· Lesson 2 - How To Manage a Classroom

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Introduction

Contrary to popular belief, it is not true that you have to be an extrovert to be a good teacher
in the classroom. Some good teachers are very low-key, while other teachers, both lively and
amusing, are regarded as nothing more than entertainers. You will find your style of teaching
through practice in the classroom.

However, for a class to be able to learn effectively, the teacher must be able to inspire
confidence in the students. We must know when to be firm and when to leave the students
alone. In other words, the teacher must be flexible and change roles according to the activity
and situation without being dominant or leaving the students uncertain.

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Introduction

Classroom Management is the skill of organizing and managing the class, having a friendly,
relaxed manner, and maintaining discipline.

As we all know, it can be challenging to speak to someone who is always looking elsewhere
or someone who looks us in the eye all of the time. Also, we are aware that eye contact can
convey messages, and children the same as adults can understand when the teacher is
angry or happy.

Good eye contact in the classroom is essential to establishing a good rapport with the
students. A teacher who never looks at students in the eye will appear to lack confidence and
could then have problems with discipline. On the other hand, staring at the students for an
unnaturally long time will not help!

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Classroom Arrangement
Sometimes a teacher has absolutely no choice about how to arrange the classroom. The
seats may be in an auditorium and fixed in place, or the students may sit at a large
conference table.

But when and where we do have the opportunity to arrange student seating, it aids the
organization of an efficient and practical class. Furniture can get in the way of interaction
between you and your students. If there's a desk or a podium behind which you sit or stand,
it could be a real barrier, physical or otherwise, between you and your students. Please note
that many learners are not comfortable with making mistakes. As a result, some learners will
speak or answer a question with a quiet, low voice because they don't want their mistakes to
be heard.

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Classroom Arrangement

If the classroom or the students are arranged to place the learners and the teacher within
close proximity to each other, learners can answer at a comfortable volume, which will
enhance student participation.

Both teachers and students need to be able to move around the classroom for various
activities. There are several alternatives to the traditional rows of chairs separated by aisles.
The semi-circle is one of the easiest to work with and allows natural movement between
seats and the whiteboard, for example. Sometimes you'll want to rearrange the students'
seats for one particular activity, (for example, a telephone call role-play activity done in pair
works with the chairs back to back), and then afterward, re-assemble everyone back into the
regular configuration. Below are suggestions for arrangements for both regular classrooms
and temporary activities.

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Classroom Arrangement

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Giving Instructions

First, we can learn to give clear and concise directions. One of the most
fundamental mistakes to make is to speak to your students as you would to any
native speaker in English. It means using long, complex sentences, slang, or
idiomatic expressions in your instructions. When you stop to think about it, of
course, students need concise and very clear instructions.

It doesn't mean (ever!) speaking in a "baby talk," but rather, in short,

understandable sentences, accompanied with a demonstration of what you want
(depending on the level) and then a comprehension check question (CQC), to
make sure that your students have understood.

If you're having problems in class with students understanding your instructions, get
a fellow teacher or supervisor to observe your class and give you feedback on your
procedures for giving instructions. Always think about ways to make your
instructions more concise and clear, like breaking long sentences into short, simple
tense sentences. Or you can demonstrate the instructions with an example.

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Here's an example of confusing instructions, the simplified forms, and good CCQs.

· Bad: "Why don't you put your books away and just listen for a few minutes to the short
conversation on this audio that has some nice examples of present perfect tense."

· Get your students’ attention, and then say: "Please close your books."
o Demonstrate closing your book.

· CCQ: "Are the books opened or closed?"

o "Now listen to the audio" (Show the the play button and use a gesture for listen if
necessary).

· CCQ: "What are you going to do?" "Listen." "That's right!"

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Giving Directions

Here are some more examples of complicated and confusing instructions. Think of some
ways to re-write these in clear concise form. Then, come up with some CCQs to make sure
your students would understand these.

• “Now what you need to do is stand up and find a partner for this next exercise so the two
of you can exchange ideas on the subject of “How can we make our school better using
what resources we have available?”
• i.e. Stand up, find a partner. Ask each other how we can improve schools’ facilities and
environment. Who is your partner? What do you need to ask?
• “Well that's an interesting answer but not really the one I was expecting…could you please
try to answer it again and give us the correct tense of the verb this time rather than the
answer you just gave?”
• i.e. Good answer and almost correct. But, can you say this again in the correct
tense?

