Επίπεδα ελέγχου
Το κλίμα εργασίας στην τάξη και η πολύπλοκη σειρά παραγόντων που επηρεάζει το κλίμα μέσα στην τάξη
‘Most people . . . understand it [education] as being made to go to a place called school, and there being made to learn something that they don’t much want to learn, under the threat that bad things will be done to them if they don’t. Needless to say, most people don’t much like this game and stop playing as soon as they can.’
John Holt (1984) How children learn, London, Penguin: 34).
Accomplished teachers are aware that for some pupils, school is not ‘a bowl of cherries’, and that they must try to ensure that there is ‘something in the lesson’ for all pupils, whether they are good at the subject or not.
I just want to add some text.
Many teachers have to make difficult decisions every day in terms of trying to do the best for all the pupils in their care, trying to include all pupils in learning (and keep them in the classroom), and yet also trying to ensure that pupils who do not want to learn are not allowed to spoil the lesson for those pupils who are keen to learn. The ‘rights’ of pupils with problems do not supersede the rights of other pupils. Dealing with difficult pupils adroitly, trying to engage them in learning, and making sound judgement calls about protecting pupils’ ‘right to learn’ are complex skills that usually take some time to hone and refine.
Levels of Control
How do teachers cope when they are not in full control of the classroom?
Characteristics of student teachers who become good at managing pupil behaviour
Several interviewees mentioned students being ‘quick to learn’/change/adapt/’open-minded’:
‘Like most heads, I have some teachers who are exceptionally accomplished at working with difficult and troubled pupils, they are incredibly resourceful, persevering… and clever. Some student s and NQTs learn from them, others don’t pick things up’ (Head Teacher).
‘Can anyone become good at it? No. If they haven’t got self-awareness there’s no chance. They won’t get better because they can’t see it, they can’t understand. It’s as if they are pedagogically autistic. They can’t take things on board, try things out, adjust and adapt in the light of experience and advice. They’ve made their minds up… they know how to do it. It’s all the kids’ fault, it’s not me’ (Teacher Educator).
‘Some of them overdo the self-flagellation bit in their evaluations, you can beat yourself up too much, but rather that than that they can’t grasp that they are doing things wrong… stubborn, closed minded, rebutting rather than considering comments which mentors are making to try and help them. If fact most mentors are fairly gentle in terms of pointing things out and making tentative suggestions. But some of them just won’t have it. They seem to be incapable of genuine reflection. They are not good learners. They either won’t get through the course, or they will scrape through and be whipping boys for the kids for years’ (Teacher Educator).
‘If you are working with someone who has a reasonable degree of self awareness, who is honest and open about the fact that they are having problems, you are in with a chance, you can work with them, you can try and work together. If they are in denial, if they can’t admit that they are not coping well with a class… it’s more a matter of managing the situation, damage limitation. This is “heartsink” territory’(Head of Year).
It’s not about fear, it’s about respect. The question is, how does the teacher gain the respect of the pupils?
This is what level 10 looks like!
This is what level 5 looks like!
What are the qualities that enable some teachers to become better than others at managing pupil behaviour?
(and should we call them ‘qualities’, with the inference that they are ‘intrinsic’ to the person – you have either got the quality or not -reinforcing the ‘genetic’ school of thought, or ‘attributes’, which can be honed and developed?)
Zero tolerance stuff…….
Translation of The Haydn Scale and accompanying materials/teacher testimony can be found here in the following languages
What do the levels look like in practice? Some examples…
Many teachers have to make difficult decisions every day in terms of trying to do the best for all the pupils in their care, trying to include all pupils in learning (and keep them in the classroom), and yet also trying to ensure that pupils who do not want to learn are not allowed to spoil the lesson for those pupils who are keen to learn. The ‘rights’ of pupils with problems do not supersede the rights of other pupils. Dealing with difficult pupils adroitly, trying to engage them in learning, and making sound judgement calls about protecting pupils’ ‘right to learn’ are complex skills that usually take some time to hone and refine.
Many teachers have to make difficult decisions every day in terms of trying to do the best for all the pupils in their care, trying to include all pupils in learning (and keep them in the classroom), and yet also trying to ensure that pupils who do not want to learn are not allowed to spoil the lesson for those pupils who are keen to learn. The ‘rights’ of pupils with problems do not supersede the rights of other pupils. Dealing with difficult pupils adroitly, trying to engage them in learning, and making sound judgement calls about protecting pupils’ ‘right to learn’ are complex skills that usually take some time to hone and refine.
For more detail on this point, go to the following link, ‘Making it interesting’.