Behavior management is an important goal to focus on as a future teacher for various reasons. If a classroom does not have an effective behavior management plan implemented sufficiently by the educator, then the classroom environment and community will suffer and the students will not gain social and academic skills. It is also important that the educator has an understanding of his or her students while implementing the behavior management strategy.
In order to work towards the goal of effectively implementing behavior management in the classroom, there are various strategies that will be beneficial. First, it is important that the students have a concrete understanding of the requirements of the task at hand. Through providing explicit directions that state the consequences of getting off task, the students will enter the lesson or activity further prepared which should result in less off task behaviors. Another idea that will assist in reaching this goal is acquiring a stern voice that indicates that the behavior problem is not acceptable so that the student will turn their attention back to the task. Additionally, the strategy of positive reinforcement will assist in working towards this goal. The positive reinforcement may be received in various forms including verbal praise or support.
I have implemented some of the strategies/ideas in working towards my goal of more effective classroom management. I have worked on a stern voice that does not cause fear but simply indicates that I am being serious, which seems effective but I would prefer not to rely on a stern voice solely. I have also worked on stating the directions more clearly and restating them once they are said, and I have observed a considerable increase in on task behavior when this strategy is implemented. I believe that this strategy is effective because it provides concrete support in the lesson or activity that students are completing. I have also worked on providing my students with positive verbal recognition. I believe that this strategy is working because once one student is praised for following directions, being a good friend or citizen, etc. then their peers are more likely to follow suit.