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Giving Directions

Here are some more examples of complicated and confusing instructions. Think of some
ways to re-write these in clear concise form. Then, come up with some CCQs to make sure
your students would understand these.

• "Why don't you try to think of some more examples as interesting as the ones Mona
provided us the other day…you remember those, don't you?”
• i.e. Can you give me another example your teacher Mona gave you?
• “If you could just hurry up a bit...we only have another ten minutes before we'll have used
up all of our time today!”
• i.e. Please hurry, We only have 10 minutes.
• “Let's practice with the conditional. Just imagine that you had as much money as you'd
ever want. Tell us, what would you do with all of that money if you had say a million
dollars?…or as much money as you could imagine?”
• i.e. Now complete the sentence using the conditional. If I had a million dollars, I
would…..

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Giving instructions

How can you make your instructions effective?

! By getting the students’ attention.

! Making sure everyone is listening and not working on their own thing.
! Don’t give out handouts that may distract attention.
! Use simple language.
! Use language at a lower level than that being taught.
! Don’t use long and complex sentences
! Be consistent. Repeat complex instructions a few times.
! Use the same set of words for the same instruction (everybody, again, look, listen,
repeat, say, turn to the page …).
! With beginners, teach them the necessary language for following instructions.
! Reinforce instructions with visual clues; realia (real objects brought into the classroom),
mime, gestures, pictures or videos.
! Write the instructions on the board (or use cue cards) if you want the students to do
different things.
! Don’t weigh the students down with numerous, lengthy instructions that will not be
understood or will be forgotten by the time they get around to doing the task.
! Give a demonstration as an example. Usually, showing is more effective than telling.

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· Checking the instructions.

· Remember to ask questions (CCQ) to check if they understand the instructions. “Do you
understand” is not an acceptable question, as it simply asks but does not check.

· Asking students to explain back to you is far more effective and checks if they have
understood.

· Monitor to see if they are following instructions correctly.

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Eliciting Information

Now, just as we don't want to spend too much time on rambling directions because this is
inefficient and involves too much TTT, we also want students to supply as much information
in the class as possible instead of the teachers explaining or supplying the information. This
is called eliciting. We want to set up the class for Student Talking Time or STT.

Unfortunately, some teachers find it hard to trust their students fully because of some
misconception about the level and the abilities of their students. Commonly, the teacher just
prefers to be in control. These teachers are prone to doing the majority of the explaining in
class, wasting a wonderful opportunity to allow the students to show what they already know
and to teach each other.

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...Eliciting Information

Not trusting the abilities of the students is a mistake. It's clear that in any class of students
(except absolute beginners on the first day), at least one may be able to explain something
about the vocabulary and grammar points or give examples to some extent. It is always
better to begin with your students anyway to find out exactly what they do know.

You can't elicit information they don't know, and if no one can respond to a question, you
know your job then will be to explain or clarify the point. If, on the other hand, your students
can do the job, let them! Again, they are the ones learning to use the language. You already
know it!

Eliciting in the ESL/EFL classroom basically means asking a question or presenting

information in such a way as to get students to provide information in response. This simple
technique relieves the teacher of the burden of providing all the explanation, allows the
students to do most of the talking and if they can't answer, the teacher has to explain one
more time.

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Here's an example:

On the board the teacher writes the word "hardly".

T: "What does (pointing) “hardly” mean? Barbara?"

S: "Is it the same as hard or difficult?"
T: "No, it's not exactly the same."
T: "Anyone else? Tomas?"
S: "I think it has a negative meaning."
T: "Exactly! Can you give me an example?"
S: "I hardly understand what he is saying."
T: "What does that mean Tomas?"
S: "It means I can't understand much that he is saying."
T: "Now Barbara, can you give me an example?"
S: No, I don't understand.
T: O.K. Shin can you give me an example with hardly?"
S: "We hardly had time to finish the lesson."
T: "Very good" "Other examples?...Barbara?

The alternative to the technique above is a completely teacher-centered explanation of the

word when the students are perfectly capable of doing the job themselves. There are three
simple steps to the process of eliciting.

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1. The teacher asks a question or shows a concept. In other words, teacher provides some
kind of stimulus which gives a clear context so the students have an idea of what the work is
about and how they need to respond.

2. The students respond with answers, information, opinions, ideas, etc. that are their own
but in response to the teacher's stimulus.

3. The teacher responds with some kind of feedback to confirm whether the students are on
the right track and guide the students further into the subject. A simple "Yes" or "That's right"
is sufficient.

