Get Your Students Hired
David, excellent point. Your students need to expect that you will begin on time and end on time. Coming in late will require them to do more work to catch up with notes from others in their class or to review any documents you may provide for them after a course is completed. There are some institutions that require an instructor to stop what they are doing, catch late arriving students up when they show up late and for my two cents, this is really a bad situation. For one, it shows other students that there is nothing to value in being on time, second it shows students that their time is not as important as others because they show up on time and still get the same information as those showing up late or leaving early and as a last point I will make, it is just unprofessional. Start on time, teach all the way to the end of class and force those that show up late or leave early to do some extra work to get caught up. Of course I also have to state I feel it is important to offer office hours and reflective notes at the end of every class. Some students try very hard to make it to class on time and not leave early but life situations can take place that make such dedication impossible. There is a way to meet the needs of both groups of students and maintain a professional classroom management process.
James Jackson
Dr.PAVAN, can you share some of the methods you use to evaluate shortcomings of your students? Based on your evaluations, how do you know what actions you need to take to reach the achievable goals you set for your students. Thanks for any information you can share and that could be of assistance to others reviewing the post.
James Jackson
I often give surveys as well. I use them in the beginning, middle and end of the course. This allows students to feel that they have a voice in the class. I know early on whether or not something is working for this particular class.
This idea is key, since every class that I teach is different depending on the level of the students. I getting a feeling for the class and alter lessons depending on the what will work best for this class. This seems to cut down on alot of dicipline issues.
i have takren students into confidence by addressing them by their names and paying attention to shortcommings and motivating them to overcome and focus on acheivable goals.
I can integrate guide model management to improve the class room room atmosphere.
I am situationally aware when in the classroom and look for/notice students' behaviors as the class moves along. Focusing on students' interest levels help me to maintain an engaged environment by immediately changing up the pace as needed. Although our classes are taught as a composite of both lecture and small group discussions, students may lose interest and need to be redirected at any point. Always have a plan B. Moving forward, I will utilize ED 113's helpful suggestion of a brief writing assignment for those students who may need to stop and reflect on their undesired behavior(s).
I also was the "buddy" when Ifirst started teaching. It really is not a good idea. I have now since changed my style to that of a guide. Students appreciate it more I feel. And the classroom management is easier. I think we all want to be liked and so it is easy to fall into that buddy routine. I have to constantly remind myself not to slip back into it. Sometimes its hard.
I have tried to use small group settings and work stations to keep students focused on tasks at hand. I find this easier than addressing the whole group at once. Then I have then switch stations and discuss new topic. ONe thing I can sugest is to go observe other instructors and their styles. It helps to see what works and what doesnt.
I also give out rules and instructions on how the day will flow and I make my best effort to stay the course
Jodie, there is no easy answer when your administration is not going to have your back. I am not there to observe what is taking place so take my comments here with a grain of salt as they may not provide you with anything useful but here is my two cents. One technique is to record each class session. You may erase more footage than what you keep but when an incident does take place you have the video footage to back you up. Also, the presence of recording equipment can have a dramatic impact on your students that tend to cause issues. The purpose of the recording is to really help you improve as an instructor and it is always good to review random class sessions with your supervisor and peers to get their feedback on what you can be doing to improve your teaching style but it also gives you that unbiased eye when needed.
Regards,
James Jackson
Starting class at the very beginning of class and teaching all the way to the end helps to have good class management. Asking questions and getting the class involved in a conversation about the topic helps as well.
Jodie, I totally agree that it is not a good practice to shut and lock doors. I also feel it is disrespectful to other students for you to stop class to greet each students that comes in late. My focus would be to establish a policy that you will begin classes on time and for those that come in late, it is their responsibility to meet with fellow students after class or outside the class period to catch up on any necessary notes. This is also where a blended approach could really be of value. You could release your notes after class and allow those that came in late to catch up their own notes and questions outside the classroom in an asynchronous format. I am interested in what others have to say about this situation. No wrong answers here and I am sure this topic will bring forward much debate. Debate is good as we move forward towards a better understanding and better end results.
Regards,
James Jackson
Yes I agree that policy would be disruptive itself. If a student is late it should be their responsability to retain what they missed after class or during office hours.
James, games are great tools and really get the students engaged. Are there any games you can share and any results you can discuss?
Regards,
James Jackson
To improve my classroom management, I have implemented various games to keep the students focused on the subject being discussed.
Also using weekly seating assignments also alleviates confusion and voluntary student outbursts.
I have tried laying down the rules in the very beginning of a class as well as having the class create the rules for a successful and safe learning environment for everyone. One of the problems I have is that addressing poor classroom behavior for me usually ends up in a much bigger disruption than the behavior was and the whole lesson gets thrown off.
When I try to be strict and ask students not following classroom policies to leave the class, the student and I meet with the director of education. The director gets both sides of the story. The meeting usually involves the student saying that other people in class are doing the same thing and that I am singling this person out. I am then told that if I am going to send a student out of class for breaking policy I need to be sure that no other students are making the same offense. This is said even if I can account for the behavior of the other students.
At times when I have had issues with tardiness I did the 5 min grace period and then shut & locked the door. This was initially supported by the director of education of the school. However, recently a few students complained to school representatives and instructors have been told that doing this is not a good practice in our attempts to retain students. Instructors have been told to welcome the students to the classroom and inform them where we are in the lesson.
I think this is fine for students that arrive late for unexpected reasons, but feel it sends the wrong message to students that are generally late most of the time. One day I actually had 6 students arrive late at different times. One student being late is a disruption, can you imagine how problematic this was. I had to stop class to welcome each student and inform them where we were in the lesson as I was mandated. That was ridiculous. I couldn't even keep track of where I was in the lesson after the third one.
I have talked to repeat offenders of being late and the program chair has talked to their respective students but some just never quite get the idea.
To improve in my class, I do not accept tardiness. I believe it is disruptive to the students who are interested in the content. I give five minutes and shut the door. If they are late they have to wait till break to enter. This practice has reduced tardiness extremely low.
Neal, there is nothing wrong with giving some authority to your students and asking them to remind you when the topic is moving off line. You might be surprised how more attentive they may become if they feel they are the ones charged with keeping you on track. Give this a try and would love to hear how it goes in a future post.
Regards,
James Jackson
I have included the students in all discussions. It seems to help when asking them questions, and allowing them to find the answers, with guidance.
Keeping things concise and organized in presentation can be an issue for me, and that can lead to impatience with students. I could improve that by staying focused on the task at hand.
Darryl, great post. I highly recommend experimenting and recording your results. It will also be very beneficial to include the demographics of your student profile in your record keeping as you will want to compare your student information with your delivery techniques.
Regards,
James Jackson