Chris Dorff

Educ 232
May 8, 2014

Classroom Management Plan

Management Style and Philosophical Beliefs
Classroom management is vital to being able to teach students complex content at the
high school level. Having strong classroom management does not necessarily make you a good
teacher; you still need to be proficient in different teaching methods and strategies to use with
students. But, having poor classroom management does make you a bad teacher. If you are
unable to get the students of your class to cooperate, it doesnt matter how well thought out the
lesson is, students learning will be handicapped. However, a good lesson can go a long way in
helping with classroom management.
Obviously most teachers would like to use an authoritative management style in their
classroom. While I will always aim to keep a balance between being a disciplinarian and
nurturing to students, it is unrealistic to expect to use an authoritative style all of the time. It is
difficult to give a specific answer to what management style I will use because teaching calls for
you to be so adaptable to different situations. The best way I can describe my management style
is I will manage in a way that results in the most students having the highest quality environment
to learn
My classroom management style focuses on having students engaged and working while
they are in my classroom. When students have nothing to do, their minds will find a way to
become occupied. This often leads to poor behavior and thus, poor classroom management. With
this said, classroom management begins with having a good lesson plan and strategy. This will
always give students the opportunity to be occupied by the lesson instead of undesirable
behaviors.
Though a good lesson can help with classroom management, some students will find a
way to deviate from the plan. In this case, I like to give students the opportunity to correct their
behavior. I speak to them like an adult and ask them, without drawing attention to the situation,
to correct the misbehavior. A more serious offense may require the student to be removed from
the classroom. While I didnt agree with Lee Canter on many things, I thought the plan to have
students establish the rules with the teacher (pg. 23) was very in line with my beliefs on
classroom management. If the class can look to rules that have been established by them, it will
be very easy to discipline students appropriately for common misbehavior.

Establishing a Positive Classroom Culture
I am a person that believes a first impression is very important. While opinions of an
individual can change over time, the first perception one gets is enormous in how the relationship
will continue forward. With that being said, the first days of class, I want my students to know
how interested I am in them and how I value their learning above all else. I like to start the class
with an ice-breaker activity such as two truths and a lie. This helps me learn a little about the
student while also memorizing their names. I would also like to them to tell me about any extra-
curricular activities they are in, so I may attend some of them if possible. I also want my students
to be able to work together to learn and get to know each other. I have attached the artifact that I
will use to do this. The students go around to each other and fill up their clock with the names of
12 different classmates. Over the course of the semester, I will have students meet with a certain
time to work on problems and activities. This promotes students working with people outside of
their comfort group.



Developing Classroom rules and Procedures
To develop classroom rules and procedures, I want students to have a voice. Obviously
items such as school rules will be considered a part of any classroom, but there is room for
students to have input on day to day operation and guidelines in the class. We will come up with
these rules on the second day of class. It should only take us about 15 minutes. This way there is
still time for a lesson. The students and I will come up with what is acceptable behavior and what
the consequences will be for minor offenses that are not laid out in school rules. The following is
an example of what my classroom rules will look like.



Any item such as academic dishonesty, tardiness, and late work will be addressed on an
individual basis. I will not be completely rigid with school rules but enforce them in appropriate
situations. If I student has an extenuating circumstance, I may be more lenient.

Classroom Layout
I have attached my classroom layout with my submission of this classroom management
plan. This is an example of a math classroom I will have. While designing my classroom layout,
I wanted it to reflect my teaching style. I put the students into groups of four so that they may
learn from each other. On test day, these can obviously be moved to prevent cheating. The
teachers desk is out of the way and in the back of the classroom. I will always be up and moving
when I have students in the class. The fridge next to the desk is for me because I am a better
teacher on a full stomach. There is a sofa to the side of the classroom so that students will feel
welcoming to just hangout in my room. Ideally, the projector at the front of the room will hang
from the ceiling so that nobody has to look through it. There will also be a white board on the
front of the wall so that I can teach using different computer applications, or work out problems
on the board. The television is another way I could use technology in the classroom. This would
be especially useful if I needed a substitute one day and then I could just play a video of myself
working out problems. I purposely included storage so that I can save students work if there is
any dispute over a grade.

Monitoring the Classroom and Responding to Student Behavior
No matter how good of a teacher is student misbehavior will always arise at some point.
Dealing with this appropriately can help a teacher gain even more respect from their students.
For minor issues I will use things such as proximity control and simply asking students, calmly,
if they would refrain from that behavior. I will be out of my desk and walking around the
classroom throughout the period, this will allow me to see any problem shortly after it starts. I
will always stay calm and not get caught in the emotion of the situation.
If all students are off task I will use one of three things to get their attention. I will wait at
the front of the room and look at them until they quit down. This method works well for students
to self-monitor themselves. One student will usually start to quit everybody down. If that does
not work I can whistle really loudly. This method I have seen work wonders with noisy
classrooms and students quit down almost immediately. Finally, if I need to raise my voice I
will. After I raise my voice however, I always talk quietly to the students to demonstrate how
they should sound. In the case of just one or two students being off task, I find speaking to them
without drawing attention works very well. If this does not work, actions such as pulling them
into the hallway can be used. As always, I treat them like an adult when I speak to them.
Behaviors that are unacceptable to me include but are not limited to: anything that
demeans another person, endangers fellow students or teachers, or creates a hostile classroom
environment. Depending on the specific nature of the behavior, the consequence will range from
the student staying after class to being referred to the office in more extreme cases.

Parents as Partners
Parents can be one of the most helpful resources a teacher has. They can also be an
enemy if the teacher does not treat them with respect. With that being said, I would like to
establish an early relationship with parents and reach out to them when possible. At the
beginning of the semester I will contact them with my information and expectations for the class.
I will also attach a syllabus so that the parents will know what is going on in the class.
After my initial contact with parents I will notify them if there is a problem with their
student either behaviorally or academically. I will also notify them when conferences are coming
up. At conferences I will be prepared and knowledgeable about their child. I keep students work
so that I can justify what grade they have earned. I will also notify parents of what they can do to
help their child.
When I have trouble with parents who do not want to participate in their students
education, I will first be very clear about what needs to be done and why it is important.
However, I know that it is not realistic to think that every parent will want to be involved in their
childs education. In this case I will provide as much outside help as possible to the student. I
will direct them to resources when they are at the school that may help them learn on their own.