Personal style
Resources to support Charlie Taylor’s Improving Teacher Training for Behaviour
Behaviour Scenarios
Scenario 1: Setting classroom standards
This Scenario has been developed for Initial Teacher Training (ITT) to enable trainees to
demonstrate knowledge, skills and understanding of behaviour management
Personal style
Introduction
Behaviour2Learn has developed 17 Scenarios focusing on the 8 areas highlighted in the
Teaching Agency's document Improving teacher training for behaviour. These are:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Personal Style
Self-management
Reflection
School Systems
Relationships
Classroom Management
More Challenging Behaviour
Theoretical Knowledge
Improving teacher training for behaviour has been developed by Charlie Taylor, the
Government’s expert adviser on behaviour, to complement the new Teachers’
Standards that all teachers have to demonstrate from September 2012.
2
Personal style
Scenario 1
Setting classroom standards
It is your first lesson with a class.
You want to establish some ground rules.
How do you set about it?
Personal style
Key Learning Outcomes
• Willingness to take responsibility for ensuring high standards of
behaviour so that pupils can learn.
• Recognition of the importance of developing your personal style for
managing behaviour, defining expected standards and agreeing
them with pupils.
• Decisions about the standards that you would require to create a
climate for learning appropriate to the context in which you are
teaching.
Personal style
What do you do?
What would you say in order to begin to set the standards of behaviour
you require? Consider these responses and choose the best one(s):
1. “Listen carefully. These are the standards that I expect from you ….”
2. “Before we begin, let’s remind ourselves of the school code of
conduct ….”
3. “Let’s agree some ground rules that will help us all learn together...”
4. “Shouting out is a good example of what we don’t want …. I shouldn’t
need to tell you ….”
5. “I know you are all fed up with teachers going on about rules but ….”
6. “What are the behaviours we will not tolerate in our classroom?….”
Personal style
What might be the best choice?
3. “Let’s agree some ground rules to help us all learn together…”
This approach involves pupils in taking responsibility for their
behaviour from the outset. It helps them to work together as a
group. The rules are theirs too.
It puts the focus on learning - the purpose of the class.
You should have the school Code of Conduct to hand and refer to
this as a reminder that the ground rules for your class are in line
with it.
If, in the future, you need to remind or correct a pupil who is
breaking a rule it helps to depersonalise the situation if the rules
have first been agreed by the class – They are “our rules” not “my
rules”.
Personal style
How do you establish the Code of Conduct?
You will help pupils abide by the class Code of Conduct if you:
1. Agree the Code of Conduct with the class.
2. Keep the rules short and simple.
3. ensure that they are positive – telling us what to do – rather than
negative – telling us what not to do.
4. Frequently praise pupils who behave in support of the Code of Conduct –
and point out why you are praising them.
5. Always abide by the Code of Conduct yourself and model the rules
frequently.
6. Expect visitors to abide by the Code of Conduct and model the rules too.
7. Publish the Code of Conduct clearly so that it can be referred to easily.
8. Use the Code of Conduct to set behaviour targets for the lesson.
Personal style
Underlying Principles
• Agreeing expectations for behaviour with the class at an early stage helps
pupils learn how to take responsibility for their behaviour.
• Effective Codes of Conduct set positive standards for everyone, are nonspecific, short, easy to understand and help sustain learning.
• The Code of Conduct for your classroom should be consistent with the
Code of Conduct for the school.
• The Code of Conduct is not a rod to beat pupils with – it is best
implemented using positive techniques e.g. appropriate praise and
reward to reinforce and improve behaviour that supports learning.
Personal style
Rights and Responsibilities
• Pupils have the right to know what is expected of them so that they
can learn in a harmonious and well-ordered environment.
• It is everyone’s responsibility to behave in ways that support the
learning of all.
• Creating a positive classroom climate is one of the basic
responsibilities of the teacher.
• Schools are required in law to have a Behaviour Policy for pupils
drawn up by the headteacher after consultation and agreed by the
governors.
Personal style
Activities to try
1. List the five rules that you think students might include in a Code of
Conduct for your classroom.
2. Hold a discussion with a group of pupils and ask them to draw up a
Code of Conduct for their class while you listen in. Compare their
list with the list you had prepared. Note the insights that you gain
and discuss them with colleagues.
3. Collect the Codes of Conduct from several schools (you can find
examples online) and consider how well they reflect the principles
outlined on Slide 7.
Personal style
Conclusions
You are responsible for creating a positive environment for learning in your classroom.
A Code of Conduct, in line with that for the school as a whole, sets the standards of
behaviour you expect from your class.
Agreeing ground rules together with pupils at the outset allows you to find out what
they expect, and to show your personal focus on the importance of learning behaviour.
Rules should be clear, positive and memorable. They should be displayed in the room
and you should refer to them frequently.
They should enable you to praise and encourage pupils regularly so that you develop a
positive climate for learning.
They should provide a structure for dealing with any challenging situations that arise in
the future.
It is a good idea to include behaviour targets, based on the code of conduct, in your
learning intentions for a lesson.
Personal style
Developed in partnership with
www.ncflb.com
12