Elegant
Classroom
Management
Action Research Presentation
By Greg Johnson
University of Missouri-Columbia
April 23, 2005
geocities.com/greg3johnson
Setting
• For 2 months
I aided a
ninth grade
“Integrated
Math 1”
classroom
• Diverse
students
• Expert host
teacher
A Previous
Class Plan
3
3
10
3
4
3
21
2
min:
min:
min:
min:
min:
min:
min:
min:
Students correct HW
Class discusses HW
Teacher presents
Teacher models prob.
Guided practice
Check & discuss
Work on assignment
Summary/closure
————————————
An Elegant
Class Plan
1
1
5
43
min:
min:
min:
min:
Students copy agenda
Teacher states agenda
Teacher presents
Work on assignment
—————————————
How does the teacher obtain
high student scores and
a pleasant classroom
from
little apparent effort?
A Simple Strategy
“Let students feed themselves!”
A Simple Strategy
“Never do for students
A Simple Strategy
“Never do for students
what they can do for themselves.”
Action
Research
Methods
• Notes, audio recordings
• Ask, what would I have done?
• Short-term & long-term effects
• Interviews
• Reflections
• Resolutions
Action
Research
Methods
1. The Case of the
Irresponsible Eyes
Situation: A student chatters-off topic
to a listener at the same table.
What would I do?
1. The Case of the
Irresponsible Eyes
Expert Action: (1) Stand near talker…
1. The Case of the
Irresponsible Eyes
Expert Action: (2) Firmly confront listener!
“Please get to
work!
“But I’m not
doing
anything!”
“You are
encouraging
him with your
eyes!”
1. The Case of the
Irresponsible Eyes
Short-term effects:
•That group was quiet & a
little more productive.
•Other groups were rather
productive!
Long-term effects:
Minimal off-task talking.
1. The Case of the
Irresponsible Eyes
Interview with teacher:
• Talker had been warned,
counseled after class,…
• Less disruption
• Calloused to consequences
• Noticed: Kids do shun &
hush talkers—sometimes.
• “Never do for students...”
—————————————
Each student must discourage
off-task behavior!
1. The Case of the
Irresponsible Eyes
Interviews with students:
• “I don’t dis’ a friend.”
• “Teacher notices talker,
not me….Except in this
class!”
1. The Case of the
Irresponsible Eyes
Reflections:
• Shunning increases
attention-seeking
• Chilling effect
• “Teacher’s job”
• Why do kids talk?
• Attention as addictive
Deal with consumers AND with
providers of attention!
1. The Case of the
Irresponsible Eyes
Resolutions:
• Consistently support
students’ responsibility
to keep students on task.
• Rehearse signals.
Deal with consumers AND with
providers of attention!
2. The Case of the Inefficient
Instruction
Situation:
Class needs a
vocabulary review.
What would I do?
2. The Case of the Inefficient
Instruction
Expert action:
During group work time,
the teacher repeated the
vocabulary review for
each group.
2. The Case of the Inefficient
Instruction
Interview:
“During a whole class
review, what do the
kids learn?”
“During a whole class
review, what does the
teacher learn?”
2. The Case of the Inefficient
Instruction
Reflections:
Most kids learn from faceto-face talk many times
better than from a blast to
the class!
Resolutions:
Make plenty of group work
time! Aggressively use faceto-face interactions to
forward learning of
individuals and groups.
Incidents Observed
1. The Case of the Irresponsible Eyes
2. The Case of the Inefficient Instruction
3. The Case of the Terse Teacher (Collaboration)
4. The Case of the Uninterrupted Group (Attention)
5. The Case of the Frustrated Copyists (Seating)
6. The Case of the Lost Sheep (Differentiated Inst.)
7. The Case of the Nameless Students (Behavior)
8. The Case of the Easy Engagement (With-It-Ness)
9. The Case of the Awesome Grader (Learning)
10.The Case of the Alpha Instructor (Behavior)
Conclusions
3. The Case of the Terse
Teacher
Situation:
Conduct direct
instruction.
What would I do?
3. The Case of the Terse
Teacher
Expert action:
• Median instruction time:
five minutes.
• “Have at it!”
• 3’x8’ white board.
3. The Case of the Terse
Teacher
Student Work Time During 35
50-minute Periods
Minutes
48
47
46
45
44 (median)
43
42
41 (mean)
40
39
38
37
36
35
34
33
32
Frequency (Days)
   












...
18
10


I measured student
work time for 35
days. This excludes
testing days.
‘Minutes’ is mean
group work time for
a day’s 3 sections.
The two outlying low
values occurred on
review days.
3. The Case of the Terse
Teacher
Student interviews:
• “Show us more how to
do things.”
• Students in classes
that had almost 100%
direct instruction also
asked, “Show us more
how to do things.”
3. The Case of the Terse
Teacher
Reflections:
• Students in groups
CAN read aloud the
text as needed, CAN
understand the text
example, etc.
