Paper Example on Teaching Success: Managing Classroom Env to Maximize Student Performance & Behavior

Introduction

Student performance and behavior change are two significant educational or learning achievements for a teacher. Nothing makes teachers prouder than seeing their students excelling and changing their behaviors for the better, and this motivates them to do their best every day for learners to have brighter futures. One of the foundational secrets of success in class for a teacher is to manage the classroom environment making it conducive for learning. Student behavior in the classroom decides whether or not the teacher will be able to teach effectively, and the content taught will sink in well. Classroom management can be defined as the ability of the teacher or instructor to control or minimize learners’ disruptive classroom behaviors in order to increase cooperation and engagement in the learning environment (Beaty-O’Ferrall et al., 2010). Learning can also be a success if the teacher can effectively manage time, activities, and space within the learning environment. The ability to do so is unique to each teacher and is dependent on each instructor’s individual skills, characteristics, and competencies in doing so. The challenges of modern classroom environments have made it difficult for teachers to effectively impact learning due to their inability to accurately manage their students’ behaviors in class. Failure to control or manage the classroom is one of the major reasons why learning cannot take place effectively; thus, students fail. Research indicates that most teachers who voluntarily ditch the profession within few years of employment cite dissatisfaction associated with their failure to impact adequate learning, and this is because they cannot properly manage their classes well enough for learning to take place (O'Neill & Stephenson, 2014).

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Problem Statement

Ineffective classroom management is down to the method(s) used by teachers to control their students’ behavioral tendencies to disrupt learning and not cooperate with others and teachers to achieve learning objectives. A disruptive learning environment due to uncontrolled behavior makes it difficult for content delivery hence inadequacy in learning and achievement of learning objectives. It has become a big concern for learning many institutions, which has called for a change in the manner in which modern classrooms can be kept in check for learning to continue.

The rationale behind this problem of classroom management is that teachers, school administration, and learners are affected negatively when learning goals are not achieved. This is a big concern because when teachers are not able to modify the behaviors of learners, then they fail the whole society, and they themselves get unmotivated and discouraged. The big idea here is to understand the challenges of modern learning environments and adopt new ways through which teachers can supervise student behaviors and create a conducive space for learning.

The purpose of this study is to bring attention to the idea of rules and procedures as an effective means of classroom management that can help teachers in molding learners’ behaviors so that learning can take place flawlessly. Particular classroom rules and regulations can proscribe learners’ bad behavioral tendencies in class and encourage good behavior paving the way for fruitful learning.

Literature Review

Beaty-O'Ferrall et al. (2010) recognized the daunting task of teachers with regard to pedagogy and instruction and the difficult manner of dealing with learners’ behavioral tendencies. According to these authors, teachers’ actions in class have huge impacts on students’ academic achievement. Their actions are reflected in learners’ responses to assessment policies, community engagement, as well as staff collegiality. Bad behavior in the classroom is dependent on the relationships that exist among learners, as well as those among learners and teachers. Shaping behaviors in class starts from shaping the relationships, building empathy, and managing learners’ egos. However, the approach suggested by Beaty-O'Ferrall et al. (2010) contradicts psychological foundations as it praises or admires some behaviors and negative attitudes like manipulation, citing them as survival techniques based on a learner’s family environment. Rappaport & Minahan (2013) identified some bad behaviors of learners in class and how teachers find it difficult to deal with such behaviors. Disruptive sexualized behaviors in class include noise, gestures, and inappropriate language, which make learning difficult. The author emphasizes the need for teachers to understand their learners and their backgrounds in an attempt to manage their behaviors in class. Without supervision, self-regulation, and understanding, teachers will always find it difficult to control the learning space. Sieberer-Nagler (2015) weighed in on the problem of poor classroom management and how it can contribute negatively to learning outcomes and behavior of pupils. The author suggested particular aspects of positive teaching and learning inherent in the presented innovative methods. Classroom management struggles can be turned into opportunities by managing the climate, using motivation, and managing expectations so as to create a positive learning environment. O'Neill and Stephenson (2014) cited classroom and behavior management as a big problem faced by entrant teachers into the teaching career, pointing unpreparedness of the teachers as the major cause of the concern. The pre-service training is inadequate, suggesting that when training does not address the current problems, then teachers can find it difficult to understand their pupils’ problems and address them accordingly. The same sentiment was shared by (Keser, 2018) who also saw classroom management as a problem that requires new approaches to handle.

