Any teacher will tell you that classrooms are dynamic environments. A teacher makes hundreds of decisions every day to maintain a smoothly running classroom. In fact, the spontaneity of students brings great joy and excitement to teaching. But, it can also bring many challenges. Thankfully, unpredictability does not have to result in a poorly managed classroom; rather, a long history of research has established a few simple practices that any teacher can implement to establish "with-it" classroom management.
Contemporary classroom management practices were substantially influenced by Kounin, whose work shifted classroom management from reactive strategies to preventative strategies (1970). Rather than implementing consequences after an undesirable behavior, teachers should employ strategies to increase desired behaviors or prevent undesirable ones in the first place. Good management focuses on techniques that elicit student cooperation and involvement, thereby preventing problems from happening. After extensive research in classrooms, Kounin observed that one key feature demonstrated by effective classroom managers was "withitness."
Effective managers let their students know that they are with-it (i.e., aware of what is happening and likely to detect misbehavior) by engaging in three research-supported teaching behaviors: student engagement, classroom scanning, and behavior-specific praise.
Student Engagement
Good and Brophy (2008) emphasize the importance of regular student engagement as an antecedent strategy of behavior management. Ensuring students are engaged in a lesson reduces the chances of drifting, boredom, and potentially undesirable behaviors. Student engagement can look many different ways, but the key is to specifically address a student to elicit a response. Often, the address will be verbal—for example, upon scanning the classroom you see Emma fidgeting with her shirt buttons, so you say, "Emma, I liked your response to question 4. Tell us what you wrote." Emma is not put on the spot with a question she cannot answer but rather drawn back into the conversation as an invited participant. Other times, a simple physical gesture, such as a high five or fist bump, is all that is needed. These gestures refocus the student's attention and convey to that student, as well as others, that the teacher knows what is going on and is with-it.
Classroom Scanning
Research on classroom scanning clearly documents decreases in disruptive behavior (Depry & Sugai, 2002). Not only does constant classroom scanning convey to students that the teacher is "always watching," but it also allows the teacher to monitor behaviors and intervene prior to escalation. A lecture format lends itself to automatic classroom scanning because the teacher is typically standing at the front of the classroom with an open line of sight of all students. However, it is particularly important for teachers to continue classroom scanning during small-group or station activities. The teacher should be in a position to see every student and intentionally and frequently scan the classroom to convey withitness and intervene early, before undesirable behaviors escalate.
Behavior-Specific Praise
The effectiveness of praise is grounded in positive reinforcement—a preferred consequence following a behavior will likely lead to an increase in that behavior. More than 30 years of research has indicated behavior-specific praise as an effective management strategy for increasing students' appropriate behavior (Allday et al., 2012). Over the years, though, researchers identified a difference between noneffective praise and effective praise (Heward, 2003). General praise statements, such as "good job" or "excellent," lack specificity in describing the behavior that resulted in praise. A general praise statement does not communicate which behavior warranted the praise, resulting in a weaker positive reinforcement (thus constituting noneffective praise).
Behavior-specific praise is a more effective positive reinforcement than general praise because it is contingent on the targeted behavior (Brophy, 1981). Furthermore, behavior-specific praise is more effective when delivered immediately and sincerely (Willingham, 2006). Examples of behavior-specific praise include, "Thank you, Matt, for waiting patiently until I gave the directions," or "Excellent job raising your hand, Jenny." The desired behavior is identified and reinforced with praise, thereby increasing the likelihood of that behavior reoccurring (thus constituting effective praise).
The teacher plays a pivotal role in shaping the learning environment. The same students that are interested and attentive with one teacher can be bored and rebellious with another (Good & Brophy, 2008). Kounin's (1970) study found that effective (i.e., with-it) teachers minimize disruptive behaviors by maximizing the time students spend engaged in academic activities and resolving minor incidents before escalation. Engagement, scanning, and praise (ESP) are three research-based teaching behaviors that lead to with-it classroom management. Performing these behaviors with fidelity will set a new tone in any teacher's classroom.
