How to manage challenging behaviour?

Classroom management is defined as actions taken to create and maintain a learning

environment that supports instructional goals (Brophy, 1988). The purpose of classroom
management is to foster academic achievement, social, emotional and character development.
Thus classroom management goes beyond rewarding acceptable behaviour and punishing
misconduct.
Throughout my research I have observed a strong correlation between classroom
management and behavioural issues, good classroom management focuses on the prevention
of disruptions rather than the intervention (Snyder, 2000). As a pre-service teacher I now
know that instead of worrying and planning for behavioural problems I may encounter in the
future, it is important to develop preventable strategies which I will outline.
It is vital teachers are equipped with various skills and knowledge which will enable them to
establish rules and procedure, maintain engagement in academic activities, structure the
classroom environment and develop relationships with students to create and maintain an
effective learning environment.
Develop and maintain an effective learning environment by:
1. Creating meaningful curriculum and motivating instruction: students have to be
engaged and interested in the learning activities being presented to them. As teachers
it is good pedagogical practice to plan tasks which are developmentally appropriate
and intellectually meaningful (Standard 1.5) this ensures students are attaining
appropriate scaffolding. Behavioural problems may arise when the task is too hard or
easy resulting in frustration or boredom by tasks which are too basic.
How will this look in my class? I hope to engage my students in an interesting hands-on
inquiry using concrete materials. This approach is in alignment with research by Brophy
(1987) and Lepper (1988) who conclude that a student's interest in academic activities is
enhanced when teachers (1) emphasize intrinsic reasons for learning rather than stressing
grades or other rewards; (2) relate material to students' lives and experiences or to current
events; (3) offer choices about what, where, how, or with whom work is done; (4) assign
tasks that are varied and that include novel elements; (5) assign problems for students to
solve that are realistic and challenging; and (6) assign work that involves creating a product
or provides some concrete form of accomplishment.
2. Develop learning communities
In a study conducted by Welsh, Parke, Widaman, and O'Neil (2001) examined the direction of
effects between social competence and academic competence over time. The research
strongly suggests that social competence typically leads to happier and more academically
successful children.
The development of a learning community enables teachers to effectively manage the
classroom, as it provides a safe environment which stimulates learning opportunities and
assistance. In this approach of empowering students to construct knowledge through social
interaction in an active learning process is based on theorist Lev Vygotsky's ideas about
learning as a social process.

3.Organising the classroom

The structure is important in maintaining an effective learning environment. An orderly
classroom arrangement optimizes learning time, whereas inadequate planning causes
disruptions and delays (Emmer, Evertson, Sanford, Clements, and Worsham, 1984). When
the classroom is thoughtfully arranged it supports orderly movement, fewer distractions, and
effective use of available space (Emmer and others, 1984). According to Kounin (1977) there
are a number of ways in which a teachers behaviour affects student behaviour and learning.
He found that when a teacher terminates one activity, starts another, and then returns to the
first activity it disrupts the flow of learning. Teachers may also disrupt the flow when they are
pulled away from the activity by unimportant matters, or when they slow down the
instruction (for example) by explaining instructions in detail when children already
understand. Research indicates that teachers who develop set rules and procedures are
effective classroom managers as they had fewer misbehaviour problems than teachers who
did not make these clear at the beginning (Evertson, 1997).