Dr Bill Rogers - Ensuring a settled and focused class

Summary

Dr. Bill Rogers discusses strategies for teachers to settle and focus their classes, particularly at the beginning of a lesson. Instead of targeting individual students, he suggests using calm, clear, and directional language to address common distractions such as students fiddling with objects or calling out. Dr. Rogers emphasizes the importance of conveying calmness and confidence through both verbal and non-verbal cues. He advises teachers to not engage with ineffective questions or isolated behaviors, but to cue the class as a whole, fostering an environment conducive to learning.

Highlights

• Beginning a lesson calmly is crucial for effective teaching 🎒
• Address class behavior rather than individuals to maintain peace 👀
• Utilize brief, positive cues to guide students’ attention 📢
• Calmness and confidence are key to effective classroom management 🔑
• Fostering an environment of respect and attentiveness through positive language 📚

Key Takeaways

• Use calm and directional language to settle a class 🎯
• Avoid targeting individual students; address the class as a whole 👥
• Descriptive cues paired with directional guidance help maintain focus 🎓
• Convey calmness and confidence in your demeanor 😌
• Aim for a positive, supportive environment instead of authoritative commands 🌟

Overview

In his talk, Dr. Bill Rogers tackles the age-old problem of managing classroom chaos at the beginning of a lesson. His approach moves away from engaging individually with disruptive students and instead focuses on using a calm, collective language approach. He emphasizes not asking rhetorical or accusatory questions, but rather guiding the class with a firm, yet positive tone, which helps in drawing the students' attention back to the lesson.

Rogers highlights the importance of directional and descriptive cues over traditional authoritative demands. When students are distracted, be it by calling out or fiddling with toys, the strategy is to address the behavior generally, providing guidance on what should be done instead. The language used should not single out students but encompass the class as a whole, making the environment feel inclusive rather than punitive.

The core of Dr. Rogers’ method lies in conveying calmness and confidence, both verbally and non-verbally. By modeling these behaviors, teachers can encourage a more settled classroom atmosphere, allowing for a smoother transition into learning. His tips underscore creating a respectful and attentive classroom culture, paving the way for effective teaching and student engagement.

Chapters

• 00:00 - 00:30: Introduction and Understanding Classroom Noise The chapter discusses strategies to manage and reduce classroom noise, particularly at the start of a lesson with a new class. It addresses common challenges such as students calling out or being distracted with objects. The focus is on building effective relationships and establishing control from the beginning to maintain a quiet and conducive learning environment.
• 00:30 - 01:00: Effective Language for Classroom Management The chapter discusses strategies for effective classroom management, particularly in calming and focusing students at the start of the day. It highlights common classroom scenarios such as students being distracted with water bottles or pencil cases, and others calling out or asking questions. The emphasis is on the teacher's challenge to attain a sense of calm and focus, rather than addressing each disruptive behavior individually. Teachers often use general requests for quiet and attention to manage the class as a whole.
• 01:00 - 01:30: Using Directional Language This chapter discusses the importance of using directional language in classroom management. Instead of asking questions or seeking permission, teachers should communicate using calm and clear directives to guide student behavior. The chapter highlights how some teachers might inefficiently ask rhetorical questions, like asking why students are talking, rather than directing them to take specific actions like settling down. The focus is on the effectiveness of straightforward communication to achieve classroom control.
• 01:30 - 02:00: Positive and Descriptive Cueing In this chapter titled 'Positive and Descriptive Cueing,' the focus is on managing classroom behavior using positive reinforcement and clear instructions. The teacher addresses students who are calling out or getting distracted by the window blinds by using specific cues to redirect their attention. The strategy involves asking students to keep their hands down, focus their eyes and ears, and remain attentive to the classroom activities. This approach helps maintain order and ensures that all students are following along with the lesson.
• 02:00 - 02:30: Managing Kinesthetic Distractions This chapter discusses managing kinesthetic distractions in the classroom. Teachers use positive, descriptive, and directing cues to minimize distractions such as students fiddling with blinds or calling out. The emphasis is on calm communication, directing students' attention without explicitly prohibiting behaviors.
• 02:30 - 03:00: Establishing Calmness Before Greetings Establishing calmness before beginning a class involves using calm and clear language to settle students. This means addressing the entire class rather than singling out individual students who may be distracted with items such as water bottles or pencil cases.
• 03:00 - 03:30: Conclusion on Classroom Calmness and Language The chapter discusses classroom management techniques focusing on students' behavior such as fiddling with objects. It highlights the ineffectiveness of questioning students about their behavior and offers an alternative approach involving descriptive and directional cues to manage distractions effectively.

