I think it’s essential to address any issues at the onset to avoid further problems down the road. Reminding students of the course policies and being consistent and fair with all students will avoid being overwhelmed by disruptive students.
I like the idea of letting students vent and taking notes. Also the idea of a written complaint is a good idea. Most of them won't take the time to write things out.
I have learned that even though it may be hard to do and a rare situation, a time may come when you have to remove a student from your course for the good of the class.
This was an engaging module because of the alternatives to working with cheating students and prevention.
Management styles are very helpful with difficult students
The section of this module that I found to be most applicable was monitoring the classroom. The eight suggestive steps of creating a positive learning environment, keeping problems small, reinforcing positive student behavior, keeping students on task, maintaining a strong connection with every student, helping students focus on learning outcomes, removing learning barriers, and providing more individual instruction could all be applied in my classroom. Understanding that monitoring student behavior is intended to help you respond to behavior, not police it. Understanding this concept will help reduce the potential for inappropriate behavior.
I will listen to my students and allow them to vent.
i learned how to manage student behavior. If a student is disrupting the class the best situation would be to remove them to help others learn in a better environment.
I do have a student with such disruptive behavior and I have advised her, verbal and written as well. I have all documentation of the conversations I just hope she realizes that her conduct is afecting her learning and everyone else in the class.
I found many tips helpful in this module; to let students vent, expect they may be experiencing something outside of the school environment which may contribute to their behaviors, ask them to explain a situation and solutions for improvement, expect cheating, one who cheats in other courses will most likely cheat in your course, and cheat on objective test so add in case studies and narratives to help divert student's who cheat.
What I've found most helpful in terms of student development, and what this course mentions, is the elimination of a final exam at the end of the module. I've found that most students would call themselves "bad test takers," although their problem really lies in the fact that they are anxious of subjects only covered for a few hours a week. It is easy to have lost information through the cracks of a rapid placement program, and so having to recap the current problems on hand, instead of mountains of information, helps resolve a lot of the anxiety in testing, as well as makes the task of examination much more feasible. I'd also mention here that this does not develop a selective bias in subject areas. Students will recall information learned in the absence of an exam due to their overall lack of anxiety.
The ultimate disciplinary response is to remove a student from the class. The same goes in the employment world students are signed up to enter. However, as instructors, class leaders or managers, it is incumbent for instructors to be resourceful in making every reasonable effort to help a student recover from their woes. Some students might be experiencing external struggles that lead to diminished performance in class. This could be academic performance or episodes of bad behavior. In most instances, the students we are guiding towards becoming productive citizens, are young and lack maturity and critical thinking skills. In this regard, dismissal from class is a very last resort and all efforts applied to assist in recovery should be meticulously documented. On the other hand, extreme issues such as fighting, bullying other students, or civil disobedience that is unacceptable in local, state and federal laws must be quickly addressed. In many instances, it might be best for the student as they might not recognize that they are on the wrong path.
Learning how to identify the different types of behaviors in learners
I really liked the idea of a student submitting a written complaint, that way I have a paper trail, I have down what the student is saying they need or not getting and I can address those concerns legitimately.
From this module, I have learned the importance of monitoring the various types of students that I may encounter (silent, angry, cheater, etc).
I learned something that will help with students, this was not in the module but if others read it will help too. Ask the angry student: Do you want to vent or do you want solutions. You can tell when a child is having a hard time and having that rapport with them allows you to know who they are as a person. If the frequent flyers are having the disruptions get to know them the most. It helps. Sometimes it can be hard to be calm with them but having consistency throughout the classes is key.
I learned that monitoring your students a great thing to do. It helps you to give insight about how the teach and how they learn.
I like the suggestion to tally how often I engage with each student daily. That will help me connect with those who just take up less space in the class. I also have found angry students to be my most challenging and stressful students. I appreciated the suggestions to listen and take notes, and also to provide an opportunity for them to submit a written complaint.
With my angry students or might I say my students that usually want to act out and keep all attention on them, I usually try to include them in all activities and have more one on one conversations and this usually allows them to know that I care and I don' have as many problems with them.
I plan on using this information first by setting clear expectations. If everyone knows what is expected, when they have disruptive behavior, it's easier to back it up. And also it is important to listen to all students and make all of them feel valued and important, even the quite ones.