• Students can learn
many such tasks as
daily expected
routines.
3. The Case of the Terse
Teacher
Teacher Interview:
How did you bring the kids
to routine self-sufficiency?
“You get some of the group.
You tell them what you
expect. You tell them what
you believe.
You make sure you structure
it so that the majority of
them have a reasonable
amount of success doing it.”
3. The Case of the Terse
Teacher
Teacher Interviews:
“Then you pick up
stragglers one at a time.
I’m getting them all
one at a time.”
3. The Case of the Terse
Teacher
Resolutions:
• Make enough student
work time to allow faceto-face teaching and
practice of study
routines.
• Prioritize above teacher
help: the textbook,
calculators, help from
group members, help
from other groups, and
“get unstuck” questions.
4. The Case of the
Uninterrupted Group
Situation:
Teacher wants students
to not waste time, to
work industriously.
What would I do?
4. The Case of the
Uninterrupted Group
Expert Action:
Avoid interrupting the
whole class. Deal with
groups individually.
Reflections:
Individuals & groups work
at different speeds. Each
gets off-task in their own
special way.
4. The Case of the
Uninterrupted Group
“GET UNSTUCK” LIST
Getting Started
What do you need to find out?
What do you know now?
How can you get the information?
Where can you begin?
What terms do you understand/not
understand?
What similar problems have you
solved that would help?
While Working
How can you organize the
information?
Can you make a drawing (model) to
explain your thinking?
What are other possibilities?
What would happen if . . . ?
Can you describe an approach
(strategy) you can use to solve
this?
What do you need to do next?
Do you see any patterns or
relationships that will help
you solve this?
How does this relate to ...?
Can you make a prediction?
Why did you ...?
What assumptions are you
making?
Reflecting about the Solution
How do you know your
solution (conclusion) is
reasonable?
How did you arrive at your
answer?
How can you convince me
your answer makes sense?
What did you try that did not
work?
Has the question been
answered?
Can the explanation be made
clearer?
4. The Case of the
Uninterrupted Group
Resolutions:
• Use “Get Unstuck” List
and other routines to
help groups remain selfsufficient.
• Confront off-task groups
and individuals
consistently.
5. The Case of the Frustrated
Copyists
Situation:
During group time,
some students
habitually copy from
more productive
classmates.
What would I do?
5. The Case of the Frustrated
Copyists
Expert Action:
• Group by homogeneous
performance.
• Exception: 2 or 3 most
at-risk students are each
assigned groups where
other three students have
highest scores.
• Require group dialogue.
5. The Case of the Frustrated
Copyists
Long-term results:
• Far less copying than in
similar classes.
• Group plot to divide work
resulted in collaboration.
5. The Case of the Frustrated
Copyists
Reflections:
• Daily homework reveals
comprehension, by design
of Core-Plus text.
• What is plagiarism? Are
we failing to discourage
plagiarism?
6. The Case of the Lost
Sheep
Situation:
One student in a group of three or
four falls far behind the others.
What would I do?
6. The Case of the Lost
Sheep
Expert Action:
The host teacher
sometimes spent
most of a period
with a lagging
student.
Over several days,
all such students
received 20-30
minutes of
individual counsel.
6. The Case of the Lost
Sheep
Reflection:
• More group time—with
somewhat self-directing
groups—frees a teacher
for many special needs.
• Differentiated instruction
in class reduces hours in
conference outside class.
• Face-to-face talk is the
most effective talk.
• A kid’s interests are key
to ADHD & impulsive kids.
Relationships count.
6. The Case of the Lost
Sheep
Resolutions:
Find ways to show my
concern for students
interests. They may
show more interest in
finding success by my
terms.
7. The Case of the Nameless
Students
Situation:
Teacher wants to
recognize, question,
congratulate, or
confront a student.
What would I do?
7. The Case of the Nameless
Students
Expert action:
• Teacher does not often
address students by
name. Instead, he
selects volunteers by nod
or eye contact.
• The teacher confronts
misbehaviors by
escalating from pause,
then walking to the
student, & obtaining eye
contact.
7. The Case of the Nameless
Students
Reflections:
• Cross-room nagging is no
substitute for face-toface communication.
• Attention-seeking kids
like being named, if only
for negatives.
• However—if students
believe you do not know
their name, bad things
happen!
7. The Case of the Nameless
Students
Resolutions:
• Use names more for
praise.
• Practice memory.
• Memorize student
names in first class.
8. The Case of the Easy
Engagement
Situation:
The bell rings.
Students should be at work.
What would I do?
8. The Case of the Easy
Engagement
Expert action:
• At bell, students copy
today’s agenda and
assignment from board.
• Teacher surveys room—not
recording attendance.
• Teacher confronts students
who lack materials or aren’t
copying.
• After about a minute,
teacher reads agenda aloud
and commences any direct
instruction.
8. The Case of the Easy
Engagement
Interview:
• Students know: there
will be plenty of group
time; hold questions.
• Pro-actively confront
slackers!
