Practice Goals
Universal Teacher Classroom Management Practices are management techniques and programs for use in K–12 classrooms that aim to teach prosocial behaviors in order to reduce or prevent inappropriate or aggressive behaviors of students. These practices are considered universal because they are delivered to all students in a classroom, regardless of student risk factors.
Practice Theory
Classroom management practices typically focus on establishing a positive and supportive classroom environment to facilitate social–emotional learning and appropriate student behavior. Preventive activities, such as setting and teaching class rules and routines, and providing reinforcement for appropriate behavior are important to classroom organization and management because they establish student expectations and serve to increase appropriate student behavior.
Practice Activities/Services Provided
Oliver, Wehby, and Reschly’s (2011) review of universal teacher classroom-management practices identified three examples of programs, each focusing on elements of the classroom environment and techniques for proactive, prosocial student involvement. The three examples are the Classroom Organization and Management Program, classroom management strategies, and multicomponent treatments.
The Classroom Organization and Management Program (COMP) is a professional development program for K–12 teachers that focuses on the following four principles: 1) effective classroom management is proactive, not reactive; 2) management and instruction are connected in effective classrooms; 3) students are active participants; and 4) teachers work together to help each other. COMP training modules focus on the physical classroom organization, planning and teaching classroom rules and routines, managing student work and encouraging student accountability, maintaining and reinforcing good student behavior, planning and organizing learning activities, conducting and maintaining student interest in classroom curricula, and planning for the school year (Classroom Organization and Management Program 2012).
Classroom-management strategies may involve games (i.e. Good Behavior Game) that include assigning students to work in teams, in which each individual is responsible to the rest of his or her team for its success. It is understood that the entire team will be rewarded if they are found to be in compliance with classroom rules. Before the game begins, teachers clearly specify those disruptive behaviors (e.g., verbal and physical disruptions, noncompliance) that, if displayed, will result in a team’s receiving a checkmark on the board. Team members are encouraged to support each other’s efforts at appropriate behavior. By the end of the game, teams that have not exceeded the maximum number of marks are rewarded; teams that exceed this standard receive no rewards (Ialongo et al. 1999).
Multicomponent treatments include teacher training in classroom management, problem solving, and interactive teaching as well as training parents. Teachers are trained on proactive classroom management methods involving the use of frequent encouragement and praise. Children are taught through a social skills curriculum to consider different solutions to social problems. Through an interactive teaching component, children have to master the subject matter before they are able to progress through the program. Finally, a parent training component is included.
