When it comes to teaching, classroom management is one of the hardest bits of teaching finesse to observe. You can read articles, books, information on all the techniques. (I'll even describe a few of them for you later.) However, it's difficult to notice that teacher who is standing inches closer to a chatting student. Proximity, speech, etc. are teaching cues that we take for granted which a teacher has learned to keep their class on topic.
(Classroom management: It's sorta like standing under a ripe apple tree and at any moment several apples are going to fall, and you have to catch them all.)
However interesting, I'd prefer to discuss a different management:
Parent/Guardian Management.
What? You thought you were only in charge of a classroom full of students?
True. You can't see those parents/guardians in your classroom. But parents are a dynamic and integral part of any class.
Cue my classroom management course:
My classroom management professor decided to have us role play various scenarios. One student was given the role of the teacher and the other students was given the role of the parent/guardian.
Liz*, the student in training opposite me, was given this prompt: "You have called in a parent to discuss a student's behavior. The student's scores are good, but not perfect. But he is constantly disruptive, audibly yawns in your classroom and pretends to be asleep."
My prompt: "You are a parent who has been called in to talk to a teacher. Your child is a good student but is sometimes bored. You tell the teacher that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, if your child doesn't enjoy a class, it's the teacher's fault."
(This was going to be fun!) *names have been changed*
Before role play started I asked my fellow student, "What's your name?" -Me
"Liz."
"No. What's your teacher name? Ms....?" - Me
"Oh! Ms. Clark." - Liz aka. Ms. Clark
"What subject do you teach Ms. Clark?" - Me
"Math." - Ms. Clark, grinning and clearly excited.
I slouched far down into my chair, planted my legs and glared. "So, my son James is in your class. He says it's booorrrring..."-Me
"Okay. Well, if he's bored..." - Ms. Clark
"He has a B in your class. What's wrong with that?" - Me
"Well, I've been having some struggles..." - Ms. Clark
"I know all about your classroom Ms. Clark, my son's told me all about how you stand up at the whiteboard writing equations, blah blah blah, lecture lecture all day long. And I know about that stupid paper you want him to sign." - Me
"But..." - Ms. Clark
"APPLE DOESN'T FALL FAR FROM THE TREE! If my son is bored in your class, it's YOUR fault!" - Me
At this point our professor stopped us and explained that at any point during a parent/teacher argument you can request help from administration. In other words, if you find a parent being unreasonable you can have the principal or vice principal proctor or even take over the discussion.
But Liz Clark turned to our professor and with tears in her eyes asked, "What if I really am boring?"
"Liz," I replied, "Do you enjoy your subject? Do you really love teaching math?"
"Yes." she cried.
"Then no matter what you'll find the ways to reach your students, and if you enjoy it, you won't be boring." - Me
I could end here.
But, I haven't explained my favorite techniques for classroom management, or in this case: Parent/Guardian Management.
1. Contact parents frequently through email, phone etc.
Make sure you're on the same page as the parents and that the parents fully understand your grading policies or the policies of your school in general. Make sure your communication is not all negative. Positive communication is just as important. (Sending positive notes home is also effective for teaching. See my post on Letters from School.)
2. Enjoy your subject
Show that you enjoy the subject you teach, and if possible allow your students to show what they care about in the way they present in your classroom. (i.e. If a students loves drawing, have them draw their next report.) When you enjoy teaching the class, the students enjoy being in the class, the parents see their student enjoying to learn.
3. Fess up when you're wrong
Teachers are human too. There will be times when you lose a paper, score something wrong, accidentally teach a misconception. Or spill that cup of juice all over a student's report. Apologize, work through it, it's okay to make a mistake, it's not okay to let the mistake linger.
4. Stand your ground when you're right
Lastly, you may not always get along with a parent. Don't worry, I've been there too. Sometimes things don't work out and you may need help from an administrator. If this happens, don't fret too much. Education is rarely a solo activity. It really does take a village to raise a child--parents and administrators are included in that village.