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Other techniques for eliciting:
1 Give instructions.
"Answer in the past."
2 Use gestures or mime.
Show actions (running), moods (excited) by acting them out.
3 Have the students fill in blanks, graphs or diagrams.
For example, show the meanings of "some of", "many of", "most of" the
students on a chart based on percentage.

4 Give definitions.
"If a man has no friends or family and lives alone, away from
people, what is he?"

5 Use synonyms and antonyms.

"What's the opposite of ‘cheap’? "Take items that have been taught before and have students
use them in role-play or other activities in which they must show mastery of the teaching
point. Have students make lists of previously taught vocabulary for vocabulary bingo or
dictionary.

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6 Use realia.
Bring in a can opener and show it to students.
· "What's this?"
· "What do we use it for?" "How do we use it?"

7 Use visual aids.

Show a picture of a can opener with the same questions. Use a series of stick figures to
demonstrate a series of actions. Show a video and freeze frame a section asking, "What's he
doing?"

"What do you think will happen next?" "What do you think has just happened?"

8 Use prompts.
"Monday is a holiday. Can you tell me about it? What are you planning to do? How do you
celebrate this holiday?"

9 Use review items.

Take items that have been taught before and have students use them in role-play or other
activities where they must show mastery of the teaching point. Have students make lists of
previously taught vocabulary for vocabulary bingo or dictionary.
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How to correct errors
“Mistakes are necessary for life. Some of the world’s greatest discoveries were born of
mistakes.”
We all make mistakes! But what does making a mistake mean in the classroom? Is it a sign
that your student didn't study, is just guessing, or that he/she just forgot? Does it mean your
student is not learning? Does it mean the student is actively trying to figure things out for
him/herself?
Our attitudes toward student errors have changed dramatically over the years. We have
moved 180 degrees from the point of view that mistakes represented a negative side of the
learning process to a very positive point of view that errors are just a part of the learning
process.

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How to correct errors

Errors, most teachers agree, show us that a student is taking risks with the language in the
effort to communicate. Errors tell us, the teacher, where a student is in the development and
are key indicators of what needs to be worked on in class.
Furthermore, when helping students with mistakes, we want to aim the student towards self-
correction, a technique that raises students' awareness about English rather than keeping
the student dependent upon the guidance of the teacher.
So, in the process of helping a student with errors, we want to continue building the self-
confidence of the learner (always encouraging, never discouraging), making the learner
more aware of the language, recognizing the learner's progress, as well as helping the
learner become more proficient in the use of the language.
What are some of the causes of learners' mistakes in the ESL/EFL classroom?

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Some of the causes of learners' mistakes in the ESL/EFL classroom.

1 L1 (Mother Tongue) vocabulary or grammar patterns imitated in English.

This is where students use the forms of their native language in English.

· I want to make a party for you (incorrect verb choice: "have" a party).
· I am here since Tuesday (tense: have been).
· She needs (--) book about irregular verbs (no article: a).

2 L1 syntax used in English

· I him asked why he did that. Pass to me the salt please. The ball to her kicked I.

L1 pronunciation used in English

· I'm going to heat (hit) you if you say that again (long vowel, short vowel confusion).
· Zat (that) is fine wiz (with) me (no voiced "th" sound used).
· The flame (frame) is nice with that picture (no l-r differentiation after a consonant
cluster).

4 False cognates (false friends) cause students to choose words that are
inappropriate in English based on L1 vocabulary. Below are a few examples of false
Spanish/English cognates.

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“Embarazada” means “pregnant”, not “embarrassed”.
“Padres” means parents, not fathers or priests.
“Pretender” means “intend”, not to “pretend”.
“Actual” means “current”, not “actual”.
“Lectura” means “reading matter”, not “lecture”.

Students confuse forms they've studied because the forms haven't been completely
internalized yet, or they try to overuse the newly learned form (over-generalization).

· Did you went skiing last weekend?

· Have you been run for exercise for a long time?
· Do you know who is he?

6 Students are tired and just forget a form that they already know.

· It's cold outside, aren't you?

There is a very good rule of thumb that when you are working on accuracy in English, for
example, when drilling or practicing a new grammar point, you should correct immediately
upon hearing the error.

When you are working on fluency, as when the students are engaged in a role-play or a
discussion, you should correct afterwards. Why interrupt the flow of the activity when the
students are working productively? Take mental notes or write the mistakes down as notes
and deal with them after the activity is finished.

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How do teachers correct?

