The purpose of the Workshop was to share observations over several months of the classroom teaching and management of colleagues in order to provide more effective support and direction as required.
A short presentation followed on routines (see power point slides, attached) and three particular kinds that could enhance classroom practice: professional routines, management routines, pedagogical routines. The observable characteristics of non-functional classrooms were shared adding examples from recent experience.
Teachers present made helpful comments of their own to explain shared observations. One reported on the sheer immensity of the load: teaching 12 classes of 450 learners. Teaching all the grade 9s with the significant challenges that comes with this group (and the grade 8s).
Another was the challenge of being drawn down to the level of the difficult learners, which one teacher was clear she would not do. ‘When you become like them, they listen to you.’ But that harsh, rude, loud behavior was not desirable for this colleague.
Several teachers were clear that it was a relatively small group of learners per class or grade that caused the chaos and disruption. If they were dealt with effectively, it would make the job of teachers much easier to execute.
Then another important consideration: ‘I don’t have the time for doing the admin for managing unruly learners.’ It is a forgotten burden on teachers, a distraction that takes away time from teaching to do the paperwork required for dealing with difficult learners.
What increases the burden of managing disruptive learners is that the school is slow in taking firm and decisive action against those who are identified and reported as troublesome in the classroom and in school e.g., rampant drug use.
The question was however posed: what explains the success of other teachers in managing effective routines in their classrooms. One teacher conceded on the consistency of a colleague in how she deals with learners and manages her classroom. In other words, it would be too easy to simply externalize the problem of ineffective and non-functional classrooms because others do very well with the same classes.
Several suggestions were made to assist teachers to manage effective routines in their classrooms:
1. Have regular assemblies to impress on learners the values of the school and the importance of good behaviour.
2. Deal with the problem of drugs in school e.g., regular and unexpected drug tests.
3. Apply a differentiated disciplinary regime for different offences e.g., drug use versus lesser offences.
4. Expedite the removal of severely disruptive learners before (recent) crises emerge.
5. Isolate the regular troublemakers e.g., Mark’s recent grade 9 assembly.
6. Support supervising teachers with learner work etc.
7. Produce a booklet for every learner with all the essential information about the school including the code of conduct.
8. Generate support for learners who struggle e.g., examination support for those who are slow in reading or writing.
9. Reintroduce (paid) assistants on the field.
10. Invite ongoing classroom visits to assist participating teachers (three asked me to do so: Schoeman, Jacobs, Botha). Will do so immediately.
