Teach English in Shenlun Zhen - Taizhou Shi

There are many key elements to help ensure that your classroom is managed in the most effective way possible. A few examples would be the teacher’s personality, foundation and structure. When a teacher greets his/her students with a genuine smile or casual greeting, this sets the mood before the lesson has even started. If the teacher resembles a rather unpleasant mood, the students as well may pick up this energy and carry it on in the class. Students will be able to notice that their teacher is unprepared if material is not set up and ready before hand or if he/she enters the class late. It’s important to make sure your materials are organized so when you need them they are ready at hand. If you begin your session by organizing your material in front of your students, that becomes their introduction which therefore immediately sets the atmosphere for that lesson. Grasping their attention afterwards will be far more difficult than if you were prepared. In actuality, a mistake like this gives the students the upper hand when it comes to the control of the classroom. Any first session with a new group of students is the perfect opportunity to set the foundation of the class. It’s better to be firm at the beginning to establish your rules and regulations than to start off being lenient. It’s much more difficult to attempt to enforce rules later on during the course or school year. A solid foundation should be built from day one. This teaches students what you expect from them and this will help your lessons flow more effectively. It is commonly known that different teachers have different ways and methods of forming a decent structure for their class. A teacher’s structure depends upon the needs and abilities of the students. Some classrooms work more effectively sitting in groups or pairs, while a semi-circle may be more beneficial for another class. Either way, the seating arrangement should be created upon the needs of an individual class. Specifically regarding young learners, they tend to have a short attention span which could possible lead to behavior issues. Creating engaging lesson and activities can help keep the students busy while they are having fun learning. Continuously reading from the course book every session or not implementing activities can decrease the students’ motivation to learn. While an organized structure is important, we have to be careful not to make our lessons too predictive. This will cause students to believe they already know what’s going to take place during the lesson; therefore, they do not have to listen. Keeping the students on their toes and filling the lesson with surprises and activities will keep them engaged and guessing as to what is going to happen next. For example, with my students, I like to give them the opportunity for them to guess what the session will be about before writing the learning objective on the board. Giving them a timer or even the first letter helps get all students engaged right away at the beginning of the session. This moment gives low ability students the confidence they need at the beginning of the lesson. To help the flow of the class and for the betterment of the students, some activities may be prolonged while others may wrap up a bit quickly than expected. This also helps the students feel the flexibility of the lesson which can help keep them more at ease as they work. Time should still be managed but it should also fit the ability and needs of the students. In case students have finished their work before the time of the session has ended, crossword puzzles can help fill in that extra time. There should always be a backup plan; students should always have a task at hand whether it’s individually, as a group or as a class. Technology is beneficial to use as an engaging source for the students, however, we should have another activity or worksheet in case something fails. In conclusion, the importance classroom management has on teaching is far beyond what we can imagine. Something that may seem so small can end up throwing a massive curveball in a lesson. We should be as prepared as possible and be able to make quick decisions upon the flow of the class. Personally speaking, I could have all the knowledge in the world concerning the English language. I could even have a master’s degree in teaching. However, if I am not capable of properly managing my class, my knowledge on the subject itself will not save me. The way we present ourselves and our information to our students means absolutely everything. It alters how the students learn in ways we can’t even imagine. Once the class has a firm balanced structure, everything else will begin to fall in place which leads to successful lessons, giving potential for students to become successful learners.