10. Interacting just with those seating at the front

We all know the benefits of flexible seating in students’ learning. Yet, this is not always possible. Large classes are still common in many schools where teachers struggle to cover their lesson plans and have no choice over the seating arrangement of their classes.

Students always sit in rows, even if the task they’re involved in necessitates their interaction and collaboration.

I was among those students who did not have the chance to experience flexible seating because of the same issue (large classes). I always preferred to stay at the front because this made a great difference to my learning.

Staying at the back, I felt ignored by my teachers who did not move in our direction and ask us the simplest question’ How are you getting on with learning my subject ?’

Even their eye contact was centred around those sitting at the front. So, when I raised my hand to participate I barely had the chance to say a word.

I refused to sit at the back and my teachers accused me of being disobedient. They could not understand that sitting there affected my attention, motivation and learning rate because of their attitudes.

So, whatever class size and seating arrangement you have, try to interact with all students and encourage them to get involved. Besides, have one-to-one interaction with them. Let them speak in turn, listen to their inquiries, monitor their progress and provide them with the necessary help. You can also do this after classes so that you have time for all of them.

11. Being inconsistent

It’s so important to set classroom routines and procedures from the beginning of the school year to manage more effectively your classroom. Besides, clarifying them through modelling and practice can help your students figure out why and how they need to implement them to achieve the intended objectives.

However, it’s your consistency or ability to maintain those classroom rules over the course of time that matters most. Because it shows how interested and firm you are in applying them to keep up order in your classes.

In fact, consistency is a common issue among teachers. This can be due to different reasons: teachers’ desire to be more flexible and less rigid, finding it tough to keep up with those rules after getting no support from the administration and/or parents….

Whatever reason lies behind it, not being consistent is what contributes often to students’ disruptive behaviours in the classroom. Because it shows that the teacher is not professional and thus trustworthy.

Therefore, before setting any classroom routines and procedures we need to think carefully about their relevance and convenience.

12. Getting more embarrassed instead of taking it easy

There are different embarrassing situations teachers experience in the classroom: falling down, mispronouncing a student’s name, not knowing how to fix an issue with a tech device, or dealing with the unexpected, etc.

If you let those feelings of embarrassment and anxiety take over you, you’re likely not to be proactive and thus you’ll lose your control.

Because the world of teaching is full of ambiguity you have to expect the unexpected. Even when your expectations are not met, you should not beat yourself up and get frustrated. Take it easy. This can happen to all of us.

So, we shouldn’t get angry, shout at our students, and drain our energy after falling down in front of them and hearing their giggles! This is normal. We may fall at home, outside, and also at school.

And when this happens to you in front of your students laugh with them (though you feel hurt), pick yourself up and carry on what you were already doing or want to do as if nothing happened (in case it is not serious).

Also, don’t panic when a tech device does not work as you’ve expected, stop wasting your time and energy struggling with it just to escape from your students’ eyes and sarcastic remarks.

Instead, ask their help if they are tech-savvy or simply change the activity. Then check it later to explore further the issue.

So, there is nothing wrong with experiencing those embarrassing classroom situations because this is what constitutes the challenge of teaching, of being proactive and learning through reflecting.

It’s the way we handle them that does matter, besides their effect on our emotions, mood, and decisions as teachers.

13. Not seeking the why

We often get into conflict with students because of our beliefs and perceptions which we rely on to interpret their attitudes in the classroom and make assertions regarding who they are.

When a student disturbs us; by chatting in class, coming late, not doing the work, staying on task, or with any other disruptive behaviour, we immediately consider him not serious and interested in learning with us.

We make such judgments without trying to seek the reason for his attitudes. Why?

Because we tend to see the student just as a student who has to comply with the school regulations and not as an individual who may have also problems outside school.

Before making any decisions we should first talk individually to the student to understand the ‘why’ of his disruptive behaviour. Communicating is key to exploring any issue he is experiencing.

I know you’re going to tell me there are students who live well with their parents and come to school just to disturb their teachers and have some fun. That’s true.

But, even for those students, we need to find out about the reason. Maybe the issue is with us: what we’re doing or the way we’re doing it does not fit their learning needs and/or styles.

Maybe it was the teacher of last year, that previous learning experience had a negative impact on the student’s interest and motivation to learn. His friends, those he spends most of his time with have influenced his vision of learning…

So, always seek the why you’ll learn a lot about your students and make the right decisions to manage more effectively your classroom.