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Classroom Management Philosophy

Michelle Lantz

Department of Education, College of Southern Nevada

EDU 240: Introduction to Classroom Management

Professor Theri Wyckoff, M.S.

May 9, 2021
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Classroom Management Philosophy

Three different theories I have chosen for my classroom management philosophy are

Jones, Glasser, and Marshall. The reason I have chosen these three theories are that I believe

they go together well to create a solid, workable classroom management plan.

Jones’s Theory

Jones’s theory for classroom management focuses on keeping students fully engaged in

learning while teaching them to follow directions on their own. Jones recommends that teachers

conserve time by establishing a structure of rules, routines, and responsibility training (Charles

C.M., & Cole K.M. 2018, p.175). He wants teachers to arrange their classroom seating so there

are generous walkways to use to move among the students and interact with them. Jones believes

in giving each student a classroom chore, if possible, to help them gain responsibility.

I plan on including parts of Jones’s theory in my classroom management plan. The idea

of arranging the seating, so that I will be able to freely walk among my students, is very inspiring

to me. I want to be able to monitor and interact with all my students. If possible, I will assign

each of my students a classroom job that will be rotated among them. I think this will help my

students feel like the classroom belongs to all of us and it will help develop personal

responsibility. Jones emphasizes a teaching approach he calls Say, See, Do Teaching (Charles

C.M., & Cole K.M. 2018, p.178) that I am interested in using. I believe by using this method, my

students will remain engaged and will learn the lesson that I’m teaching.

Elements of Jones’s Theory

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(Charles C.M., & Cole K.M. 2018, pp.175-178)

• Conserve time and don’t allow students to waste it.

• Arrange class seating to facilitate active teaching and close proximity to students.

• Assign your students specific responsibilities in caring for the classroom.

• Keep your students actively engaged in learning.

Glasser’s Theory

Glasser’s theory is to “Provide positive conditions that help students meet their needs and

influence students, without coercion, to conduct themselves responsibly and do high quality

work” (Charles C.M., & Cole K.M. 2018, p.198). Some of Glasser’s basic concepts include some

students do poor work or no work at all, the curriculum needs to be useful, engaging, and

relevant to the students, and our behavior is our attempt to meet our basic needs.

I chose to use some of Glasser’s strategies because I agree that a curriculum that is full of

memorizing facts, that are irrelevant to the students, will not help them learn the material. I plan

on following Glasser’s recommendations and have a warm, safe environment, have my students

do work that is useful to their lives, and have my students do the best work possible. I want to be

a quality teacher that builds strong relationships with my students and provides them with the

best education I can give them.

Elements of Glasser’s Theory

(Charles C.M., & Cole K.M. 2018, p. 207)

• Know your students and begin to build and maintain strong supportive relationships with

them.
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• Work with students to establish standards of conduct in the classroom.

• Show interest in students and, when appropriate, ask them, “What might I do to help?”

• Hold classroom meetings to explore what students like and dislike about the class. Show

them you are willing to change what they dislike if you can.

Marshall’s Theory

Marshall’s theory for classroom management is very interesting to me and I agree with

what he believes. Charles C.M., & Cole K.M. 2018 writes his beliefs as follows:

Marshall believes classroom management improves significantly when students are

helped to increase their personal level of responsibility, which occurs naturally when internal

motivation is activated. Teachers can activate internal motivation, he says, by consistently

working with students as follows: (1) Teach and practice procedures, (2) Infuse positivity into

communications, (3) Empower students by giving choices, and (4) Learn to ask reflective

questions to influence students rather than trying to force obedience. In this chapter, you will see

how these four processes improve both teaching and learning. (p.221)

In my class, I will be proactive instead of reactive when dealing with misbehavior. I will

make plans on how to deal with misbehavior, if it occurs, and not wait for it to happen. I will

focus more on procedures, instead of rules, and teach them early on so that my students know

what is expected of them. I will also use Marshall’s recommendation to be friendly and positive

with my students and provide them with the support they need.

Elements of Marshall’s Theory

(Charles C.M., & Cole K.M. 2018, p.224)

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• Inspire responsible behavior.

• Emphasize the importance of procedures.

• Create a tone of positivity.

• Teach and inspire, rather than coerce.

• Clarify your expectations.

I chose to use parts of Jones’s, Glasser’s and Marshall’s classroom management

recommendations because I feel they will work with my teaching style and my want of having a

positive classroom. I feel that school must be a positive place for children, and they need to

enjoy being there. If they enjoy coming to school, there will be less misbehavior and more

learning.
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References

Charles C. M., & Cole K. M. (2018). Building Classroom Management. [VitalSource Bookshelf].

Retrieved from https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/#/books/9780134448480/