Classroom management help

amother

Rose ↓

Wed, Nov 15 2017, 8:41 am

I'm a second-year public school teacher. I'm having quite a nightmare with classroom management. I've been reduced to tears a few times, and my anxiety is through the roof. I teach 5 classes, and all of them are to the weakest students in the school. I have the worst combinations of kids.

There's this one kid in one of my classes who makes it impossible for me to teach. When I say nasty--I don't think I've ever encountered someone who speaks to another human being this way. She makes my life miserable. I've requested a class change, since she's not really supposed to be in my class to begin with. Davening that that happens. But until then...

I'm so miserable. Any advice?

ETA: I teach high school, primarily 11th graders.

(Anon because people who know me IRL will recognize me)

amother

Peach

Wed, Nov 15 2017, 10:25 am

This is a tough one.
1. I'm assuming since it's gotten this bad, you've already reached out to parents/guardians and had no response (or no helpful response). If not, then do this.
2. Make sure you follow through with any consequences you threaten (eg if you say you will call home/report to administration/assign detention, do it. Do not hesitate and do not give second chances).
3. If the student is being disruptive at that moment, I would send him/her out of the room. I don't have patience for students that disrupt learning. No warnings, just out. Give him/her an assignment and a clipboard.
4. Like Seeker said, check with your colleagues for advice on how to handle this student. Other teachers might have strategies that they use with this particular student. Don't be afraid to ask for help--many teachers struggle with this early in their careers.
5. If you have followed through with your own consequences and there has been no improvement, get in touch with you administrators and let them know about this behavior.
6. Use peer pressure. How do the other students feel about this student ruining every class? If possible, make it clear that those disruptions will affect everyone, and will cause negative consequences for everyone (eg, if everyone is on topic and respectful, we will work in pairs/ groups on this assignment. If not, it's silent work and will be collected and graded). If everyone works well, we will watch a video clip as part of this assignment. Stick to it and other students may be able to put pressure on any students that misbehave.
7. Sometimes I use a point system with classes that struggle with certain things. We have a conversation about what they need to work on as a class (ex: coming to class on time & starting the Do Now right away, getting quiet when I need their attention, working quietly during independent work time, etc.). Then they have the opportunity to earn a point each day if they are successful with that area of weakness. The whole class has to be responsible for this and if 1 or 2 ruin it, that's it for everyone--let the class know their classmates have let them down. They can also lose points for days when they are unsuccessful with this. You can decide on a number of points that they will reach when they will get some kind of reward (I often do listening to music on headphones as they do independent work)

↑ seeker

Wed, Nov 15 2017, 10:33 am

I wouldn't use group rewards against a specific disrespectful student. For the classes that are in general difficult, it's a good strategy. But if there's an individual student with a special difficulty, it is unfair both to the individual and the class to let that individual make it or break it. Group incentives are more for things like general off-task behavior (kids chatting among themselves, fooling around instead of working, etc.) Nasty talking is not in the same category, you need a zero-tolerance approach to that but the zero-tolerance consequence depends on the school's discipline culture or policies. What else do we know about this kid? What triggers the nastiness - does it start from the moment she enters the room or is it a response to something?

And what about the other classes - you said they're all difficult; what's going on there?

What subject do you teach? Maybe that can help direct us toward ideas to help engage the students in ways that they might be less difficult.

You say it's your second year, was last year the same? If not, what's making it different this time?

amother

↑ Rose ↓

Wed, Nov 15 2017, 10:57 am

amother wrote:

1. I called home. Multiple times. It helps for a few days with some kids, with some kids not even that much.
2. I've been better about that.
3. The DOE doesn't really allow you to kick students out of the room. I can send them to the dean, but there's a limit to how many times I can annoy the deans of discipline. They're getting fed up with me.
4. I have... no one had advice that worked. My AP spoke to the girl and put her on probation. She wasn't in class yesterday (ah mechayah! The class was quiet!) but I'm sure I'm going to get it today...
5. I have. My AP gave me some ideas, but a lot of them are hard to implement because of the lack of control. She wants me to get them moving more, have them do more group work -- but the class gets even more out of control when they're doing group work.
6. Some other students are really fed up with her, but she's a dominating personality, and a lot of the other students use her audacity as an excuse not to work. There are some other difficult students in the room, and they're all really weak, so it becomes a mess. I think some of the other kids think this student is cool. They don't really care about assignments, they don't do them anyway--the class is 80% kids who have failed the Regent. (This girl did not, which makes it even harder-she's smarter than the rest of the class.)
7. They don't care about incentives. I've tried it with other classes. The students in my school are not able to work towards a goal like that.

amother

↑ Rose

Wed, Nov 15 2017, 11:03 am

seeker wrote:

The school has a bad record for discipline. You report things, nothing happens, no consequences. Half the time they will not even let me fail a senior who needs my class to graduate. It's unbelievable...

The kid has a very difficult home life (father left her mother when she had cancer, lives with dad and girlfriend--both teachers in our school; girlfriend just had a baby). It's an explanation, certainly, but not an excuse for treating anyone like they're less than a human being. She literally said to me the other day (when I wrote her up for cursing me out), "I didn't curse you out. You're imagining things. I'm concerned for you" in a really snotty tone. The nastiness persists.

All my classes that have more than 30 students are crazy. I have two smaller classes that behave better. In one class, I have five District 75 (special ed district, usually have other emotional problems) students, 2 paraprofessionals in the room. I have so many kids on their phones or talking all day. Of course, I can't confiscate the phones-I'm supposed to call the dean. Like that changes anything.

I teach math.

I started late last year, and went on maternity leave at one point--so it was not a full year. Some of my classes were difficult, but it's gotten worse this year. (I taught 4 classes last year--this year I teach 5.) Also, I taught non-Regents subjects last year, so I was less concerned about covering material.