Proposed Solutions/Interventions

The proposed solution for the problem of classroom management is the application of applied behavioral analysis (ABA) as both scientific and technological intervention that solves teaching problems associated with behaviors of learners in the classroom environment (Bloh & Axelrod, 2008). Applied behavior analysis refers to the basic behavioral science of studying the behaviors and actions of individuals to understand what motivates them to do the things they do or react the way they do. ABA behavioral principles are then applied to improve certain behaviors and while also simultaneously suppressing others. In the school environment, ABA can be of great benefit because teaching methods involving behavior analysis utilizes scientific data to boost instructive and interactive techniques in the classroom setting (Autism Speaks Org, n.d.). As has been mentioned before in the upper sections of this paper, understanding learners and their backgrounds are critical to understanding their behaviors in class and can be helpful to teachers in their quest to get to know and control their learners better (Bloh & Axelrod, 2008).

The application of ABA in teaching has strategies that can help teachers understand children. For elementary children, teachers have to be behaviorists and study behavior patterns of all pupils. If a child makes noise or stands up when not told to do so, the teacher should ask themselves whether the child has a problem or they are just seeking attention. The psychological understanding of children involves stimuli, rewards, and reinforcements. There is always a motivating factor applicable to any action that young learners do. Noisemaking can be a stimulus for something that is trying to manifest itself. Teachers of elementary children must understand that a particular behavior can only continue if reinforced and mostly if the reinforcement is covert. For instance, a pupil seeking attention is likely to repeat a destructive behavior if they’re sternly told to stop because that will act as a reinforcement. In some cases, a history of chronic illness can be the cause (Brown et al., 2020). ABA deals with behavior using five functions or principles of behavior such as seeking for attention, gaining or seeking sensory stimulation, escaping attention or task, seeking a tangible reward or avoiding a task or attention (Bloh & Axelrod, 2008). If the teacher is aware of all these behavioral patterns, then they can be in better positions to observe, understand, and direct children's behaviors to make learning better.

Research Methodology

This research will be conducted using a mixed-method technique, including qualitative and quantitative aspects of educational research literature in various parts of the world. The research questions to be used will be:

1. Why do pupils keep standing when not directed to do so during lessons?
2. Why do pupils keep throwing items at each other?
3. Why do pupils whisper or shout inappropriate words?
4. How often do the disruptive tendencies occur?
5. How do other pupils react to these behaviors?
6. What is the background information on the pupils?
7. What motivates and discourages disruptive behavior in class?

The participants in this study will be a second grade class picked from a low performing school and one teacher from the same school. The sampling procedures will only focus on low performing schools because poor performance is directly linked to bad class behavior. The data collection methods will be done through observation and surveys of the learners during normal learning sessions in the classroom. Dependent variables will include student family background, grades, and school control, while independent variables will include school policies the length of the lesson or time spent in class because these apply evenly to all learners. Qualitative data will be examined through content analysis and grounded theory methods, while quantitative data will be analyzed using both descriptive and inferential analysis methods. The time span for this study will be one term.

Discussion of Outcomes and Conclusion

It is expected that learners with unstable backgrounds such as alcoholic, wrecked, and abusive families will always have higher tendencies of misbehavior in class. The types of misbehaviors will be violent behavior, classroom behavior, and class preparedness. It is expected that certain random pupils will badly misbehave by throwing papers, making cheeky noise, uttering some obscene words, and even fight each other during classroom learning sessions. Some learners will seem to support bad behavior, while others will stay calm. While independent variables will certainly remain the same, others will vary unpredictably. ABA will then be applied to study the characteristics that fluctuate, such as the dependent variables, to gain a window into why particular unruly pupils behave the way they do while in class. It is likely to be found that ABA and its strategies can be applied in teaching and can potentially improve classroom management, making learning effective for all pupils in junior grades.

Conclusion

In conclusion, better classroom management requires a better understanding of the numerous and complex psychological reasons why learners become unruly and disruptive during learning sessions. In modern times, families are fighting many underlying challenges that reflect on their children and manifest themselves in terms of undesirable behaviors. ABA is doubling as a science of behaviors and a technological tool that can aid in understanding, assessing, controlling, and managing classroom situations so that effective learning can take place.

References

Autism Speaks Org. (n.d). Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). https://www.autismspeaks.org/applied-behavior-analysis-aba-0.