Dr Bill Rogers - Ensuring a settled and focused class Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 [Music] so Bill can you tell us how we can get around that Universal problem of of trying to get a class quiet when they just won't be quiet at the beginning of the lesson well I'm assuming that the question is talking about your beginning relationship with a new class yeah and you've got four five six kids calling out three or four kids filling with objects or whatever little bit like the picture
• 00:30 - 01:00 here you know kidss fiding with water bottles or pencil cases some kids calling out asking you your name you know why you here what's your name and when you've got that much fractious noise the big challenge for the teacher is to get that sense of calming and focus so they can begin the day and rather than pick off any one particular Behavior most teachers will say things like can you please be quiet can you please stop talking will you will you please face the front and listen
• 01:00 - 01:30 and generally a question's not helpful it's not a request you're not asking their permission if they will be quiet and listen if they will face the front if they will stop calling out and you'll see some teachers um no offense they'll say things like what did I just say didn't I just ask you to be quiet why are you still talking now when we're trying to settle a class it's far better to use directional language calm clear directional language as we scan the eyes of the group something like settling down everyone settling down things
• 01:30 - 02:00 several students are still calling out hands down for now so several kids are still calling out in class rather than try to answer any one of those kids we'll cue them in CU we'll cue them in all right several students are calling out hands down for now and eyes and ears this way thanks so again bringing back to the eyes and ears this way if several kids are fiding with the window blinds uh fellas you're fing with the window blinds it's really distracting yeah eyes and ears this way thanks yeah leave the blinds think and
• 02:00 - 02:30 eyes and ears this way so each of those brief queuing those cue those brief queuing are very positive we're not saying don't fiddle with the blinds don't call out we're saying a number of students are calling out you need to be looking this way and listening fellas you're fiddling with the blind so you're describing what they're doing you need to be looking this way and listening things so in the sense of the describing and directing cues the teacher is very conscious of keeping it calm but
• 02:30 - 03:00 positive while still queuing the rest of the class to settle look and listen so the use of language calm clear language which is easier said than done of course is the challenge when you're settling a class but not to try to pick off any one student or three or four students if it's if four or five kids were fiddling with objects like you know water bottles pencil cases key Rings or whatever rather than say you should shouldn't be playing with those things
• 03:00 - 03:30 or why are you fiddling with a pencil case or why are you being silly with a water bottle which are always pointless questions we would say to the whole class A number of students are fiddling with objects not all because it's not all a number of students are fiddling with objects it is really distracting eyes and ears this way think so again the brief descriptive cue a number of students are and the strong directional cue you need to be and and as the teach is doing those
• 03:30 - 04:00 brief cues th those little nip and Tuck cues as it were trying to find that little break in the kinesthetic traffic as the class starts to settle down commensurate with the teacher's calmness the teacher will then and only then say thank you you're much more relaxed now good morning I won't even say good morning to a really restless class until I feel their returned calmness to me but as the teacher leader it's my responsibility Q cue that
• 04:00 - 04:30 calmness by the kind of language including non-verbal cues of course that I'm sending out to the class and the underlying theme of that is the ability to convey calmness on the one hand confident calmness not cocky or arrogant Calas and the ability to use language in a positive way [Music]