Behaviour Management in Schools – 5 Tips For Teachers

Every teacher will at some point in their career face challenges when tackling behaviour management in schools. This article was written by a teacher named Elena Diaz and it offers some fantastic tips to help you to form a solid behaviour management strategy.

I remember observing proper teachers in my training year and feeling immensely frustrated that they seemed to achieve excellent classroom behaviour without having to move a finger. Students would come in, settle down quickly, show interest in the lesson and never test the boundaries. 

They were both docile and inquisitive. The teacher, in the meantime, would never have to raise their voice or apply consequences. 

They all seemed to have a ‘magic touch’ that students responded to. I realise now, after many years in the classroom, that it wasn’t magic I was witnessing, but a lot of subtle and very skillful school behaviour management techniques.

If you are new to the profession, when it comes to disruption, it can feel sometimes that you are not in control of how students behave. This is of course, partly true, but not entirely. 

There are a number of ways in which you can tackle poor behaviour before it happens.

In this article, I will explore a number of ways in which you can prevent instances of poor behaviour in school or deal with low-level disruption using my favourite kind of behaviour management – the silent kind.

Behaviour Management in Schools – Prevention Is better Than The Cure 

My theory is that, when it comes to behaviour management in schools, you can eliminate a large percentage of issues before they happen. Here are a few ideas that work for me:

 1. Set The Tone For The Lesson

Stand at the door as students come in. Welcome them individually with a smile. Only students who are ready to come in (displaying good uniform and behavior) get your welcome. 

Where there is attention-seeking behaviour, talk over it and continue teaching initially, to convey the message that the interruptions aren’t worth your attention. If it persists, deal with it.

The others are non-verbally asked to stand to one side. They will soon realise what’s required to come into your room.

Have everything you need ready before the lesson. If this is difficult, simplify your lessons.

Where there is attention-seeking behaviour, talk over it and continue teaching initially, to convey the message that the interruptions aren’t worth your attention. If it persists, deal with it.

2. Plan For Good Behaviour

Plan for good pace and clear progression, so students are engaged and stimulated at all times.

Plan for simple activities that require little explanation, set-up and intervention. Once students are trained in good behaviour, you can start to take more risks.

Give meaningful objectives quickly.

Plan so that there is no dead time in the lesson. How will you deal with early finishers? Can they self-test? Can they support others?

Have a repertoire of calming, uplifting activities ready to use when students are in a negative mood (quick written tests with immediate feedback, short written puzzles, etc).

Check / collect homework, detentions and do any other admin at the end of the lesson, not at the beginning.

Tell students clearly what you want them to do. Avoid “Don’t… !” and “Why are you…?”. They invite discussion and further disruption.

3. Good Behaviour Management In Schools requires Teaching Good Behaviour

Dedicate time to clarify to yourself and to your students what your expectations are in every part of the lesson. Design the routines you want for your classes and teach them to your students explicitly. Offer them plenty of structured practice before you require them to follow your routines independently.

Talk about rules regularly at the beginning of the lesson for the first few weeks.

Tell students clearly what you want them to do. Avoid “Don’t… !” and “Why are you…?”. They invite discussion and further disruption.

4. Manage Behaviour Issues Swiftly

Deal with a behaviour as soon as you spot it and escalate your reactions.

Give short, step-by-step instructions. Stop after every step and check that they are being followed. Don’t move on until every student has complied.

Don’t deal fully with incidents when you should be teaching. Tell the student you will speak to them after the lesson.

If there are too many instances of disruption, be prepared to stop the lesson and have a calm word with the class. Outline expectations and consequences and follow through.

Tactical avoidance is a valid behaviour management technique to use in schools, but use it sparingly.

5. Behaviour Management in Schools Requires Consistency

Use the school’s referral system every time.

Never give up when chasing incidents up.

Record incidents. Let students watch you do this. Attach consequences to them.

Award achievement points or comments too.

Escalating Your Reactions

Making use of a full range of reactions can be a very effective way to avoid whole-class disruption. In fact, one of the most powerful tools in my school behaviour management portfolio is my teacher stare (number one of my list of reactions) and saying the student’s name. 

Reactions 1-4 have saved me thousands of interruptions to lessons over the years.

As a young teacher, I would write this on the palm of my hand when I knew I was going to have a class that would demand a lot of my attention. They were an embedded routine before long.

1. Make eye contact with students.
2. Say the student’s name.
3. Tell the student what they are doing: “You are talking while I am trying to speak to the class.”
4. Ask students to remind the class of the rule: “What’s the rule about talking when I am talking to the class?”
5. Announce consequences for the student if they choose to continue with the behaviour.
6. Move seats if possible.
7. Isolation.
8. 5-minute removal.
9. Removal to a different classroom.
10. SLT removal.

Something works every time, but nothing works all the time

We will all face difficult behaviour when teaching our classes. It’s important to remember that it’s okay to struggle with behaviour management in school, and that it is also fine to ask for help. So, when everything fails, find someone you can trust who can help you with a student or a class and who can help you find your way. We’ve all done it.