Kentucky Middle School Teachers' Greatest Classroom Management Issues: Revealed

Last month I had the privilege to present at the Kentucky Middle School Association Conference. During my session, I posed the question, "What are your greatest classroom management issues?"

Here's what Kentucky teachers had to say:
1. Class size
2. Calling out*
3. Gifted and talented students in mixed ability classes- boredom leads to disruption (One Size Does not Fit All)
4. Group work disorganization*
5. Transitions*
6. Irrelevant comments*
7. Side conversations*
8. Off-task behavior*
9. Student disorganization*
10. Consistency as a team/school*
11. Disrespect*
12. Motivation*
13. Differentiation
14. Establishing routines and procedures*


And here is my attempt to help solve one we did not tackle in the session:

Gifted and Talent Students: Idle Minds...We give it our all every day to make certain no child is left behind, but in doing so, are we leaving our gifted students bored out of their minds and suffocating their intellectual growth?

Some schools offer Honors classes, enabling us to provide these students with the challenging curriculum they need and deserve. But what about those that don't?

Our school is not only taking on this issue, we're pursuing it full force through Rigor and Relevance. Through inquiry learning, where students are presented with tasks where they learn by doing, rather than listening to the teacher, all are able to learn. Providing higher level questioning, opportunities for discovery, and a more hand-on approach for all, boredom is negated, and no child is left behind.

Give an example, you cry? When teaching modes of writing, maybe instead of giving students passages to read and asking them to tell if it is a persuasive, expository, or descriptive piece, you ask them to listen to samples of songs on the internet and find one containing lyrics for each mode of writing. Talk about high interest.

When teaching formal vs. informal writing, instead of reading students formal and informal passages, why not give them lyrics to a popular rap song (clean version, of course) and as a class, model writing it formally? Then allow them to choose a song of their own and write it in formal language. Music is an underused tool in motivating students to learn.

In Social Studies, instead of lecturing on Federalists and Antifederalists, why not hold a debate? Divide your students into two teams, the Federalists and the Antifederalists. They then choose someone to represent their party (Jefferson or Hamiliton,) then conduct research to support their positions. My kids elected to do so in costume, which took more time, but they had a ball.

Hope this helps!

* Starred items listed above are addressed in my new book The Middle School Classroom: Rx for Success. available via this link: http://www.baywestpublishing.com