When teaching English as a foreign language, one of the most important aspects is maintaining control of your classroom. By doing this, you ensure that all of your students are engaged and learning. However, in some cases, this may be difficult as some students may cause a ruckus. That is why we have put together this list of classroom management tips.

Establish your authority

Depending on the class and the ages, some students tend to act up and challenge your authority as the teacher. Although it may be uncomfortable to some, it is best to be strict in the beginning and loosen up as the semester continues. When you start as an authority figure, it will be easier to have your students listen to you.

Establish classroom rules

During the first few classes, work with the students to write down a list of classroom rules that everyone agrees to. By doing this, you will enable students to feel responsible for them. In addition, it will ensure that the students will know what constitutes appropriate behavior in your classroom.

Reward Good Behavior

When you are playing games or asking questions, it is important to reward good behavior. This can be in the form of praise, or if you are feeling generous, perhaps even a candy! This will encourage students to participate and engage further with the material.

Build Relationships

Getting to know your students, their strengths, weaknesses, and what they enjoy will help you to engage with them. They will feel that you truly connect and care for them and are more likely to pay attention and learn in class.

Have a way to get your student’s attention

When the class gets too loud or rowdy, it will not help to try to yell over them. Instead, establish a saying or clap to get everyone’s attention. This will save your voice and is a fun way for the class to refocus.

Assign seating

In some cases, students may not be disturbing the class, however, it will be clear that they are not listening or learning. This is most likely because they are distracted by talking to their friends. One way to combat this is to have assigned seating. When the semester progresses and you notice which students need the most help, you can seat them in the first row. Furthermore, if students are acting up, you can seat them in the first row.

Each class and student is different and calls for various actions to be taken. These are simply a few things to help you with your classroom management.

What do you do to manage your class?