I find reading the Secondary Classroom Management book extremely helpful. It gives great real advice that I think would be easy to apply in a classroom setting. Often time’s readings give good theory and so forth, but it is hard to see how it would play out in a real classroom. One of the good points from the section Making the Most of Classroom Time was holding students accountable. I think this is a key part of a high school classroom. Students need to feel like they are accountable, or they will feel like it is a waste. I think this also ties in with Brophy’s ideas. If students see that it is their own actions that determine how they do in a class, they will be more motivated. The book had some great points on how to help students use time appropriately. I think it is so important to give clear instructions because many times students do not know what they are doing and give up. I thought the point of writing down instructions was a great idea. There are a lot of times students do not process what teachers are saying. They are much more visual learners, so seeing helps them understand what needs to be done. Also I think writing it out helps reduce stress. It organizes the assignment and makes it look more doable. Breaking apart an assignment also helps with stress management. I think anything that organizes an assignment for the students and makes it less stressful will help motivate students to do it.
Monitoring students work was also a good point. Students are going to work harder if they know a teacher is watching them and caring about their progress. Also by monitoring, teachers seem more approachable for questions. If a student does not have to get the attention of the teacher in front of the whole class, they may feel more comfortable asking a question. I think another important part of monitoring the book stated was catching mistakes. If a teacher can see a student does not understand before the whole assignment is completed, then perhaps they can help that student correct it and still feel motivated to try. One of the most frustrating things is when you complete something the wrong way. By catching a mistake early a teacher prevents frustration for the students and maybe even helps them understand better. Doing something the right way first helps learning it easier.
