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Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 141 (2014) 465 – 469

WCLTA 2013

Aspects Regarding Classroom Management And Its Part In

Making The Educational Process More Effective
Tatiana Dobrescu a *, Emilia Florina Grosu b
a, d
”Vasile Alecsandri” University of Bacau, 157, Calea Marasesti Street, Bacau, 600115, Romania
b
“Babes-Bolyai” University of Cluj, 7Pandurilor Street, Cluj – Napoca, 400376, , Romania

Abstract

The management of a classroom of pupils involves the orchestration and coordination of the entire learning process, so that it
would be as effective and productive as possible. This complex process merges with the action of creating a positive learning
environment, both as the physical space is concerned, and through the totality of the essential elements of the pupils'
personalities. Starting from the premise that the pupils' opinions can provide us clues regarding how to promote a top managerial
process in schools, we conducted, over the course of the academic year 2012-2013, an inquiry in a target group formed of
middle-school-aged pupils. Managing a group of pupils is a practical expression of the actions taken to improve the educational
act, both from an institutional standpoint, and from the perspective of creating the framework and conditions for a more
productive activity. The change in the pupils' position, from mere "receivers" of dispositions and orders, to collaborators does not
exclude the teacher's authority, which must be based on competence, freshness of view, originality, imagination, opportunity, and
pertinence of reflections and solutions (Albu, 1998, p. 171).

© 2014 The
© 2014 The Authors.
Authors. Published
Published by
by Elsevier
Elsevier Ltd.
Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).
Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the Organizing Committee of WCLTA 2013.
Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the Organizing Committee of WCLTA 2013.
Keywords: Classroom management, pupils, effective, educational process;

1. Introduction

The management of a classroom of pupils involves the orchestration and coordination of the entire learning
process, so that it would be as effective and productive as possible. This complex process merges with the action of

*
Corresponding Author: Tatiana Dobrescu
E-mail address: tatianadobrescu2002@yahoo.com

1877-0428 © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).
Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the Organizing Committee of WCLTA 2013.
doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.05.082
466 Tatiana Dobrescu and Emilia Florina Grosu / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 141 (2014) 465 – 469

creating a positive learning environment, both as the physical space is concerned, and through the totality of the
essential elements of the pupils' personalities. Through the prism of an educational process, classroom management
can be understood as an ensemble of strategies and techniques of managing the teacher-pupil relationship during the
lesson, as a core form of the instructive-educational activity.
The quality of the manager teachers is given by the symbiosis between the material and the human resources, and
the psycho-pedagogical ones, configured in their own way, for their classroom. Dicu & Dimitriu, as cited in
Dobrescu (2008), think that the mastery of leading the pedagogic act is in "combining the science to lead the action
called lesson with the art of being a real personality and of creatively adapting the strategy of leading" (p. 119). A
good manager of the classroom must be capable of making profound changes in the educational process, in the sense
of founding the didactic endeavours on democratic principles, introducing new instructional strategies that would
favour collaboration, increase the pupils' trust in them and improve their academic performances.
The most important aspect of the classroom management dimension is creating a dynamic climate that would
raise the pupils' interest that would favour the autonomy, the initiative, and high academic results. Understanding
top performance not just as an athletic result, but as a complex process that allows the pupils to develop their
personalities, we are in full agreement with Pieper (2001, p. 8), who states that it also involves "an aspect of
freedom and creativity." Leading the group of pupils is a practical expression of the actions taken to improve the
educational act, both from an institutional standpoint, and from the perspective of creating the framework and
conditions for a more productive activity.

2. Material and methods

Starting from the premise that the pupils' opinions can provide us clues regarding how to promote a top
managerial process in schools, we conducted, over the course of the academic year 2012-2013, an inquiry in a target
group formed of middle-school-aged pupils. This sociological approach envisaged the assessment of the future
teachers from the Bacau Faculty of Movement, Sports, and Health Sciences. They participated in leading the
didactic process in their first semester, during the Pedagogical Practice Module of the university's Department of
Training the Teaching Staff.
This study started from the hypothesis stating that knowing the classroom management dimensions for
improving the teaching process, through the pupils' opinions, constitutes the starting point for a reconsideration of
the training process of the future teachers.
The research methods we used were: the study of the literature, the observation, the questionnaire inquiry, the
statistical-mathematical method and the graphical representation method.
For this, we did an investigation that was based on 10 item questionnaire. For a greater relevance of the pupils'
answers, most questions were accompanied by prefigured answers or well-configured scales. The questionnaire was
applied to 120 pupils from various Bacau schools, where the undergraduate students' pedagogical practice took
place.

3. Results and discussions

At the question asking the pupils about the presence of an authoritarian behaviour in the future teachers during
the physical education lesson, most of the subjects (44.16%) said that they did not perceive such behaviour, while
30% said they rarely perceive it. The use of commands and dispositions that restrict the pupils' freedom of
expression is perceived only by 25.83% of the respondents.
This proves that most of the subjects are aware of the importance of this quality in the manager's personality that
ensures the flexibility effectiveness of the didactic act (Fig. 1).
A diminished impact of the authoritarian behaviour generated by the abusive use of commands, especially the
ones regarding the excessive control over the pupils' performances (Mitra, 1973, p. 22), allows the pupils'
independence in action, their creativity, self-education, and self-leading" (Firea, 1979, p. 158).
Supporting this argument are the 69.16% of the pupils who believe that promoting self-leading is very good and
good, with only 30.83% believing that this activity is less pragmatically applied during the physical education
lesson.
The physical education teacher, as perceived by 32.5% of the subjects, is capable to have a democratic style of
leading that stimulates the pupils' cooperation, initiative, participation in the decision-making process, active and
 Tatiana Dobrescu and Emilia Florina Grosu / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 141 (2014) 465 – 469 467

creative involvement in the learning process (Chiriţă, 1976, p. 67-68). This is also confirmed by the 50.83% of the
respondents, while 16.66% remain indifferent towards one particular style of classroom management or another, and
grade this behaviour as being poor and very poor (Fig. 2).

