The Importance of Classroom Management

"The goal of classroom management is not quiet classrooms, it’s productive students." Robert Slavin.

Effective classroom management is one of the most essential components of a successful educational environment at school. Therefore, it is important that classroom management goals are set and actions are taken to see that those goals are applied in the classroom. 

First, and most importantly, students must demonstrate respect for themselves and others at all times. This goal covers a variety of skills. To meet this goal, students must not talk while others are talking; also, they must not speak before being recognized and must not exhibit an inattentive, rude or disruptive behavior. They must also be kind to others, listen when others are speaking, and keep their personal appearance and desk area in order.

Also, time in class is an effective classroom management tool. If the transition time between activities is held to a minimum, students will stay in control and focused more time. It will be much easier to move from one activity to another if students are not allowed to fall in a chaotic transition mode between the activities.

In addition, being on time in class is a major goal in any classroom management plan. Tardiness is an indicator of lack of time management skills, lack of respect for the teacher and class, and lack of concern for the student's personal academic success. The tardiness rules varies from school to school, but each rule is designed to contribute to a learning environment that is predictable and free of distractions. Therefore, encouraging students to be on time for class also helps them to develop punctuality, a very important life skill.

Classroom management is the term that teachers use to describe manage of their classroom and students to ensure that stressful situations are avoided and students learn topics and subjects effectively. Classroom management involves more than the management and discipline of the students but also the availability of additional information on every lesson. Effective classroom management will make life less stressful for teachers and ensure that students are provided with the correct tools in a calm environment in which to learn.

Motives for Teaching

Nowadays, motivation has an important role in the job of teaching. For that reason, teaching English is more than just a work for me. It's an experience that gives me motives and rewards when doing it. Therefore, I would like to explain some motives and rewards I get when I do my teaching practicums.

First, I feel motivated when my students learn what I am teaching. Also, the great appreciation that  I, as an English practitioner, receive from the students when I am teaching to them. In addition, I feel rewarded when my students successfully get good grades in my evaluations because not only I see that I am doing a god job, but also I am making good students for the future.

In other words, working with teenagers make me feel motivated because I share the knowledge I learned since I was a child, and rewarded because I know I am making good persons for the future.

Working with Teenagers

Every week, I work on my English practicums with a few students. All of them are teenagers. Working with them has given to me many experiences during my practicums. However, there are some things that I like and dislike while working with them.

Talking about the things I like about working with teenagers, I feel happy when they are paying attention when I am teaching because I know they are learning and enriching their knowledge for the future. Moreover, I feel glad when they energetically participate in every activity I do in every class and also when they do their homework assignments.

Nevertheless, there are some things that become hard or dislike when working with teenagers. For instance, I do not like when some students are talking while I am teaching because others may be interested in learning the lesson and those students do not allow them to focus. Furthermore, I dislike when they are doing other things instead of being working on the activities I have assigned them to do. In that case, I have to be monitoring them so they effectively work on the activities.

No matter the moments I enjoy or dislike while working with teenagers. What really cares to me is that they learn and understand English, a language that in a future may open them some gates to professionalism.

The Benefits of The World Wide Web in ESL/EFL Teaching

Nowadays, the internet has an important role and great potential in educational life. It is also used specifically in second language learning all over the world. Some research results indicate that the use of internet increases language and acquisition of second language. For example, it was found that interaction in language helps learners to gain input in language learning process. Specifically, it increases synchronous communication of ESL learners and boost them to use the second language in real situations. In other words, the internet motivates learners to use English in their daily lives and provides functional communicative experiences. 

As it was mentioned before, the internet is a useful medium for communication with native speakers in real situations, making students to improve the four macro skills, listening, writing, speaking and reading. Additionally, internet helps students to improve their computer skills, such as keyboarding skills, opening and storing files, Internet searching, and technical and conceptual experiences. In fact, many students indicate that the internet has positive effects on motivation, it provides means for creative works and gives opportunities for collaboration and socialization in learning process.

Technology in Teaching

Nowadays, technology has increased in many fields such as, science, entertainment, machinery, etc, and education is not the exception. Technology has taken an important role in the field of education from using simple projectors to using LED screens to watch a documentary related to a subject.

However, some teachers only depend from these devices, what do I want to mean? That they are used to working with computers, TV’s, slide shows, videos, graphs, etc, and although these devices make the lesson catchy and entertained, they may not work as perfect as teachers want; therefore, when this problems come up, teachers may not be ready to teach the lesson by themselves, and this forces them to improvise in their lesson, which in many cases, does not work. In fact, a teacher not only has to depend from technology to teach, but also has to be ready if a problem comes up.

Reflecting on My Last Lesson

Last week, I did my practicum lesson with the students of ninth grade at Centro Escolar Benito Juarez, in Chalchuapa. The lesson I had to taugh was about "The Simple Present Tense." Fortunately, this lesson was assimilated by my students. I know that they learned the lesson because they paid attention, they could answer my questions referred to "The Simple Present Tense" and also they worked correctly in some excercises.

I taught my lesson following the order of my lesson plan because I knew that using my lesson plan the students would learn and assimilate such lesson successfully. Furthermore, charts, images and many examples were used in this lesson so that the students could learn what the Simple Present Tense is about.

If I had the opportunity to teach "The Simple Present Tense" to my students again, I will try to use other sources, such a video. This source will not only explain "The Simple Present Tense" in a different way, but also will keep the students interested and entertained while learning the lesson.

The Role of Research to Improve Our Teaching

Teachers are always learning, finding out things, analysing information, adapting their behaviour according to information received, looking to improve and adapting to modern demands. All of this constitutes research, and when teachers become researchers, or teacher-researches, the traditional descriptions of both teachers and researchers change. Teacher-researchers create questions about what they think and observe during their teaching and their students' learning. They also collect student work in order to evaluate performance, but they also see    student work as data to analyze in order to examine the teaching and learning that produced it.

Research in teaching empowers teachers to make a positive difference in terms of classroom practice, for example, how to make an effective lesson and how to understand the students' behavior. Research also enables teachers to provide relevant information about teaching and learning in actual classrooms. Most importantly, by engaging in reflective practice. Researcher improves the lives of teachers by seeking to discover  more effective ways of implementing the teaching-learning process.