Running Head : WORK OF TEACHERS

Work of Teachers



NTRODUCTION

My task in this paper is to consider the scholarly knowledge base on the topic of classroom management as it may inform efforts to educate teachers about managing classrooms and students.

It is not so much to review the research that has contributed to this knowledge base (see Trophy, 1983, and Doyle, 1986, for such reviews), but instead to synthesize what this research tells us about effective classroom management and to offer a perspective on its implications for teacher education.

I begin by considering the roles of schools inside societies and the roles of teachers and students inside these schools and by offering some basic definitions and conceptual distinctions concerning classroom management and related topics. I do this not merely because it is a logical way to introduce the topic, but because the most important of the many useful findings that have emerged from recent scholarly work on the topic is that teachers' basic conceptualizations of the goals and methods of classroom management tend to determine the styles and levels of success with which they manage their classrooms. In particular, research findings converge on the conclusion that teachers who approach classroom management as a process of establishing and maintaining effective learning environments tend to be more successful than teachers who place more emphasis on their roles as authority figures or disciplinarians(Brophy, 1981).

Thus, in many ways the purview adopted here in introducing and discussing the knowledge base is itself a part of that knowledge base, and probably the most important part.

Certain basic facts about schooling form the backdrop for consideration of the topic of classroom management. Societies establish schools as formal mechanisms for educating new generations in a range of academic knowledge and skills and for socializing their attitudes, beliefs, and behavior. The socialization function of schooling is not as formalized in the United States as it is in countries that feature state adopted religions or political ideologies promoted through centralized ministries of education.

Major teaching functions in clued instruction, classroom management, student socialization, and disciplinary intervention. Instruction refers to actions taken specifically to assist students in mastering the formal curriculum (presenting or demonstrating information, conducting recitations or discussions, supervising work on assignments, testing, retouching, etc.). Classroom management refers to actions taken to create and maintain a learning environment conducive to attainment of the goals of instruction (arranging the physical environment of the classroom, establishing rules and procedures, maintaining attention to lessons and engagement in academic activities). Student socialization refers to actions taken with the intention of influencing students' attitudes, beliefs, expectations, or behavior concerning personal or social (including moral and political) issues. Socialization includes articulation of ideals, communication of expectations, and modeling, teaching, and reinforcing of desirable personal attributes and behavior (done mostly with the class as a whole), as well as counseling, behavior modification, and other remediation work with students who show poor personal or social adjustment (done mostly with individuals). Disciplinary interventions are actions taken to elicit or compel changes in the behavior of ...