don’t often hear.