10.00%
15.83%
44.16%
30.00%

never rarely often always

Figure 1. Ways to approach an authoritarian behaviour

4.16%
12.50%
32.50%

50.83%

very good good poor very poor

Figure 2. The presence of a democratic style in classroom management

Asked to assess, on a scale of one to four, their interest for performing a creative didactic activity acquired during
the learning process, 60 subjects (50%) think that the approach is good, 27 (22.50%) very good, while 27.49% do
not think it appropriate (Fig. 3).

10.83%

16.66% 22.50%

50.00%

very good good poor very poor

468 Tatiana Dobrescu and Emilia Florina Grosu / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 141 (2014) 465 – 469

Figure 3. Application of a creative activity in the learning process

Considering the statements of Kounin (as cited in Mitrofan, 1992, p. 20), one can say that the physical education
teacher with a creative leading style manifests a permanent concern to introduce diversity in the teaching methods,
determining the pupils to be involved in the lesson, with enthusiasm and interest, creating new forms of activity.
A special signification in educational management has the teacher's presence in the lesson, which most of the
subjects (74.16%) noted during certain workshops, showing a characteristic of the democratic style, while 25.83%
of the pupils observed a central position, which would indicate an authoritarian leading style.
Classroom management depends decisively also by the impression that the pupils form about the effective
teacher. Trying to discover the "image" of a teacher who is liked by the pupils, the inquiry confirms the conclusion
of Nash, who thinks that the students look favourably on those teachers who keep order and punish indiscipline
(41.66%), the ones who help them and make themselves understood (31.16%), the ones who are interested,
preoccupied (51.66%), the ones who are fair, consistent, and do not favour anybody (68.33%), the ones who are
friendly, affable, and jokey (75%).
The effectiveness of the teaching activity is in close relation to the so-called "educational climate," represented
by the development of corresponding relationships between pupils and teacher.
In this sense, after our sociological research, we synthesized four managerial categories, based on the pupils'
perception (Fig. 4):
- The delegating manager - the tasks and decisions are mostly delegated to the pupils (7.5%);
- The participative manager - co-participation of the teacher and pupils, the teacher's role is to "participate" with
help, suggestions, and advice (65%);
- The persuasive manager - the pupils make decisions, under the close supervision of the teacher, who tries to
persuade his/her pupils through suggestions and ideas (5%);
- The directive (authoritarian) manager - the decisions are made almost exclusively by the teacher who directs
but also controls the pupils' action closely (22.5%).

7.50%
65.00%
5.00%
22.50%

0.00% 10.00% 20.00% 30.00% 40.00% 50.00% 60.00% 70.00%

delegating participative persuasive directive

Figure 4. Representation of management levels in the teacher-pupil relationship

In the context of the educational reality, we recommend a succession of the managerial styles, according to the
pupils' progress, from the directive manager to the delegating one, from the teacher's individual decision to the
group decision of the entire classroom.
Regarding the identification of a dominant style from the ones approached by the future teachers, the subjects
highlighted the following:
- the autocratic style (30%) - the teacher solves problems by using the information he/she has and other
information from the pupils;
- the consultative style (53.33%) - the teacher discusses the problems with each pupil and with the entire group
before making a decision;
- the group decision (16.66%) - the problematic situations are solved by the classroom, while the manager plays
a secondary part.
 Tatiana Dobrescu and Emilia Florina Grosu / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 141 (2014) 465 – 469 469

4. Conclusions

Managing a group of pupils is a practical expression of the actions taken to improve the educational act, both
from an institutional standpoint, and from the perspective of creating the framework and conditions for a more
productive activity.
The analysis of the answers highlights the existence of elements that diminish the authoritarian impact generated
by the abusive use of commands, excessive monitoring of the performances, and the existence of a small number of
cases of routine and inflexible behaviour.
The physical education teachers often find themselves in unpredictable, atypical, and dynamic situations in which
they must make operative decisions, improving their leading strategy (Dicu & Dimitriu, 1973, p. 215). At the end of
the research, one can see that choosing an optimal type of action is not only the expression of a cognitive and
volition act (Neacşu, 1986, p. 78), but is also an act of creation, being the result of the emergence of an original
behaviour. In this context, the teacher's decisions are new (Toma, 1992, p. 18), and creative (Delbaco, as cited in
Zlate, 1981, p. 228).
The change in the pupils' position, from mere "receivers" of dispositions and orders, to collaborators does not
exclude the teacher's authority, which must be based on competence, freshness of view, originality, imagination,
opportunity, and pertinence of reflections and solutions (Albu, 1998, p. 171).
The management of the didactic process must be associated with a physical education teacher who is dynamic,
modern, inventive, with a true authority (Albu, 1998, p. 174, Joiţa, 2000), and a new attitude toward the pupils.
This teacher has a flexible teaching style, mostly democratic, combining successfully the command leadership
(necessary in certain moments), with self-leading.
Accompanying and supporting the pupils to gradually acquire their autonomy and freedom the physical education
teacher adopts creativity as a superior form of individual freedom.

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