• Avoid interrupting lecture!
• Attendance is not enough.
Whose minds are present?
Prep the eyes in the back
of your head!
8. The Case of the Easy
Engagement
Reflections:
• Bellwork can engage
advanced students. But
do you interrupt that
work to grade it, to
discuss it?
• For many kids, bellwork
is just another chance
to fail.
• Doesn’t it make sense to
start notes with the
date, class, and
assignment? Why wait?
9. The Case of the Awesome
Grader
Situation:
Students and
teacher need to
assess student
comprehension on
assignments.
What would I do?
9. The Case of the Awesome
Grader
Expert action:
Grade everything
received for return
the next day! Allow
corrections—and
immediately grade
these. Personally
return graded work
to each student.
9. The Case of the Awesome
Grader
Interview:
1. Assignment quizzes are ok for advanced
students. These save teacher work and
quickly inform students. However, less
mature kids don’t use their corrections!
2. Core-Plus problems often:
have many right answers, and
require sentences explaining ‘how’.
Students CAN NOT reliably grade results, no
more than they can grade one another’s
English essays.
3. I want to see what’s going on day by day.
9. The Case of the Awesome
Grader
Interview:
4. Do kids learn more from grading, or from
group or individual work?
5.Why return work personally? One, I can
say a few words to individuals. Two,
security. I’ve never lost a paper.
6. I tell students that for the rest of their
lives, they won’t get many chances to fix
mistakes. For now these kids still need
extra motivation to make corrections.
9. The Case of the Awesome
Grader
Interview:
7. “It’s hard for teachers to tell kids to
turn in assignments on time—and
then take three days to finish grading.
I want to model timeliness and the
work ethic.”
9. The Case of the Awesome
Grader
Reflections:
In what senses are these ideas true?
(a) Homework is a chance to explore.
(b) Homework is a chance to exercise.
(c) Homework is a chance for parent
participation.
Resolution:
I will aim for overnight grading!
10. The Case of the Alpha
Instructor
Situation: Students don’t pay attention.
What would I do?
10. The Case of the Alpha
Instructor
Expert action:
“I need your attention.”
Teacher waits. Glares.
Taps watch.
“I need your eyes.”
Attention gained?
If lips move, teacher halts and waits.
On occasion, an incompliant student
goes to the hall for conference.
10. The Case of the Alpha
Instructor
Interview:
“Kids don’t always attend to things they value.
Attention spans vary by individual and day.”
“Students must acknowledge that you, the
teacher, are the authority in the room.”
“I have only two rules. Do your work. Behave.”
“I challenge kids about misbehavior: ‘How is
this working for you?’”
“New teachers are often not consistent in
confronting misbehavior.”
10. The Case of the Alpha
Instructor
Reflections:
• Protect freedom to learn.
• Hesitation to use authority can stem from
memories or perceptions of its misuse.
• Continued rewards or punishments kill
intrinsic motivation and build resentment.
• When to persist in a consequence? Has the
kid calculated persistence?
• “Intervention” involves a student in thinking
about behavior. Punishment does not.
10. The Case of the Alpha
Instructor
Resolutions:
• Reduce opportunities for misbehavior,
especially activities that have relatively low
learning value.
• Consistently confront distractions and other
departures from productivity.
• Face-to-face confrontation is much more
effective than a blast to the class.
Conclusions
“Never do for students what students can do
for themselves.”
—Kids can do more than they believe.
“Face-to-face time is many times more
productive than whole-class time.”
“Get them all, one at a time.”
—Always ask, how can I get more learning?
“Be consistent in enforcing routines and
simple standards of productivity.”
—Students can think about behavior.
—Stimulate them to protect their learning!
Conclusions
“You know that feeling you get when you’ve
done something and you’re proud of it?
Well, if class time is all show and tell,
where’s your chance to get that feeling?”
Thanks!
To Mr. Expert Teacher!
To the Students!
To my Advisors!
To SMAR2T Staff and other MU support staff.
To my Cohort!
To all the teachers and students from whom
I’ve learned!
Elegant Classroom Management
Setting
One Simple Strategy
1. The Case of the Irresponsible Eyes
2. The Case of the Inefficient Instruction
3. The Case of the Terse Teacher
4. The Case of the Uninterrupted Group
5. The Case of the Frustrated Copyists
6. The Case of the Lost Sheep
7. The Case of the Nameless Students
8. The Case of the Easy Engagement
9. The Case of the Awesome Grader
10.The Case of the Alpha Instructor
Conclusions
Elegant Classroom Management
Setting
One Simple Strategy
1. The Case of the Irresponsible Eyes
2. The Case of the Inefficient Instruction
3. The Case of the Terse Teacher
4. The Case of the Uninterrupted Group
5. The Case of the Frustrated Copyists
6. The Case of the Lost Sheep
7. The Case of the Nameless Students
8. The Case of the Easy Engagement
9. The Case of the Awesome Grader
10.The Case of the Alpha Instructor
Conclusions