· You can simply tell the student what the mistake was.
· You can elicit the correct form from another student and then ask for the correct form
again from the first student.
· You can repeat the sentence up to the error and indicate with your voice or a gesture
that the student needs to complete the sentence again because something is wrong.
· You can ask a question (Was one going or were two?).
· You can show by a facial expression that something's not right.
· You can use a one-word question (time?) (future?).
· Combine a gesture with a facial expression.
· Echo the sentence with stress on the error.
· Write the sentence with the error on the board.
· Write a time line on the board.
· Use the phonemic chart to indicate the sound.

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Class levels

There is no official level system that is universally recognized around the world. However,
most schools have some variety of the general description as listed below in 6 to 12 levels.
It's useful for a teacher to become familiar with the system used in the school, as it will give
an idea of where the students are, relatively speaking, in their programs, what they can do in
English, and what they need to focus on. Level systems, however, can be somewhat
subjective, as students have very different backgrounds, strengths, and weaknesses. Some
students will test high in grammar and vocabulary, but low in speaking and listening, and
others will test in a converse fashion, especially in a multilingual classroom. Placement tests
are usually augmented with interviews to aid in the placement of students in a correct level,
but, even then, discrepancies can occur.

Absolute Beginners
These students know no English. They recognize neither written nor spoken forms. If the
alphabet is an issue, it will often appear at this level (though this could occur at other levels
as well).

False Beginners
Upon first impression these students appear to know no English. However, once beginning a
class, it is obvious that they recognize some aspects of the language: phrases, words, and
some written forms. None can communicate in it yet. However, they may cause the
occurrence of two levels in a class for a while if the other students are absolute beginners, as
false beginners may race ahead in comprehension and ability in early lessons.

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2 Beginning Students

These students can use the language to read some signs, comprehend simple instructions,
and respond to simple questions. They can communicate basic ideas, such as greetings and
personal information, such as age, occupation, address, and telephone number. They have
basic understanding of the simple present and present continuous tenses but have not
mastered the differences between the two.

3 High Beginner Students

This level of student can communicate on matters directly related to life but have difficulties
describing anything more than the familiar. They can ask questions on topics with which they
are familiar, but question formation is still a problem in terms of correctness. Verbs "to be"
and "to do" are commonly confused at this level. At this level, a student is usually able to
understand if he/she had been asked a question.

4 Low Intermediate Students

These students are beginning to develop basic competence in spoken English. They can
take care of their day-to-day needs in English and communicate and understand quite a bit
at a simple level. They are able to ask for clarification when they don't understand, though
they are unable to deal with detailed or complex language. Those natively speaking
Germanic and Romance languages will often have an advantage over others at this level in
terms of ability in reading and writing, as they can recognize many cognates that exist in their
native language.

Sometimes students can guess at the meaning, though not always accurately. Students can
use past tenses more comfortably at this stage, but still with considerable correction needed.
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5 Intermediate Students

These students have a good command of all the present tenses and knowledge of the past
tenses but still possess no fluency with these tenses. They will also have some more
information about the present perfect tense but no competency in its application in most
situations. These students can speak not only about personal and most everyday situations
but also work-related situations now as well. Though still making quite a few mistakes, they
have much more confidence in trying to get their ideas across.

6 High Intermediate Students

These students are comfortable with most of the basic structures of the language, the simple
tenses, most of the basic grammatical forms, basic syntax, and common pronunciation
forms, though they still need to help with the former. At this level, they will be introduced to
the major aspects of present perfect and learn to distinguish it from a simple past. They will
also begin work on the conditional and should do quite well with the 1st conditional but will
not master the 2nd or 3rd. They will, however, comprehend the basic idea of these tenses.

7 Advanced Students

These students have command of most areas of the language. They will be quite
comfortable with most of the tenses and the conditional. They may still make some errors in
using, but not understanding the 3rd conditional. They can begin to identify nuances and
infer meaning in some cases. This student, if preparing for college or university, should
succeed in passing his/her TOEFL by the conclusion of this level. Written English should also
be adequate, though often not fluent enough, to allow the student to function in college work.
They will usually need remedial ESL writing classes in college.
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8 Professional Level Students
At this level, students are fully competent in and can handle most aspects of the language in
either a university or job-related setting. Complex language and reading are now a part of the
individual's daily abilities in the language. Errors and misunderstandings do occur but are
usually self-remedied as the individual recognizes the problem when it occurs. In general,
the only problems that remain are in the areas of idiom, slang, and expression, but the
individual is often able to infer their meaning from context or, if not, rapidly find out and
comprehend the meaning by asking for clarification.

9 Bi-Lingual Level
The individual at this point has essentially complete command of the language. Mistakes and
errors are rare because of a lack of knowledge but might result from fatigue or stress. This
individual is aware of the varieties of English and its accents and can deal with them for the
most part as a native speaker might.

Choosing a Text

Like the arrangement of the students' desks/chairs discussed in section 2.1, there are some
situations in which you will be the one who chooses your class text or course book. If the
decision is made for you, then you may still have some voice about which sections to omit or
focus on or what you may add to or include in your classroom presentation. In any case, we
want to consider some of the positive and negative aspects of texts or course books.

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Positive Aspects of Using a Text

1. A text or course book provides a framework for your class. Having to create your own
materials from scratch day after day would be too difficult and time-consuming. Having a text
relieves you of this job, leaving you free to plan your lesson by adding to or omitting from the
offerings of the text.

2. A text provides you with an invaluable tool for the organization of

material, starting at one point and finishing at another. This
sequencing provides your students with a certain sense of where
they are in their program and enhances their confidence in their
learning as they progress through it. Often, texts recycle information
throughout the book, building upon previous lessons to provide
constant review.

3. A text provides a context for the introduction of material. Teaching points need to be
presented within a context in order to show meaning with clarity.

4. A text, in theory, is written by experienced authors who can provide considerable guidance
to the teacher with less experience. It may be to your advantage to follow the text closely
until you've gained the experience to do more on your own.

5. The language is carefully edited to fit the level of the class. This is especially important for
a new teacher who has less experience in this area!

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Negative Aspects of Using a Text

1. Over-dependence on the textbook can be a problem for many teachers. There is nothing
worse than when a teacher begins every class with "Please open your books to page..."

2. Predictability can be a problem when texts follow the same pattern from lesson to lesson.
Boredom can quickly set in when students follow the same routine. As you'll see in lesson
planning, lessons should contain a variety of activities.

3. Does the text always fit the level of your students? As you saw in section 2.6, you may
have mixed levels. In addition, texts may contain some aspects that are too difficult or too
easy for your class.

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Things to Keep in Mind When Choosing and Using a Text

1. From the teacher's perspective:

· Is there a teacher's guide? A lot of ideas and good suggestions for best handling the
material in the text will be found in a guide. Without one, the teacher may at times have
to guess the author's intentions.

· Will you have videos or documentaries to accompany and support the material? Is the
text well-organized, and does it lend itself to lesson planning?

· Is there a listing of the grammar points that are covered?

· Are there helpful appendices to aid self-learning for the students?

· And finally, is it compatible with the teacher's approach in the classroom?

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2. From the students' perspective:

· Is there a student workbook? A lot of valuable ideas for good reinforcement of material
can be invaluable to the teacher and the student alike. Is there an explanation of
grammar material, vocabulary, pronunciation, etc., clear and easy for your students to
understand?

· Are there homework assignments or self-study tasks already set down for your
students?

· Is the design attractive?

· Is it going to keep the interest of your students with its layout?

· Is it in color, with interesting photographs and/or illustrations?

· Are the contents culturally suitable? Will your students find the information interesting
from their interests and needs? Is it affordable?

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3. Good ideas for using your course book or text:

· Select what you want to use. Don't feel obligated to use everything!

· Omit what you don't find useful. Don't use it if it doesn't work!

· Adapt what you have in the book to fit your approach and your students' needs. You
know your class better than anyone else!

· Supplement the main text or course book with your own material.

· Use the teacher's guide. You'll find lots of good ideas there! Be careful to follow the
school's rules. Some schools have specific rules about textbooks and may not allow you
to select, omit, adapt, and supplement.

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Conclusion

Managing your class involves decision-making from you: the teacher.

The teacher who can readily figure out a functioning classroom arrangement, correct errors,
give clear instructions and elicit information efficiently in a pre-planned approach will find that
he/she is also running an active, well-organized classroom.

Understanding the levels of your students and choosing textbooks accordingly, will also
greatly contribute to the smooth conduct of class for your students, who will recognize and
appreciate your efforts and preparedness. Thus, you are making the class a rewarding
experience for both your students and for yourself!

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Instructions:
Well done! You have just completed Lesson 2 of your TEFL course.
Please now return to your TEFL homepage to register for the Lesson 2 Quiz.

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